Left Image Right Image
Articles in this section

Get Started With Goodnotes for Android, Windows, and Web

This guide covers the basic workflows in Goodnotes for Android, Windows, and Web: signing in, navigating the interface, creating a notebook, taking notes, and managing pages and files.

This guide only applies to Goodnotes for Android, Windows, and Web. The notebook-creation command is “Create Notebook”.

Sign in

After you download Goodnotes, open it to reach the Welcome page.

  1. Select Sign in with Microsoft, Sign in with Apple, or Sign in with Google.
  2. Enter the requested account details.
  3. Continue to Library View.

Sign out

  1. From Library View, select the Gear icon.
  2. Select Manage Account > Sign out.

Explore Library View

  • Documents: Your documents and notebooks.
  • Favorites: Bookmarked content.
  • Shared: Documents shared by you or with you.
  • Marketplace: Digital stationery.
  • Trash: Deleted content.

Explore Document View

The Nav Bar contains document navigation and sharing controls.

Nav Bar controls in Goodnotes Document View

  • Library View: Return to the library.
  • Sidebar: Open page management.
  • Document Details: View edit time and sync status or rename the notebook.
  • Read Only Mode: Prevent editing.
  • Add New Page: Add a page.
  • Bookmark: Bookmark the document.
  • Share: Open export and collaboration options.
  • More: Open additional actions.

The Toolbar contains tools for taking notes.

Editing tools in the Goodnotes Toolbar

Create your first notebook

  1. From Documents, select New > Notebook.

    New menu with Notebook selected

  2. Wait for the Template Library to open.

    Template Library for creating a notebook

  3. Choose the paper size, color, orientation, cover, and paper template.
  4. Enter a name in Title.
  5. Select Create Notebook.

The selected template properties become the defaults for the next notebook you create.

Start taking notes

Select a tool from the Toolbar to write, draw, edit, or add content.

Note-taking tools in the Goodnotes Toolbar

Add or open a page

  1. Open the Sidebar.
  2. Scroll to the bottom.
  3. Select Add Page.

    Add Page at the bottom of the Sidebar

To insert at a specific position, select More under a page thumbnail, then Add page before or Add page after.

To jump to a page, select More > Go to page and enter the page number. See Zoom, pan, and scroll through pages in Goodnotes.

Import a PDF

  1. Select New > Import.
  2. Select the PDF from the file picker.

See Import documents.

Export or share a notebook

See Export a notebook as PDF.

  1. Open the document.
  2. Select Share.
  3. Enable Share link.
  4. Select Done, then share the copied link.

See Share notebooks.