Microsoft OneNote Going Free with Mac Launch Later This Month

onenote.jpgMicrosoft is working on a version of OneNote for the Mac that will debut later this month, claims The Verge. This release will expand the note-taking software beyond its roots as a paid desktop app for Windows users and will complement the mobile apps that exist on iOS and Android.

According to The Verge's report, Microsoft will drop the price on the note-taking app and release it for free to both OS X and Windows owners. The latest version of OneNote also may include companion web-clipper extensions that plug into popular browsers like Chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer. These plug-ins will make it easy for people to grab snippets from web pages and immediately share them with the OneNote app.

Microsoft hopes the price drop along with new web-clipping feature will make OneNote attractive to customers who currently use competing note-taking apps such as Evernote.

We understand that Microsoft will release the OneNote for Mac app for free, and the company is also planning to make the Windows desktop version available at no extra cost. This marks a significant change in the way Microsoft manages OneNote, unbundling it fully from the cost of Office. We’re told part of this free approach is targeted at competitors like Evernote, but Microsoft is also adding additional features to entice people away from the competition.

The launch of OneNote is part of a larger push by Microsoft into the Apple ecosystem. The company is rumored to be working on a new version of Office for the Mac that may debut later this year as well as Office for the iPad that allegedly is coming soon.

Popular Stories

iOS 26 on iPhone Feature

Here's When iOS 26 Rolls Out Today in Every Time Zone [Update: Out Now!]

Monday September 15, 2025 12:00 am PDT by
Update 10:06 a.m.: iOS 26 is rolling out now, though it may take a bit for all users to see it, so keep checking! Today's the day! Apple is about to release iOS 26, which will deliver the biggest redesign since iOS 7 and bring a range of new features and improvements to iPhones worldwide. It's Apple's biggest software update of the year, and Apple announced at last week's iPhone event that...
Tim Cook Rainbow

Apple Reportedly Plans to Launch These 10 Products in 'Coming Months'

Sunday September 14, 2025 8:45 am PDT by
Apple's annual September event is now in the rearview mirror, with the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, iPhone Air, Apple Watch Series 11, Apple Watch Ultra 3, Apple Watch SE 3, and AirPods Pro 3 set to launch this Friday, September 19. As always, there is more to come. In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said Apple plans to release many products in the...
iOS 26 Battery Glass Feature

Apple Says Installing iOS 26 Might Impact Battery Life

Monday September 15, 2025 10:56 am PDT by
In the iOS 26 release notes, Apple is warning iPhone users that installing the new software might have a temporary impact on battery life, which is normal. A new support document explains that major iOS updates require background setup like indexing data and files for search, downloading new assets, and updating apps. Further, Apple says that new features could require more resources,...
AirPods Pro Firmware Feature

AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 Get iOS 26 Features With New Firmware Update

Monday September 15, 2025 10:50 am PDT by
Apple today released updated firmware for the AirPods Pro 2 and the AirPods 4, introducing support for the new AirPods features that are included in iOS 26, iPadOS 26, and macOS Tahoe. The firmware has a build number of 8A356, and it replaces the current 7E93 firmware. With Apple's new software updates, the AirPods Pro 2 and the AirPods 4 support better audio quality for phone calls and...
iphone 17 lineup

iPhone 17 Models Launch on September 19 With These New Features

Friday September 12, 2025 7:58 am PDT by
Apple will launch its new iPhone 17 lineup and ultra-thin iPhone Air in stores on Friday, September 19, and the company has already shown off the new devices at its fall event, which ran with the the tagline "Awe dropping." The iPhone 17 series brings a host of new features and enhancements. Here's a rundown of the biggest upgrades and changes: iPhone 17 Display Changes The iPhone...
apple n1 chip

Apple's New N1 Chip in iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone Air Has a Wi-Fi 7 Limitation

Saturday September 13, 2025 10:01 am PDT by
The latest iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, and iPhone Air models are equipped with Apple's all-new N1 chip for Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and Thread connectivity. However, the chip has a Wi-Fi 7 bandwidth limitation. According to FCC documents reviewed by MacRumors, the N1 chip in all of the new iPhone models supports up to 160 MHz channel bandwidth for Wi-Fi 7, short of the...
iPhone 17 Pro Air Boxes

iPhone Air and iPhone 17 Pro Boxes Revealed

Sunday September 14, 2025 1:36 pm PDT by
T-Mobile President Jon Freier today shared real-world photos of Apple's boxes for the iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 models, which launch on Friday. Image Credit: Jon Freier Apple has typically included iPhone box renders in its product environmental reports, but it did not do so for the latest models. However, Apple's iPhone Upgrade Program page does offer some images of the boxes, ...

Top Rated Comments

Tiger8 Avatar
150 months ago
Microsoft is slowly starting to take the right steps.

Thank you. I am no Microsoft fan but I'm surprised with the general negative attitude on this boards towards them. I don't know why some are so blinded with their loyality to Apple, that they wish ill for all its competitors (Microsoft, Google, Samsung, HTC, LG, etc...). Competition is good, just ask AT&T/Verizon/Sprint customers how much the benefited from T-Mobile droping their prices, and Microsoft staying relevant, taking the right steps, is a good thing even for Apple users.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
LagunaSol Avatar
150 months ago
Evernote Forever. Until the weasels at Google buy them up. (You know it's coming - how can they resist the opportunity to suck all that juicy personal data into their servers?) :(
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Razeus Avatar
150 months ago
OneNote. The only MS product I use and care about.

Evernote is such a mess.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Nikiaf Avatar
150 months ago
This is great. I much prefer OneNote to Evernote, but since I have an Apple laptop that I use at school, OneNote was pretty much out of the question.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
aloshka Avatar
150 months ago
I think you can take that to the bank.

I'm not trying to be an MS advocate, but I think this is turning around. Their Remote Desktop for mac recently released, gets more updates, more polished, supports remotefx and faster than it's now 4-year old same-version windows counterpart.

I get that everyone hates Microsoft because they were the big guys back then and didn't care. They are no longer the big guys, they are under new management that doesn't seem to spit when they talk. Their software quality is going up as they are trying to get back into the market. I think anything that is new and wasn't made when Balmer was in charge may be really good. The entire apple division as an example.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Crispy Duck Avatar
150 months ago
Now that's a nicely designed icon/logo.

Much better than the sparse Apple Notes icon.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)