Comparison

kōan vs Markflow

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

Head to head
About

kōan

This daily planner helps users achieve a sense of enlightenment through its streamlined and powerful interface. It offers a focused approach to daily planning, aiming to foster personal growth and mindfulness.

Highlights
  • Streamlined daily planning
  • Powerful interface
  • Focus on personal growth
  • Mindfulness integration
Features
Read full description

Achieve your buddha-nature through kōan's streamlined, powerful daily planner.

About

Markflow

This app allows you to open and read markdown files from various sources like Files, Mail, and Safari. It supports GitHub-flavored markdown, code syntax highlighting, and diagrams, with an integrated editor and a clean preview mode.

Highlights
  • Open .md, .markdown, .mdown files
  • GitHub-flavored markdown rendering
  • Syntax-highlighted code blocks
  • Mermaid diagram support
  • Markdown editing toolbar
  • Pinch to zoom
  • Export edited files
Read full description

The markdown reader you've been missing. Markflow opens .md files from Files, Mail, Safari downloads, or the share sheet and renders them properly. GitHub-flavored markdown, syntax-highlighted code, mermaid diagrams, tables, task lists, and more. Originals are never touched. Edits live in memory until you explicitly Save, Save as New File, or Share a copy. WHAT YOU CAN DO • Open any .md, .markdown, or .mdown file from any app • Read with a clean, native preview • Edit with a markdown toolbar above the keyboard. Bold, italic, headings, lists, links, images, code, quotes, all one tap away. • Pinch to zoom in both Preview and Edit • Export an edited copy via the system share sheet • Tap Create to start a new blank file, or "Welcome to Markflow" for a full feature tour WHAT IT RENDERS • Headings, lists, blockquotes, links, images • Syntax-highlighted code blocks • Mermaid flowcharts and diagrams • GitHub-flavored markdown tables • Task lists with checkboxes • Inline images (absolute URLs) PRIVACY Markflow makes zero network requests and collects zero data. No accounts. No login. No analytics. No tracking. No ads. The renderer is a sandboxed local file with a Content Security Policy that blocks all remote resources. Your files stay on your device. DESIGN Built native with SwiftUI and the Liquid Glass nav bar. Light and dark mode. Adaptive home screen. Stock Apple Human Interface Guidelines throughout. WHO IT'S FOR • Writers who keep notes in markdown • Developers reading READMEs and docs on the go • Anyone who's been emailed a .md and had nowhere to open it • People who want a markdown reader that does one thing well Open source. MIT licensed. github.com/madebysan/markflow

Screenshots

kōan3 screens
Markflow4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Markflow at 5.0 against kōan's 4.5. kōan's advantage is iOS requirement (15.1 vs 26.0). On price, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases 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

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Markflow holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2 and 2 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
kōan versus Markflow: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterkōanMarkflow
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (2 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings22
Update frequency—Fortnightly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.1 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size44 MB7 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperNICHOLAS ARTHUR OSBORNE ROSEBOROUGHSantiago Alonso Alexandre

Customer experience

kōan

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Markflow

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

kōan

No in-app purchases

None

Markflow

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is kōan free?
kōan is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Markflow free?
Markflow is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, kōan or Markflow?
Markflow is rated higher. kōan averages 4.5 out of 5 from 2 ratings, while Markflow averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.
Do kōan or Markflow have ads?
Neither kōan nor Markflow shows ads.

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