Introducing Craft Docs, a helpful app that works on different devices for making cool-looking documents. Craft can do lots of things like taking notes, organizing tasks, and making a place to keep all your ideas.
This review will tell you honestly what I think about Craft after trying it out for a while.
I really like using apps that help me get organized and be more productive. I already use Notion to manage my tasks and Obsidian to store my ideas.
But some of my friends and readers keep telling me to try Craft, saying it's really good. So, I decided to give it a try and see if it's worth the hype.
Craft Docs started gaining popularity in 2019, especially among Apple users interested in Personal Knowledge Management. Some people described it as the Apple version of Notion.
Initially, I wasn't keen on trying Craft for a few reasons:
- I already had a good system in Notion and didn't see how Craft could offer significant advantages.
- The free trial of Craft Docs is limited to 1500 blocks, but I wasn't sure if that would be enough to really understand the app.
- The craft was only available for Apple devices, and I also needed a solution for my Windows laptop.
However, I eventually decided to give Craft a try, maybe because I was feeling too comfortable with my current setup and wanted something new.
I downloaded Craft Docs on all my devices and used up all 1500 free blocks.
My review of Craft is based on this limited experience, but I believe my perspective as a beginner can still be helpful for others deciding whether to invest in a paid plan or not.
What did I like About Craft Docs?
I decided to fully commit to Craft and recreated all the workflows I had in Notion for managing tasks and capturing knowledge.
During this time, I used up all 1500 blocks in just two weeks. Despite some mixed feelings, the advantages of Craft outweighed the disadvantages.
Now, let me share the main reasons why I liked Craft Docs:
1. Onboarding & Available Content
Craft Docs offers premade pages to help you get started quickly. However, using Craft to its full potential can be challenging at first. Even though I've used similar apps before, I found myself struggling initially.
It wasn't that I couldn't make notes or create pages, but I was doing it slowly and not utilizing all the features that make Craft enjoyable to work with.
Tasks like grouping blocks, creating cards, using shortcuts, and understanding page design and markdown weren't intuitive to me at first.
Thankfully, there are resources available to help you learn how to use Craft effectively. Personal walkthroughs on YouTube channels like Maggi Fuchs's and Craft Docs provide valuable insights and tutorials for different use cases.
Additionally, Craft provides helpful onboarding emails linked to templates and examples to showcase the tool's capabilities.
These resources made it easier for me to learn and use Craft more productively.
2. Speed
A few years ago, Notion was quite slow, so I preferred using simpler apps like Notes for quick thoughts. However, Notion has since improved its speed with updates and reworks.
However, when I switched to Craft Docs, I noticed even better speed. Craft feels much faster, even though the difference in speed compared to Notion might only be around 1 second per page.
This speed advantage could be due to the differences in the number of users, the complexity of Notion's databases, and the multitude of features it offers.
Over time, Craft may lose some of this advantage as it adds more features. But for now, Craft impresses as a stable and fast app.
3. Cross-platform usability
Initially, I was worried about using Craft because they didn't have apps for Windows and Android. They have had a beta web app since 2021, but I generally don't like web apps, and it didn't solve the lack of an Android app.
However, I later switched to a Windows phone, and Craft came out with a Windows App. Now, I can use the app on all of my devices, and they work perfectly.
I didn't have any syncing issues, and the performance was solid regardless of the platform.
But for Android users, the lack of an app might be a big drawback. However, Craft is planning to release an Android app in the future, according to their F.A.Q page.
4. Daily notes and calendar
I attempted to use Craft for my Getting Things Done (GTD) system but found it challenging to integrate.
Craft recommends using daily pages for organizing tasks, and although it's easy to add tasks to daily pages, moving them to other pages like weekly review pages or Kanban boards is not as straightforward.
This meant that my usual way of organizing weekly tasks didn't work with Craft.
Despite this, I found some features of Craft useful, such as the calendar view and daily notes. I adapted and moved my tasks to the daily notes and organized my weekly recurring tasks in templates. However, I missed having an overview of all my tasks on one page.
Using Craft helped me get more done, especially since I could easily move incomplete tasks to the next day. Compared to my long-term Notion setup, I found Craft's way of managing to-dos more effective.
Although Craft is an excellent tool for taking notes during meetings, without proper onboarding, this feature may be difficult to use.
1. Databases vs. Tables
Craft doesn't promote itself as productivity or project management software, so maybe I was trying to use it for something it wasn't designed for.
I wanted to use Craft for managing my blog publishing process, similar to how I do it in Notion.
I wanted Craft to help me with three main tasks:
- Collecting blog post ideas
- Organizing ideas into draft-worthy content
- Writing the article
Initially, I planned to transfer my content to my Ghost blog. However, it did not go as planned. Collecting ideas in Craft was easy and efficient, but organizing them was difficult.
I faced issues when trying to add status tags like "Idea", "Draft", or "Published" to filter out published blog posts. This made content management a bit challenging.
