# Werdsmith vs iA Writer

The clearest difference is price: Werdsmith at Free against iA Writer's $19.99. Werdsmith also leads on ratings volume (8K vs 1.5K) and review sentiment (82% vs 73%). iA Writer's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 6) and chart position (#25 vs unranked). On rating, update cadence, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Werdsmith is free to download; iA Writer costs $19.99 up front. Werdsmith sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. iA Writer asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Werdsmith against 4.6 for iA Writer. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Werdsmith has 8K ratings behind it against 1.5K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 82% of Werdsmith's written reviews are positive against 73% of iA Writer's.

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Werdsmith | iA Writer |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | **Free** | $19.99 |
| Rating | **[4.7 (8K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/werdsmith-writing-app/id489746330/reviews)** | [4.6 (1.5K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ia-writer/id775737172/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **8K** | 1.5K |
| Positive reviews | **82.0% of reviews** | 73.2% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | Fortnightly |
| Monetization | **Freemium** | Paid |
| Best chart rank | — | **#25** |
| Size | 18 MB | 65 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Werdsmith Pty Ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/469842974) | [Information Architects AG](https://appshunter.io/developer/775737175) |

## What reviewers say

### Werdsmith

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/werdsmith-writing-app/id489746330)

This app transforms your devices into a writing studio, helping you overcome writer's block with AI-powered suggestions and build a consistent writing practice. It automatically handles formatting, allowing you to focus on your creative process.

**Highlights:** AI-powered writing suggestions, Daily writing practice builder, Automatic formatting, Project and goal tracking, Cross-device sync

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Apple Watch app, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (6)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Membership | $4.99 | per month |
| Ghostwriter (300 prompts) | $14.99 | per month |
| Membership | $24.99 | per 6 months |
| Membership | $49.99 | per year |
| Ghostwriter (150 prompts) | $99.99 | per year |
| Ghostwriter (300 Prompts) | $149.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 📝 Helpful for writing stories and ideas
- 🔒 Secure with password protection
- ⏱️ Tracks writing progress and goals
- 🧠 Inspires creativity with writing prompts
- 📚 Organized projects and ideas

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🔒 Limited free features, need to pay for full access
- 🐛 Occasional crashes and bugs
- 💻 Syncing issues between devices
- 🔍 Lack of search functionality
- 🖌️ Limited formatting options

**Reported bugs**

- Losing written work after updates
- Cursor jumping issues while typing
- Inconsistent behavior on different devices

**Requested features**

- Add ability to add images to stories
- Improve chapter/section organization
- Implement a dark mode theme
- Allow more free projects/ideas
- Integrate with other writing tools


### 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 Werdsmith free?

Werdsmith 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, Werdsmith or iA Writer?

Werdsmith is rated higher. Werdsmith averages 4.7 out of 5 from 8K ratings, while iA Writer averages 4.6 from 1.5K ratings.

### Do Werdsmith or iA Writer have ads?

Neither Werdsmith nor iA Writer shows ads.

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

Werdsmith ships an update fortnightly, and iA Writer fortnightly. Most recently, Werdsmith was updated on September 24, 2026 and iA Writer on September 23, 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.*