Inkiostro vs HillNote

Inkiostro is a Markdown editor for people who write — notes, documentation, theses, novels. Plain text files that stay yours, a preview that looks like a finished page, and exports ready to hand over. Write in Markdown, or in the visual editor and never see a symbol. Buy once, no subscription. No account, no tracking. WRITE, SEE, FINISH • Two ways to write: the Markdown editor shows the symbols, the visual editor formats as you type, like a word processor. Either way the file stays plain Markdown. (Visual editor: Pro, free for 7 days) • A complete Markdown toolbar: headings, lists, tables and code blocks, one tap away. • A side-by-side preview that comes back exactly where you left it. • LaTeX formulas typeset by KaTeX, and Mermaid diagrams drawn as you type. • 27 preview styles, 11 of them free: GitHub, Sepia, Nord, Solarized and more. With Pro, Manuscript, Book, Report, Academic and others set the page like print. • Focus and Typewriter modes, a live word count and a daily writing goal. FROM DRAFT TO BOOK • PDF with selectable text, formulas and diagrams included. Free, with a small credit line in the footer. • A professional ePub: real chapters, a cover, ISBN, series, footnotes that open over the page, and the accessibility declaration Europe requires. The export sheet tells you what a store would reject — before you send it. (Pro) • A book made of many files: one chapter per file, in a folder, in the order you choose. Arranging it is free; exporting it as a single ePub or a single PDF is Pro. • Self-contained HTML, and page setup for PDF: paper, margins, headers and page numbers. (Pro) NEVER LOSE A WORD • Version history: Inkiostro saves versions as you write. Search them, compare them line by line, and bring back a single word or a whole draft. (Pro) • Backups of your whole library: a dated zip archive with your version history inside, offered when one is due, while the app is open, in a folder you pick. Open it in the Files app and your Markdown files are right there. (Pro) YOUR FILES, YOUR RULES • Unlimited documents, as plain .md files you can open anywhere. • Folders, color labels and tags, with search that filters by tag. • iCloud Drive sync between iPhone, iPad and Mac, with no setup. • External folders: work directly inside any folder on your device or in iCloud Drive. (Pro) INKIOSTRO PRO — ONE PURCHASE, EVERY DEVICE One purchase unlocks Pro on iPhone, iPad and Mac, forever. Try it free for 7 days. • The visual editor • Version history with search, comparison and a year of versions • Backups of your library • Professional ePub, HTML, and books made of many files • PDF page setup • Focus and Typewriter modes • External folders • 24 app themes, the Pro preview styles and any font installed on your device MADE FOR • Writers: novels and essays in plain text, out as a real ebook • Students and researchers: notes and theses with proper formulas • Developers: READMEs, documentation and technical notes with diagrams • Anyone tired of paying every month for a text editor • Anyone new to Markdown: the visual editor works like a word processor PRIVACY Your documents stay in your iCloud Drive or on your device. No servers of ours, ever. Inkiostro collects only anonymous, aggregated usage statistics — never personal data, never the content of your documents — and you can turn them off in Settings.

Hillnote is where you think. A local-first, markdown-native workspace that captures your work in AI-native formats - notes, plans, drafts, ideas, decisions. Built on plain markdown, stored on your device, paired with your desktop, and ready for the AI tools you already use. Built for builders, makers, writers, and small teams who think on the move and want their workspace to come with them. Write as you think, the way you think. A clean markdown editor designed for capture, not arrangement. A floating toolbar above the keyboard handles formatting; standard markdown shortcuts work out of the box. Quicknotes for everything in between. Tap + to capture an idea the moment it lands. Save and it's in your workspace; keep typing if you want to expand it. No friction between a thought and a file. Your thinking stays on your device. Every file lives locally as plain markdown. No rented database, no required account, no lock-in. Your work is yours from day one, and yours if you cancel. Free sync across iPhone, iPad, and desktop. The first 100MB syncs free -more than enough for years of notes. Capture on your phone, expand on your desktop, review anywhere. Talk to your knowledge base. Built-in chat reads your own files, edits them, creates new ones, and pulls context from your workspace. Upload images and have them read aloud. Auto mode picks the right model; switch manually when you want to. Supercharge your writing with Apple Intelligence. Native integration with Apple Intelligence writing tools - proofread, rewrite, reformat -via the AI button or text selection. Workspaces with all the context AI models need. Hillnote automatically generates context files (AGENTS.md, CLAUDE.md, document registries) so any AI tool you connect can navigate your workspace immediately - no setup, no plugins. Pairs with the agents you already work with. Claude, ChatGPT, Codex, Cursor, Cowork, Claude Code - connect via local or cloud MCP, or point them at the workspace folder directly. Plain markdown means no exports, no conversions. They read and edit the same files you do. Carry your tools, not just your notes. Build small HTML tools - pomodoro timers, day counters, focus checklists, anything else - that travel inside your workspace. Pin them as widgets. Your tools live next to the work they support. A different model. We separate what's a service from what's yours. You subscribe to the workspace and pay for cloud features (expanded sync, frontier AI, publishing, routines, BYO key) only when you need them. Free accounts include limited premium model usage. Your data stays on your device as plain markdown, always canonical, always portable. Start free. Sync free. Stay local. Add cloud when you outgrow it. Download Hillnote and bring your thinking with you.