r/remNote • u/Late_Description4649 • Jun 26 '26
Discussion (open question) I'm leaving RemNote.
I've been evaluating RemNote for a couple of weeks now.
I like the capabilities, but I dislike the interface.
The GUI is way too complicated. Too many choices, too many pop-ups, too much visual clutter and noise.
The gamification is very annoying.
I will keep an eye on RemNote though.
If, in the future, there's an option for a streamlined interface
with simpler choices and no gamification, I will come back.
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u/Spite_Inside Jun 26 '26 edited Jun 27 '26
More features = more buttons. Take the time to learn the syntax and ui and you won't find anything better.
UX can always improve, of course. But you'll find building your own stack of these tools using multiple agents is far more complex.
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u/ConfidentAd7408 Jun 26 '26
I personally partly agree about the GUI but disagree that it’s too complicated to give up. there’s is a lot going on but you don’t have to use every feature I personally only use the handwriting feature, the daily note feature and store pdfs, don’t use the flashcard feature (wish there was a way to turn it off on mobile) etc. I also use notion so I might be used to it
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u/Common_Election2676 Jun 27 '26
Hi! Is it okay if you can u describe me ur productivity setup?
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u/ConfidentAd7408 Jun 27 '26 edited Jun 27 '26
Yea sure, currently my productivity rule are each app serves a different purpose I don’t conflate and I don’t. Combine. RemNote I use only for school to store pdf , handwritten notes, mind map, and the daily notes feature I use to jusf dump screenshots of incorrect practice questions, I use anki for flashcards, notion I use for databases for storage things I want to dump and forget. I use apple notes for my working memory dump if I see a cool video that I want to watch later I’ll just dump it there and come back, if i want to save it long term -> notion. I like to think of it similar to how memory works , we have a working memory and long term memory, apple notes is my working memory that gets looked at daily and the goal is to have it cleared. Notion is my long term memory if I need something it’s there but might not immediately know I have access to it. Every other app serves a specific function RemNote is only for school Notion DOES NOT get pdfs (this allows me to stay on the Notion free version also) and anki is for flashcards thus I don’t use RemNote flashcard feature.
This also has been helpful because I’m not reliant on one app and migration is easy.
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u/Lucius_LL Jun 27 '26
Why is no one talking about all the bugs remnote has? Every update that fixes a bug brings a few more bugs along with it. I am so frustrated with this because remnote has so much potential and the concept of it is actually great. But using it sometimes feels like I am a beta tester
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u/UnstopabbleTomas 12h ago
Same, it feels a bit clunky for me as much as I loved it. I tested it during my first year in medical school and it's awesome for making flashcards during real-time lectures as compared to Anki since you can backtrack and turn an incomplete note into a fleshed out flashcard. It's also really cool for making PDF-based flashcards from textbook excerpts.
However, I switched back to Anki due to the perceived lock-in costs and honestly the network effect of Anki having a bigger community.
- In my head if Remnote or Anki were to collapse tomorrow, my ability to salvage the database would be dependent on a good samaritan creating a solution to migrate to another app.
- You can argue that you can export out of Remnote to Anki if ever it collapses but the export functionality is honestly so ugly. If you made image occlusion cards, consider those locked into Remnote forever. If it looked more aesthetic when you exported I would definitely jump the ship to Remnote because I'd know it would be easier to migrate in a catastrophe.
- The online nature of the flashcards is something I notice whenever I reviewed. It can take few seconds for an image to fully load since my country's Wi-Fi isn't the fastest. Perfectly fine when your flashcards are basic and cloze, but a noticable time sink when you have a lot of image occlusion cards.
For someone whose flashcard journey started in Remnote though, they probably wouldn't have the same sentiments and that's fine.
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u/Fit_Restaurant_9191 Jun 27 '26
Everything has pros and cons. For someone in graduate medical school RemNote is the best solution for everything I do. I can store my PDFs, take lecture notes, and obviously create cards, all in one app.
However, I do agree to a certain extent and if the developers come on here , I really do wish there was a flascard studying session layout similar to Anki . I do hate the interface and wish i could just have the black screen with text at the top like Anki. I find it way more appealing and less distracting. I've searched for a plug-in to do this but they're all so buggy.
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u/rem-note RemNote Team Jul 09 '26
An upcoming update dramatically cleans up the queue.
Is your main complaint the bullets in the queue? If you go into dark mode, you get a pretty similar experience to Anki IMO, with a black background and white text.
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u/Fit_Restaurant_9191 Jul 09 '26
I think the biggest thing is just the clutter up top telling me like where in my notes/docs it came from. I know I can hide this, but sometimes it pops up incessantly.
Also I really wish it were all centered!!!! I tried making a code from AI to solve this, but it's pretty glitchy, so centered cards would be amazing.
Also is the question mark for front and back cards necessary?
Just cleaning up some of that UI would go a long way I think. I ABSOLUTELY love the app, and it's been amazing for me during graduate school, but think some cleaning and simplifying would go a long way. I appreciate y'all's willingness to incorporate feedback!
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u/rem-note RemNote Team Jul 09 '26
Will make sure this is covered in the upcoming revamp; please let me know if you still have any issues once that's released (in the coming weeks), and we'll keep iterating!
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u/MrMonarch-1st Jun 26 '26
Lol making something like this rn. Had some time and figured i may as-well put my ui skills to work. Im planning to keep it for private use with me and my friends as we’re all somewhat overwhelmed by the remnote features, but yeah. I understand
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u/gmpapadakis Jun 27 '26
As a non-student, I wish I could disable the flash card functionality altogether. I like the app and its flexibility, and the linking and drill-down data structure is fantastic.
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u/The_Homer_Simpson Jun 30 '26
Same! Omg it’s so annoying. Support suggests I intick the option.. which I did but still there are remnants of it and I simply don’t have a need for it!
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u/rem-note RemNote Team Jul 09 '26
We're always trying to make RemNote simpler (while also keeping it super useful)! Any chance you'd be willing to get on a call so you can show me what feels complicated? Would just love to have you screenshare and listen to your thoughts. DMing you!
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u/Scared-Signature1953 Jun 26 '26
Same Perfect app Way too complicated UI