# Outliner vs Zavala

The clearest difference is price: Zavala at Free against Outliner's $4.99. Zavala also leads on update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 4 months). Outliner's advantage is iOS requirement (16.0 vs 26.0). On rating, review sentiment, ratings volume and ads there is nothing between them.

Zavala is free to download; Outliner costs $4.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Outliner against 4.8 for Zavala. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 89 and 70 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 87% of Outliner's written reviews are positive against 88% of Zavala's.

Outliner ships an update every 4 months, Zavala every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Outliner | Zavala |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $4.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [4.8 (89 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/outliner/id284455726/reviews) | **[4.8 (70 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/zavala/id1546457750/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **89** | 70 |
| Positive reviews | 86.5% of reviews | **87.7% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months | **Every 2 weeks** |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 17 MB | 19 MB |
| Requires iOS | **16.0** | 26.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, Mac** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [CarbonFin](https://appshunter.io/developer/284455729) | [Vincode, Inc](https://appshunter.io/developer/1434335357) |

## What reviewers say

### Outliner

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/outliner/id284455726)

Organize your thoughts, tasks, and projects with a powerful outlining tool. Create structured lists, track project progress with visual indicators, and collaborate with others. Sync your work across devices and cloud storage for seamless access.

**Highlights:** Create structured outlines, Track project progress with pie charts, Sync with cloud storage (OneDrive, Dropbox), Collaborate with other users, Drag and drop editing, Search and filter outlines, Archive old outlines

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

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Fast, simple, and intuitive
- 🔒 Reliable and stable
- 👍 Excellent outlining functionality
- 👍 Seamless sync across devices
- 👍 Clean and uncluttered interface

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional crashes and data loss issues
- 🔒 Concerns about data security and privacy
- 👎 Limited customization options (e.g., no color coding)
- 👎 Clunky data entry and navigation in some cases

**Reported bugs**

- Unexpected error: 500 when saving data
- Pane that lists outlines won't go away or resize
- Keyboard takes up too much screen space

**Requested features**

- Add due dates and priority levels for tasks
- Improve export and sharing options (e.g., PDF, Word)
- Implement better organization and search capabilities
- Introduce a desktop companion app for easier editing
- Add support for voice notes and other multimedia


### 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


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Outliner free?

Outliner costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Zavala free?

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

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

Zavala is rated higher. Outliner averages 4.8 out of 5 from 89 ratings, while Zavala averages 4.8 from 70 ratings.

### Do Outliner or Zavala have ads?

Neither Outliner nor Zavala shows ads.

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

Outliner ships an update every 4 months, and Zavala every 2 weeks. Most recently, Outliner was updated on October 29, 2026 and Zavala on October 25, 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.*