Comparison

Npp vs Carets

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

Head to head
About

Npp

Features
Read full description

NPP — Notepad++ Inspired Code Editor A fast, lightweight code editor that treats your unsaved work as sacred. Whether you're a professional developer, a student, or a tinkerer, NPP gives you the essentials to write and edit code — without the weight of a full IDE, and without ever fearing lost changes. NEVER LOSE YOUR WORK This is what makes NPP different. Every tab and every unsaved edit is continuously saved to disk in the background. Close the app, swipe it away, run out of battery, or let it crash mid-sentence — it doesn't matter. Reopen NPP and every tab is exactly where you left it, down to the last character you typed. No "Save?" dialogs, no warnings, no anxiety. Commit to a real file only when you're truly done. MULTI-TAB EDITING Work on many files at once with intuitive tabs. Spin up as many scratch tabs as you like — for quick notes, snippets, or full drafts — without touching your file system. Switch between them instantly. BUILT FOR BIG FILES A rebuilt editing engine keeps typing smooth and responsive even in very large files, where other mobile editors stutter. SYNTAX HIGHLIGHTING FOR 60+ LANGUAGES • Python, JavaScript, TypeScript, Dart, Vue • Java, Kotlin, Swift, Objective-C • C, C++, C#, Go, Rust, Assembly • Ruby, PHP, Perl, Lua, R • Elixir, Erlang, Haskell, Clojure, OCaml, F#, Julia • HTML, CSS, SCSS, JSON, XML, YAML, TOML • SQL, GraphQL, Protocol Buffers, Diff/Patch, LaTeX • Bash, PowerShell, Dockerfile, Makefile, nginx & Apache configs, .env • Markdown and many more VIEW & EDIT CSV AS A TABLE Open any CSV or TSV and see it as a clean spreadsheet with automatic delimiter detection. Tap a cell to edit it, and search across all cells with the matching cell highlighted — then switch back to raw text anytime. MORE THAN A PLAIN EDITOR • Live Markdown preview with clickable links • One-tap JSON formatting / beautify • Find & Replace with case-sensitivity and regular expressions • Automatic bracket matching FILE OPERATIONS • Open files from your device • Save, Save As, and export scratch tabs to real files • Automatic UTF-8 detection with fallback for legacy files • Open files directly from other apps MADE YOURS • Light, dark, and system themes • Toggle line numbers and word wrap • Adjustable font size • Custom status bar color SUPPORTED DEVICES NPP runs on phones, tablets, and desktop computers, adapting its layout to each screen size for a comfortable editing experience everywhere. PRIVATE BY DESIGN NPP works fully offline. No account, no ads, no tracking — your code never leaves your device.

About

Carets

This app offers a dual-purpose experience as a capable code editor and a fast notes and lists application. It focuses on speed, minimalism, and a clean aesthetic for mobile devices, allowing you to edit real files from cloud storage or create internal notes.

Highlights
  • Syntax highlighting for common languages
  • Edit external files from cloud storage
  • Plain text and Markdown notes
  • Lists and checklists
  • Full-text search across notes
  • Generative art gallery
Features
Read full description

Carets is two great apps in one: a genuinely capable pocket code editor and a fast, beautiful notes and lists app. Built for speed, minimalism, and a monospace-clean aesthetic — reshaped for a phone. On the editor side, Carets opens and edits the real files on your device, in iCloud Drive, and in Google Drive. You get syntax highlighting across the common languages, line numbers, code-aware editing, find and replace with full regex, and a touch-reimagined command palette for jumping between files and actions. Edits save back to the file's original location, not a copy. Opening and editing external files is unlimited on the free tier. On the notes side, Carets keeps internal notes in a local SQLite store you own. Plain text or Markdown, with live preview when you want it. Lists and checklists with tap-to-toggle to-dos. Folders and tags for lightweight organization. Instant full-text search across everything you've written. No login required, no account, no cloud — until you ask for one. There's also a Gallery of generative-art sketches that run right on your phone. Open one and watch it draw — every run is unique. With Pro, open the code behind any piece, tweak it live, and make it your own. The bridge between the two halves is the editor surface itself: the same fast, monospace, distraction-free typing experience whether you're editing a config file from iCloud Drive or jotting a grocery list. The chrome fades while you type. The keyboard never jumps. The cursor stays where you left it. Features: - Syntax highlighting across common languages - Line numbers and code-aware editing - Find and replace, with regex - Command palette for fast navigation - Open and edit external files from the Files app, iCloud Drive, and Google Drive - Save changes back to the original file - Plain text and Markdown notes with live preview - Lists and checklists, auto-continued - Folders and tags - Instant full-text search across all notes - Gallery of live generative-art templates (Pro unlocks the code to edit and export) - Auto-save with cursor and scroll restore per document - Light and dark themes, including a deep, editor-style dark - Native sign-in only when you opt into paid cloud sync — no passwords ever - Delete-all-data button that means it Pricing: - Free — open and edit unlimited external files; create up to 30 internal notes - Carets Pro — 5.99 USD, one-time (no subscription) Carets Pro is a single one-time unlock: unlimited internal notes, cloud sync to your own iCloud, cross-device editing, the premium theme pack and custom fonts, the generative-art template code (open, edit, export), and export to Markdown / PDF / .txt. Pay once, keep it forever. Privacy: - Local-first. The app works fully offline with no account. - We collect no personal information by default. - Sign-in is only invoked if you turn on paid cloud sync. - Cloud sync goes to your own iCloud container — not a server we operate. - Tap "Delete all data" in settings, and the local database and the cloud copy are wiped. Privacy policy: https://carets.app/privacy Terms of Use (EULA): https://carets.app/terms

Screenshots

Npp4 screens
Carets4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Npp at none against Carets's 1. Npp also leads on update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 6 weeks) and device support (3 vs 1). On price and ads 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. Carets sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Npp asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Npp ships an update every 2 weeks, Carets every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 28, 2026 and October 2, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 5 level
Npp versus Carets: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNppCarets
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Number of ratings—2 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks — betterEvery 6 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
Monetization—Freemium
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS13.0 — better16.4
Further details — not scored
Size44 MB51 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperIlia BogdanovskiEcho Persona LLC

In-app purchases

None

Npp

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Carets

One-time1
  • Carets Pro$5.99

Questions

Is Npp free?
Npp is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Carets free?
Carets is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Npp or Carets have ads?
Neither Npp nor Carets shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Npp or Carets?
Npp ships an update every 2 weeks, and Carets every 6 weeks. Most recently, Npp was updated on September 28, 2026 and Carets on October 2, 2026.

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