# Plain Text Editor vs SimpleNote

The clearest difference is price: SimpleNote at Free against Plain Text Editor's $5.00. SimpleNote also leads on iOS requirement (17.6 vs 26.0). Plain Text Editor's advantage is device support (3 vs 1). On update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

SimpleNote is free to download; Plain Text Editor costs $5.00 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 12, 2026 and September 29, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Plain Text Editor | SimpleNote |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $5.00 | **Free** |
| Rating | **[4.4 (9 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/plain-text-editor/id1572202501/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **9** | — |
| Positive reviews | 93.1% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Every 2 months |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Size | 4 MB | 2 MB |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | **17.6** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Mac** | iPhone |
| Age rating | 4+ | 9+ |
| Developer | [Sindre Sorhus](https://appshunter.io/developer/328077650) | [Patrick Lanham](https://appshunter.io/developer/1811599548) |

## What reviewers say

### Plain Text Editor

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/plain-text-editor/id1572202501)

A minimalist text editor focused on pure writing without any formatting options. It allows editing of standard plain text files and includes features like word count and a unique 'brain dump' mode for focused writing.

**Highlights:** No formatting, just text, Edit .txt, .csv, .md files, Optimal line spacing, Word count, Brain dump mode

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### SimpleNote

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/simplenote-tasks-and-notes/id6745271523)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Plain Text Editor free?

Plain Text Editor costs $5.00, with no in-app purchases.

### Is SimpleNote free?

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

### Do Plain Text Editor or SimpleNote have ads?

Neither Plain Text Editor nor SimpleNote shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Plain Text Editor or SimpleNote?

Plain Text Editor ships an update every 2 months, and SimpleNote every 2 months. Most recently, Plain Text Editor was updated on October 12, 2026 and SimpleNote on September 29, 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.*