A Microsoft Sticky Notes alternative, matched to what you need

The right Microsoft Sticky Notes alternative depends on the one thing Sticky Notes will not do for you. If you need your notes on your phone, the honest answer is to stay: Sticky Notes is free and syncs to OneNote on iPhone, iPad and Android. If you want a note to stay on top, a note that belongs to a document or website, a way to undo a delete, or notes kept out of your mailbox, that is when switching pays off.

For notes tied to your work, the alternatives are Stickies by Zhorn Software (free), Notezilla (one-time or subscription) and TackNote for Windows, which we make. Below we match each limit to the app that fits it, using Microsoft's own support pages and each maker's site, checked in October 2026. Answer three questions to get a recommendation, or read on.

If you need your notes on your phone, stay

This is where Sticky Notes is strongest. Microsoft says that when your devices are signed in to the same Microsoft account, your notes appear in OneNote for iPhone, iPad and Android, on the web at onenote.com/stickynotes, and in Outlook.

TackNote for Windows has no phone app you can install today, so if the phone matters most, keep Sticky Notes. The Microsoft support page has the steps. Notezilla also offers Android, iPhone, iPad and web apps, but only with its subscription (more on that below).

If you want a note to stay on top of other windows

Microsoft's troubleshooting page for the Sticky Notes app is direct about this: "You cannot currently have Sticky Notes stay on top of other applications." Microsoft has since built a newer Sticky Notes into OneNote for Windows, opened with Win + Alt + S, and Windows Latest reported in September 2024 that it added an always on top mode. It needs OneNote installed. If you already use OneNote, try that first. It is free.

TackNote gives you two ways to keep a note in view. Ctrl + Alt + F makes a desktop note that floats above all windows. Ctrl + Alt + N sticks a note to the window in front, so it shows whenever that window is in front and steps aside when you switch away. That second kind is usually what people want: the note stays visible over the work it is about, without covering everything else. We walk through it in how to keep a note on top of a window in Windows 11.

If your notes belong to a document, folder or website

A note about a spreadsheet is only useful when the spreadsheet is open. Three Windows apps attach notes to the thing they are about.

Stickies by Zhorn Software: free

Zhorn's site says Stickies is "completely free" and that notes "can be attached to an application, web site, document or folder so they only show when it's on screen." If you want to spend nothing, it is the place to start. Check the version list first: its site says it works with Windows 7, 8 and 10.

Notezilla: attached notes plus phone apps

Notezilla can attach notes to documents, websites, programs and folders. Its pricing page lists a one-time license at $29.95 for up to two computers without sync, or a subscription at $19.95 a year plus $10 the first year, which adds sync and apps for Android, iPhone, iPad and the web. There is a 30-day trial. If you want attached notes and a phone app today, this is the one.

TackNote for Windows: notes that know where they belong

TackNote is built around attaching notes. Press Ctrl + Alt + N and the note sticks to the window in front. It goes further than the window title in a few places:

• Documents. In Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Notepad and Acrobat, you choose whether a note belongs to this document only or to every window of the app.
• Web pages. In Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Brave and other popular browsers, a note is matched by the page's address, so it comes back when you revisit that page, even in a new tab.
• Folders and chats. A note on a File Explorer window belongs to that folder. In Slack it belongs to a channel or direct message, and in Microsoft Teams to a chat.
• Code projects. In VS Code, Cursor and Windsurf, a note sticks to the workspace folder.
• One board for everything. Ctrl + Alt + B opens TackBoard, which searches every note's label, text and checklist items, and Jump to Note takes you back to the window a note belongs to.

For the full side by side of these apps with prices, see our comparison of the best sticky notes apps for Windows.

If you lost a note you deleted

Microsoft's support page says: "Note deletion is permanent. It cannot be undone." Its advice is to turn on Confirm before deleting in Sticky Notes settings, which is worth doing today if you stay. If a note seems to have vanished rather than been deleted, our guide to getting missing Windows sticky notes back covers the usual causes.

In TackNote, deleting a note shows an Undo, and deleted notes wait under Recently Closed on TackBoard with a Restore button that puts a note back where it was. TackNote also keeps automatic Safety Backups: a copy every time it updates and once a day, the 12 most recent, on your PC.

If you would rather keep notes out of your mailbox

According to Microsoft, sticky notes are saved in Outlook or Exchange and count against your mailbox quota, and on a work or school account sync needs an Exchange Online mailbox. That is convenient when you want notes everywhere, and less so when a note holds something personal on a work PC.

TackNote needs no account. Notes, pictures and voice memos are stored on your PC, encrypted with your Windows account, and are never uploaded to us. A note marked private stays covered until you unlock it with Windows Hello or your Windows password. If you want notes on another computer, TackNote can sync through a folder you already use (OneDrive, Dropbox, Google Drive or iCloud Drive), encrypted with a passphrase you choose.

Switching from Microsoft Sticky Notes to TackNote

A few things to know before you move:

• No direct import. TackNote cannot import notes from Microsoft Sticky Notes. It imports Markdown, plain text, HTML, RTF and Evernote exports, so copy across the notes you still need.
• Built for Windows 11, on both x64 and ARM64 PCs.
• No phone app today. If your notes must be on your phone, Sticky Notes or Notezilla's subscription fit better.
• One price. $24.99 once, with a 7-day free trial that has everything unlocked. One license covers one person on up to three computers, Mac or PC. If you do not buy, your notes stay where they are and you can still read every one.

If you use virtual desktops, a TackNote desktop note can follow you to every desktop or belong to one and return there after a restart. We cover that in sticky notes on virtual desktops in Windows 11.