PROS
- All-in-One Platform
- Minimalist and clean interface
- Customization and Flexibility
- Cross-Platform (macOS, Windows, iOS, Android, web browser)
- Integrated Notion AI
- Support Markdown
- Templates and Community Support
- Team Collaboration Workspace
- Versatile integration capabilities (Word docs, Google Drive files, Google Maps, and other tools)
CONS
- Learning Curve for Beginners
- No support offline mode
- Slow down when databases become larger and complex
- Less efficient on mobile
1. What is Notion & How Does it Work?
Notion was first launched in 2016 as a simple note-taking and organization tool, but it has continuously evolved to become an “All-in-One Workspace” for productivity. In this Notion Review 2024, I will explore how it has grown beyond basic note-taking, offering features that enable task management, team project collaboration, building custom management systems and workflows, and even AI-powered text drafting tools to boost productivity.
Notion has quickly gained popularity for its flexibility and customizable features, and it’s available everywhere you need it—whether as a web app in your browser, a desktop app on macOS or Windows, or a mobile app on iOS and Android.
How does it work - "Page" and "Block"
In Notion, understanding the page and block system is essential. Start by creating a new page, then build your content using blocks. Blocks can range from simple elements like text, to-do lists, checklists, and bulleted lists, to more complex options like images, videos, databases (including tables, board views, etc.) and charts (vertical bar, horizontal bar, line charts, etc.). This flexibility allows you to fully customize each page based on your preferences and needs.
Click the + button or use the / (slash) shortcut to quickly access a list of content blocks.
Besides Notion’s basic content blocks, you can also import data from platforms like Google Docs, Figma, and PDFs, transforming them into versatile block content.
Blocks in Notion are incredibly flexible because of their various properties:
Reordering: You can easily drag and drop blocks to reorder them within a page, allowing for seamless organization of your content.
Cross-Page Movement: Blocks can be dragged from one page and dropped into another, facilitating efficient content management and reusability.
Transformation: Blocks can be transformed into different types. For instance, you can convert a text block into a bullet list, making it simple to adapt your content format based on your needs.
For more information on how to use Notion, you can visit the official Notion documentation, which includes comprehensive guide tutorials.
2. What you can do with Notion?
Notion goes beyond simple note-taking—you can use it for a variety of purposes, from personal productivity to team collaboration. Here’s a look at some of the key things you can do with Notion:
1. Take Notes and Organize Ideas
You can build a Notebooks database (Table View)Â to organize all your related notes in one place. Each row in the table represents a separate page where you can open and jot down ideas or content. This setup makes it easy to keep track of notes, outlines, and other content for any topic.
2. Tasks Management and Tracking
With Notion, you can create your own task management system and view it as a Kanban Board, which is especially useful for organizing tasks visually. You can customize the table columns—for example, by adding columns for task name, status, due date, and priority—and add more columns as needed.
Notion’s Board View offers a Kanban-style setup that groups tasks by status, typically into To-Do, In Progress, and Done columns.
To add a task, simply click the + New Task button to create individual task cards. You can drag each card between columns to update its status, making this feature ideal for tracking tasks in a streamlined workflow.
3. Build Your Own Galleries
You also can create your own galleries to organize content visually. Galleries in Notion allow you to display pages as cards, making it ideal for visually-oriented projects like portfolios, collections, reading lists, and mood boards.
For example, a recipe collection gallery might include cards for each recipe, with properties for ingredients, prep time, and dietary tags. Each card can open into a full page, where you can add instructions, images, and notes for each recipe.
4. Team Project Collaboration System
Notion allows teams to collaborate in real-time on projects, manage tasks, and share documents within a single workspace.Â
To invite your team member:
- Click on “Share” in the page you want to share.
- Under “Invite”, type the email address of the person you’d like to invite.
- Select the permission level you want to grant (e.g., Can View, Can Comment, or Can Edit).
- Click “Invite” to send the invitation.
You can create task lists, assign tasks to team members, set due dates, and track progress. Team members can also share documents and collaborate in real time by editing and commenting directly on shared pages.
Want a clear overview of your tasks with dates and timelines? Notion offers a calendar view that lets you organize tasks, events, and deadlines in a time-based format, making it easier to track your schedule.
5. Design Custom Workflows with Templates
You don’t need to build your workflow from scratch, which can be challenging, especially if you’re not yet familiar with Notion’s tools and layout. Fortunately, Notion offers a wide range of templates to make things easier, and the Notion community has contributed many as well.Â
You can access these templates directly within Notion (scrolling down the sidebar then click on “Templates”) or open a new page and get started with “Templates”.
There are both free and paid templates available, covering various systems tailored to different needs. Whether you’re looking to improve productivity, track habits, plan content, or manage projects, there’s likely a template suited for you. The best part is that you don’t have to reinvent the wheel. You can simply select a template that matches your goals and then customize it to fit your personal workflow.
