"Goodnotes for Institutions" refers to "GoodNotes 5" as deployed to institutions via Apple Business Manager or Apple School Manager. Goodnotes 6 has launched and is available for our all our users to upgrade and download via the App Store. For volume purchase users, the app is now called Goodnotes for School / Business / Enterprise, depending on your specific deployment. We are aware that you are keen to upgrade and want to know what you need to do moving forwards.
What do I need to do to get Goodnotes 6?
If you have already obtained a License Key since our changes to institutional purchasing for either Goodnotes for School, Goodnotes for Business or Goodnotes for Enterprise, then rest assured you will be able to upgrade your License Key and you can be certain of the following:
- Goodnotes for School & Goodnotes for Enterprise users will receive a FREE upgrade to Goodnotes 6.
- Goodnotes for Business users that have paid for a License Key can also enjoy a FREE upgrade to Goodnotes 6.
- Goodnotes for Business users that have a License Key with seats bought prior to April 2022 can enjoy a free trial of Goodnotes 6 for their respective seats until November 30th, 2023. With the option to upgrade to Goodnotes 6 via our business page.
Additionally:
- We will roll out the upgrades to you gradually.
- You are in total control. You can choose whether or not to upgrade the whole organisation at your discretion.
- You can remain in GoodNotes 5 if you wish.
What the Goodnotes 6 upgrade means?
The Goodnotes 6 upgrade means you will see a completely new user interface, along with the new features listed in our Getting Started Guide and our Frequently Asked Questions about Goodnotes 6.
Within the in-app settings, the app will now show information relevant to your purchase. Where before the top of the settings would show 'GoodNotes for Institutions', it will now show 'Goodnotes for School', 'Goodnotes for Business' or 'Goodnotes for Enterprise' depending on your avenue of installation and business plan.
The only limiting factor for our institutional users on Goodnotes 6 is in relation to access of Goodnotes AI. For our educational users, Goodnotes AI will function only with on-device features, but will not support cloud AI features. For Goodnotes for Business users, access for Goodnotes AI is available by default, but can be toggled off for Goodnotes for Enterprise customers if required.
- Goodnotes AI on device features include: Handwriting recognition, Spellcheck, Word preview (English only), Ink gestures such as Scribble to Erase, Circle to Select, tidy up, Math conversion & Math Assistance
- Goodnotes AI cloud features include: LLM-based typing (Large Language Model) such as Paraphrasing & Grammar checking
See below for a breakdown of what new Goodnotes 6 features your institute supports:
| Goodnotes for School | Goodnotes for Business | Goodnotes for Enterprise | |
| License Key Required? | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| Option to disable features? | ✅ | ❌ | ✅ |
| Goodnotes AI (on-device)? | ✅* | ✅ | ✅* |
| Goodnotes AI (cloud)? | ❌ | ✅ | ✅* |
| Email import? | ❌ | ✅ | ✅* |
| Export with watermark? | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ |
| Collaboration? | ✅* | ✅ | ✅* |
*can be disabled
How can I upgrade?
Upgrading to Goodnotes 6 is very simple and only requires an alteration to your existing deployment. See this guide on how to switch from GoodNotes 5 to Goodnotes 6 via AppConfig.