Comparison

Purnote vs Richdown

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

Head to head
About

Purnote

Features
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Notes you actually own. Purnote keeps every note as a plain Markdown file in your own iCloud Drive — no database, no proprietary format, no lock-in. Every note is an ordinary .md file in a folder called purnote, so you can open, edit, search, back up or move your notes with any tool you like — on your Mac, in any text editor, forever. Write a note on your phone and it is on your Mac a moment later. Edit it on your Mac and it changes on your phone while you are looking at it. If you ever stop using Purnote, you still have your notes. That is the whole idea. • Free — no subscription, no ads, no accounts • Plain Markdown files, stored in iCloud Drive where you can see them • Share from any app into Purnote — save a post or link as a note, in the folder you choose • Organise notes in folders, with #tags and Smart Folders • Add photos to a note — saved as plain files beside it, never locked in • Create tables from the formatting bar • Drag a note onto a folder to move it • Formatting buttons above the keyboard — headings, bold, italic, lists, checklists, quotes, links — so you do not need to know Markdown to write it • Notes are named after their first line, so the folder makes sense on your Mac • Rendered notes with headings, tables, task lists and code blocks • Full text search across every note • Works without iCloud too, keeping notes on this iPhone Purnote collects nothing. There are no accounts, no analytics, and no servers other than your own iCloud.

About

Richdown

Features
Read full description

Plain Markdown, beautiful the moment you type it. Richdown is a focused Markdown editor that never makes you switch between "writing" and "reading." Headings, tables, code, quotes, task lists, even Mermaid diagrams render inline as you go — so you stay in the flow and watch the finished page take shape. And Richdown doesn't lock your files inside someone else's cloud. Open folders in iCloud Drive or on your device — or work straight in your own GitHub repositories. — Write — • Inline rich preview that keeps up with your typing • Tables, code blocks, quotes, task lists, Mermaid diagrams and images • Outline view and in-file search to navigate long documents • A Markdown toolbar above the keyboard for quick formatting — Keep — • Open iCloud Drive or on-device folders and edit in place • Browse subfolders; create, rename and delete files; sort by name or date • Pull to refresh. Files are stored on your device (iCloud / local) — nothing is uploaded to our servers — Connect (GitHub, optional) — • Open your own GitHub repositories, edit, and commit in one go • Browse commit history, diff a past version, and restore it • Switch and create branches; open pull requests • Traffic goes straight from your device to GitHub; your access token is kept only in the iOS Keychain Note: commit, history, diff and restore are GitHub-repository features (plain folders support editing and saving). — iPad — • A true two-pane layout: file list on the left, preview on the right Fast, private, and honest about your files. Distributed by StructWorks Ā· Contact: support@structworks.dev

Screenshots

Purnote4 screens
Richdown4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Purnote at every 6 days against Richdown's every 2 weeks. Richdown's advantage is device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.0). On price, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

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

CostPrice Ā· In-app purchases Ā· Ads Ā· Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Purnote ships an update every 6 days, Richdown every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 11, 2026 and October 12, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences Ā· 3 level
Purnote versus Richdown: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPurnoteRichdown
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 6 days — betterEvery 2 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS18.015.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size2 MB7 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperSasa MitrovicYo Suzuki

In-app purchases

None

Purnote

No in-app purchases

None

Richdown

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Purnote free?
Purnote is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Richdown free?
Richdown is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Purnote or Richdown have ads?
Neither Purnote nor Richdown shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Purnote or Richdown?
Purnote ships an update every 6 days, and Richdown every 2 weeks. Most recently, Purnote was updated on October 11, 2026 and Richdown on October 12, 2026.

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