| Microsoft OneNote | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
.svg){kind=icon} Microsoft OneNote app icon | |||||||||||||||||
 Notes being created and organized in theMicrosoft 365 version of OneNote on desktop, running onWindows 11 | |||||||||||||||||
| Developer | Microsoft | ||||||||||||||||
| Initial release | November 19, 2003; 22 years ago (2003-11-19) | ||||||||||||||||
| Stable release(s) | |||||||||||||||||
OneNote app
| |||||||||||||||||
| Operating system | Microsoft Windows,[8]macOS | ||||||||||||||||
| Type | Notetaking software | ||||||||||||||||
| License | Proprietary software,Freeware (OneNote 2013 and later) | ||||||||||||||||
| Website | products | ||||||||||||||||
| Microsoft OneNote (UWP) | |
|---|---|
.svg) | |
 Notes being created and organized in the OneNoteUWP app, running onWindows 10 | |
| Developer | Microsoft |
| Initial release | July 16, 2012; 13 years ago (2012-07-16) |
| Stable release | 16001.14326.21942.0 / 2024 |
| Operating system | Windows 10,[8]Android,[9]ChromeOS,iOS,[10]iPadOS,[11]Windows Phone,MacOS |
| Type | Notetaking software |
| License | Freeware[8][9][10][11] |
| Website | products |
 Notes being created and organized on OneNote.com | |
Type of site | Notetaking software |
|---|---|
| Owner | Microsoft |
| URL | onenote |
| Commercial | No |
| Registration | Required |
Microsoft OneNote is anote-takingsoftware developed byMicrosoft. It is available as part of theMicrosoft 365 suite and since 2014 has beenfree on all platforms outside the suite.[12] OneNote is designed for free-forminformation gathering andmulti-user collaboration. It gathers users' notes, drawings, screen clippings, and audio commentaries. Notes can be shared with other OneNote users over the Internet or a network.
OneNote is also available as a free, stand-alone app via the official website and theapp stores of:Windows 10/11,MacOS,iOS,iPadOS andAndroid.[13] Microsoft also provides aweb-based version of OneNote as part ofOneDrive andOffice for the web.
OneNote was announced by Microsoft'sBill Gates on November 17, 2002.[14] The software allows users to create notes that can include text, pictures, tables, and drawings. Unlike a word processor, OneNote features an almost unbounded document window, in which users can click anywhere on the canvas to create a new text box at that location. OneNote saves data automatically as the user edits the file.
OneNote saves information inpages organized intosections withinnotebooks. Microsoft designed thisuser interface to resemble a tabbedring binder, in which the user can directly make notes and gather material from otherapplications. OneNote notebooks collect, organize, and share possibly unpublished materials—as compared toword processors andwikis, which often target publishing in some way. The difference shows in certain OneNote features and characteristics:
Users can move pages in the binder and annotate them with astylus or word-processing or drawing tools. Users may add embedded multimedia recordings andhyperlinks. They can also add embeddable content, such asYouTube videos.[15] OneNote also integrates search features and indexing into a free-form graphics and audio repository. It can search pictures (e.g., screen captures, embedded document scans, photographs) for depictions of text. It also searches "electronic ink" annotations as text and phonetically searches audio recordings on a text key. It can replay audio concurrently with notes taken during the recording. It can also extract and copy texts from pictures and documents usingoptical character-recognition.[16]
Its multi-user capability allowsoffline editing with latersynchronization and merging. More than one person can work on the same page at the same time using OneNote as a sharedwhiteboard environment.
On March 17, 2014, Microsoft released the OneNote cloud serviceAPI, which allows third-party application developers to integrate the service into their apps. The API runs on Microsoft's globally available cloud and sends data from applications into the user's OneDrive. OneNote can render webpages as snapshot images.[13][17]
Microsoft also announced several new features in OneNote that use the service API:
me@onenote.com from specified email IDs to have the contents of the email saved to OneNote.[19]
.one file icons for sections (left) and notebooks (right)A OneNote notebook is stored as a folder with a separatedata file for each section. OneNote files have a.onefilename extension.[20] A .one file can be a OneNote notebook or a OneNote section.
