Comparison

Textastic Code Editor vs ClearJSON

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Textastic Code Editor

A powerful text and code editor for mobile devices, offering syntax highlighting for over 80 languages, code completion, and formatting tools. It allows connection to various servers and cloud storage for seamless file management and editing.

Highlights
  • Syntax highlighting for 80+ languages
  • SFTP, FTP, WebDAV, and Dropbox client
  • Built-in SSH terminal
  • Code completion and formatting
  • External keyboard and trackpad support
  • Split View and Slide Over multitasking
Features
Read full description

Textastic is a comprehensive and versatile text and code editor for iPad and iPhone. It supports syntax highlighting for more than 80 programming and markup languages. Connect to SFTP, FTP, and WebDAV servers or to your Dropbox account. Use the built-in SSH terminal to work directly on your server. Features: - Syntax highlighting for more than 80 languages, including HTML, JavaScript, CSS, C++, Swift, Objective-C, Rust, XML, Markdown, PHP, Perl, Python, Ruby, Lua, YAML, JSON, SQL, shell scripts, and many more (full list available on the website) - Compatible with Sublime Text 3 and TextMate 1 syntax definitions and themes - Code completion for HTML, CSS, JavaScript, C, Objective-C, and PHP - SFTP (SSH), FTP, FTPS (FTP over SSL), WebDAV, and Dropbox clients - SSH terminal connections - Code formatter for HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and JSON - Git repositories from the Git client app Working Copy can be opened as external folders in Textastic - Emmet support - JavaScript console - iCloud Drive file synchronization - WebDAV server for easy file transfer between Textastic and your Mac or PC over Wi-Fi - Symbol list for quick navigation within a file - Full support for external keyboards, trackpads, and mice - Configurable keyboard shortcuts - Additional keys above the virtual keyboard for frequently used programming characters - Cursor navigation wheel for easy text selection - Move the cursor using swipe gestures - Split View and Slide Over multitasking on iPad - Open multiple files in tabs - Multiple windows on iPadOS - Dark Mode support - Support for common text encodings such as UTF-8, UTF-16, and ISO-8859-1 - Support for different tab widths and soft tabs (spaces instead of tabs) - Custom fonts - Find and Replace, including regular expression search - Find in multiple files - File information such as character and word counts - Local and remote web preview for HTML and Markdown files Pricing: Textastic requires a monthly or yearly subscription or a one-time purchase. Each subscription includes a 7-day free trial with full access to all features. Privacy Policy: https://www.textasticapp.com/privacy.html Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

ClearJSON

Features
Read full description

ClearJSON is a local-first JSON viewer, formatter, validator, and inspector for iPhone and iPad. Paste JSON, open files from Files or iCloud, validate payloads, format readable output, minify compact JSON, sort keys, search paths and values, copy formatted output, and export cleaned JSON. ClearJSON is built for checking API responses, reviewing configuration files, cleaning JSON snippets, debugging payloads, and inspecting nested data. Your JSON content stays private: payloads, searches, filenames, and clipboard contents are processed on device and are not sent to the advertising service. Users who have not made a support purchase may see contextual Google ads. Ad personalization is disabled. Any of the three existing support purchases removes all ads permanently, including verified purchases made in earlier versions.

Screenshots

Textastic Code Editor4 screens
ClearJSON4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Textastic Code Editor at none against ClearJSON's shown. Textastic Code Editor also leads on chart position (#10 vs unranked). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Textastic Code Editor sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and ClearJSON sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Textastic Code Editor ships an update every 2 weeks, ClearJSON every 10 days. The most recent releases landed on November 11, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 9 level
Textastic Code Editor versus ClearJSON: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTextastic Code EditorClearJSON
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (2.6K ratings) — better—
Positive reviews68.6% of reviews—
Number of ratings2.6K — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksEvery 10 days — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationSubscription—
Best chart rank#10 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS16.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size26 MB5 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAlexander BlachGrove OU

Bugs and requests

Textastic Code Editor

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Issues with SSH/SFTP connectivity and authentication
  • Problems with handling large files or files with certain extensions
  • Inconsistent text selection and editing behavior

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add support for more cloud storage providers (e.g. Google Drive, OneDrive)
  • Implement a more seamless remote file editing and syncing workflow
  • Improve code editing features like code folding, multi-cursor support, and code beautification
  • Add a built-in terminal or ability to run code directly within the app

ClearJSON

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Textastic Code Editor

Subscriptions2
  • Textastic Pro (Monthly)7 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • Textastic Pro (Yearly)7 Days trial$19.991 Year
One-time1
  • Textastic Pro (One-Time)$69.99
3 purchases

ClearJSON

One-time3
  • ClearJSON Small Support$0.99
  • ClearJSON Medium Support$2.99
  • ClearJSON Large Support$4.99

Questions

Is Textastic Code Editor free?
Textastic Code Editor is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is ClearJSON free?
ClearJSON is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Textastic Code Editor or ClearJSON have ads?
ClearJSON shows ads; Textastic Code Editor does not.
Which is updated more often, Textastic Code Editor or ClearJSON?
Textastic Code Editor ships an update every 2 weeks, and ClearJSON every 10 days. Most recently, Textastic Code Editor was updated on November 11, 2026 and ClearJSON on November 5, 2026.

Other comparisons