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Prevon vs Apple Notes
Apple Notes is end-to-end encrypted only if you turn on Advanced Data Protection; by default, Apple holds the keys to notes in iCloud. Prevon encrypts every note on your device by default — but it is in private beta, and Apple Notes is free, built in and works today.
Where Apple Notes is the better choice
- It is free, built into every iPhone, iPad and Mac, and syncs through iCloud with no setup.
- With Advanced Data Protection switched on, iCloud Notes are end-to-end encrypted. Individually locked notes are end-to-end encrypted with your own passphrase, even without it.
- Apple says Private Cloud Compute does not retain your data after a request and that your data is never made accessible to Apple.
- Shared notes, scanning, drawing and tight integration with the rest of Apple’s apps.
- Availability. Prevon has no public download yet.
Where Prevon is different
- Encryption is on for every note by default, not behind a setting. Notes are encrypted on your device with a key made from your 12-word Recovery Seed, which we never see.
- Apple Intelligence runs many tasks on the device but sends harder requests to Apple’s Private Cloud Compute servers. Prevon has no cloud AI path; its search and filing are designed to run on your device.
- Apple Notes is built for Apple’s devices, with web access at iCloud.com. Prevon is being built for Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS from one codebase.
- Prevon is in a private beta with no public download, and it has not had an independent security audit. Its encryption is designed so that we cannot read your notes; its sync is switched off and its AI features are in beta.
Prevon and Apple Notes
Side by side
The same verdicts we use everywhere on this site, narrowed to Apple Notes.
| Feature | Prevon | Apple Notes |
|---|---|---|
| We cannot read your notes | ||
| On-device AI processing | (see note below the table) | |
| No account required | ||
| Sync that stays locked in transit | (see note below the table) | |
| Device-to-device sync, no cloud in the middle | ||
| No note content sent to a cloud AI | ||
| Option to end-to-end encrypt whole notes | ||
| Available to download today | ||
| Works in a web browser | ||
| Notes stored as plain files any editor can open |
✓yes · × no. Verdicts are read from each vendor's own published documentation as of , and describe the default setup. With iCloud’s standard data protection Apple holds the keys; turning on Advanced Data Protection makes Notes end-to-end encrypted, and individually locked notes are end-to-end encrypted with your own passphrase. Apple Intelligence runs many tasks on the device but sends harder requests to Private Cloud Compute, and is opt-in and unavailable in some countries. If any of this changes, it is on us to correct the page.
* Prevon’s sync is switched off in the private beta, so that row describes its design — today your notes do not leave your device. Its on-device AI features are in beta.
Which should you pick?
If you only use Apple devices, Apple Notes with Advanced Data Protection turned on is a strong private option, and it is free. Turn it on in your Apple Account’s iCloud settings.
Pick Prevon if you want encryption without a setting to remember, AI that stays on the device, or the same encrypted vault on Windows, Linux or Android. Importing from Apple Notes uses Notes’ Markdown export.
Statements about other products are read from their own published documentation as of . If any of it is out of date, tell us and we will correct the page.
Prevon is in private beta.
There is no public download yet. Leave an email and we write once, when it opens to everyone.