Actually many third-party websites also offer specialized templates, often with unique features or niche use cases. Exploring these options can save you time and help you set up a system that works for you right away.
By leveraging Notion’s extensive template library, you can hit the ground running and focus on what matters most: getting things done
6. Notion AI for Content Creation
Notion also integrates with AI technology to boost productivity, especially in content creation, through a feature called Notion AI. When you open a new page, you can ask Notion AI to help draft anything you need, including outlines, emails, meeting agendas, brainstorming ideas, and more.
I’ll discuss Notion AI more detail in the next section, covering what it can do for us and how effective it really is.
3. Notion AI: Your Intelligent Assistant
Ever felt stuck while writing or struggling to come up with fresh ideas? Maybe your notes are too long, and you need a quick summary, or perhaps you want to polish your content by checking for grammar and spelling errors or even adjusting the tone to suit a different audience.
This is where Notion AI comes in—intelligent assistant launched by Notion to tackle these common challenges. Notion AI isn’t just a typical note-taking tool; it’s a powerful productivity booster designed to help you work smarter, not harder.
Imagine having a virtual assistant right inside your workspace. Whether you need to draft content, summarize notes, brainstorm ideas, or improve your writing, Notion AI can handle it all. Instead of starting tasks from scratch, you can simply ask Notion AI to assist, saving you both time and effort. Whether you’re writing emails, planning out projects, or even brainstorming for your next big idea, Notion AI has you covered.
With Notion AI, tasks that used to take hours can be completed in minutes, leaving you more time to focus on the bigger picture. It’s not just about efficiency—it’s about transforming the way you work, making every task easier and more intuitive.
How to access Notion AI
1. Click “Notion AI” at sidebar or Directly from New PageÂ
In Notion’s sidebar, you can easily search for “Notion AI” and click on it. This action will open a new page featuring the AI assistant. Alternatively, when you create a new page, you’ll notice the “Ask AI” option at the bottom. Simply click on it to get started with AI in Notion.
2. Using Keyboard Shortcuts
While creating content within a block on a page, simply press the space key.
3. In Existing Text Block
Simply highlight any text block (or multiple blocks) and press Ctrl + J then pull up the AI menu, giving you the ability to summarize, improve, or even expand your content.
4. Notion AI Chat
Head to the bottom-right corner of your screen and click on the floating AI icon to open the Notion AI Chat. This feature connects you to AI models like GPT-4 and Claude, allowing you to ask anything—from specific project-related queries to general questions.
How Notion AI Helps You
1. Drafting Content
Notion AI makes content creation easier by helping you generate drafts from scratch. Whether you’re working on an email, blog post outline, or even a meeting agenda, Notion AI can jumpstart your process quickly and efficiently.
For example, I want to write an email about a project delay, simply provide a prompt to Notion AI, and it will draft a professional email template for you. This saves time, removes writer’s block, and ensures you always have a strong foundation to build on.
2. Check your Content Grammar & Spelling
It is also great for reviewing your work. Once you’ve written your content, you can use Notion AI to check for grammar and spelling errors. It quickly identifies mistakes and offers suggestions for corrections, making your writing clearer and more professional. It will highlight errors and provide instant fixes, ensuring your content is polished and error-free before sending or publishing.
3. Enhance your Writing
Beyond just checking grammar and spelling — it helps you refine and enhance your writing. Whether you’re looking to improve clarity, adjust tone, or make your content more engaging, Notion AI offers tailored suggestions. You can ask it to rewrite sections, simplify complex sentences, or even change the style to match your audience’s preferences.
4. Shorten, Lengthen, and Summarize
Notion AI allows you to effortlessly adjust the length of your content. Whether you want to shorten a lengthy paragraph, expand on a specific idea, or summarize a detailed document, Notion AI has you covered.
Simply highlight the text you want to modify and ask Notion AI to summarize it for you. If your content feels too long, you can prompt Notion AI to condense it while maintaining clarity and meaning. This versatility ensures that your writing always meets the specific needs of your audience, making it more effective and accessible.
5. Brainstorm Ideas
Notion AI can be your creative brainstorming partner, helping you generate fresh ideas and think outside the box. Whether you’re embarking on a new project, crafting a blog post, or developing a marketing strategy, you can count on Notion AI to provide the inspiration and direction you need.
Simply ask Notion AI for topic suggestions or different angles to explore. It can also assist you in outlining your ideas, making it easier to organize your thoughts and develop a clear, actionable plan.
6. Chat with Notion AI
One of the standout features of Notion is the ability to chat directly with Notion AI. You can ask it anything—from generating new ideas to drafting content, summarizing long documents, or even clarifying concepts. If you have a file, like an image or PDF, you can attach it and ask Notion AI to help with tasks such as summarizing, analyzing, or reformatting the content.
This AI-powered virtual assistant is always available at the bottom-right corner of your screen, ready to streamline your workflow. It’s a convenient tool to speed up tasks, allowing you to handle projects faster and more efficiently.
