# Zavala vs MarkWell

The clearest difference is price: Zavala at Free against MarkWell's $9.99. Zavala also leads on ratings volume (70 vs 1). MarkWell's advantage is review sentiment (100% vs 88%) and iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.0). On rating, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Zavala is free to download; MarkWell costs $9.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

MarkWell holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Zavala has 70 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 88% of Zavala's written reviews are positive against 100% of MarkWell's.

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Zavala | MarkWell |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | **Free** | $9.99 |
| Rating | [4.8 (70 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/zavala/id1546457750/reviews) | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/markwell-bookmark-manager/id6764493329/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **70** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | 87.7% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | Every 2 weeks |
| Monetization | **Free** | Paid |
| Size | 19 MB | 6 MB |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | **17.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Vincode, Inc](https://appshunter.io/developer/1434335357) | [Benjamin Dansby](https://appshunter.io/developer/1895087808) |

## What reviewers say

### Zavala

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/zavala/id1546457750)

This app offers a modern approach to outlining, providing a full suite of features. It supports gestures, keyboard shortcuts, and multiple windows for efficient organization and content creation. Easily import and export in various formats, sync across devices, and customize your outlining experience.

**Highlights:** OPML Import & Export, Markdown Export, iCloud Syncing & Sharing, Nested Tags, Image Embedding, Keyboard Shortcuts, Drag and Drop

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Simple and intuitive UI
- 🚀 Fast and lightweight
- 🌟 Excellent outliner functionality
- 🆓 Free and open source
- ✨ Elegant and clean design

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Sync issues reported
- 🐛 Occasional crashes
- 🐛 Glitchy behavior
- 🐛 Formatting issues
- 🐛 Incompatible iCloud database

**Reported bugs**

- Broken sync between iPhone and Mac
- iCloud database incompatibility
- Unable to format using toolbar
- Lost outline after update
- Sidebar not available

**Requested features**

- Continue releasing macOS builds for older versions
- Legacy database option for iOS apps
- Cross-platform support
- Ability to change tag and outline list order manually
- Support for hiding notes


### MarkWell

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/markwell-bookmark-manager/id6764493329)

A native bookmark manager for Mac, iPhone, and iPad that syncs bookmarks across devices using iCloud. Organize links with tags and save them from any app via the system share sheet. Prioritizes user privacy with no account or analytics.

**Highlights:** Save links from any app, Organize with tags, not folders, End-to-end iCloud sync, Privacy-first design, Fetch title and favicon automatically, Offline functionality

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Zavala free?

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

### Is MarkWell free?

MarkWell costs $9.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Zavala or MarkWell?

MarkWell is rated higher. Zavala averages 4.8 out of 5 from 70 ratings, while MarkWell averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do Zavala or MarkWell have ads?

Neither Zavala nor MarkWell shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Zavala or MarkWell?

Zavala ships an update every 2 weeks, and MarkWell every 2 weeks. Most recently, Zavala was updated on November 3, 2026 and MarkWell on November 5, 2026.

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