Comparison

HTML Editor vs Subtext

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

Head to head

HTML Editor

Free

🛠️ Developer Tools

★ 4.2819 ratingsView app →

Subtext

Simple, elegant text editor

Free

🛠️ Developer Tools

★ 4.579 ratingsView app →

About

HTML Editor

A lightweight HTML editor offering syntax highlighting, code completion, and a live preview. Easily open, edit, and export HTML documents from your device or iCloud. Features dynamic commenting and tag insertion for efficient web development.

Highlights

Syntax highlighting
Code completion suggestions
Live preview panel
Open local and iCloud documents
Quick tag insertion
Dynamic code commenting
Export and share HTML documents

Currently charting

Read full description

HTML Editor is a lightweight HTML editor complete with syntax highlighting, focused code completion suggestions and a live preview panel. With HTML Editor, you can open any existing HTML document on your device or in your iCloud storage. Simply drop your existing HTML document onto our app icon to open that document within HTML Editor. Quickly insert tag elements via the menu, or comment out code dynamically with IntelliSense highlighted detection system. You can efficiently export your HTML document and share it with your teammates. HTML Editor comes with full iCloud and local support. HTML Editor is also available on iOS. We're always working on improving our apps and would love any feedback or suggestions that you may have. Privacy Policy: https://www.iubenda.com/privacy-policy/57995653 Terms of Service: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula

About

Subtext

A straightforward text editor for iPhone and iPad, allowing direct creation and editing of files within iCloud. It offers advanced controls for line endings and character encoding, ideal for on-the-go code or data file modifications.

Highlights

Direct iCloud file editing
No import/export required
Line ending control
Character set encoding control
Quick edits for code and data

Currently charting

#89Top Free · Developer Tools

Read full description

Subtext is a simple, no-frills text editor for iPhone and iPad. Create or edit files directly on your device or in iCloud, with no need to import or export. Includes advanced features such as line ending and character set encoding control. Perfect for making quick edits to code or data files on the go!

Screenshots

HTML Editor4 screens

Subtext4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Subtext at 83% against HTML Editor's 22%. Subtext also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 2) and rating (4.5 vs 4.2). HTML Editor's advantage is ratings volume (819 vs 79). On price, ads, chart position and device support there is nothing between them.

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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. HTML Editor sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per 7 days. Subtext asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Subtext holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: HTML Editor has 819 ratings behind it against 79, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 22% of HTML Editor's written reviews are positive against 83% of Subtext's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

HTML Editor ships an update every 3 months, Subtext every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level

HTML Editor versus Subtext: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
Parameter	HTML Editor	Subtext
Price	Free	Free
Rating	4.2 (819 ratings)	4.5 (79 ratings) — better
Positive reviews	22.0% of reviews	83.2% of reviews — better
Number of ratings	819 — better	79
Update frequency	Every 3 months	Every 3 weeks — better
Ads	No	No
In-app purchases	Yes	No — better
Monetization	Free with in-app purchases	Free — better
Best chart rank	#58 — better	#89
Devices	iPhone, iPad, Mac, Vision Pro	iPhone, iPad, iPod, Vision Pro
Requires iOS	16.0	14.4 — better
Further details — not scored
Size	29 MB	3 MB
Age rating	4+	4+
Developer	Intrepid	Charcoal Design

Customer experience

HTML Editor

All ratings819 ratings

Positive77.7%

Neutral4.6%

Negative17.7%

Written reviews518 reviews

Positive22.0%

Neutral3.9%

Negative74.1%

Subtext

All ratings79 ratings

Positive84.8%

Neutral8.9%

Negative6.3%

Written reviews95 reviews

Positive83.2%

Neutral10.5%

Negative6.3%

User reviews

HTML Editor

From 819 App Store ratings

What we love

🚀 Great for online coding
👍 Simple and intuitive UI
💡 Helpful syntax highlighting

Room to improve

🔒 Requires subscription to use
💰 Expensive weekly subscription
🐛 Buggy and crashes frequently
👎 Obtrusive subscription popup

Subtext

From 79 App Store ratings

What we love

👍 Simple and efficient
🚀 Fast and lightweight
🆓 Free and no ads
✨ Clean and intuitive UI
📂 Seamless Files app integration

Room to improve

🐛 Fails on network drives
🐛 Data corruption risk
🐛 Difficulty unselecting text
🐛 Buggy Chinese input method
🐛 Random capitalization issues

Bugs and requests

HTML Editor

Reported bugs

3 issues

Preview doesn't always match actual HTML output
Unable to dismiss subscription popup
Corrupts or deletes existing HTML files

Requested features

3 requests

Add ability to open and edit multiple files
Implement full-screen preview mode
Provide option to purchase app outright instead of subscription

Subtext

Reported bugs

11 issues

Fails to save work
Jumps to top of document on blank lines
Poor network behavior leading to data corruption
Cannot open or create new text files
Error when saving to network drive

Show 6 more

Cannot edit .tex files without renaming
Chinese input method errors
Random capitalization after paste
Large text files cause errors
File saving issues, creates extra copies
Bug when using Chinese input method with delete key

Requested features

20 requests

Add 'Unselect all' option
Add 'Replace all' function
Add font size settings
Add tab key
Allow editing of non-text files

Show 15 more

Improve network drive handling
Option to disable auto-save
Add highlighter
Add character count
Add JetBrains Mono font
Add 'reopen last file' option
Add widget support
Add highlighting
Add font and background color settings
Add distraction-free mode
Add swipe to close gesture
Option to release focus for collapsing skb
Fix Chinese input method bugs
Allow editing of files with arbitrary extensions
Add Chinese input method bug fixes

In-app purchases

2 purchases

HTML Editor

Subscriptions2

Html Pro$2.997 Days
HTML Pro3 Days trial$3.997 Days

None

Subtext

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is HTML Editor free?

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

Is Subtext free?

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

Which has better reviews, HTML Editor or Subtext?

Subtext is rated higher. HTML Editor averages 4.2 out of 5 from 819 ratings, while Subtext averages 4.5 from 79 ratings.

Do HTML Editor or Subtext have ads?

Neither HTML Editor nor Subtext shows ads.

Which is updated more often, HTML Editor or Subtext?

HTML Editor ships an update every 3 months, and Subtext every 3 weeks. Most recently, HTML Editor was updated on September 24, 2026 and Subtext on September 22, 2026.

Which is more popular, HTML Editor or Subtext?

HTML Editor currently peaks at #58 in the App Store charts, and Subtext at #89. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.