How to Lower Your Evernote Costs
2026 Cost Reduction Guide
Current Pricing
Evernote costs $12.99 per month as of February 2026.
Evernote Premium does not negotiate on price. You can downgrade from your account settings.
You can downgrade plans or cancel entirely through your account settings. No negotiation available.
Before you pay — do you already have Evernote?
Evernote is included free (or heavily discounted) with these plans. Check if you're double-paying:
Standalone product — includes No bundles
Evernote is not bundled with other services. Free tier severely limited to 50 notes. Consider Notion (free) or Obsidian (free) as alternatives.
What Happens When You Cancel Evernote
How to cancel
Account Settings → Billing → Cancel subscription
Steps (2 screens)
- 1Log in to evernote.com
- 2Go to Account Settings → Billing
- 3Click Cancel subscription
- 4Or cancel through Google Play/PayPal if subscribed there
What they'll try to keep you
In-flow discount offer?
❌ No
Win-back email after?
✅ Yes
Access after cancel
Downgrades to free tier (50 notes, 1 notebook limit)
Your data
Notes retained but access limited to 50 notes on free tier
Free tier now limited to 50 notes. Export notes before downgrading if you have more. Notion and Obsidian are free alternatives.
You can lower your Evernote costs by using the free tier, switching to annual billing, or trying an open-source alternative. At $12.99/month, Evernote adds up to $155.88 per year — but most subscribers pay more than they need to. Here are the best strategies to reduce what you spend on Evernote in 2026.
Quick Wins
Evernote Subscription
Note-taking and organization platform.
Evernote Price History
Tracking: Evernote Starter (annual)
| Date | Price |
|---|---|
| 2022-01 | $69.99 |
| 2025-01 | $99.00 |
| 2026-03 | $99.00 |
This service has increased its price significantly. Consider locking in an annual plan or negotiating a retention discount to hedge against future increases.
Price forecast
Evernote has aggressively hiked prices while gutting the free tier. Migration to Notion or Obsidian is common.
Best time to subscribe
Don't — Notion (free) or Obsidian ($0 desktop) offer better value. Only subscribe if deeply locked into Evernote ecosystem.
How to Pay Less for Evernote
Save up to $12.99/month with these proven strategies
Hidden Discounts (1)
Annual Premium: approximately 10% cheaper than monthly
All Premium subscribers
Apply nowPlan Downgrade Opportunity
Evernote Free is sufficient for casual note-taking. Premium mainly useful for power users needing unlimited sync and advanced search.
- 2 devices sync
- Basic search
- 2GB storage per month
- Unlimited device sync
- Advanced search
- 10GB storage per month
Free Alternatives (2)
Notion Free
More modern alternative with unlimited pages and blocks for free
Microsoft OneNote
Free note-taking app included with Microsoft ecosystem
Best Strategy:
Use Notion Free or Microsoft OneNote instead → save $12.99/mo or use annual Evernote ($116/year)
Do I actually need this paid productivity tool?
Use this framework to evaluate whether Evernote is worth keeping.
Using 3+ features of the paid tier regularly
Keep it. You're getting real value from premium features. Check for annual billing discounts.
Only using 1 paid feature
Find a free single-purpose alternative for that one feature. Most paid productivity tools have free competitors for specific use cases.
Your employer provides a similar tool
Switch to your employer-provided tool for work tasks and cancel the personal subscription. Many enterprise tools allow personal use.
Signed up for a project that's now finished
Cancel immediately. Export your data first. You can resubscribe if another project requires it.
Evernote vs Alternatives — Feature Comparison
Note-Taking Apps
| Feature | evernote | notion | obsidian |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $99/yr (Starter) | Free (Personal) | Free (desktop) |
| Free Tier | 50 notes, 1 notebook — severely limited | Unlimited pages, generous free tier | Fully functional, local files |
| Best For | Legacy users locked into Evernote ecosystem | All-in-one workspace with databases | Privacy-focused, local-first note-taking |
Verdict: Evernote is no longer competitive at $99/yr with a gutted free tier. Notion (free) and Obsidian (free) offer vastly better value. Only stay with Evernote if migration cost is too high.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Evernote worth $[price]/month?
Whether Evernote is worth $12.99/month depends on how much you use it. If it's essential to your daily workflow, the cost is justified. If you use it less than a few times per week, check if the free tier covers your needs or look for a cheaper alternative.
How can I get Evernote for less?
Try these strategies: check if a free tier exists that covers your needs, switch to annual billing for 15-30% savings, look for student/educator discounts (often 50% or more off), and check if your employer provides it through a business plan.
What are free alternatives to Evernote?
Most paid productivity tools have free alternatives: Google Docs/Sheets/Slides replace Microsoft Office, Notion's free tier handles project management, LibreOffice handles document editing, and many specialized tools offer generous free plans for individual users.
How do I cancel Evernote?
Cancel through your account settings on the Evernote website. Before canceling, export any data you need — most productivity tools let you download your files. Your access typically continues until the end of your billing period. Some services offer a pause option instead of full cancellation.
How Much Are You Overpaying?
Evernote is just one piece. Take the free 30-second quiz to see your total savings across all your subscriptions.
About Evernote: Note-taking and organization platform.