Compare Weava, Glasp, and Diigo: Which Extension is the Best?

Weava Highlighter was once a popular choice, but now it’s filled with ads and has a poor user experience. Better options like Web Highlights do the job better without the hassle.
AI-powered web highlighter for websites, PDFs, and YouTube videos. Build your AI clone from highlights and connect with 1M+ learners worldwide.
Diigo is a handy tool for bookmarking, highlighting, and annotating web pages. It has many features, but its old design and limited highlight colors might make it less appealing.
Key Features
  • Web & PDF Highlighting: Easily highlight text on web pages and PDFs using various colors.
  • Annotations: Add detailed notes to your highlights for better reference and organization.
  • Cloud Syncing: Seamlessly access your highlights and notes across multiple devices.
  • Organize with Folders: Structure your highlights with folders and sub-folders for easy retrieval.
  • Citation Creation: Automatically generate citations for your highlighted text, simplifying your research process.
  • Multi-Platform Highlighting: Highlight text on websites, PDFs, and YouTube videos with multiple color options
  • AI-Powered Summaries: Generate summaries using ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini models • Social Learning Network: Connect with 1M+ users and discover content from like-minded learners
  • Cross-Platform Sync: Access your highlights across all devices with automatic synchronization
  • Export Integration: Export highlights to Obsidian, Notion, Roam Research, and other note-taking apps
  • Kindle Integration: Import and sync highlights from Kindle ebooks
  • Highlighting: Works well and highlights are recreated on refresh.
  • Notes: You can add notes to your highlights.
  • Link Creation: Create links to your highlights, although this feature is not very reliable.
  • Sidebar Outliner: Simple design but requires time to understand.
  • Syncing: Highlights are synced across devices.
Our Rating
7.0
8.9
7.8
Total users
300,000
506,682
200,000
Total ratings
2,732
840
2,320
Average rating
4.1 ⭐
4.2 ⭐
4.6 ⭐
Entry Level PriceFreeFreeFree
Chrome
Chrome Web Store logo
4.1
3.02
2.7K+ ratings
300.0K+Users
Chrome Web Store logo
4.5
3.78
837 ratings
500.0K+Users
Chrome Web Store logo
4.6
3.55
2.3K+ ratings
200.0K+Users
Edge
-
Microsoft Edge Store logo
4.0
4.25
3 ratings
6.7K+Users
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Firefox
-
-
-
Safari
-
-
-
Features
8.5

Weava offers basic but functional features like web and PDF highlighting, annotations, and folder organization.

The basic functionalities work great but the lack of innovative or advanced functionalities, especially compared to competitors, limits its appeal.

Top 3 Features of Weava Highlighter

1. Highlight Websites and PDFs

Highlighting text with Weava

Similar to our favorite highlighter Web Highlights, you can highlight text on any website or PDF. Choose different colors to customize your highlights and make important information stand out.

2. Organize Research into Folders

Organize in folders

Weava lets you save your highlights and organize them into folders, making it simple to keep your research organized and find what you need fast.

3. Collaborate with Your Team

Share folders with your co-workers

Weava allows you to share folders with your team, making collaboration on research projects easy. Everyone can add and view highlights and notes all in one place.

9.5

Highlighting features: In our tests, Glasp's highlighting features worked flawlessly. We were able to highlight text on a variety of websites, in PDF files, and even in YouTube transcripts without any issues. Thanks to the numerous color options and the ability to add notes to each highlight, we were able to easily organize and retrieve our information across different types of content.

AI integration: We tried the AI summary feature with ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini and found the results really useful for summarizing our highlights and asking questions.

Social learning: We explored the social features by browsing other users' highlights and sharing our own. However, we found it a bit intrusive that this is mandatory in the free version.

Export options: Exporting our highlights to Obsidian and Notion worked smoothly. We tested all available formats (Markdown, HTML, CSV, JSON) and found the flexibility helpful for integrating Glasp into our existing workflows.

8.5

Diigo offers basic features for a highlighter and bookmarking tool.

It works well and we were able to highlight most websites and they were recreated when revisiting them.

The highlighter popup makes it easy to highlight text offering 4 colors. It looks like this:

Highlighter Popup with four colors

We would have wished to have more color options.

Also, note-taking and the tagging functionality are working, but its design does not look appealing.

Notes Editor: Adding notes to your highlight

The dashboard where your highlights are stored works well and gives you an overview of all your highlights.

Diigo Dashboard
Performance
7.0

Weava performs adequately when it comes to basic highlighting and syncing. However, the overall performance is marred by the intrusive ads and occasional bugs that make the experience less smooth than it should be.

8.7

In our experience, marking and saving content was quick and almost instantaneous on websites and in PDF files. The extension did not noticeably slow down our browsers.

Most features worked reliably, but we occasionally encountered problems with YouTube transcription and AI summaries, which were also mentioned by users in their reviews.

8.0

Diigo performs well in terms of highlighting and syncing across devices. The fact that highlights are always synchronized can cause some loading delays.

It's not as fast as other highlighters that use an offline-first approach, but it works reasonably well.

However, the unreliable link creation feature and the simple sidebar outliner design need improvement.

Design
6.0

The design is where Weava really struggles. The interface is cluttered with ads, making it not only visually unappealing but also frustrating to use.

Here's a screenshot showing one of their ads taking up nearly half the height of their sidebar:

Ads are covering half of the sidebar

The overall design feels outdated and lacks the intuitive flow found in other tools. This poor design significantly hampers the user experience.

9.3

During our tests, the user interface appeared clear and intuitive. The sidebar did not interfere with reading, but was accessible at all times to view highlights and notes. We liked the color-coded highlights, which made it easier to scan and visually organize information.
The dashboard was well structured and had clearly arranged areas for highlights, notes, and social functions. This made it easy for us to get an overview of all the information we had collected.

