What People Love About Google Keep
Before we get into where Start Page HQ goes further, credit where it's due.
- Genuinely free with no paid tier — every feature available to every user.
- Tight integration with the Google ecosystem (Docs, Calendar, Gmail).
- Color-coded sticky notes that are fast to scan visually.
- Voice notes, image notes, and OCR-powered text extraction from photos.
- A polished mobile experience on Android and iOS.
Where Start Page HQ Goes Further
Specific differences, not vague claims.
A Full New Tab Dashboard, Not Just Sticky Notes
Google Keep is a single notes app. Start Page HQ replaces your entire new tab with a dashboard of notes, todos, weather, RSS, calendars, and 50+ other widgets.
50+ Widgets, Not Just One Note Type
Google Keep gives you sticky notes and lists. Start Page HQ ships QuickNote, full Notes, Tasks (Kanban), Todo, Markdown editor, and many more — pick the right tool for each job.
Multi-Page Dashboards by Context
Build separate pages for Work, Personal, News, and Tools, and switch with a click. Google Keep is one flat board of notes.
Not Locked to a Google Account
Start Page HQ has its own account system, so you can sign in with email or Google. No assumption that all your data lives in one ecosystem.
Real Productivity Widgets
Pomodoro timer, habit tracker, countdown, calendar, search, currency converter, weather — productivity tools that go far beyond sticky notes.
AI Built In
AI image generation, translation, instant answers, and AI news summaries ship as widgets. None of these exist in Google Keep.
Side-by-Side Comparison
An honest line-by-line look at how the two stack up.
| Feature | Google Keep | Start Page HQ |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | $25/yr or $49 lifetime |
| Free tier | Yes (full app) | Free demo only |
| Lives on every new tab | No | Yes |
| Chrome | Yes | Yes |
| Firefox | Yes | Yes |
| Safari | Yes | Yes |
| Edge | Yes | Yes |
| Hosted web app | Yes | Yes |
| Cross-device sync | Via Google account | Included |
| Sticky-note style notes | Yes | Notes widget |
| Quick note widget | Native | Yes |
| Full notes widget | Limited | Yes |
| Markdown editor | No | Yes |
| Kanban tasks | No | Yes |
| Todo list | Checklist notes | Yes |
| Multi-page dashboards | No | Yes |
| Weather / RSS / podcasts | No | Yes |
| AI tools | No | Included |
| Developer tools (JSON, regex, diff) | No | Yes |
| Voice notes / OCR | Yes | No |
Widgets That Replace Google Keep
Drop these onto your dashboard and you've covered Google Keep's core features — plus a lot more.
Frequently Asked Questions
There is a free public demo at startpagehq.com/demo where you can try every widget without signing up. Full access requires a paid plan: $25/year or $49 one-time. Both plans include all 50+ widgets, sync, and AI credits — but unlike Keep, that price covers far more than just notes.
You are not paying for notes alone. Start Page HQ replaces your entire new tab with a dashboard of 50+ widgets — tasks, weather, RSS, AI tools, dev utilities, and more. Keep is great for sticky notes; Start Page HQ is for everything you do every time you open a browser.
Yes. Sync is included in the base price. Sign in once and your pages, widgets, notes, and links sync across every browser and device automatically.
There is no automated importer. Most users keep Google Keep for legacy notes and drag the most-used ones into Start Page HQ Notes or QuickNote manually — it takes a few minutes.
No. If voice memos and image OCR are core to your workflow, Google Keep is still better at those specific features.
Yes. The hosted web app at startpagehq.com works in any mobile browser, and you can install it as a PWA for an app-like experience on both Android and iOS.