Comparison
Flyout vs Tot
Tot is one of the most elegant text apps on the Mac, and its constraint is the whole point. Iconfactory put it plainly when asked whether you can add more than seven dots: “No. Seven dots is a feature that helps control clutter.” That is a real design philosophy, and for some people it is exactly right. If you have ever hit the eighth note, this page is for you.
For macOS 14 Sonoma and later. iPhone and iPad app included. No account, no subscription.
| Feature | Tot | Flyout |
|---|---|---|
| How many notes | Seven — a deliberate hard limit, plus 100,000 characters per note | As many as you like |
| Tasks inside notes | Customisable smart bullets for checklists | Checkboxes plus six built-in statuses; add your own |
| Themes and note colours | Light and dark appearance | Named themes; 38 note colours and custom colours |
| Organisation | None — the seven dots are the structure | Folders and tabs |
| Search | Within the dot you have open | Across every note, from the panel |
| Images in a note | Text only | Paste, drag in, resize |
| Reminders | None | On a whole note, or on one selected line |
| Opening it | Menu bar, or a hotkey you record yourself | Screen edge or hotkey — and it slides away on its own |
| Price | Free to download; a $19.99 in-app unlock per platform (Mac and iPhone sold separately) | $24 once, on five devices across Mac + iPhone + iPad |
When Tot is the better fit
Tot supports iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch, iCloud sync, Shortcuts and automatic backups. Its seven-note limit can be useful if you want a small scratchpad. Flyout offers folders, images, reminders and custom task statuses. Both offer an iPhone trial through the App Store; the Flyout Mac trial is downloaded from this website.
Flyout’s price, Mac/iPhone/iPad support and local agent access were checked on 5 October 2026. Other comparison details were reviewed against official documentation in July and August 2026, with task, appearance and Antinote updates on 6 September 2026. Linked sources explain those rows. Tell us if a detail is outdated.
Is Flyout right for you?
Keep instructions, code, images and tasks beside your work in a screen-edge panel. Try Flyout for seven days without an account. Notes are stored locally; iCloud sync and connections to external agents are optional.