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A notes app without a subscription

The Gravity app is a one-time purchase: $9.99 in the US on the App Store and Google Play, with local prices elsewhere. There's no premium tier, nothing to unlock and no ads. The one paid extra is Gravity Sync, which adds Android and your AI apps; it's free during the beta and becomes an optional subscription after it.

I'm Tristan, and I build Gravity on my own. This page explains what you pay for and why I can sell it this way.

What one payment gets you

There's only one version of Gravity, and you get all of it:

  • As many notes as you like, in a single list
  • Search across every note, including archived ones, working offline
  • Markdown, checklists and tags you create by typing a word and a colon
  • The home screen widget and share sheet for quick capture
  • iCloud sync between your iPhone, iPad and Mac, if you want it
  • Export to JSON or Markdown whenever you like

Nothing is held back for a Pro plan, and there's no limit on notes or devices.

Each platform is its own purchase. The iPhone app also runs on iPad, so one purchase covers both. The Mac app and the Android app are sold separately.

Updates are free, including the recent one that added Markdown and checklists.

Why I don't need a subscription

Subscriptions make sense when an app has running costs for every user: servers, storage, AI models, a team on call. The Gravity app has none of them.

Your notes are stored on your device. If you turn on iCloud sync, they travel through your own private iCloud database, which Apple runs and which counts against your own iCloud storage. I don't pay more each month as more people use the app, so I don't need to charge you monthly to cover it.

It also means the app doesn't depend on me to keep working. If you stopped paying attention to it for a year, it would open exactly as you left it.

The one part with a running cost is Gravity Sync, which keeps your notes in step between Android and Apple devices on Gravity's own servers. It's optional and free during the beta, and after that it will be a monthly subscription. The app, iCloud sync and every update stay a one-time purchase.

Using it, day to day

You open Gravity and the cursor is already in the box at the top. Type a thought, press Return twice, and it's saved. Older notes sink as new ones arrive. When you scroll back and something still matters, swipe it right and it returns to the top. That's the loop, based on Andrej Karpathy's append-and-review note.

Gravity on iPhone showing one list of notes: a rescued idea about a pixel-art habit tracker, a Lisbon weekend checklist, a Saturday checklist, an idea note and a read: note summarising the append-and-review note
This is the paid app, in full. There's no upgrade banner, trial countdown or locked feature anywhere in the list.

There's nothing to upgrade to, so the app never interrupts that loop with an offer, a trial countdown or a locked feature.

How it compares on price

Apple Notes and Google Keep are free and capable. Neither charges a subscription, although storage in iCloud or Google may cost money if you fill it with photos and files.

Bear has a free tier and a subscription, Bear Pro, which you need for sync between devices. Drafts is free to download, with a Pro subscription for its more advanced features. Obsidian is free, and its official Sync and Publish services are paid add-ons. Notion has a free plan and paid plans aimed at teams.

Those subscriptions pay for servers and teams. Gravity keeps notes on your device and can sync through your own iCloud, so the app has no running cost to pass on. Set against a notes subscription you'd pay every year, $9.99 for the app pays for itself quickly.

Who it's for

Gravity suits you if you want a small, fast app for quick notes, you'd rather buy your tools than rent them, and you like the idea of one list you review now and then. It also suits people who've bought into elaborate systems before and ended up maintaining them more than using them.

Questions

Does one purchase cover my iPad?

Yes. The iPhone app runs on iPad at no extra cost. The Mac app is a separate purchase.

Does iCloud sync cost extra?

Not from me. Notes sync through your own iCloud account and use a tiny amount of your iCloud storage, since they're text.

Will you switch to a subscription later?

No. The app stays a one-time purchase. Gravity Sync, the optional sync service for mixing Android and Apple devices, will be a subscription after its free beta, because it runs on servers. You never need it to use Gravity.

Can I get my notes out if I stop using it?

Yes. Export every note as JSON, or as Markdown from the phone app.

Gravity is on the App Store for iPhone, iPad and Mac, and on Google Play for Android.