Choose Google Keep if
you want quick lists, reminders and notes you share with family, free and everywhere.
Choose Cambium if
your notes are getting long, need structure and links, or should be plain Markdown you can take elsewhere.
At a glance
| Google Keep | Cambium | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free with a Google account | $4.99/month or $39.99/year |
| Platforms | Android, iPhone and iPad, web | Any modern browser, installable |
| Formatting | Bold, italic, underline, two heading levels | Full Markdown: headings, lists, tasks, tables, code, quotes |
| Links between notes | Not described in Google's help | [[links]], backlinks and a graph |
| Sharing | Collaborators and family groups can edit | Private by default; share a chosen note with your partner |
| Export | Google Takeout | ZIP of Markdown files with attachments |
Sources: Google Keep Help on editing notes, sharing, family groups, requirements and export.
Where Google Keep is stronger
Keep is built for the small stuff: a checklist, a parking spot, a shared packing list. It's free, quick to open, and family members can edit the same note. For that job, a full notebook is overkill.
Where Cambium is different
Cambium is for writing you'll come back to: meeting notes, journals, research, plans. Notes are Markdown with headings, tables and tasks; you can link them, see backlinks and keep a daily note. Export is a ZIP of plain files.
Use both
Many people keep Keep for lists and use a notebook for writing. If your Keep lists are mostly groceries, a shared shopping list in a kitchen app like Hearth may serve you better; here's how to build one from a meal plan.
Moving notes over
Cambium imports Markdown and text files. It doesn't read a Google Takeout export directly, so copy the notes you want to keep into new Cambium notes.