7.0

The design fulfills its functionality. The design of Diigo is outdated and could use a modern refresh.

The lack of a nice overview of all your highlights on the page itself means you have to open the dashboard on diigo.com instead.

The dashboard on diigo.com is okay, but other highlighters like Web Highlights have a much nicer user interface.

Value for Money
6.8

The free version of Weava offers basic features, and their premium plan at $3.99/month is priced similarly to competitors.

However, given the ads in the free version and the overall user experience, you can find better value in alternatives that provide more features and a cleaner interface for the same or even lower cost.

8.8

We made extensive use of the free plan and found that unlimited tagging and basic organization and access to the social network is more than sufficient for most users.

For heavy users, especially researchers and content creators, the additional AI features and private tags are worth the price of the Pro plan. The price is similar to that of competitors.

Compared to other tools we've tested, Glasp offers a more comprehensive set of features, making the price competitive in the knowledge management space. For those of us who rely on knowledge management in our work, the time savings and improved organization easily justified the Pro subscription.

8.0

The free version of Diigo offers basic features and is fine for most users. The paid plans are reasonably priced and similar to other highlighters.

However, we think other highlighters offer more value for the same price.

Ease of Use
6.5

Weava’s basic highlighting functionality is straightforward, but the poor design and mandatory account creation add unnecessary friction. The ads make navigation cumbersome, and while it’s not difficult to learn, using the tool effectively can be a challenge due to these barriers.

9.0

Setting up Glasp was quick—we installed the extension, created an account, and were able to start tagging within minutes. The introductory video was clear and helped us get up to speed quickly.
Tagging text and selecting colors was straightforward. We didn't need to consult the help section for basic usage, and the process felt very natural.

When we looked at features such as creating AI clones and advanced export options, it became a little more complex. It took some trial and error to figure out how to best use these tools. Overall, the tool is definitely designed so that anyone can use most of its features.

7.8

Diigo is fairly easy to use, but the sidebar outliner takes some time to get used to.

You can't see all your highlights on the page itself, so you have to go to the dashboard on diigo.com.

We wish there was a sidebar to quickly access all our highlighted pages, like in the Web Highlights extension.

Security & Privacy
7.0

Weava does take steps to protect user data, and their privacy policy is clear about not selling personal information. However, the requirement to create an account and the potential for data collection through ads could be a concern for privacy-conscious users.

8.0

During our review, we found that Glasp collects website content and some personal data to enable its features. By default, some of our highlights were shared publicly. We had to adjust our settings to keep the information private. Therefore, it is important to be aware of this, especially since it is mandatory for free users.

7.5

Diigo takes reasonable steps to protect user data. However, since you need an account and your data is stored in their database, absolute protection can't be guaranteed.

We think a highlighter should work without needing to sign up, but this feature is missing in Diigo.

Conclusion

Weava Highlighter may still be a popular choice, but its current state leaves much to be desired. The overwhelming presence of ads and a clunky design significantly detract from the user experience, making it hard to justify its use when other tools offer a more polished and ad-free environment.

If you’re serious about your productivity, it’s worth exploring alternatives like Web Highlights, which delivers all the benefits of Weava without the downsides.

Glasp Web Highlighter has proven in testing that it can help users interact with digital content in a useful way in their everyday lives. It is not just a highlighting tool, but a comprehensive organization system that combines the best aspects of social learning with AI technology.

What we particularly appreciate about Glasp is that it encourages a more intensive engagement with the content. Instead of passively bookmarking pages, users are motivated to highlight specific passages and add notes, which leads to better retention and understanding. It is therefore particularly specialized in learning content.

However, Glasp is not without its challenges. The limitations of the AI features and privacy restrictions in the free version may be problematic for many users. In addition, some users report technical issues with the YouTube transcription features.

For researchers, students, and content creators who are seriously interested in building a kind of second brain, Glasp offers compelling value. The combination of highlighting, AI summarization, and social learning creates a unique ecosystem that is difficult to replicate with other tools. Casual users, however, may find the complexity and pricing structure daunting.

Diigo is a handy tool for collecting stuff from the web, like bookmarks, highlights, and notes.


It’s a good deal with its premium plans, but the old-fashioned design and limited highlight colors might be a turn-off.


If you want something that looks nicer and offers more customization, check out alternatives like Web Highlights.

Our Recommendation

In our comparison between Weava, Glasp, and Diigo, Glasp came out on top, scoring 8.9.

Glasp is the most widely used, with over 507k users and 840+ reviews—and it also delivered the strongest performance in our tests. User reviews for Glasp reflect our findings, while we rate Weava and Diigo lower than users do.

Notably, Diigo has the highest user rating in the Chrome Web Store at 4.60, which is even higher than our rating of 7.8.

There are big differences between these extensions, so it's important to look at the details below to find the best fit for your needs.


  • Looking for the richest feature set? Glasp stands out with a rating of 9.5. On the other hand, Weava lags behind in this area with a rating of 8.5.
  • Need top performance? Glasp stands out with a rating of 8.7. On the other hand, Weava lags behind in this area with a rating of 7.
  • Design lovers, take note: Glasp stands out with a rating of 9.3. On the other hand, Weava lags behind in this area with a rating of 6.
  • Want to get the most for your money? Glasp stands out with a rating of 8.8. On the other hand, Weava lags behind in this area with a rating of 6.8.
  • If you hate complicated tools, Glasp stands out with a rating of 9. On the other hand, Weava lags behind in this area with a rating of 6.5.
  • With privacy and security becoming ever more important, Glasp stands out with a rating of 8. On the other hand, Weava lags behind in this area with a rating of 7.

If you want a quick recommendation, Glasp is our top pick. But as always, the best choice depends on what matters most to you.