A free sticky notes app for Windows, and when free is enough

Yes, there are good free sticky notes apps for Windows. Microsoft Sticky Notes is a free download from the Microsoft Store and syncs to your phone. Simple Sticky Notes is free for personal and commercial use. Stickies by Zhorn Software is free and can attach a note to an app, website, document or folder. For plain notes on the desktop, one of these may be all you need.

Paying starts to make sense for a short list of needs: a note that shows up only with the work it is about on Windows 11, a way to get back a note you deleted, notes locked behind Windows Hello, or the same notes on a Mac. We make one of the paid apps, TackNote for Windows, so read our part with that in mind. Every fact about the free apps below comes from Microsoft's support pages, the makers' own sites or published reporting, checked in October 2026. Tick what you need and we will tell you whether free covers it:

The free sticky notes apps for Windows, side by side

Microsoft Sticky Notes: free, and on your phone

Microsoft Sticky Notes is listed in the Microsoft Store as a free download. If it is not in your Start menu, Microsoft's own steps are to open the Store and install it. You can use it without signing in. Sign in with a Microsoft account and your notes also appear in OneNote on iPhone, iPad and Android, on the web at onenote.com/stickynotes, and in Outlook on the desktop, as long as every device uses the same account.

Two things to know before you rely on it. Microsoft's troubleshooting page says "You cannot currently have Sticky Notes stay on top of other applications," and it says "Note deletion is permanent. It cannot be undone." The same page notes that synced notes are saved in Outlook or Exchange and count against your mailbox quota. None of that matters for a grocery list. It matters more for notes you would hate to lose.

The newer Sticky Notes inside OneNote

Microsoft has also built a newer Sticky Notes into OneNote for Windows. Windows Latest reported in September 2024 that it can stay in an always on top mode while you use other apps, and that you need OneNote installed to use it. If you already use OneNote, try this first when you want a note over everything.

Stickies by Zhorn Software: free, and it attaches notes

Zhorn's site says Stickies is "completely free" and that its notes "can be attached to an application, web site, document or folder so they only show when it's on screen." It also lets you set alarms on a note. That is the closest free match to what a paid attached-notes app does, so if you want to spend nothing, start here. The one thing to check is compatibility: the site lists Windows 7, Windows 8 and Windows 10, and does not mention Windows 11.

Simple Sticky Notes: free, including at work

Simple Sticky Notes says it is "completely free for personal and commercial use." If you want plain notes on the desktop, including on a work PC, it is a reasonable free pick. Its home page does not list syncing or attaching notes to apps, so do not count on either.

When free is enough

Free is the right answer when your notes are loose reminders, not notes about a specific piece of work:

• A few notes on the desktop. Phone numbers, a to-do for today, a reminder to call someone back. Microsoft Sticky Notes or Simple Sticky Notes does this well.
• Notes you want on your phone. Microsoft Sticky Notes is the honest first choice. Its sync to OneNote on mobile is something TackNote for Windows does not do.
• One note over everything. The Sticky Notes in OneNote is reported to stay on top. If you already have OneNote, it is there to try.
• Attached notes on Windows 10. Stickies by Zhorn attaches notes to apps, websites, documents and folders for free, on the versions of Windows its site lists.

When a paid sticky notes app is worth it

A sticky notes app earns its price when the notes are tied to work you come back to, or when losing one would cost you. These are the cases where we think paying makes sense, with what TackNote for Windows does for each:

• Notes that belong to one window, page or chat on Windows 11. Press Ctrl + Alt + N and the note sticks to the window in front. Switch away and it steps aside; come back and it returns. In a browser, a note is matched by the page's web address. In Word or Excel it can belong to one document, in File Explorer to one folder, and in Slack or Teams to one conversation. We explain the difference in how to keep a note on top of a window.
• A note over everything, without OneNote. Ctrl + Alt + F makes a desktop note that floats above all windows. It can follow you to every virtual desktop or belong to one; see sticky notes on virtual desktops.
• Getting a deleted note back. Deleting a note shows an Undo, and deleted notes wait under Recently Closed on TackBoard, with Restore on each.
• Private notes. Lock a note and it stays covered until you unlock it with Windows Hello (face, fingerprint or PIN) or your Windows password.
• No account, no mailbox. Notes are stored on your PC, encrypted with your Windows account, with nothing to sign up for.
• A Mac as well as a PC. One license covers up to three computers, Mac or PC, and notes sync through a folder you already sync, such as OneDrive, Dropbox or Google Drive, encrypted with a passphrase you choose. One sticky notes app for Mac and Windows explains how.

What the paid options cost

TackNote for Windows is $24.99 once, after a 7-day free trial with everything unlocked. There is no subscription. For comparison, Notezilla's buy page lists a $29.95 one-time license and a $19.95 a year subscription, with a 30-day trial, and Notezilla has phone and web apps if you need attached notes on a phone. Our comparison of the best sticky notes apps for Windows covers both in more detail.

What happens if you do not buy after the trial

Nothing you wrote is taken away. When the 7 days are up, your notes stay where they are and you can still read every one. Editing and new notes wait until you add a license. So the trial is a fair test: put real notes in it for a week, and if free turns out to be enough, you have lost nothing but the time.

Where TackNote falls short

• It is not free. After 7 days it is $24.99. If one of the free apps above covers what you ticked, use it.
• No phone sync. TackNote for Windows syncs with your Mac and other PCs, not with a phone. Microsoft Sticky Notes is better here, and if you need both, you can keep Sticky Notes for the phone alongside TackNote.
• No import from Microsoft Sticky Notes. Import from Files reads Markdown, plain text, HTML, RTF and Evernote exports, but not Microsoft Sticky Notes. If you are switching, copy across the notes you care about.
• Made for Windows 11. It is built for Windows 11 on x64 and ARM64 PCs. On Windows 10, Stickies by Zhorn is the free option that attaches notes.

Coming from Microsoft Sticky Notes in particular? A Microsoft Sticky Notes alternative, matched to what you need goes through each of its limits in turn.

Questions

Is there a free sticky notes app for Windows 11?

Yes. Microsoft Sticky Notes is a free download from the Microsoft Store. Simple Sticky Notes is free for personal and commercial use, and Stickies by Zhorn Software is free and can attach notes to an app, website, document or folder, though its site lists Windows 7, 8 and 10.

Can a free sticky note stay on top of other windows in Windows 11?

Not with the classic Microsoft Sticky Notes app: Microsoft's troubleshooting page says it cannot currently stay on top of other applications. The newer Sticky Notes that comes with OneNote was reported by Windows Latest in September 2024 to have an always on top mode. It needs OneNote installed.

Which free sticky notes app syncs to a phone?

Microsoft Sticky Notes. With your devices signed in to the same Microsoft account, notes appear in OneNote on iPhone, iPad and Android, and on the web at onenote.com/stickynotes.

What happens when the TackNote for Windows trial ends?

Your notes stay where they are and you can still read every one. Editing and new notes wait until you add a license, which is $24.99 once and covers up to three computers, Mac or PC.