Craft

Craft wants to be your "space for notes, tasks, and big ideas," which is basically startup-speak for "we made another fucking text editor and need to justify why you should switch from whatever you're currently using that already works fine." I've been testing this thing from my Bed-Stuy apartment for two weeks, bouncing between my cracked iPhone and MacBook like some sort of digital nomad cosplayer, and honestly? It's not terrible. The cross-device sync actually works, which puts it ahead of about half the productivity apps I've tortured myself with. But let's be real about what we're dealing with here: premium note-taking software in 2026, when Notes.app exists and does 80% of what most people need.

The interface has that clean, minimalist aesthetic that screams "we hired designers who used to work at meditation apps." Everything is rounded corners and gentle gradients, like they're afraid sharp edges might trigger someone's anxiety. The writing experience itself is genuinely smooth though – there's something satisfying about how the text flows, how the formatting options slide in without feeling cluttered. They've nailed that sweet spot between powerful and approachable. The task embedding feature is clever too; instead of making you jump between seventeen different apps to manage your life, you can just drop a checkbox right into your stream-of-consciousness rambling about why your neighbor's dog barks at exactly 3 AM every Tuesday.

Where Craft gets weird is in its identity crisis between being a simple note-taker and a complex knowledge management system. They offer "rich databases with collections" but also market themselves as the place for casual "fragments of the day." Pick a lane, you know? I spent an embarrassing amount of time trying to figure out if I should be using this for grocery lists or building some elaborate second brain architecture. The marketing copy doesn't help – it's all breathless about "premium writing experiences" and "unmistakably yours" customization, but then shows screenshots that look exactly like every other note-taking app launched since 2020.

The pricing model isn't explicitly listed on the main page, which is always a red flag that translates to "expensive enough that we don't want to scare you away immediately." The whole "your pace, your plan" messaging suggests freemium tiers, but good luck figuring out what's actually free versus what requires opening your wallet. I appreciate that they're not pushy about signup walls – you can actually explore the features before committing, which feels increasingly rare. The community aspect they mention is a nice touch too; there's something refreshing about a productivity app that acknowledges other humans exist instead of treating you like a lone wolf optimization machine.

Here's the thing: Craft is genuinely well-built software that solves real problems, but it's entering a market so oversaturated that even good products feel redundant. It's like opening a new artisanal coffee shop in Park Slope – sure, your beans might be better, but do we really need another option? The cross-platform sync is solid, the writing experience is pleasant, and the task integration actually makes sense. If you're currently frustrated with your note-taking setup, this could be worth the switch. But if you're happy with what you've got, Craft isn't revolutionary enough to justify the learning curve and subscription fees that productivity apps inevitably demand.