Confluence vs Microsoft OneNote
Confluence and Microsoft OneNote are both note-taking & docs tools. Confluence is aimed at enterprise and developers, while Microsoft OneNote is aimed at freelancers and small businesses. Both have a free plan.
Team wiki tightly integrated with Jira
Free freeform digital notebook from Microsoft with ink and sync
| Pricing | Freemium · $7 | Free |
| Starting price | $7.15/mo | Not published |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | 14 days | — |
| Built for | Enterprise, Developers | Freelancers, Small businesses, Enterprise |
| Platforms | web, ios, android | web, windows, macos, ios, android |
| Country | AU · 2004 | US · 2003 |
| Rating | — | — |
Choose Confluence if
Organizations already standardized on Jira that need a governed knowledge base.
- Deep Jira integration and shared admin
- Mature permissions for large organizations
- Free for small teams up to 10 users
Look elsewhere if: Teams without Jira or those who value writing experience; Notion, Slite or Outline.
Choose Microsoft OneNote if
Students, teachers and Microsoft 365 users who want a free, pen-friendly notebook that syncs across every device.
- Completely free on every major platform with no note limits
- Best-in-class pen experience for students and tablet users
- Freeform canvas suits mixed media better than linear note apps
Look elsewhere if: Knowledge workers who need databases, linked notes or plain-file ownership (Notion, Obsidian or Evernote suit them better).
Confluence vs Microsoft OneNote pricing
Confluence
- Free$0Up to 10 users, 2 GB storage, community support
- Standard$7.15/user/mo1-100 users monthly; tiered lower ($5.78 avg at 300); 250 GB
- Premium$14.10/user/mo1-100 users monthly ($11.16 avg at 300 users); 30-day trial
- EnterpriseCustom801+ users, advanced analytics, scale and security
Microsoft OneNote
- OneNote$0Free with a Microsoft account; notebooks sync via 5 GB OneDrive
- Microsoft 365 Personal$9.99/mo$99.99/year; 1 TB OneDrive and Copilot in OneNote
- Microsoft 365 Family$12.99/mo$129.99/year; up to 6 people, 2 TB shared storage
Confluence · Key features
- Spaces, page trees and templates for specs, runbooks and meetings
- Live Jira issue embeds and requirement linking
- Whiteboards, databases and inline comments
- Rovo AI search, chat and writing
- Granular space and page permissions
- Marketplace apps for diagrams, forms and macros
Cons
- Editor and formatting can be frustrating
- Search quality is inconsistent
- Feels heavy compared with modern wikis
Microsoft OneNote · Key features
- Freeform pages where text, images, ink and files can be placed anywhere
- Notebook, section and page hierarchy with color-coded tabs
- Pen and stylus inking with handwriting search and ink-to-text
- Text extraction from images and printouts inserted into notes
- Audio recording linked to notes and tags such as To Do and Important
- OneNote Web Clipper for saving web pages into a notebook
Cons
- Storage is capped by OneDrive, only 5 GB on free accounts
- No databases, Markdown or bidirectional links
- Weak export makes migrating to another app painful
Confluence vs Microsoft OneNote: FAQ
Do Confluence and Microsoft OneNote have a free plan?
Yes, both Confluence and Microsoft OneNote have a free plan; paid plans add more usage and features.
Which is better for small businesses, Confluence or Microsoft OneNote?
Microsoft OneNote lists small businesses as a core audience, while Confluence is aimed more at enterprise and developers.