Comparison

Werdsmith vs Scrivener

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

Head to head
About

Werdsmith

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
Read full description

Writing is hard. Werdsmith makes it easier.  Werdsmith turns your iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Vision Pro and Apple Watch into a powerful writing studio that helps you break through writer's block and motivates you to write. BEAT WRITER’S BLOCK Add your project to Werdsmith and whenever you get stuck, the app can suggest the next line of your story for you, in your own writing style. BUILD YOUR WRITING PRACTICE Tell us when you write best and Werdsmith will help you build a daily writing ritual. You can set daily or per-project writing goals and track them as you write. You’ll be writing more than ever. FOCUS ON WRITING Instead of formatting options that distract you from writing, Werdsmith formats your work as you write – automatically adding fonts, chapter titles and even keeping your chapter numbers in order. Werdsmith can fit into your existing writing process, or you can treat it like a fresh start. It's up to you. We’re writers from 175 countries who’ve written over 4 million projects using Werdsmith. Join us! --- Things you might want to know: You can use all of Werdsmith's features for free, but there are limits, for example in the number of projects you can add, the number of writing prompts you can create, or the amount of time you can spend in Novel Mode or using app themes. You can increase or remove these limits by becoming a Werdsmith member. Sync, backup and sharing features are optional, but require a free Werdsmith account. If you choose to become a member, you’ll be charged through your iTunes account at the end of your one-week free trial period, unless you cancel your membership at least 24 hours before it begins. Your subscription will renew automatically, unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current billing period. You can manage, upgrade, downgrade or cancel your subscription in the app's Settings or by going to your App Store account settings. Keep in mind that any unused portion of your free trial period is forfeited if you purchase a membership before the end of the trial. Please read our Privacy Policy at werdsmith.com/privacy and our Terms of Use at werdsmith.com/terms. Feel free to contact us if you need help! A big thanks to the writers who've supported Werdsmith over the years. We couldn't do it without you.

About

Scrivener

This app is a comprehensive writing tool designed for long-form manuscripts. It allows users to compose text in any order, manage research materials alongside their writing, and export to various formats. It supports flexible outlining and restructuring of content.

Highlights
  • Manuscript composition in sections
  • Research material integration
  • Flexible outlining and reorganization
  • Export to multiple formats
  • Interactive tutorial
  • Project-wide search
Features
Currently charting
Read full description

“The biggest software advance for writers since the word processor.” —Michael Marshall Smith, bestselling author Typewriter. Ring-binder. Scrapbook. Scrivener combines all the writing tools you need to craft your first draft, from nascent notion to final full stop. Tailor-made for creating long manuscripts, Scrivener banishes page fright by allowing you to compose your text in any order, in sections as large or small as you like. Got a great idea but don’t know where it fits? Write when inspiration strikes and find its place later. Grow your manuscript organically, idea by idea. Whether you plan or plunge, Scrivener works your way: meticulously outline every last detail first, or hammer out a complete draft and restructure later. Or do a bit of both. All text sections in Scrivener are fully integrated with its outlining tools, so working with an overview of your manuscript is only ever a tap away, and turning Chapter Four into Chapter One is as simple as drag and drop. Need to refer to research? In Scrivener, your background material is always at hand. Write a description based on a photograph. Reference a video or PDF. Check for consistency with an earlier chapter. On the iPad, open two documents side-by-side; on the iPhone, flip between research and writing with just two taps. Once you’re ready to share your work with the world, simply compile everything into a single document for printing, or export to popular formats such as Word, PDF, Final Draft or plain text. You can even share using different formatting, so that you can write in your favorite font and still keep your editor happy. FEATURES Get Started • Interactive tutorial project • Keep each manuscript and supporting materials in a self-contained project • Import Word, RTF, Final Draft and plain text files • Easily split imported text into separate sections Get Writing • Write your manuscript in sections of any size • View all sections as a single text using the “Draft Navigator” (iPad only) • Quickly navigate sections using the “binder” sidebar • Format with fonts and presets • Comments, footnotes, links and highlights • Simple bullets and lists • Insert images • Pinch-zoom to resize text • Full-screen mode (iPad only) • Typewriter scrolling mode keeps typed text center-screen (iPad only) • Write a screenplay using scriptwriting mode • Live word and character counts • Set word and character count targets • Find and replace • Customizable keyboard row provides quick-access buttons for formatting, navigation and punctuation • Comprehensive keyboard shortcuts for external keyboard users • Dark mode Find Your Structure • Write in any order and reorganize later • Write a synopsis for any text section and see it in the outline • Expand, collapse and drill down into sections of your project • Rearrange sections as index cards on the corkboard (iPad only) • Project-wide search • Track ideas using labels and status • Apply custom icons to your sections Refer to Research • Import research material such as image, PDF and media files • View research files or other sections right alongside your writing (iPad only) • Every section has its own notes area for jotting down ideas • Supports multitasking split screen mode (supported devices only) Share Your Work • Compile to a single document for sharing or printing • Use different formatting in your exported or printed document • Export to Word, RTF, Final Draft, PDF or plain text • Convert rich text to Markdown for sharing with Markdown apps • Create and email zipped backups of your projects Work Anywhere • Use Dropbox to sync between devices and with the macOS and Windows versions of Scrivener* • Copy projects between devices via iTunes * Requires a Dropbox account (not compatible with iCloud). SUPPORT You can contact us at ios.support@literatureandlatte.com, visit our forums at http://www.literatureandlatte.com/forum, or find us @scrivenerapp on Twitter.

