{"question": "best note taking apps for small businesses", "category": "note-taking-apps", "category_name": "note taking apps", "audience": "small-businesses", "audience_name": "small businesses", "engine": "Claude (Anthropic) with web search", "model": "claude-opus-5", "asked_at": "2026-10-05T23:57:17Z", "permalink": "https://bikoosh.com/answers/s/note-taking-apps-small-businesses-2026-10-05", "question_page": "https://bikoosh.com/answers/q/note-taking-apps/small-businesses", "brands_named": [{"position": 1, "brand": "Notion", "label": "recommended"}, {"position": 2, "brand": "Microsoft", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 3, "brand": "Microsoft OneNote", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 4, "brand": "OneNote", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 5, "brand": "Microsoft 365", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 6, "brand": "Google", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 7, "brand": "Google Keep", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 8, "brand": "Google Workspace", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 9, "brand": "Obsidian", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 10, "brand": "Evernote", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 11, "brand": "Granola", "label": "recommended"}, {"position": 12, "brand": "Fathom", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 13, "brand": "OneNote + Granola", "label": "mentioned"}, {"position": 14, "brand": "Notion + Granola", "label": "mentioned"}], "sources_cited": [{"url": "https://www.g2.com/categories/note-taking-software/small-business", "domain": "g2.com", "source_type": "review"}, {"url": "https://www.costbench.com/best/note-taking-for-small-business/", "domain": "costbench.com", "source_type": "other"}, {"url": "https://blog.jestor.com/notion-vs-evernote-vs-onenote-comparison/", "domain": "blog.jestor.com", "source_type": "other"}, {"url": "https://costbench.com/compare/notion-vs-evernote/", "domain": "costbench.com", "source_type": "other"}, {"url": "https://www.flozic.ai/blog/comparison/notion-vs-onenote", "domain": "flozic.ai", "source_type": "other"}, {"url": "https://costbench.com/compare/granola-vs-fathom/", "domain": "costbench.com", "source_type": "other"}, {"url": "https://fabric.so/comparison/fathom-vs-granola", "domain": "fabric.so", "source_type": "other"}], "answer_text": "# Best note-taking apps for small businesses\n\nThe honest answer: \"note-taking\" splits into two different jobs for a small business, and you probably want one tool from each column. Here's how I'd rank them.\n\n## Shared notes / company knowledge base\n\n**1. Notion** - My default recommendation for most small businesses. It's the only one of these where notes naturally grow into something more: SOPs, client trackers, project boards, a simple CRM. Real-time co-editing, @mentions, and granular permissions mean it actually works as a team tool rather than a pile of individual notebooks. Free plan is genuinely usable for a small team; Plus is ~$10/seat/mo, Business ~$20/seat/mo (adds AI agents and better permissions). The tradeoff is setup effort - it's a blank canvas, and someone has to own the structure or it turns into a mess.\n\n**2. Microsoft OneNote** - The obvious pick if you're already paying for Microsoft 365. All the core features are free, it's genuinely good for freeform and handwritten notes, and it's already in your tenant with your existing SSO and security settings - no new vendor, no new bill. Main limit is the 5GB OneDrive cap on the free tier and weaker structure for team ", "answer_truncated": true, "measurement": "One answer from one engine on one date. Not a ranking and not a claim about the world; brands the engine did not name are not recorded.", "limitation": "Coverage: Claude (Anthropic) with web search. Other engines not included.", "alerts": {"name": "Answer Watch Pro", "price_usd": 79, "period": "month", "gets": "daily change alerts for up to 5 brands in what one AI answer engine says, history, CSV export. Coverage: Claude (Anthropic) with web search. Other engines not included", "url": "https://bikoosh.com/answers"}}