# WriteFreely vs Filen

The clearest difference is price: Filen at Free against WriteFreely's $11.99. Filen also leads on update cadence (fortnightly vs every 2 months) and ratings volume (123 vs 8). WriteFreely's advantage is rating (4.1 vs 3.8) and iOS requirement (14.0 vs 26.0). On review sentiment, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Filen is free to download; WriteFreely costs $11.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

WriteFreely holds the better App Store score, 4.1 against 3.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Filen has 123 ratings behind it against 8, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 44% of WriteFreely's written reviews are positive against 48% of Filen's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

WriteFreely ships an update every 2 months, Filen fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 9, 2026 and October 12, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | WriteFreely | Filen |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $11.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | **[4.1 (8 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/writefreely/id1531530896/reviews)** | [3.8 (123 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/filen-cloud-storage/id1549224518/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 8 | **123** |
| Positive reviews | 44.4% of reviews | **47.7% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Fortnightly** |
| Monetization | Paid | **Freemium** |
| Size | 3 MB | 103 MB |
| Requires iOS | **14.0** | 26.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 17+ |
| Developer | [Musing Studio LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1000755152) | [Filen Cloud Dienste UG (haftungsbeschraenkt)](https://appshunter.io/developer/1549224520) |

## What reviewers say

### WriteFreely

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/writefreely/id1531530896)

A minimalist blogging app for seamless web publishing. Write in a distraction-free editor and publish to your blog or any compatible writing community. Supports offline drafting and synchronization with your WriteFreely account.

**Highlights:** Distraction-free editor, Offline drafting and editing, Sync posts with WriteFreely account, Publish to multiple blogs, Dark mode option, Open source platform

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### Filen

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/filen-cloud-storage/id1549224518)

Securely store photos, videos, and documents with military-grade encryption. Access files on any device, share them easily, and enjoy features like offline access and encrypted notes. Offers a free tier with 10 GB storage.

**Highlights:** 10 GB free storage, Unlimited pro storage, Secure client-side encryption, Offline file access, Cross-device file access, Encrypted notes and chats, Automatic camera upload

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🔒 End-to-end encryption and privacy-focused design
- 💰 Affordable pricing with generous storage tiers
- 🌍 Open-source and transparent service
- 🚀 Fast upload/download speeds
- 👍 Clean and intuitive UI design

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent app crashes during uploads
- 📸 Photo/video upload failures and inconsistencies
- 🔄 Auto-upload feature unreliable and incomplete
- ⚠️ Data loss issues in Notes feature
- 🔐 Thumbnail cache exposed in Files app (security concern)

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes when uploading photos/videos
- Music pauses when app is minimized
- Photo upload stuck at specific file counts (e.g., 42 photos)
- Notes lose data during sync
- Note type conversion deletes text content

**Requested features**

- Video streaming/playback within app
- Read-only file mode option
- Back-sync feature (delete from phone, delete from cloud)
- Multi-select file upload capability
- iPad split-screen view support


## Frequently asked questions

### Is WriteFreely free?

WriteFreely costs $11.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Filen free?

Filen is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, WriteFreely or Filen?

WriteFreely is rated higher. WriteFreely averages 4.1 out of 5 from 8 ratings, while Filen averages 3.8 from 123 ratings.

### Do WriteFreely or Filen have ads?

Neither WriteFreely nor Filen shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, WriteFreely or Filen?

WriteFreely ships an update every 2 months, and Filen fortnightly. Most recently, WriteFreely was updated on October 9, 2026 and Filen on October 12, 2026.

---

*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*