# Novelist vs Authora

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Novelist at none against Authora's 2. Novelist also leads on ratings volume (214 vs 4) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.0). Authora's advantage is review sentiment (100% vs 79%) and update cadence (fortnightly vs every 6 weeks). On price, rating, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Authora sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Novelist asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.4 for Novelist against 4.5 for Authora. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Novelist has 214 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 79% of Novelist's written reviews are positive against 100% of Authora's.

Novelist ships an update every 6 weeks, Authora fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 23, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Novelist | Authora |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.4 (214 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/novelist-write-novels/id1564737393/reviews) | **[4.5 (4 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/authora/id6762512907/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **214** | 4 |
| Positive reviews | 79.5% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 6 weeks | **Fortnightly** |
| Monetization | **Free** | Freemium |
| Size | 54 MB | 43 MB |
| Requires iOS | **13.0** | 15.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Alessandro Riperi](https://appshunter.io/developer/1564737395) | [Ronan Campbell](https://appshunter.io/developer/1890020534) |

## What reviewers say

### Novelist

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/novelist-write-novels/id1564737393)

This app provides a comprehensive suite of tools for authors to write, organize, and plot their novels. It offers features for scene creation, story structuring, goal setting, and manuscript export. The platform is designed to support the entire novel-writing process, from initial ideas to the final draft.

**Highlights:** Plotting with customizable story elements, Scene writing with rich formatting, Story organization into acts and chapters, Word count goals and deadline scheduling, Manuscript export in EPUB, ODT, HTML, Autosave and version history, Companion web app

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

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Amazingly different application
- 🔒 Completely free, with no ads or in-app purchases
- 👍 Well-organized all-in-one app for writing, plotting, outlining, and scheduling
- 👍 Intuitive and easy to use
- 👍 Helps with organizing and keeping things clean

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Confusing menu options and backup/restore process
- 🐛 Glitches when editing text, cursor behaves unexpectedly
- 🐛 Crashes or freezes on some devices
- 🐛 Syncing issues between devices
- 🐛 Lack of font customization options

**Reported bugs**

- Backup/restore process can lead to data loss
- Cursor and text editing issues
- Crashes and freezes on some devices
- Syncing problems between devices

**Requested features**

- Ability to import/export in various formats (PDF, Markdown, etc.)
- Improved syncing and cloud integration
- More font and formatting options
- Ability to add images/illustrations to the book
- Collaboration/co-writing features


### Authora

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/authora/id6762512907)

This writing companion helps aspiring authors reclaim lost minutes for their book projects. It offers tools for writing, storyboarding, and self-publishing directly from a mobile device, turning commutes and waiting times into productive writing sessions.

**Highlights:** Six writing format templates, Rich text editor optimized for mobile, Storyboard for characters, plot, and world-building, Export to EPUB/PDF for self-publishing, Speech-to-text dictation, On-device writing analysis, Encrypted cloud sync (Premium)

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

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Authora Premium (Monthly) | $4.99 | per month |
| Authora Premium (Yearly) | $49.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Novelist free?

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

### Is Authora free?

Authora is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Novelist or Authora?

Authora is rated higher. Novelist averages 4.4 out of 5 from 214 ratings, while Authora averages 4.5 from 4 ratings.

### Do Novelist or Authora have ads?

Neither Novelist nor Authora shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Novelist or Authora?

Novelist ships an update every 6 weeks, and Authora fortnightly. Most recently, Novelist was updated on October 24, 2026 and Authora on October 23, 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.*