Firstext vs mdisco
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Firstext
This app is a straightforward text editor designed for quick note-taking and text creation. It automatically saves your work and allows for easy sharing to other applications with customizable actions. Advanced features like search, replace, and character counting are also included.
- Instant text input on launch
- Automatic text saving and restoration
- Customizable text sharing actions
- Cursor movement by swiping
- Search and replace functionality
- Character and line counting
- Font size adjustment
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Firstext is a simple text editor application. I named it "First" + "Text" = "Firstext" with the aim of making it the "first step" in all kinds of text creation. Firstext has the following features. ・Start typing as soon as the application is launched. ・The text you type is automatically saved and can be restored at any time. ・Ability to freely share text to other apps by creating and adding share actions to suit your needs. There is no functionality for managing multiple texts or notes, decorating text, or inserting photos. *Before removing the limitation by in-app purchase, the number of shared actions is limited to 10, and the number of saved history is limited to 20. Please understand. After confirming the usability of the application, you can use it without restrictions by making an in-app purchase. Main functions and features ・Input text as soon as the application is launched. ・Automatic saving and restoration of text ・Ability to create and add shared actions. ・Ability to move the cursor by swiping left and right. ・Ability to search and replace text. ・Ability to search and delete history. ・Ability to count the number of characters and lines. ・Ability to change the font size of text. ・Ability to change icons. ・URL scheme support - Launch → firstext:// - Startup by replacing the current text with the clipboard contents → firstext://clipReplace - Starts by appending the clipboard contents to the end of the current text → firstext://clipAdd - Inserts the clipboard content at the cursor position of the current text → firstext://clipInsert - Starts with replacing the current text with the specified text → firstext://textReplace?text=[text] - Appends the specified text to the end of the current text → firstext://textAdd?text=[text] - Inserts the specified text at the cursor position of the current text → firstext://textInsert?text=[text] The following features will be added in future updates Synchronization of text, shared actions, and history with other devices via iCloud *I have confirmed an issue where an alert regarding pasting is displayed every time when using clipboard-related URL schemes on iOS 16 or later. This issue can be avoided by updating to iOS16.1 or later and making the following settings from the Settings app. (1) Select "Firstext" in the Settings app and select "Paste from Other Apps". (2) Change the setting to "Allow". *Notification about pasting will appear even after changing to "Allow". Due to the limitation of iOS, you cannot turn off this notification.
mdisco
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mdisco — A lighter Notion alternative. Save it in Markdown. Find it later. Built for the moment when Notion feels too heavy, Obsidian too plugin-hungry, and Google Keep stops finding what you wrote three weeks ago. Throw in URLs, notes, todos, and code as Markdown — then find them later by keyword or tag. Need to collaborate? Get Google-Docs-level real-time co-editing. ■ Capture anywhere - Mobile capture button auto-detects URLs, todos, notes - Inbox to triage in batches ■ Precise search - Keyword · tag · folder · title — instant, full-text across every note - Edits and deletions stay searchable through version history ■ Markdown editor - One-tap toggle between WYSIWYG and raw Markdown source - Autosave + automatic version history — roll back anytime - Dark mode · 5 languages (English · 한국어 · 日本語 · 中文 · Español) ■ Collaborate - Invite to a workspace or share by link - Read-only or edit permissions - Real-time co-editing (Pro) ■ Sync everywhere - The same notes on every device - Localized push notifications for new activity - Offline indicator ■ Private by default - Nothing leaves your workspace until you explicitly share - Email signup with verification, Apple & Google sign-in - Granular read / edit permissions ■ Use cases - Researchers — papers, clippings, interview notes - Designers — references and decisions - Engineers — code snippets, architecture, on-call logs - PMs — PRDs, meeting notes, OKR wiki - Students — lectures, assignments, exam summaries - Writers — from idea to draft Stop juggling seven apps to take one note. One mdisco is enough.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: mdisco at none against Firstext's 4. mdisco also leads on ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (every 4 days vs every 2 weeks). On price, device support and iOS requirement 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
Both are free to download. Firstext sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. mdisco asks for nothing beyond the download.
Firstext ships an update every 2 weeks, mdisco every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Firstext | mdisco |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Positive reviews | 50.0% of reviews | — |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | Every 4 days — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 6 MB | 19 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Akihiro Usui | tapahalab |
In-app purchases
Firstext
- Snack-Sized Tip$0.49
- Restriction Removal$1.99
- Coffee-Sized Tip$1.99
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- Lunch-Sized Tip$3.99
mdisco
No in-app purchases