Microsoft upgraded the file format twice after it had introduced OneNote 2003 — first in OneNote 2007, then in OneNote 2010.[21] OneNote 2003 files can be opened by both OneNote 2007 and OneNote 2010 in read-only mode and subsequently upgraded to the later versions of the file format.[22][23] OneNote 2010 can read and write OneNote 2007 file formats. It can also convert back and forth between the 2010 and the 2007 formats.[23]
Microsoft has documented the OneNote file format. It is anopen format that can store variedmultimedia content in a single.one file.[20][24][25]
Multiple .one files can be exported to a .onepkg file, which stores multiple .one files (corresponding to the individual notebooks) incabinet file format.
OneNote supports simultaneous editing of shared OneNote documents by multiple users when the document is stored in a shared folder in OneDrive.Dropbox was supported for some time as a sync protocol, but afterWindows Live Mesh was discontinued, OneNote supported it for cloud-based storage and synchronization of OneNote files. OneNote clients, including the OneNote web app ofOffice Online, can view and edit them.
Microsoft made OneNote 2013 for Windows desktop available for free. OneNote for Windows and Mac are both based on afreemium model. Premium features such asSharePoint support, version history andMicrosoft Outlook integration were previously available only toOffice 365 andOffice 2013 customers,[13][26] but on February 13, 2015, Microsoft removed all feature restrictions, except creation of local notebooks — the free edition only stores notebooks on OneDrive — from the programs, essentially making the program completelyfree to use.[27]
The first version, OneNote 2003, was only sold as a separate product for Windows[28] compatible withWindows XP andWindows 2000 as well as forMicrosoft Tablet PCs with pen input.[29] Starting withOffice 2007 it was then included as part of the Office suite, as the software was positioned more as a student tool rather than business.[30]
AMicrosoft Store version of OneNote (formerly known as OneNote MX) was available forWindows 8 andRT, usingOneDrive as a storage place. It is optimized for use on tablets by implementing apie menu interface and invoking operating system's tablet-specific functionality.[31]
In 2018, Microsoft announced that for OneNote on Windows, theUniversal Windows Platform (UWP) based OneNote for Windows 10, now renamed "OneNote for Windows 10", would be the default experience for Office users on Windows. The Win32/Win64 "desktop" version would remain known as OneNote 2016 despite the release ofOffice 2019, would no longer receive new features, and would not be installed with Office by default, but remain available as an option.[32]
However, Microsoft reversed this decision in 2019; in the same year, the company announced that both versions would receive active development and the desktop version would once again be installed with Office by default.[33] The desktop application was renamed to simply OneNote,[34] matching the other programs inOffice 365. OneNote is no longer installed with Windows starting fromWindows 11, but is still available fromMicrosoft Store.[35]
In 2021, Microsoft announced that OneNote for Windows 10 would be discontinued and that they were working on migrating users and features to the desktop version. They also announced that it would be receiving some user interface changes to be more in line with Windows 11.[36]
Starting in April 2025, the OneNote for Windows 10 app began displaying a deprecation notice, encouraging users to transition to the desktop OneNote app. The UWP app officially reached its end of support in October 14, 2025, together with Windows 10.[37][38]
OneNote is also available for cell phones. Microsoft currently has a stand-alone OneNote app foriOS[39] andAndroid.
