Free tool
The Cornell notes template, ready to print.
Fill in the cues, notes, and summary, then print it or save a PDF. Or print it blank to write by hand. Free, no signup.
Cues & questions
Notes
Summary
Leave it blank to print a template to write on by hand.
Formatting notes by hand is the tax on studying. Record the lecture instead and Almanack turns it into clean notes you can ask a question, right before the exam.
Study notes you can askWhy students use it
The classic three parts
Cues, notes, and a summary, in the layout the Cornell method is built around for review and recall.
Fill in or print blank
Type it up on screen, or print an empty template to write on by hand in class.
Save as a PDF
Print to PDF and keep a clean copy on any device, ready to reread before the exam.
Made for recall
The cue column turns your notes into a quick self-test, which is the whole point of the method.
No signup
Open it and start. Nothing to install and nothing to log in to.
Skip the formatting
Or let Almanack turn a recorded lecture into clean notes for you, no template required.
FAQ
Cornell notes, answered
What is the Cornell note-taking method?
The Cornell method splits a page into three parts: a narrow left column for cues and questions, a wide right column for notes, and a summary bar at the bottom. It is built for review and recall.
Can I print this or save it as a PDF?
Yes. Fill it in and click print, then choose your printer or Save as PDF. You can also print it blank to write on by hand.
Does it save my notes?
It keeps them while the page is open so you can print. For notes you can search and ask later, Almanack turns a recorded lecture into them for you.
Is it free?
Yes, no signup, and everything stays in your browser.
What is the Cornell note-taking method?
A page split into three: notes on the right during the lecture, cue questions on the left afterwards, and a summary along the bottom in your own words.
When do I fill in the cue column?
After the lecture, not during it. Turning your notes into questions is where most of the learning in the method actually happens.
Does it work for subjects that are not lecture-based?
Yes. It works for reading, for meetings, and for anything where you want to be able to test yourself later rather than just reread.
Can I save it as a PDF?
Yes. Print the sheet and choose save as PDF, which works in every modern browser.
Is what I type stored?
No. It stays in your browser. Print or save it before you close the tab.
A free Cornell notes template you can fill in online and print. The Cornell method splits a page into three: your notes on the right during the lecture, cue questions on the left filled in afterwards, and a short summary in your own words along the bottom. Type straight into the layout here, then print the sheet or save it as a PDF.
How it works
Three steps, no account
Fill the three panes
Notes on the right, cues and questions on the left, a summary along the bottom. That is the whole method.
Write it out
Type into the layout in the browser. Nothing to install and no account to make.
Print or save
Print the sheet or save it as a PDF, so you have it on paper or on file.
Common uses
What people use it for
Taking notes in a lecture
Notes on the right during the talk, cues on the left afterwards. That gap is where the method does its work.
Reading a dense text
Summarising each section in the bottom pane forces you to find out whether you actually understood it.
Prepping for an exam
Cover the notes, answer your own cues, and check. That is self-testing, which is the strongest revision there is.
Pro tips
Get more out of it
- Leave the cue column empty during the lecture. It is designed to be filled in afterwards, and that filling in is where the learning happens.
- Write the summary from memory before you check your notes. If you cannot, you have found the gap.
- Cover the notes column and answer your own cues out loud. That is self-testing, which beats rereading.
- Keep notes in your own words. Verbatim transcription feels productive and teaches you very little.
- One page per topic. Splitting a topic across sheets makes the review pass much harder than it needs to be.
- Review the same sheet the next day and again a week later, rather than only before the exam.
- Date every sheet. When you come back in a month, order is most of the context.
- Abbreviate consistently and keep a key. Your own shorthand is only useful if it is stable.
- Fill the cue column within a day, while the lecture is still recoverable from memory.
- Do not try to write everything. Notes are a reconstruction aid, not a transcript.
Related tools
Other free tools you might want
The app behind the tool
Cornell works. Keeping it up for a whole semester is the hard part.
Almanack does the structuring for you. Record the lecture, and organized notes come back without you maintaining a system through week nine.
- Record the lecture and get structured notes back, tagged and filed by itself.
- Ask your own lectures a question and get the answer sourced to what was said and when.
- No template to keep filling in on the days you have no energy for it.
- Everything stays searchable at the end of term, which a stack of paper never is.
Free to start. $96 a year or $14 a month when you want more.
The template is the easy part. Recall is the point.
Record the lecture and Almanack turns it into clean notes you can ask a question, right before the exam.
$96 a year or $14 a month. Cancel anytime.