5 of the Best Sticky Note Apps for Mac

You can create a sticky note to remind yourself of important tasks or stay on top of your to-do lists. Sticky notes are handy as they will appear all the time on the desktop, unless you choose to dismiss them.

There are many classic note-taking apps for Mac, but only a handful are available when it comes to sticky note-taking. In this article, we’ve rounded up the best sticky note apps for Mac.

Also read: How to Get Started with macOS Notes App

1. Stickies

Stickies come pre-installed with macOS. It allows users to create notes in post-it like fashion on the screen.

With Stickies, you can write short reminders and to-do lists and set them as sticky notes. The app features several customization options. For instance, you can change the note color and text formatting, as well as set them to float over open windows. If you don’t want notes to have a background, you can make them translucent.

Although Stickies is mainly for writing text notes, you can embed other media files such as images, videos, PDFs, etc. Stickies’s only con is that it doesn’t support floating notes in full-screen mode, and so the notes will disappear when switching to full-screen. You can find Stickies in your Mac applications folder and start using it right away.

2. Simple Antnotes

Simple Antnotes is a menu bar app. It features a “Pin note to desktop” option that allows notes to float above all windows.

What’s more, users can opt to make their sticky notes translucent if they prefer. If required, it’s possible to change the background color of your notes, as well as customize the font and text color. Simple Antnotes comes integrated with macOS’ “Services”. To utilize the integration, select text in any application and right-click on it. Chose “Services” from the context menu and select “Add to Simple Antnotes” to create a new sticky note with the selected text.

You can also create a new note by dragging text and files to the Simple Antnotes menu bar or “Dock” icon. Simple Antnotes is a great app except that it doesn’t work in full-screen. It’s available on the Mac App Store for free. However, the app has a paid version named Antnotes that costs $2.99 and brings additional features such as the capability to attach notes to any applications, so they will be shown when the app is activated.

Also read: How to Change the Background Color of Notes on iOS

3. Quick Note

Quick Note is a sticky note app for Mac that is accessible with one click or a keyboard shortcut.

Notes you take on Quick Note have the ability to float on top of all other apps keeping them visible on the screen. One of the best parts of Quick Note is that it does work in full-screen mode, a feature missing in Stickies and Simple Antnotes.

Quick Note supports shortcuts. For instance, you can assign keyboard shortcut to create a new note or open the menu bar. It also has dark mode support. The free version of Quick Note allows taking four sticky notes. If you want to take more notes, you will have to upgrade to Pro in exchange for $7.99. 

4. Ghostnote

Ghostnote is another menu bar app, you can easily access to start writing down your notes.

The app’s notable features include Note Browser and Script Editor. Note Browser makes managing the notes easier by giving the ability to view all notes from one central view. You can browse your notes using the keyboard or search and edit notes from one single view. With Script editor, you can write your own document detection scripts.

Ghostnote has support for seven themes, including a dark one. The only con we came across in our usage time is the notes disappeared when we switched to another window. Ghostnote is a fully paid app, but the company offers a 14-day free trial. The one-time subscription cost is $11.79 for one Mac.

Also read: How to Collaborate and Highlight Changes in Notes on iOS

5. Unclutter

Although not primarily a sticky note app, Unclutter serves this purpose as well. Unclutter combines three functionalities – note-taking, clipboard, and file management. You can turn off the other two tools to use it as a standalone Notes app.

The Unclutter window opens when you move your cursor to the top of the screen and swipe down. If you want to use it as a sticky note app, drag the Unclutter’s note panel outside the window, and it will stick on top of the other open windows. The most exciting part of Unclutter is its availability on all screens. It supports full-screen mode as well as all desktop “Spaces”.

If you have connected external displays with your Mac, the notes will appear on all connected displays. Unclutter features a “Quick search” option that helps find notes with a keyword or the full text. You can keep Unclutter notes in a cloud storage platform like OneDrive or Dropbox to keep them synced across all your Macs. Unclutter is a paid app priced at $19.99. However, the company offers a 7-days free trial.

Also read: 10 of the Best Apple Notes Features You Need to Start Using

Frequently Asked Questions

How can you set a Stickies note to float on top of all apps?

If you want, you can set a Stickies note to float on top of all open apps on your Mac. Open the Stickies app on your Mac and select an existing note or create a new one. Tap on “Window” from the menu bar, then click on “Float on Top” option. Alternatively you can press Option + Command + F keys on your Mac keyboard.

Where are the Stickies stored on a Mac?

The stickies on Mac are stored in the Home folder. To find stickies on your Mac, open “Finder” on your Mac, then tap on “Go” in the menu bar. Select “Home” from the menu options. Once you are in the home folder, you will find all your stickies saved as .txt files.

How to Turn Off Clipboard and File Manager in Unclutter?

Tap on the Unclutter app icon in the menu bar and select “Preferences”. By default, you will land in the “General” tab. From there, switch to the “Panels” tab. Uncheck the box next to “Clipboard” and “Files” to turn them off.

Image credit: Pexels