OneNote Mobile for olderWindows Mobile smartphones andpocket PCs was included with OneNote 2007.[40] It was released withWindows Phone 7 in 2010.[41] In 2011, OneNote Mobile went multi-platform as it was released foriPhone[42] followed by a version forSymbian as part of Microsoft Apps.[43] In 2012 Microsoft released OneNote for Android in a surprise move.[44]
On July 1, 2013, Microsoft released version 2 of its app for iPad, containing significantly updated features, to correspond more closely to those available on the Windows platform. On August 19, 2014, Microsoft updated OneNote for Android tablets to include handwriting support and touch-friendly navigation.[45] This version supports notebooks stored on OneDrive orSharePoint. In 2022, the Android version got a major refresh.[46]
On March 17, 2014, Microsoft released OneNote for Mac. It is compatible withOS X Mavericks and above and can be downloaded for free from theMac App Store.[47]
The release of OneNote for Mac was part of Microsoft's broader strategy to make its Office suite more accessible across different platforms, and it marked the first time macOS users could use the app natively without third-party solutions.[37] This move was seen as a response to the increasing number of users who were working on multiple devices, including those running macOS. By offering OneNote for free, Microsoft aimed to attract new users and integrate their note-taking service into the broader ecosystem of Microsoft Office applications.
The desktop OneNote and OneNote for Windows 10 have different functionality and user interfaces, which also differ from the versions for other platforms. Compared to OneNote for Windows 10, the desktop OneNote has a full Office ribbon interface, features the most customization options, runs on multiple versions of Windows, and provides the possibility of local notebook support as opposed to OneDrive cloud storage; it is the only version for any platform to offer the latter feature,[48] even as a paid option.
In addition to the version differences, OneNote features on Windows and Mac vary according to whether it is installed as a free or paid program. If a "compatible"[48] Office license (whether for the subscription Office 365 or the perpetual Office 2019) is present on the machine, the Windows desktop, Windows 10, and Mac versions all unlock additional functionality, which varies depending on the version: the desktop OneNote adds local notebook support, the Mac version adds stickers and OneNote for Windows 10 gains several features including stickers, ink replay, Researcher and Math Assistant. More premium features are in development for the Mac and Windows 10 versions.[34]
![[icon]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aWiki_letter_w_cropped.svg) | This sectionneeds expansion with: Information about initial reception (OneNote 2003) and contemporary reception. You can help byadding to it.(December 2021) |
Christopher Dawson reviewed OneNote 2010, titling his favorable review "OneNote is Office 2010's killer app in education".[49] He speculated that the app would be particularly useful as a tool for student notetaking. In 2022 Microsoft has merged the OneNote and OneNote for Windows 10 apps into a single version, the older version OneNote for Windows 10 will continue to work but it will not get new updates, noting that "it will reach end-of-support in October 2025".[50] In 2023, Tom Warren ofThe Verge highlighted a new digital ink and pen feature addition gestures, and an AI-powered copilot feature to help you summarize pages or section of notes.[51]
All release dates pertain togeneral availability.Release to manufacturing is usually two or three months in advance. This table only includes editions released for Windows.
| Product release | Release date[52] | Editions of Microsoft Office included in |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Office OneNote 2003[53] | November 19, 2003 | None |
| Microsoft Office OneNote 2007[54] | January 27, 2007 | Microsoft Office 2007 Home and Student, Enterprise, Ultimate |
| Microsoft OneNote 2010[55] | July 15, 2010 | Microsoft Office 2010 Home and Student, Home and Business, Standard, Professional, Professional Plus |
| Microsoft OneNote 2013[56] | January 29, 2013 | Microsoft Office 2013 (all editions) |
| Microsoft OneNote for Windows 10 | July 29, 2015[57] | Microsoft Office 2019 (until 2020) |
| Microsoft OneNote 2016 (now known as Microsoft OneNote)[58] | September 22, 2015[59] | Microsoft Office 2016 (all editions) Microsoft Office 2019 (from March 2020)[60]Microsoft Office 2021 |
| |||||||
| Management tools |
| ||||||
| Apps |
| ||||||
| Shell | |||||||
| Services | |||||||
| File systems | |||||||
| Server |
| ||||||
| Architecture |
| ||||||
| Security | |||||||
| Compatibility | |||||||
| API | |||||||
| Games | |||||||
| Discontinued |
| ||||||
| Spun off to Microsoft Store | |||||||
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
