Typing the same notebook titles every semester? Hunting for last week’s PDF in a sea of tabs? With GoodNotes 6 and Apple Shortcuts you can turn those repetitive taps into one-tap automations—without writing a single line of code and automate note taking on ipad with goodnotes.
- Why automate GoodNotes?
- GoodNotes & Shortcuts 101
- Build your core flow
- Advanced student workflows 📚
- Pros & Cons
- GoodNotes vs. Competitors
- CLI: one-tap PDF import
- FAQ
Why automate GoodNotes?
✨ The numbers
GoodNotes now serves 25 million+ monthly active users, an 18 % jump since its AI-powered relaunch in August 2023.:contentReference[oaicite:0]{index=0} Automating even one high-friction task (e.g., importing lecture slides) saves the average student seven minutes per class—about 30 hours per semester.
🕹️ Pain points you’ll kill
- Manual file imports from the LMS or e-mail
- Redundant notebook creation each unit
- Forgetting to date-stamp pages or add tags
- Scrolling for that one diagram during an exam review
Screenshot: GoodNotes library before any automations.
GoodNotes & Shortcuts 101
Since GoodNotes 5.7 the app has exposed native Siri Shortcuts—“Create Notebook,” “Open QuickNote,” and “Import File”—making it first-class in Apple’s automation ecosystem. iPadOS 17 added richer triggers such as Stage Manager on/off and Display connected, letting your shortcuts fire the moment you plug into a classroom projector.
Key building blocks inside Shortcuts:
- Scan Document → Import File (GoodNotes)
- If → Rename File (adds course code & date)
- Append to Note (for Apple Notes hand-offs)
Build your core flow
🎯 Goal
Create a shortcut that watches Downloads for new lecture PDFs and drops them into the right GoodNotes notebook with the date and page template you prefer (lined, graph, or custom).
🚀 Step-by-step
- In Files → Downloads long-press any lecture PDF → Share → New Shortcut.
- Add GoodNotes ▸ Import File, set Destination = “Computer Networks Fall 25.”
- Add GoodNotes ▸ Open Page, template = “Cornell Notes,” and Split View 0.3 to pin slides left, blank notes right.
- Toggle Receive Files Automations in Shortcuts Settings so it runs hands-free.
Optional tweaks: auto-OCR with “Recognize Text” if you need searchable slides; or “Transcribe Audio” to drop lecture recordings beside the PDF.
Screenshot: Finished shortcut summary with automation toggle enabled.
Advanced student workflows 📚
📓 Lecture capture
Pair the Record Audio toggle in GoodNotes with a Shortcut that starts recording the moment your calendar says “Lecture.” The audio syncs to your handwriting for instant replay.
🧮 AI Math Checker
GoodNotes 6 converts handwritten equations to LaTeX and flags errors in real-time—perfect for STEM majors.
🎯 Flashcard loops
Use GoodNotes’ Study Sets action to auto-generate flashcards from highlighted terms after each study session and schedule spaced-repetition reviews.
🗂️ Research archive
A two-step Shortcut—Save PDF to Files → Import File (GoodNotes)—lets you funnel journal articles into a “Literature Review” notebook while tagging them with author/year.
Pros & Cons
👍 Pros
- Native Shortcuts support (no scripting required) for QuickNote, Import, and template pickers.
- AI handwriting & math tools run on-device—no Wi-Fi needed.
- Cross-platform sync (iOS, macOS, Windows, Android, Web).
👎 Cons
- Full automation still pays $9.99 / yr or $29.99 lifetime after the free 3-notebook limit.
- Shortcuts can’t yet delete pages or bulk-export notebooks—manual cleanup required.
- AI features need M1-iPad or newer for smooth performance.
GoodNotes vs. Competitors
| Feature | GoodNotes 6 | Notability 14.7 | Apple Notes (iPadOS 17) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shortcuts actions | Create Notebook, Import File, QuickNote | Widgets, share-sheet import | Create, Append, Find Note |
| AI handwriting | Spellcheck & Smart Ink | None | System Scribble only |
| Audio sync | Yes (timeline player) | Yes (Note Replay) | No |
| Price (student) | $9.99 / yr | $14.99 / yr | Free |
| Latest automation upgrade | iPadOS 17 triggers | Quick-create widgets ⟶ notes:contentReference[oaicite:10]{index=10} | Append to Note action |
CLI: one-tap PDF import
On a Mac? Use Apple’s shortcuts CLI so anything you download syncs automatically and automate note taking on iPad with goodnotes
#!/bin/zsh
# import-to-goodnotes.sh
# Usage: ./import-to-goodnotes.sh ~/Downloads/Lecture12.pdf
# Requires a Shortcut named "Import to GoodNotes" that accepts a file path.
FILE="$1"
if [[ -f "$FILE" ]]; then
shortcuts run "Import to GoodNotes" --input-path "$FILE"
echo "Sent $(basename "$FILE") to GoodNotes 🎉"
else
echo "File not found!"
fi
FAQ: Automate note taking on ipad with Goodnotes
Do I need the paid version of GoodNotes to run automations?
It depends, if you make more than 3 notebook, actions like “Import File” and “QuickNote” require either the $9.99/year subscription or the $29.99 lifetime licence.
Will Shortcuts run if my iPad is locked?
Yes. Turn off the “Ask Before Running” toggle in the automation and iPadOS will execute it in the background when the trigger condition is met.
What’s the best iPad for GoodNotes automation?
Any iPad capable of running iPadOS 17 will work, but AI features are noticeably faster on M-series devices (e.g., iPad Air M2 or iPad Pro M4).
Does GoodNotes support Apple Pencil Pro hover and barrel-roll gestures?
Yes. Update to GoodNotes 6.5 or later and enable “Dynamic Ink” in Settings to map hover pressure to brush size and use barrel-roll rotation.
How secure is the on-device handwriting AI?
GoodNotes’ machine-learning models run entirely on your iPad; according to the company’s privacy statement, no handwriting data is uploaded to external servers.
Conclusion
Automate note taking on ipad with goodnotes is a way to turn a digital notebook into a self-organising knowledge system. Start with the core import flow, layer on AI flashcards, and you’ll spend your study hours thinking, not tapping. Hungry for more? Check out our deep-dive on advanced Shortcuts triggers over at TechTricksLab.