While NotebookLM offers many features for free, it’s important to understand that this means that your data becomes part of the product. As a Google-owned tool, user data may be leveraged to train and refine their systems.
More importantly, NotebookLM isn’t built for students specifically. It’s a general-purpose document assistant, not a learning platform. It lacks the structure, personalization, and academic focus that students need to succeed.

| Criteria | Maeve | NotebookLM |
|---|---|---|
| Personalized flashcards | ✅ Yes | ❌ No |
| Realistic mock exams | ✅ Yes | ❌ No |
| Smart summaries | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Progress tracking | ✅ Yes | ❌ No |
| Motivation tools | ✅ Yes | ❌ No |
| Tailored study advice | ✅ Yes | ❌ No |
| Mindmap generator | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes |
| Pomodoro timer | ✅ Yes | ❌ No |
| Purpose-built for education | ✅ Yes | ❌ No |
Maeve is built specifically for students who want to study faster, smarter, and with less stress. Whether you’re revising for exams, catching up on lectures, or organizing course material, Maeve gives you the right tools, from smart summaries to quizzes, all tailored to your study style.
Unlike general-purpose tools like NotebookLM, Maeve is made for education, with a focus on clarity, academic efficiency, and learning results.
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Maeve
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Maeve offers a freemium model designed for real students: get started free for a few days with full access to all features. Once you're ready to commit, Maeve provides an affordable student plan that unlocks unlimited usage, perfect for exam season.
No hidden costs. No data sharing. Just focus on learning.
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NotebookLM
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NotebookLM is free, but as a Google product, the cost is your data. What you upload or write may be used to train AI models.
There’s no paid plan, but also no guarantee of long-term stability, student-specific support, or privacy under strict EU education standards.
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Maeve
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Maeve is your personal AI study assistant, designed to help you learn faster and more efficiently. Just upload your documents, slides, or voice notes, and Maeve turns them into clear summaries, visual mind maps, and quiz questions to test yourself. With progress tracking built in, it helps you stay on pace and remember what matters.
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NotebookLM
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NotebookLM is a general AI notebook assistant. It helps summarize and answer questions from your notes, but lacks features like quizzes, mind maps, or learning paths. It doesn’t understand academic context or structure, and doesn’t adapt to student needs like Maeve does.
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Maeve
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Maeve is designed exclusively for students. From the ground up, every feature supports academic success, whether you're preparing for exams, reviewing class material, or trying to save time during busy study periods. Maeve adapts to real learning needs, offering structure, clarity, and active recall tools that actually help you retain information.
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NotebookLM
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NotebookLM is a general AI reading assistant. It can summarize documents, but it's not optimized for learning. No flashcards. No spaced repetition. No student-specific guidance. It's a tool, not a study partner.
Sign up quickly, upload your notes, and let Maeve create summaries and quizzes to boost your study efficiency—designed for students who want results.

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All your study materials, any format Upload course notes, slides, recordings, images, or transcripts - The choice is yours!
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Generate quizzes Turn your notes into practice questions and test yourself anytime, anywhere.
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