About The Software Score
The Software Score rates software the way a credit score rates borrowers: one public formula, applied the same way to everyone. No sponsored rankings, no pay-to-win, no black box. This page explains who does the scoring, how, and how to challenge it.
Why I built The Software Score
Every time I tried to choose software, I got lost in the noise. I would start researching one app and, ten YouTube videos and a dozen blog posts later, forget why I was even looking. Pricing was scattered, features were hard to line up side by side, and the ratings were all over the place, different on Trustpilot, G2, Capterra, the App Store, Google Play, and YouTube.
I just wanted one simple place to get a baseline: compare pricing and features, see how refined and personalizable each option really is, and match it to what I actually needed. So I built it. The Software Score puts every app through the same public formula, cross-references those scattered ratings into one number, and shows the math, so you can reach a confident decision without the noise.
Who scores the apps
Rick Castro is the founder of The Software Score. He built it out of his own frustration comparing software as a buyer, lost between scattered reviews, mismatched pricing, and conflicting ratings. He designs the scoring rubric, sets the axis weights, and reviews every app against the same public formula, including the ones the site earns nothing from.
Every ranking on this site is set by a named person against a written rubric, not spun up by an anonymous "team" and not generated by whoever pays the most. If a score looks wrong, there's a real inbox to email, and corrections are made in public.
We currently cover 30 note-taking apps, including ones we earn nothing from, so the ranking stays useful rather than limited to whatever has an affiliate program.
How apps are tested & scored
- One fixed rubric. Each app is rated 0-10 on the same 7 axes, Value, Ease, Features, Sync, Ownership, Collab, AI, using anchored definitions published on the methodology page. The SoftwareScore is the weighted sum × 10.
- Analyst-rated against features & docs. Scores are set by our lead analyst against each vendor's current feature set and platform support, hands-on where possible, and re-checked against release notes and help docs.
- Pricing verified, not guessed. Every price is checked against the vendor's live pricing page (last verified July 2026) and re-verified on updates.
- User reviews cross-referenced. Community star ratings are pulled and cross-referenced across the App Store, Google Play, Capterra and G2, and shown display-only. They are never mixed into the computed SoftwareScore.
- Money can't move the ranking. Affiliate status is disclosed on every page, and apps we earn nothing from are scored and ranked identically to ones that pay us.
How to get something corrected
Spotted a stale price, a wrong platform, or a score you think is off? Email [email protected] with the app and what's wrong. Legitimate corrections are updated and the "last updated" date is bumped.