Screenshots

Werdsmith4 screens
Scrivener4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Werdsmith at Free against Scrivener's $23.99. Werdsmith also leads on review sentiment (82% vs 46%) and rating (4.7 vs 4.2). Scrivener's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 6) and chart position (#12 vs unranked). On ads 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

Werdsmith is free to download; Scrivener costs $23.99 up front. Werdsmith sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Scrivener asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Werdsmith holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.2. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 8K and 2.6K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 82% of Werdsmith's written reviews are positive against 46% of Scrivener's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Werdsmith ships an update fortnightly, Scrivener every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard9 real differences · 2 level
Werdsmith versus Scrivener: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterWerdsmithScrivener
PriceFree — better$23.99
Rating4.7 (8K ratings) — better4.2 (2.6K ratings)
Positive reviews82.0% of reviews — better45.6% of reviews
Number of ratings8K — better2.6K
Update frequencyFortnightly — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFreemium — betterPaid
Best chart rank—#12 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple WatchiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS17.012.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size18 MB27 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperWerdsmith Pty LtdLiterature & Latte

Customer experience

Werdsmith

All ratings8,002 ratings
Positive92.8%
Neutral3.3%
Negative3.8%
Written reviews615 reviews
Positive82.0%
Neutral8.0%
Negative10.1%

Scrivener

All ratings2,595 ratings
Positive77.6%
Neutral6.9%
Negative15.6%
Written reviews711 reviews
Positive45.6%
Neutral17.0%
Negative37.4%

Bugs and requests

Werdsmith

Reported bugs

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

Requested features

5 requests
  • 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

Scrivener

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

6 purchases

Werdsmith

Subscriptions6
  • Membership7 Days trial$4.991 Month
  • Ghostwriter (300 prompts)1 Month trial$14.991 Month
  • Membership7 Days trial$24.996 Months
Show 3 more
  • Membership7 Days trial$49.991 Year
  • Ghostwriter (150 prompts)7 Days trial$99.991 Year
  • Ghostwriter (300 Prompts)7 Days trial$149.991 Year
None

Scrivener

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Werdsmith free?
Werdsmith is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Scrivener free?
Scrivener costs $23.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Werdsmith or Scrivener?
Werdsmith is rated higher. Werdsmith averages 4.7 out of 5 from 8K ratings, while Scrivener averages 4.2 from 2.6K ratings.
Do Werdsmith or Scrivener have ads?
Neither Werdsmith nor Scrivener shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Werdsmith or Scrivener?
Werdsmith ships an update fortnightly, and Scrivener every 3 months. Most recently, Werdsmith was updated on September 24, 2026 and Scrivener on September 23, 2026.

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