No, OneNote is not like Sticky Notes, but the two tools are deeply integrated to serve different purposes within the Microsoft ecosystem.
While Microsoft's Sticky Notes is a lightweight, single-purpose application for jotting down quick thoughts, OneNote is a comprehensive digital notebook for organizing research, projects, and a vast amount of information.
Overview: OneNote vs. Sticky Notes
| Feature | Sticky Notes | OneNote |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Use Case | Capturing fleeting thoughts, quick to-do items, and temporary reminders. | Comprehensive, long-term organization of information for projects, research, and planning. |
| Canvas | Individual, resizable, floating notes on the desktop. | An infinite digital canvas for each page, allowing you to click and type anywhere. |
| Structure | A flat list of notes, with basic sorting and a note list view. | Hierarchical organization using Notebooks, Sections, and Pages. |
| Formatting | Basic formatting options such as bold, italics, underline, and bullet points. | Extensive formatting, including font customization, tables, and complex layouts. |
| Content | Primarily text, with support for images and inking. | All-in-one content: text, images, video, audio recordings, tables, files, drawings, and web clips. |
| Integration | Directly integrates with OneNote and Outlook for syncing. | Seamlessly integrates with the full Microsoft Office suite, including Teams, Outlook, and Excel. |
| Best For | Quickly capturing a phone number, remembering a simple task, or making a last-minute shopping list. | Taking detailed meeting notes, conducting research for a paper, or planning a complex project. |
How the two tools work together
Despite their differences, OneNote and Sticky Notes are designed to work in tandem. Your Sticky Notes are synced and viewable directly within the OneNote app, forming a "feed". This integration creates a seamless workflow:
- Rapid Capture: You can jot down a quick idea in Sticky Notes on your desktop without breaking your focus.
- Organize Later: When you have more time, you can pull that sticky note from the feed into a OneNote notebook and organize it with other project materials.
- Cross-Device Access: Because both apps sync with your Microsoft account, a note you create on your desktop will be accessible on your phone via the OneNote mobile app.
Making the right choice
Choosing between OneNote and Sticky Notes depends on your immediate needs. Often, the best solution involves using both together.
Use Sticky Notes when you need to:
- Remember something very quickly, like a password reset code or a last-minute thought.
- Keep a simple, temporary to-do list visible on your desktop.
- Capture information that you will either use or discard in the short term.
Use OneNote for more involved tasks like:
- Taking detailed notes during meetings or lectures, with room for diagrams, images, and audio.
- Collecting and organizing a large amount of research and web clippings for a school or work project.
- Creating a multi-layered, searchable knowledge base for your personal or professional life.