What each week held
Withheld: something was read in 1 week of the last 12. A series needs at least 2 to say anything a single reading does not.
What it declares
- Export to Markdown/HTML/PDF/plain text
- Zero lock-in data portability
- End-to-end encryption
- Offline-first sync
- Import from competitor apps (Evernote, Apple Notes, etc.)
- Encrypted vault / locked notes
- Cross-device sync
- Password-protected exports
As the company’s own pages describe it. Forge did not test any of these.
What users raised
- Vendor lock-in with proprietary formats
- No API or CLI for bulk export
- Large pricing increases at renewal
- Sync reliability issues
- No warranted new features for price paid
- Long migration effort for large note collections
Themes people raised in public. A complaint is somebody’s opinion, not a measurement of the product.
Everything on record
4 observed claims. Newest first; the tag on each row is what kind of claim you are reading.
- POSITIONINGCOMPANY CLAIMSep 30, 2026
Notesnook markets itself as 'zero lock-in' with notes leaving in open formats any other app can read, and PrivacyNotes similarly states lock-in is not part of its business model, both leading with export/portability as a core buyer-facing capability.
Competitors are directly positioning against Evernote-style lock-in as a market differentiator, which buyers evaluating note apps will encounter.
notesnook.com/help/export-notes-from-notesnook - DISCOURSEUSER OPINIONSep 30, 2026
A 15-year Evernote user publicly detailed migrating to Obsidian, citing that their notes and workflow were locked inside a proprietary system with no API, no CLI, and no integration with automation tools.
Represents the lock-in complaint crossing into public long-form writing/migration guides, not just forum venting.
medium.com/@dennis.somerville/how-i-finally-walked-away-from-evernote-after-15-years-8ae66ebd062c - COMPLAINTUSER OPINIONSep 30, 2026
Long-term Evernote users across multiple independent forum threads describe the new pricing as 'extortionate' and cite vendor lock-in (large note collections, no export path, no API) as the reason leaving feels difficult despite wanting to.
Signals a mainstream (not niche) discourse theme: pricing dissatisfaction reinforcing lock-in fears, appearing across at least three separate forum/blog threads.
discussion.evernote.com/forums/topic/156605-what-do-you-think-about-the-new-subscription-prices/ - PRICINGFACTSep 30, 2026
Evernote replaced its Personal/Professional plans with new Starter and Advanced tiers, with price increases reported to $8.25/month for Starter and $20.83/month for Advanced; US renewals reportedly jumped from $129 to $249 and EU from €99 to €199.
Existing Evernote subscribers face a roughly 2x cost increase at renewal, driving migration to competitors.
daveedwardsmedia.com/2025/11/17/new-pricing/
A record of what Forge read in public about Lock-in and sync — its own pages and what people wrote about it. Nothing here is a test of the product, a ranking or a score, and Forge has no relationship with this company.