Best Writing Apps
A writer's guide to writing apps for novels, essays, blogging and editing, with platforms, prices and honest verdicts.
I have used numerous writing software over the years for my writing, Google Docs, Word, Scrivener, Ulysses, Obsidian, and more. But when it came to finishing my novels, none of them did everything I needed or worked the way I do. Which is why I built Writing Desk.
Some writing apps are better at some things than others and whilst I obviously think Writing Desk is the best of the best, I have tried to be impartial in my assessments.
Last updated 11 October 2026. Prices and verdicts reviewed quarterly.
What are you writing?
Each guide below ranks the best writing apps for different writing tasks, from blogging to novels. Every app gets the same card and the same checks.
Novel writing
Novelists planning, drafting, formatting and revising a book-length manuscript.
See the list →Essays and long-form non-fiction
Essayists, students and non-fiction writers who need citations, research tools or clean long-form documents.
See the list →Markdown and minimal
Writers who want plain-text files, a quiet editor and files they own.
See the list →Editing and proofreading
Writers revising a draft who want feedback on grammar, style, pacing and structure.
See the list →Blogging and articles
Bloggers and article writers who publish regularly from the app they write in.
See the list →Writing apps for Mac
Writers on a Mac who want a downloadable app built for Apple devices.
See the Mac list →How I chose these apps
A good writing app gets out of your way and still holds your whole project together. For a novel that means planning and structure and all your notes and research at hand when you need them, it also means a calm place to draft, and a clean route out to a finished manuscript. For an essay or an article it matters less, and a simple, fast editor (maybe with tabs and research) may be all you need.
Writing apps differ because not all writing serves the same purpose and not all people have the same processes.
The apps we’ve curated for our best writing app lists have been selected because each one does one or more of the following, plotting, editing, writing or formatting a book, essay, or article. This is not a complete list, but I have tried to be comprehensive.
For every app I checked four things, what kind of writing it is best for, which platforms it runs on, what it costs today, and where it stands on AI.
I recommend testing a couple of the apps from this list, most offer free trials and/or free tiers including Writing Desk, and seeing which one works the way you do.
Every app, side by side
25 apps with platforms, entry price and the date each price was checked.
Writing Desk
Novel writing
Novelists on Mac, iPhone and iPad who want planning, editing and formatting in one app
Free plan; Premium from £8/mo billed annually (£10 monthly) or $10/mo USD billed annually ($12 monthly)Checked 6 Oct 2026
Scrivener
Novel writing
Long, research-heavy manuscripts
Full comparison →
£55 one-time per desktop platform; £88 multi-device bundle; iOS $23.99 (USD)Checked 6 Oct 2026
Dabble
Novel writing
Beginners and plotters who want a simple, finish-the-draft tool
Full comparison →
From $19/mo (USD); up to $49/moChecked 6 Oct 2026
Novelcrafter
AI-assisted
Plotters who want AI drafting under their control
Full comparison →
From $4/mo (USD); up to $20/moChecked 6 Oct 2026
Reedsy Studio
Formatting and publishing
First-time authors who want free formatting
Full comparison →
Free; paid plans up to $10.99/mo (USD)Checked 6 Oct 2026
Atticus
Formatting and publishing
Self-publishers who want writing and formatting in one tool
Full comparison →
From $147 one-time (USD)Checked 6 Oct 2026
Vellum
Formatting and publishing
Mac-based self-publishers
From $199.99 one-time (USD)Checked 10 Oct 2026
Plottr
Plotting
Plotters and series planners
From $60/yr (USD) or $649 one-timeChecked 10 Oct 2026
Sudowrite
AI writes prose
Writers who want AI to propose prose
Full comparison →
From $10/mo (USD); up to $59/moChecked 6 Oct 2026
LivingWriter
Novel writing
Plotters who like beat-sheet templates
Free; paid plans up to $29.99/mo (USD)Checked 10 Oct 2026
The Novel Factory
Novel writing
Beginners who want a guided process
From $8.25/mo (USD) or $649 one-timeChecked 10 Oct 2026
Noveling
AI-assisted
Novelists who want a free editor with optional AI
FreeChecked 10 Oct 2026
Plotten
Native app (under-marketed)
Apple users who want one app from plot to export
From $1.99/mo (USD) or $17.99/yrChecked 10 Oct 2026
bibisco
Free / open source
Planners who like to build characters and structure first
Free; paid plans up to $69 one-time (USD)Checked 10 Oct 2026
yWriter
Free / open source
Windows writers who want free scene-based organisation
FreePrice not yet checked
Ulysses
General writing
Bloggers and article writers on Apple devices
Full comparison →
From $5.99/mo (USD) or $39.99/yrChecked 6 Oct 2026
Obsidian
General writing
Researchers and writers who like building their own system
Full comparison →
Free; paid plans up to $8/mo (USD)Checked 6 Oct 2026
Microsoft Word
General writing
Submissions and working with editors
From £8.49/mo; up to £18.99/moChecked 10 Oct 2026
iA Writer
General writing
Plain-text and Markdown writers who want few features
Full comparison →
From £34.99 one-timeChecked 6 Oct 2026
Bear
General writing
Notes and short pieces on Apple devices
From $2.99/mo (USD)Checked 10 Oct 2026
DEVONthink
Research companion
Researchers who manage large source libraries
From $99 one-time (USD)Checked 10 Oct 2026
Typora
General writing
Markdown writers who want a clean, live-rendered editor
From $14.99 one-time (USD)Checked 10 Oct 2026
ProWritingAid
Editing and analysis
Sentence-level editing inside your existing tools
Full comparison →
Free; paid plans up to $36/mo (USD)Checked 6 Oct 2026
AutoCrit
Editing and analysis
Fiction authors who want data-led self-editing
Free; paid plans up to $30/mo (USD)Checked 10 Oct 2026
Marlowe
Editing and analysis
Authors who want fast critique before an edit
From $19.95/mo (USD)Checked 10 Oct 2026