Comparison

Voice Writer vs Novalist

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

Head to head
About

Voice Writer

Features
Read full description

Voice Writer turns your speech into text — no internet, no cloud, no compromise. Voice to Text Tap once and start speaking. Your words appear on screen in real time. No typing needed. Supports 50+ languages for voice input. Bank-Level Security Lock the app with Face ID, fingerprint, or a 6-digit PIN. All data is encrypted with SQLCipher and never leaves your device. 100% Offline Works completely without internet. No accounts, no servers, no data collection of your notes. Everything stays on your device. Four Note Types - Text Notes: dictate or type freely - Checklists: manage your to-do lists with ease - Credentials: store passwords, login info, and 2FA codes securely - Alarm Notes: set one-time or repeating alarms with a voice label Built-in 2FA Authenticator (Premium) Scan a QR code and generate TOTP codes for GitHub, AWS, Google, and more — right inside your credentials note. No separate authenticator app needed. Works fully offline. Scan Text from Photos Point your camera at any book, document, or printout and instantly extract the text into your note. Powered by on-device OCR — no internet, no cloud. Folders & Organization Create color-coded folders to organize your notes. Lock individual notes for an extra layer of privacy. Local Backup & Restore Export all your data as an encrypted file and import it back anytime — no cloud required. Whether you need a private journal, a secure password vault with 2FA, a voice memo, or an alarm reminder — Voice Writer has you covered, all without an internet connection. Terms of Service: https://voicerecogwriter.com/terms Privacy Policy: https://voicerecogwriter.com/privacy

About

Novalist

A dedicated writing environment for novelists to plan, build worlds, and write manuscripts. It offers a clean editor with advanced features, a comprehensive world-building codex, and flexible organizational tools. Your writing is stored in plain files on your device, ensuring ownership and longevity.

Highlights
  • Clean writing editor with formatting and comments
  • World-building codex for characters, locations, and lore
  • Plotting tools: Grid, Timeline, Calendar, Relationships
  • Multi-book projects with shared World Bible
  • Plain file storage for project ownership
  • Themeable interface and keyboard navigation
Features
Read full description

Novalist is a writing environment built for novelists — a single, focused workspace where you plan your story, build your world, and write the manuscript, instead of bending a general-purpose word processor to the task. WRITE A clean editor with real formatting, paragraph styles, inline comments, and footnotes. Focus Mode hides everything but the page; the split editor lets you work on two scenes at once. Every scene auto-saves with its own snapshot history, so you can compare versions and revert a single scene without disturbing the rest of the book. Smart quotes, em-dashes, and dialogue punctuation are handled as you type, with presets for ten languages, alongside grammar and spelling checks and live word count, reading time, and readability. BUILD YOUR WORLD A full Codex keeps your characters, locations, items, and lore in one place — with images, relationships, custom fields, and long-form notes. Define your own entity types, such as factions, spells, vehicles, or races, each with its own fields. Character details can change per act, chapter, or scene, so someone can age, move, or transform across the story without losing their earlier state. PLAN AND SEE THE SHAPE Plot Grid: toggle which scenes belong to each plotline in a spreadsheet view. Timeline: acts, chapters, scenes, and events in chronological order. In-world Calendar: place scenes on the dates they happen in your story. Relationships: a living map of who knows whom, with automatic inverse roles. ORGANIZE WITHOUT LOCK-IN Work in multi-book projects with a shared World Bible for a series. Chapters carry status, acts, and colors; Smart Lists save the scene queries you return to. And your project is simply plain files on disk — add, rename, move, or delete scenes in Finder and Novalist keeps up. Your writing stays in a format you can read forever. MAKE IT YOURS A themeable interface, keyboard-driven navigation with a command palette, and an extension system for adding new tools. Novalist keeps your manuscript on your Mac, in files you own. Write the book.

Screenshots

Voice Writer4 screens
Novalist4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Novalist at none against Voice Writer's 3. Novalist also leads on ads (none vs shown). Voice Writer's advantage is iOS requirement (15.5 vs 27.0). On price, update cadence 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

Both are free to download. Voice Writer sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Novalist asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Voice Writer ships an update every 3 days, Novalist every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on November 13, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Voice Writer versus Novalist: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterVoice WriterNovalist
PriceFreeFree
Rating—4.5 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings—2 — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 days — betterEvery 5 days
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
Monetization—Free
DevicesiPhone, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac — better
Requires iOS15.5 — better27.0
Further details — not scored
Size76 MB190 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperWELLPEACHDominik Goblirsch

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Voice Writer

Subscriptions2
  • Premium Monthly$0.991 Month
  • Premium Yearly$7.991 Year
One-time1
  • Premium Lifetime$19.99
None

Novalist

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Voice Writer free?
Voice Writer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Novalist free?
Novalist is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Voice Writer or Novalist have ads?
Voice Writer shows ads; Novalist does not.
Which is updated more often, Voice Writer or Novalist?
Voice Writer ships an update every 3 days, and Novalist every 5 days. Most recently, Voice Writer was updated on November 13, 2026 and Novalist on October 31, 2026.

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