Although writing in Craft was fine and the editor was user-friendly, it messed up the formatting when I copied and pasted the article into the Ghost editor.
So, I had to reformat everything from scratch. Consequently, I found that Craft was not suitable for managing content projects. I would have been happier with a proper database and tags system for better content management.
2. Tasks with Subparts
I used Craft's daily pages to manage my to-do list. While you can create templates for recurring tasks, I struggled to manage tasks with subtasks in this setup.
What do I mean by tasks with subtasks? It's when you have a task that includes smaller tasks within it.
For example, if you have a big task like publishing an article, and under that, you have subtasks like research, creating images, proofreading, and publishing.
However, when I moved a task to the next day, the connection between the main task and its subtasks stopped working.
Maybe this isn't the best way to track more complex tasks, but I naturally gravitated towards using daily notes for my tasks, and the system didn't work the way I expected.
How to Get Your Personalized Document?
The AI Document creator does a great job of greeting documents easily with one click. The created document contains the related images as well.
In the text box, simply mention what kind of document you want to create, and it will create the same for you.
For instance, I asked them to create a document for a proposal to a client for a guest blog.
And in just a click, the document gets created.
This is how your created document looks in the dashboard, and you have all the options to edit it and share it directly.
With the Starter plan, you can create up to 10 documents for free. Additionally, you'll receive 2 extra free documents per week after that. This plan is great for individuals who want to explore Craft's features without any financial commitment.
2. Plus ($8/month or $10 billed monthly):
The Plus plan offers unlimited access to Craft, allowing you to create as many documents as you want. This plan is ideal for individuals who need more flexibility and advanced features in their document creation process.
3. Family ($15/month for the entire group or $18 billed monthly):
The Family plan allows you to invite up to 5 family members to enjoy all the benefits of Craft Plus. This plan is suitable for families or small groups who want to collaborate and share documents seamlessly.
4. Team ($50/month total for the entire team or $60 billed monthly):
With the Team plan, you can invite up to 25 team members to enjoy all the benefits of Craft Plus. This plan is perfect for small to medium-sized teams who need collaborative document creation tools.
5. Unlimited Business ($250/month total for the entire team or $300 billed monthly):
The Unlimited Business plan enables you to invite everyone on your team to enjoy all the benefits of Craft Plus.
This plan is designed for larger teams or businesses that require unlimited document creation capabilities and advanced collaboration features.
These pricing plans offer flexibility and scalability, catering to the needs of individuals, families, teams, and businesses of all sizes. Whether you're a solo user or part of a large organization, Craft has a plan that suits your requirements and budget.
Craft Docs Pros:
- Craft provides an aesthetically pleasing design that sets it apart from others.
- The app operates seamlessly without any noticeable performance issues.
- Despite the learning curve, Craft offers useful online resources and email support to assist users.
- Craft provides a unique set of features with specific workflows and functions. This encourages users to utilize daily notes, calendars, cards, and group notes.
- Users often find working in Craft to be a pleasant and refreshing experience.
Craft Docs Cons:
- Craft may not be the best option for project management or implementing complex task systems like GTD.
- Craft's pricing structure and limitations may not offer as much value compared to alternatives like Notion.
- Craft's smaller user base may limit collaboration and reach.
Choosing between Craft and Notion depends on your specific needs and preferences. For note-taking, Craft is a strong alternative to Notion.
It excels in creating and sharing visually appealing documents, making it a compelling option. The writing experience in Craft is also enjoyable, thanks to its user-friendly interface and focus mode.
However, if you're looking for a tool to manage tasks or projects, Notion may be a better choice. It offers more robust planning and execution features, including kanban boards, timeline views, and advanced sorting and filtering options.
Ultimately, it comes down to what you prioritize in an app. If you value aesthetics and document creation, Craft may be the way to go.
But if you need comprehensive task management and collaboration features, sticking with Notion might be more suitable.
As of now, I'm still weighing my options between Craft and Notion. While Craft has its strengths, I haven't been completely won over yet.
I'm considering subscribing for a few months to explore its capabilities further before making a final decision.
In the meantime, I prefer not to juggle multiple apps for different tasks. The Notion remains my go-to for various use cases, including capturing ideas, taking meeting notes, managing tasks, and creating documents.
I'm also curious about the direction Craft Docs will take in the future.
Quick links:Will they continue to optimize the experience for individual users like myself, or will they shift focus towards enterprise use cases, prioritizing collaboration and sharing over individual user experience? Only time will tell, but I'm keen to see how Craft evolves.
Andy Thompson has been a freelance writer for a long while. She is a senior SEO and content marketing analyst at Digiexe, a digital marketing agency specializing in content and data-driven SEO. She has more than seven years of experience in digital marketing & affiliate marketing too. She likes sharing her knowledge in a wide range of domains ranging from e-commerce, startups, social media marketing, making money online, affiliate marketing to human capital management, and much more. She has been writing for several authoritative SEO, Make Money Online & digital marketing blogs like ImageStation.