Best apps for taking notes from physical books (2026)

Most reading apps assume your book has a text layer. Kindle knows what you highlighted because it served you the words. A paperback does not, which is why so many readers end up with a camera roll full of page photos they never open again.

The apps below try to close that gap in different ways. Some start from a photo of the page; some are reading trackers that let you keep quotes; some are general tools you can bend into shape. Before the list, it helps to know what actually matters once the novelty of scanning wears off.

What to look for in a physical-book notes app

• Region selection — you want the two sentences you cared about, not a whole page of recognized text
• Editable text — a quote with a stray recognition error should be fixable in seconds
• Book and chapter structure — notes that know where they came from are easier to review and to cite
• Offline capture — reading happens on trains, on planes and in places with poor signal
• A review loop — something that brings notes back, or they become one more archive
• Export — a way to get your notes out, so they are not stuck in one app

It is also worth checking where text recognition happens. On-device OCR works offline and keeps your pages on your phone; cloud recognition can work well but needs a connection. And a fast camera matters less than people expect. What decides whether you keep using an app is what happens after the scan.

The apps at a glance

GleanNote

GleanNote is our app, so read this with that in mind. It is built for paper first. You photograph a page—on Android through the ML Kit document scanner, on iPhone and iPad through the in-app camera—drag to select the lines you want, and on-device OCR turns them into a note under the right book and chapter. The text is yours to edit, and you can add a comment about why it mattered. If you would rather skip the camera, type or paste the passage instead.

Because your library is stored on your device first, capture works without a connection. You add books by search, ISBN scan or manual entry and mark them as Currently Reading, Completed or To Read. The free tier covers three books with single-page capture; Premium adds batch capture for several pages in one session, plus cloud backup and sync.

The loop after capture is the point. The Daily Digest resurfaces three of your own notes each day. Flashcards on the free tier are built on your device from your notes, and Premium adds AI-generated ones. Talk to your Book, on Premium, answers questions using only the notes you captured, so the answers stay tied to your reading rather than to a summary from the web.

Quote scanners and reading trackers

Highlighted

Highlighted does one thing: photograph a page, highlight a passage, keep it as a quote. That focus makes it quick to learn, and it is a good choice if what you want is a clean collection of lines from paper books. It is lighter on structure and review. Check its current platform support and export options in its store listing.

Basmo

Basmo leans into reading sessions, goals and a reading journal where you keep notes against each book. At the time of writing it can also capture text from a page with the camera. It is a good pick if tracking motivates you and notes are a welcome side benefit.

Bookly

Bookly is centered on timing your reading and building a habit, with quotes and thoughts attached to each book. The notes work well as a journal of what struck you; they are not designed as a study system.

Bookmory

Bookmory combines a reading log, a timer and a space for quotes and reflections, and at the time of writing it supports capturing text from a photo. It is a pleasant all-in-one journal for readers who want tracking and notes in the same place.

If your goal is remembering arguments rather than counting pages, notice that none of these is built around resurfacing your notes on a schedule. They record your reading well; bringing it back is left to you.

Readwise’s photo capture

Readwise is best known for syncing digital highlights, but its mobile app can also capture a highlight from a photo of a physical page. If you already subscribe to Readwise and read a paper book now and then, this keeps everything in one library and in the same daily review.

The limitation is emphasis. Paper capture is one input among many, and the product is organized around imports from other apps. Readers who spend most of their time in print may find a page-first app faster day to day.

DIY options: phone text capture and the Kindle workaround

Google Lens or Live Text into a notes app

Modern phones can pull text straight out of the camera: Google Lens on Android, Live Text on iPhone. Copy a passage, paste it into Google Keep, Apple Notes or whatever notes app you use, and type the book and page. It costs nothing and works today.

The cost is friction and drift. Nothing files the note under a book or chapter for you, nothing brings it back, and after a few books the notes app becomes another pile of undated snippets.

Buying the Kindle edition too

Some readers buy the ebook of the paper books they love just to get searchable highlights. It works, but you pay twice, you read on paper and highlight on a screen, and anything you did not buy digitally still ends up as a photo.

Which app fits you

• You read mostly paper non-fiction and want to remember it → GleanNote
• You want a simple collection of favorite quotes → Highlighted
• You want reading stats and goals with a journal attached → Basmo, Bookly or Bookmory
• You already use Readwise for digital highlights → try its photo capture before adding another app
• You want free and flexible, and do not mind filing by hand → Lens or Live Text into a notes app

Whatever you pick, capture less than you think you should. Two sentences and one line of your own reaction beat a full page you will never reread.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best app for taking notes from physical books?

For notes you want to remember and review, pick an app that captures from a photo with region selection and files notes by chapter; GleanNote is built for exactly that. For a quote collection, Highlighted is focused and quick. For tracking with a journal, look at Basmo, Bookly or Bookmory.

Can I scan book pages without an internet connection?

Yes, if the app runs text recognition on the device. GleanNote does its OCR on your phone, so capture works offline and your pages are not uploaded to be read.

Should I capture whole pages or just passages?

Just passages. A page of text is easy to save and hard to review. Selecting two or three sentences and adding one line about why they matter makes every later review faster.