Evernote May Limit Free Users to Just 50 Notes

Evernote is testing out a new plan that would severely limit users of its free version to only 50 notes and one notebook, TechCrunch first reported on Monday. One of the world’s largest note-taking apps, with over 250 million users, is quietly pushing for free users to upgrade to premium services.

Some Evernote users woke up this holiday weekend to find the app they’ve used for years was not allowing them to create any more notes. The test from Evernote (acquired by Bending Spoons last year) is the latest revenue-driving effort from the popular note-taking app that’s been struggling financially. The test is only affecting a limited set of users, and Evernote does not advertise these changes on its pricing plan page, implying the company is just testing it out for now.

Evernote and Bending Spoons did not immediately respond to Gizmodo’s request for comment.

Currently, Evernote advertises a 60 MB monthly upload limit and 25 MB max note size for free users, with no mention of limitations on the number of notes or notebooks. Many free users have hundreds or even thousands of notes and dozens of notebooks. The next cheapest option for free users looking to continue using their previous capabilities would cost $14.99 a month.

Evernote told TechCrunch it is running a test with less than 1% of its users – still, potentially millions of users – to determine if it will implement the new plan. Users who don’t want to pay for the new plan can still have access to their old notes, and export them to another app.

Bending Spoons laid off 129 Evernote employees shortly after its acquisition last year, and moved operations to the parent company’s home base in Europe. At the time of layoffs, a spokesperson said Evernote, “has been unprofitable for years and the situation was unsustainable in the long term.” Bending Spoons has raised prices for Evernote’s premium plans in the past year, and it seems significant limitations to the free plan could be on the horizon.