Cal Countdown vs Word Counter + Plain Text Pro
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Cal Countdown
This app automatically displays a color-coded countdown to your next calendar event. It's designed for quick glances on your Apple Watch face or iPhone "Today" screen, helping you manage your schedule efficiently without manual calculations.
- Automatic countdown to next calendar event
- Color-coded urgency indicators
- Apple Watch complication support
- iPhone "Today" widget
- Calendar data integration
- Option to skip specific events
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"Cal Countdown" is a free, simple iOS & Apple Watch app that automatically creates a color-coded countdown to the next event on your calendar and displays it on your Apple Watch face and/or your "Today" screen. The app is primarily intended to be used as a complication on your Apple Watch or as a widget. If your days are anything like ours, packed with various meetings scattered throughout the day, every time you check your calendar, you're trying to figure out one thing: How much time do I have until my next appointment? So, you glance at your watch, note the start time of your next appointment, and calculate the difference between the current time and your next event. We got tired of doing this mental calculation many times a day, but much to our surprise, we could not find an existing iOS application that would do this chore for us. So we decided to build it ourselves. Now, every time we glance at our watch, it immediately tells us what we want to know: How much time do I have until my next appointment? The app's color changes from blue to green to yellow to orange to red as you approach the start of your next event. (6+ hours = Blue, 2-6 hours = Green, 1-2 = Yellow, 30-60 mins = Orange, 0-30 mins = Red) Cal Countdown supports all the different Apple Watch complications. All Apple Watch complications that support multi-color will be color-coded (but not all watch complications support multiple colors.) Using "Cal Countdown" is as easy as it gets. It uses the calendar data already on your phone; no signing in; no entering any usernames or passwords. The app lets you select the calendars you want to include or not in your calendar countdowns. Don't have an Apple Watch? You can still use Cal Countdown on your phone as an iPhone/iPad app with a "Today" widget. Cal Countdown does not require an account. It does not even require an internet connection. The app uses the calendar data already on your iPhone. It's completely secure. Your calendar data remains completely private, and never leaves your phone. Cal Countdown also has the ability to ignore or skip certain events on your calendar. This feature is especially useful if you have shared calendars with your family, friends, or colleagues. We often have events on our calendars that we need to know about, but may not be attending ourselves. If you want Cal Countdown to ignore or skip these events and start counting down to the following event on your calendar, just tap the "Ignore" button, and Cal Countdown will immediately start a countdown to the following event.
Word Counter + Plain Text Pro
Instantly convert and count characters, words, and UTF8 words from copied text. Offers a built-in editor for further modifications and seamless sharing to other applications. Supports all languages with an accurate UTF8 word count engine.
- Automatic plain text output
- Integrated plain text editor
- One-touch sharing to other apps
- Character, word, and UTF8 word counting
- Supports all languages
- Accurate UTF8 word count engine
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Convert all plain text from whatever you copied and count the character and words at the same time! Features: v1.21 - automatic output of plain text with even no need to touch the interface of the app - equipped with a plain text editor for further editing - text can be quickly shared with other apps with one-touch - not only the characters but also the words and UTF8 words will be counted and attached - all languages supported (please use the UTF8 number instead of word for some languages) - very accurate UTF8 word count engine for any Unicode character language users v1.21 -> v1.22 - fine-tuning, app size reduced - animation changed v1.22 -> v1.24 - all deprecated code rewritten v1.24 -> v1.27 - All deprecated code corrected for iOS15 and up - App interface modified: share button's size & image - System menu implemented: Technical Support, Rate Me, More From Us - App display name modified from "Plain Text Pro + Word Counter" to "Word Counter + Plain Text Pro" - App information updated for the new 13+/16+/18+ age-rating system Instructions basic mode: 1. copy anything from another app (just include pictures and videos, you can simply "Select all" then "Copy" ) 2. start "Plain Text Pro", the app will popup displaying all plain text it grabbed and converted 3. close "Plain Text Pro" by pressing the iPhone's Home key (yes, no need to touch anywhere in the app) 4. open another app and Paste the plain text Instructions professional mode: 1. copy anything from another app (just include pictures and videos, you can simply "Select all" then "Copy" ) 2. start "Plain Text Pro", the app will popup displaying all plain text it grabbed and converted 3. touch the button "Copy back to clipboard" 4. do further editing on the editor (the keyboard can be dismissed when you touch outside the editor) 5. choose what word count information be added to the end of the plain text, character, word, and UTF8 6. touch the Share button to share out or if you only need the plain text in the clipboard to paste, jump to the next step 7. close "Plain Text Pro" by pressing the iPhone's Home key (yes, no need to touch anywhere in the app)
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Cal Countdown at Free against Word Counter + Plain Text Pro's $0.99. Cal Countdown also leads on update cadence (every 8 months vs every 29 months) and ratings volume (21 vs 2). Word Counter + Plain Text Pro's advantage is iOS requirement (15.6 vs 17.6). On rating, ads, 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
Cal Countdown is free to download; Word Counter + Plain Text Pro costs $0.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Cal Countdown against 5.0 for Word Counter + Plain Text Pro. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Cal Countdown has 21 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.
Cal Countdown ships an update every 8 months, Word Counter + Plain Text Pro every 29 months. The most recent releases landed on October 6, 2026 and October 16, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Cal Countdown | Word Counter + Plain Text Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free — better | $0.99 |
| Rating | 5.0 (21 ratings) | 5.0 (2 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 94.7% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 21 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 8 months — better | Every 29 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free — better | Paid |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 17.6 | 15.6 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 7 MB | 2 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Franck Reyherme | Jiulong Zhao |
Customer experience
Cal Countdown
Word Counter + Plain Text Pro
In-app purchases
Cal Countdown
No in-app purchases
Word Counter + Plain Text Pro
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Cal Countdown free?
Is Word Counter + Plain Text Pro free?
Which has better reviews, Cal Countdown or Word Counter + Plain Text Pro?
Do Cal Countdown or Word Counter + Plain Text Pro have ads?
Which is updated more often, Cal Countdown or Word Counter + Plain Text Pro?
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