I've been a technology journalist for a decade and a half, meaning I'm frequently researching applications and

interviewing creators, experts, and academics. I would be lost without a good note-taking system, which means

I have opinions about the system that works best for me.

I also know that note-taking is an intensely personal thing—everyone is going to have preferences. Still, there

are a few things that I think the best Windows note-taking apps need to do in order to be considered for a list

like this. The best note-taking app for Windows should do the following:

 Make it quick to add new notes. You don't want to fuss around when inspiration strikes. Creating a new

note should be as simple as opening the app and clicking a button or, even better, using a keyboard

shortcut.

 Help you organize your notes. A sprawling list of notes you've taken isn't helpful. You need to be able to

sort your notes in flexible ways, including not just folders but also tags, internal links, and note

hierarchies.

 Offer a fast and useful search feature. The best organizational system in the world doesn't mean you

won't occasionally have to search, so it's important to be able to search the contents of all your notes

—not just the current note and not just the note titles.

 Balance ease of use with power. It's ok for a note-taking app to be harder to use than a paper

notebook, but the user needs to get something in exchange for the complexity. The best apps balance

this well, either by being easy to use or by offering features that are useful enough to warrant their

learning curve.

 Sync with other platforms. Sometimes you're going to want to add a note on your phone or read

through notes on your tablet. I only considered apps that offer some kind of syncing ability.

 Are an actual Windows app. Some tools offer a "Windows app" that's really just the web version in a

dedicated window. Such apps might work for some people, but for this list, I tried to only consider

apps that truly fit in on Windows and offer at least some offline functionality.

I considered around twenty Windows note-taking apps and tested the best options. Based on that experience,

here are the four note-taking apps that, in my opinion, best address the needs of Windows users.