OneNote not syncing notes across devices

Question

I’m experiencing an issue with OneNote where changes made on one device don’t consistently sync to others. Notes created or edited on my phone sometimes don’t appear on my laptop, or they show up with a sync conflict after a long delay.

The notebook is stored in OneDrive and other files sync normally, so the issue seems specific to OneNote.

My laptop is Macbook pro 2018 and my phone is S25 Samsung

Answer 1

Hi Rashid Adelaida

Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft Q&A Forum and for sharing your experience. I’m sorry to hear that your notes aren’t syncing consistently between your MacBook and Samsung device.

Based on my testing, below are some recommended steps you may try.

First, try opening the notebook in OneNote for the web at https://www.onenote.com: In OneNote for Mac, go to Notebooks > Notebooks > Copy Link to Notebook, then paste the link into your browser’s address bar and press Enter.

If the notebook opens successfully and your recent changes appear there, this usually indicates that the issue lies within the OneNote for Mac client. Closing and reopening the notebook often refreshes the connection. To do this, select Notebooks > Notebooks > Close This Notebook on your Mac. Then return to OneNote for the web, choose File > Info, and select Edit in Desktop App to reopen it in OneNote for Mac.

Please note that if your notebook is large or your connection is slow, it may take some time for all content to sync back into the desktop app.

If you cannot open or view the notebook in OneNote for the web, the underlying issue is likely with the server or the notebook file itself rather than your device. Next, try resetting your OneNote credentials to avoid authentication-related sync issues. Sign out of OneNote by tapping the profile icon in the upper-right corner of the app and selecting Sign Out of OneNote.

Before signing out, make sure all unsynced changes are backed up, as anything that hasn’t synced will be lost.

• For reference, you can follow this official Microsoft article for sync troubleshooting here: Fix issues when you can't sync OneNote – Microsoft Support

Please let me know how you get on, as your feedback is valuable to the community. 

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