# Notability vs iA Writer

The clearest difference is price: Notability at Free against iA Writer's $19.99. Notability also leads on ratings volume (457K vs 1.5K) and rating (4.8 vs 4.6). iA Writer's advantage is review sentiment (73% vs 37%) and in-app purchases (none vs 13). On ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Notability is free to download; iA Writer costs $19.99 up front. Notability sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. iA Writer asks for nothing beyond the download.

Notability holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Notability has 457K ratings behind it against 1.5K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 37% of Notability's written reviews are positive against 73% of iA Writer's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Notability ships an update weekly, iA Writer fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Notability | iA Writer |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | **Free** | $19.99 |
| Rating | **[4.8 (457K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notability-ai-notes-and-planner/id360593530/reviews)** | [4.6 (1.5K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ia-writer/id775737172/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **457K** | 1.5K |
| Positive reviews | 36.5% of reviews | **73.2% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Weekly** | Fortnightly |
| Monetization | **Freemium** | Paid |
| Best chart rank | #77 | **#25** |
| Size | 411 MB | 65 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.5 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Ginger Labs](https://appshunter.io/developer/318126112) | [Information Architects AG](https://appshunter.io/developer/775737175) |

## What reviewers say

### Notability

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/notability-ai-notes-and-planner/id360593530)

**Currently charting:** #77 Top Grossing · Productivity, #124 Top Free · Productivity (US App Store)

Capture, organize, and enhance your thoughts with a versatile digital notebook. Seamlessly blend handwriting, typing, and multimedia to annotate documents, record lectures, and generate summaries. Ideal for students and professionals seeking to boost productivity and learning.

**Highlights:** Handwritten and typed notes, PDF and document annotation, Audio recording and transcription, AI-powered summaries and quizzes, Customizable organization, Cross-device sync

**Features:** Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Notability Lite | $5.99 | per month |
| Notability Plus | $7.99 | per month |
| Notability Plus | $12.99 | per 3 months |
| Notability Lite | $14.99 | per year |
| Notability Plus | $19.99 | per year |
| Notability Plus | $19.99 | per year |
| Notability Pro | $19.99 | per month |
| Notability Plus | $29.99 | per year |
| Notability Pro | $99.99 | per year |
| Notability Classic | $49.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Great app for note-taking
- 👍 Smooth handwriting experience
- 📝 Excellent organization and file management
- 🎙️ Useful audio recording feature
- 🔍 Handwriting recognition and search

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Sync issues with iCloud
- 🔍 Limited search and organization options
- 🖍️ Frustrating highlighter behavior
- 🔒 Concerns about subscription model
- 🔧 Buggy after recent updates

**Reported bugs**

- Notes disappearing or getting corrupted
- Frequent crashes and performance issues
- Palm rejection problems after updates
- Inconsistent behavior when importing files

**Requested features**

- Improved folder/hierarchy organization
- More shape recognition and drawing tools
- Side-by-side viewing of multiple notes
- Ability to edit/rename audio recordings
- Better integration with other apps and services


### iA Writer

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ia-writer/id775737172)

**Currently charting:** #25 Top Paid · Productivity (US App Store)

A distraction-free writing environment designed to help you focus on your words. It offers features like Focus Mode, plain text writing with HTML preview, and robust organization tools. Customize your writing experience and export to various formats.

**Highlights:** Distraction-free writing environment, Focus Mode for enhanced concentration, Plain text writing with HTML preview, Document organization and search, Customizable keyboard layout, Export to various formats (Word, PDF, HTML, WordPress, Medium)

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Distraction-free writing experience
- 👍 Elegant and minimalist design
- 💡 Helpful syntax highlighting and formatting tools
- 🚀 Seamless sync across devices
- 👍 Reliable and stable performance

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional crashes and sync issues
- 🔒 Limited cloud storage integration options
- 👎 Lack of advanced organization and navigation features
- 👎 Subpar text selection and cursor control
- 👎 Dated app icon and visual design

**Reported bugs**

- Crashes when opening certain files
- Sync issues leading to data loss
- Formatting problems when exporting to other formats

**Requested features**

- Improved cloud storage integration (Dropbox, Google Drive, etc.)
- Enhanced file management and organization tools
- Better text selection and cursor control
- More customization options for appearance and layout
- Integrated outline/table of contents view


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Notability free?

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

### Is iA Writer free?

iA Writer costs $19.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Notability or iA Writer?

Notability is rated higher. Notability averages 4.8 out of 5 from 457K ratings, while iA Writer averages 4.6 from 1.5K ratings.

### Do Notability or iA Writer have ads?

Neither Notability nor iA Writer shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Notability or iA Writer?

Notability ships an update weekly, and iA Writer fortnightly. Most recently, Notability was updated on September 25, 2026 and iA Writer on September 23, 2026.

### Which is more popular, Notability or iA Writer?

Notability currently peaks at #77 in the App Store charts, and iA Writer at #25. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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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.*