Products · Broad category
Note-taking apps
Raised as a usability problem by 52 people on Hacker News over 18 years (2008–2025), in 46 threads.
This is a broad category rather than one product, so its issues aren't ranked on the home page.
No issue was raised by at least 3 people in 3 threads this year.
No issue was raised by at least 3 people in 3 threads in the last 5 years.
Every issue, all time, most people first
Notes scattered across many places, so people keep searchingUnreviewed
20082026- Search silently stopped returning older notes, discovered only by frustration2021-02-22
- Notes forced into one folder causes analysis paralysis and hard-to-find notes2020-06-04
- Forces users to organize notes into linked pages2018-07-15
Drawing diagrams and formatting matrices slows note-takingUnreviewed
20082026- Digital note apps feel restrictive for quickly formatting notes and drawing diagrams2017-12-30
- Drawing diagrams, flow charts and arrows on a computer is a nightmare2017-01-23
- Formatting matrices and drawing diagrams on the computer is slow and distracting while taking notes2014-08-06
Unreviewed issues were grouped by machine: Claude Haiku labelled each comment as a usability complaint, named what it's about and summed up the problem in a line, and a small model grouped similar problems. Nobody has checked them by hand. Expect mistakes.
The newest 50 complaints
- Mobile floating toolbar blocks reading the text just written2025-12-09
- Clunky buttons and limiting software stop users writing what they want2025-08-12
- Notes app scanning feels clunky and the Files app scanner is hard to discover2024-09-18
- Chatlog doesn't auto-scroll, so the last entered note isn't visible2024-07-10
- Note apps take too long to open and start writing, especially on slow connections2024-07-10
- Can't find what they want; too many organizational options make it messy2024-03-13
- Splash screen overlaps text and day/calendar controls don't work2023-12-22
- Unidentified note-taking app silently lost the user's notes after a weekend2023-12-18
- Everything is crammed into a hamburger menu, so features are hard to find2023-12-09
- Switching to note app means navigating many tabs and icons, losing place2023-10-25
- Pasting passwords is blocked, forcing users to use a keystroke-simulating password manager2023-08-29
- Note-taking systems feel second-class on mobile compared to desktop2023-06-19
- Organise-first design demands too much mental effort, making capture hard2022-11-23
- Other note-taking apps are too high-friction to capture quick thoughts2022-07-27
- Most note apps are cluttered, IDE-like editors, too heavy for quick notes2022-06-01
- Keyword search misses synonyms and only finds exact text matches2022-02-14
- Takes too long to write something down and find it later2021-12-23
- Taking notes in dedicated note apps involves more friction than messaging oneself2021-12-23
- Without drag and drop image support, the commenter stops using the app for thought dumps2021-06-30
- Note apps use lock-in dark patterns and lazy development that make notes hard to access2021-06-17
- Images must be put in a separate media folder, which is awkward2021-03-17
- Heavyweight IDE-like note apps make starting a quick note cumbersome, taking over the whole screen2021-03-17
- Search silently stopped returning older notes, discovered only by frustration2021-02-22
- Dissatisfied with every note taking app, so the commenter built a custom workflow2020-11-29
- Exporting all notes in a standard format is hard to impossible2020-07-19
- Notes seem to disappear or show wrong content when switching editors on mobile2020-07-19
- Notes forced into one folder causes analysis paralysis and hard-to-find notes2020-06-04
- Tagging and embedding features distract and create extra work, with fiddly styling2020-04-04
- Search on note apps matches literal text, so results are cluttered with unrelated items2020-01-29
- Font's a and o look similar enough to misread text2019-10-25
- Users cannot tell how to start typing; app opens as a viewer not an editor2018-11-19
- Unclear where to type; cursor doesn't default to text area, no visible border2018-11-19
- Couldn't figure out how to create a new note; too many clicks and features shown2018-10-15
- Note-taking apps are not easy enough to use everywhere, so the commenter abandons them2018-07-16
- Forces users to organize notes into linked pages2018-07-15
- Pasting keeps formatting by default, so users must remember a different paste shortcut2018-05-10
- Finding a thought requires searching across half a dozen apps and tabs2018-05-09
- Digital note apps feel restrictive for quickly formatting notes and drawing diagrams2017-12-30
- Electron note apps are laggy and cause more frustration than they solve2017-12-27
- Todo apps don't sync with calendars, and organizing things later is hard2017-07-18
- Clicking Get started doesn't lead to naming the note; input field is hard to recognise2017-04-04
- Drawing diagrams, flow charts and arrows on a computer is a nightmare2017-01-23
- Dismissing help notification spawns another identical help dialog; autosave error appears for untitled notes2015-04-27
- Typed keystrokes appear about 500ms late, making typing feel slow2015-03-31
- Couldn't exit a box because the close X was not obvious2015-03-31
- Formatting matrices and drawing diagrams on the computer is slow and distracting while taking notes2014-08-06
- Quick notes get blocked by auto-opening, already-open, or slow-to-create note screens, causing frustration2013-09-28
- Generalized note software frustrates people whose structuring needs differ2013-09-19
- BUY button not prominent and no buy button at page end, forcing scrolling back up2012-04-20
- Writing runs out of space quickly, forcing the user to hunt for empty space to continue2009-12-16