Can you use Notability or Goodnotes on a Chromebook or Windows laptop?

The short version

This page is written by the makers of alai, a note-taking app for iPad and the web with an adaptive AI tutor called Ally. We checked each app below on its own pages on November 5, 2026.

The iPad-only gap has mostly closed. Goodnotes says it runs on Windows, Android, Chromebooks and the web. Notability now lists Android and web apps, plus a Windows app made mainly for recording meetings. Microsoft OneNote is free on Windows. Squid and MyScript Notes are pen apps for Android that also run on Chromebooks.

An app reaches these laptops as a Windows app, as an Android app from Google Play, or as a web app in a browser such as Chrome or Edge. Google says the Play Store is available on only some Chromebooks and a school Chromebook may not be able to add it; if Settings doesn't show it, your Chromebook can't run Android apps. A web app needs nothing installed.

Where each app runs

What you get in each

"Not listed" means the app's own pages for that version don't mention it. Goodnotes' Windows and Android pages list audio recording as a feature highlight without saying whether it has shipped. Prices are from Goodnotes, Notability and alai; Notability's yearly plans were marked down from $14.99, $19.99 and $99.99 when we checked.

What each one does well

• Goodnotes has notebooks, whiteboards and typed documents, with PDF markup and handwriting search, in its Android and Windows apps. Its pricing page says syncing a library between Apple and non-Apple devices takes Goodnotes Cloud on Pro, but its Windows page still called iPad sync coming soon, so check in the app first. Goodnotes says basic Chromebooks may see limited performance.
• Notability syncs notes and folders from the iPad to its Android and web apps through Notability Cloud, and its Android app records audio that syncs to the moment you write. Its pages don't mention Chromebooks. The web app guide covers typing, recording and study tools, but we couldn't find a page about writing there with a pen, so try yours before class.
• OneNote is free, takes a pen or a finger on Windows, and searches handwritten ink. Notes you take during a recording in OneNote for Windows are linked to the audio. On a Chromebook, Microsoft recommends the web version, where Ink to Text isn't available. Copilot depends on your Microsoft 365 subscription or your school's settings.
• Squid says it's optimized for Chromebooks and Android tablets and that its low-latency ink is available on Chromebooks. Notes stay on your device without an account. PDF markup and cloud backup come with Squid Premium, a monthly or yearly subscription.
• MyScript Notes, still called Nebo on Windows, turns handwriting into typed text in 66 languages and works with active and passive pens. Its Play listing offers a 7-day trial and a limited free version.
• Samsung Notes works with the S Pen and records voice, but its Windows version says it's optimized for Samsung Galaxy Book laptops and other computers may have trouble running it.

For worksheets, a PDF app such as Xodo lets you highlight, draw and add text on PDFs on Android, and Xodo also edits PDFs in a browser.

Where alai fits

alai's web app runs in a browser such as Chrome or Edge, so it works on a Chromebook or a Windows laptop. You write with a stylus or a mouse, or with a finger if you turn on Finger draws in settings. The same account signs in to alai's iPad app, and your notes sync between the two on every plan and work offline in the browser. The iPad app needs iPadOS 26 or later and isn't on the App Store yet. On a Chromebook, Ctrl+Alt+N opens a new note.

Every plan, including Free, has the note tools, from PDF import to recording a class and tapping your notes to hear that moment.

Ally, the tutor, works in the web app too. Ally learns which kind of help works for you, remembers what tripped you up, and steps in at the first mistake in your written work with a question instead of the answer. Ally covers math from algebra through calculus, physics, chemistry and Spanish present-tense verbs. Pro includes 10 hours a month with Ally, and Free and Essential include 30 minutes to try Ally.

Which pens work

Check your laptop's spec page before you buy a pen.

• Chromebooks. Squid's help center notes that not every model takes an active pen or comes with one. USI is an open stylus standard meant to let a pen work across devices from different makers. MyScript's list of compatible Chromebooks names built-in pens, USI pens from HP and Lenovo, and a Lenovo EMR pen.
• Windows. Surface Pens use the Microsoft Pen Protocol (MPP), and Microsoft says a Surface Pen might work on other Windows PCs that support MPP if the versions match. Wacom makes battery-free EMR pens and AES pens with built-in batteries, and its Bamboo Ink Plus can switch between Wacom's Active ES protocol and MPP.
• In a browser. Browsers hand a pen to web apps through pointer events, one model for a mouse, a pen and touch that tells the page which one you're using.

Moving your notes off an iPad

From Notability

Notability's sharing guide says to tap the options icon in the Library, choose Select Notes, pick your notes and tap Export. Choose Note, Notability's own format, for alai, or PDF for an app that imports PDFs. For a whole library, Auto-Backup copies every note as Note or PDF files to Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox, Box or a WebDAV server.

From Goodnotes

Goodnotes on the iPad can export notes as PDFs and back them up to Google Drive, Dropbox or OneDrive. On its Free plan, exports are watermarked. For alai, export each notebook in the Goodnotes format instead, so the handwriting stays ink. If you're staying with Goodnotes, check that your library is in Goodnotes Cloud, since Goodnotes says an iCloud library stays on Apple devices.

Into alai

In alai's web app, choose Bring your notes at the top of Files, then pick your .note or .goodnotes files, a folder of them or a .zip, or drop them on the page. Folders stay folders, and your handwriting comes in as ink you can keep editing. Recordings don't come over. From OneNote, Nebo, Samsung Notes and other apps, export PDFs and bring those in. The Free plan keeps 10 files of up to 5 MB each, so a big library needs Essential, which takes those limits off.

Which to pick

• A school Chromebook: start with what your school allows. Without the Play Store, try a web app: Goodnotes, Notability, OneNote or alai. With it, Goodnotes, Squid and MyScript Notes all say they work on Chromebooks.
• A Windows pen laptop: OneNote is free and links notes to recordings, and Goodnotes and Nebo have Windows apps built for handwriting. On a Galaxy Book, Samsung Notes works with the S Pen.
• Your notes already live in Goodnotes: staying is the easiest move. Plan on Pro to see your iPad library on the laptop, and check that the sync works for you.
• You want Notability's audio link: Notability's Android app ties recordings to what you write, OneNote for Windows links notes to a recording, and alai's web app lets you tap your notes to hear that moment.
• You want a tutor as well as notes: alai pairs the notes with Ally, for math, physics, chemistry and Spanish.