4. Pricing and Plans
Notion offers a range of plans, from Free to Enterprise, tailored to meet the needs of individuals, small teams, and large organizations. There are two payment options: monthly or yearly, with the yearly plan saving you up to 20%.
- Free Plan – For Personal Use and Small Projects
The Free Plan provides enough functionality for personal use with unlimited pages and blocks. It also allows collaboration with up to 10 guests and supports basic integrations. However, file uploads are limited to 5 MB, making it difficult to work with larger files.
This plan is perfect if you’re an individual using Notion for personal projects, journaling, or note-taking, and don’t require extensive collaboration features.
- Plus Plan – For Medium Teams and Individuals Looking for More Advanced Features
The Plus Plan, priced at $12 per month (or $120 per year), removes the 5 MB file upload limit, allowing you to work with larger documents. It supports collaboration with up to 100 guests, offers longer version history for reverting changes, and provides priority support from the Notion team.
If you manage a medium-sized team, the Plus Plan is an excellent choice. However, for more structured collaboration and advanced project management, upgrading to the Business Plan may be worth considering.
- Business Plan – For Growing Teams Needing Enhanced Collaboration and Control
At $18 per month (or $180 per year), the Business Plan offers greater control over collaboration, permissions, and security. You can assign specific roles (such as view-only, editor, or admin) to team members, providing better workspace management. The plan also includes advanced page analytics to track engagement and page activity, helping teams monitor performance and gain insights into how documents are used.
This plan is ideal for growing teams that need more detailed collaboration tools and insights.
- Enterprise Plan – For Large Organizations Requiring Top-Level Security and Control
The Enterprise Plan is designed for large organizations with advanced security and administrative needs. It includes features such as single sign-on (SSO) for secure login, unlimited collaboration, and customizable security settings.
Pricing for this plan is tailored to each organization’s needs, making it more expensive but worthwhile for companies that require enterprise-grade security and scalability.
Notice that Notion AI is an optional add-on that costs an additional $8 per month to unlock unlimited usage. Whether I would recommend it depends on how often you plan to use its AI features.
For heavy users who rely on drafting, summarizing, brainstorming, or automating content-related tasks, the AI add-on can save significant time and effort. It’s like having a virtual assistant to streamline workflows and boost productivity. The ability to generate content, check grammar, and even brainstorm ideas makes it a valuable tool for writers, content creators, or teams handling large amounts of information.
However, if you only occasionally need AI support, the free version may suffice, since it still allows limited access to Notion AI. In that case, paying the extra for unlimited use may not be worth it.
5. Notion vs Competitors
When comparing Notion to other popular productivity tools like Trello, ClickUp, and Asana, each platform offers distinct strengths and weaknesses. Here’s a brief comparison of how Notion AI stands against these alternatives:
Notion vs Trello
Notion combines note-taking, task management, and collaboration tools into a single platform, while Trello primarily focuses on task and project tracking with its Kanban board approach. A key advantage of Notion AI is its intelligent assistant, which assists with content generation, brainstorming, and workflow automation—features that Trello lacks.
However, Trello’s simplicity and straightforward Kanban system are easier for beginners to adopt, compared to Notion’s more feature-rich and complex environment. Additionally, Notion can experience slowdowns with larger databases, whereas Trello tends to maintain speed and efficiency, even with heavy usage.
Notion vs ClickUp
Notion’s minimalist and clean interface offers a visually appealing experience, whereas ClickUp features a more complex, data-driven interface. Notion excels in blending content creation with task management, making it ideal for users who need both. On the other hand, ClickUp offers more advanced project management tools, such as time tracking, Gantt charts, and task dependencies, which are areas where Notion is less robust.
Notion vs Asana
When it comes to customization, Notion allows for more flexibility in building databases, wikis, and note-taking environments, while Asana’s task and project structures are more rigid. Asana, however, is better suited for larger teams managing complex projects with dependencies and timelines. Notion’s task management features are not as advanced, making Asana a more reliable option for intricate project workflows.
6. Conclusion: Is Notion Worth It in 2024?
In 2024, many apps focus solely on note-taking or project management, but Notion stands out as a versatile all-in-one platform. It excels in providing a comprehensive solution for note-taking, project management, and team collaboration. Whether you’re an individual, a small business, or a large organization, Notion caters to diverse needs—from personal notes to centralized workspaces for teams. Its highly customizable features make it ideal for a wide range of users. And if you find it difficult to build your own workspace, Notion’s extensive template library can help you get started, boosting productivity and creativity.
However, the learning curve and occasional performance slowdowns with larger databases might pose challenges for some users. But for those willing to explore its depths, Notion offers a powerful environment for organizing ideas, managing projects, and collaborating efficiently.
If you’re curious about how Notion can transform your productivity, I encourage you to give it a try. Notion offers a free plan that allows you to explore its capabilities without any financial commitment.
Notion is an all-in-one workspace for note-taking, project management, and collaboration, enhancing productivity through customization and AI integration.
