Comparison

Open Draft Screenwriting vs Scenarist

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

Head to head
About

Open Draft Screenwriting

This free, open-source application offers professional screenplay formatting, real-time collaboration, and visual planning tools. It supports multiple export formats and is available across all major operating systems, providing a privacy-first writing experience.

Highlights
  • Professional screenplay formatting
  • Real-time collaboration
  • Beat boards and index cards
  • Version history tracking
  • Character profiles and production tools
  • Export to PDF, FDX, Fountain, and TXT
  • Cross-platform availability
Features
Read full description

OpenDraft is a free, open-source screenwriting application — a modern alternative to Final Draft. PROFESSIONAL SCREENPLAY FORMATTING Write in industry-standard format with automatic element formatting for scene headings, action, character names, dialogue, and parentheticals. What you see is what you export. REAL-TIME COLLABORATION Co-write with your writing partner in real time with live cursors, just like Google Docs. No account required — just share a link and start writing together. BEAT BOARDS & INDEX CARDS Plan your story visually. Drag and drop scene cards, color-code acts, and restructure your screenplay without losing a single word. VERSION HISTORY Every save is tracked with Git-based version control. Compare drafts side by side, see exactly what changed, and restore any previous version instantly. CHARACTER PROFILES & PRODUCTION TOOLS Build character bibles, track dialogue stats, tag scenes for production, and manage your entire project from one place. EXPORT ANYWHERE Export to PDF, Final Draft (.fdx), Fountain, and plain text. Your work is never locked into a proprietary format. WORKS EVERYWHERE Available on macOS, iOS, Windows, Linux, and Android. Run it as a desktop app or self-host in your browser. WHY OPENDRAFT? - 100% free and open source (MIT license) - No subscription, no cloud lock-in - Works fully offline — no internet required - Privacy-first: no tracking, no analytics - Import from Final Draft, Fountain, and PDF

About

Scenarist

This app provides professional screenwriting tools with smart auto-formatting and on-device speech recognition. It offers unlimited script creation and export options, with an optional Pro upgrade for advanced features like revision tracking and production reports.

Highlights
  • Smart auto-formatting
  • On-device speech recognition
  • Unlimited script creation
  • PDF and Fountain export
  • iCloud sync
  • Revision tracking (Pro)
  • Script statistics (Pro)
Features
Read full description

Scenarist is the screenwriting app built for writers who take their craft seriously. Whether you're drafting your first short film or polishing a feature-length screenplay, Scenarist gives you industry-standard tools in a beautiful, distraction-free interface. WRITE WITH CONFIDENCE Smart formatting automatically applies proper screenplay structure as you type. Scene headings, action, dialogue, parentheticals, transitions — everything lands in the right place without manual formatting. Just write, and Scenarist handles the rest. BUILT FOR FULL-LENGTH SCRIPTS Scenarist stays responsive as your script grows. A hundred-page feature keeps up with your typing, scrolls smoothly, and jumps between scenes instantly. DICTATE YOUR SCRIPT (PRO) Speak your screenplay and watch it format itself. Say "new scene," "character John," or "cut to" and Scenarist builds properly typed elements as you talk — entirely on-device, no account, no cloud. Voice commands recognize English only. FREE FEATURES — NO LIMITS Unlimited scripts with full editor access Smart auto-formatting for all screenplay elements Auto-complete for scene headings and characters Dual dialogue Scene numbering and page breaks PDF and Fountain export iCloud sync across all your devices Find & replace Focus mode for distraction-free writing Notes and bookmarks on any element Dark mode support Keyboard shortcuts for iPad Recently Deleted — restore any script within 30 days Full interface in English, Italian and German SCENARIST PRO — UNLOCK EVERYTHING Upgrade to Pro for the complete professional toolkit: Final Draft (.fdx) export for production workflows Voice to Script — hands-free dictation with spoken formatting commands Teleprompter — full-screen auto-scrolling reader for filming and table reads Revision tracking with industry-standard color coding Script statistics and pacing analysis Character dialogue reports Read aloud — hear your script element by element Script validation for formatting issues Title page editor with contact info Index cards for visual story structure Print-ready script preview Color-coded markers for review FOR CONTENT CREATORS Scenarist isn't only for features. Switch to YouTube or short-form mode and you get element types built for video: hooks, B-roll notes, on-screen text, ad placements, sponsor reads, and timestamps. Pair it with the Pro teleprompter and you can write a script and shoot from it on the same phone. PRO PRICING Choose what fits: a monthly plan, an annual plan that saves you over 60%, or a one-time Lifetime unlock with no subscription at all. Monthly and annual plans start with a 7-day free trial. Prices shown in your local currency below. YOUR SCRIPTS, YOUR DEVICE All scripts are stored on your device and optionally synced through your personal iCloud account. We never see your work. No account required. No data collection. No ads. EXPORT ANYWHERE Share your screenplay in industry-standard formats: PDF — perfectly formatted, ready to print or submit Final Draft (.fdx) — the production standard (Pro) Fountain (.fountain) — plain-text screenplay format Built by a filmmaker, for filmmakers. Terms of use https://scenaristapp.com/terms.html

Screenshots

Open Draft Screenwriting4 screens
Scenarist4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Open Draft Screenwriting at none against Scenarist's 3. Open Draft Screenwriting also leads on device support (4 vs 2) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.2). Scenarist's advantage is ratings volume (3 vs 1). On price, rating, update cadence 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. Scenarist sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per month. Open Draft Screenwriting asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Open Draft Screenwriting against 5.0 for Scenarist. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1 and 3 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Open Draft Screenwriting ships an update every 6 days, Scenarist every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on September 22, 2026 and September 18, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Open Draft Screenwriting versus Scenarist: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterOpen Draft ScreenwritingScenarist
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings)5.0 (3 ratings)
Positive reviews—100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings13 — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 daysEvery 3 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better18.2
Further details — not scored
Size19 MB5 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperBase Information Management Pvt. Ltd.Mykola Viunyk

Customer experience

Open Draft Screenwriting

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

Scenarist

All ratings3 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Open Draft Screenwriting

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Scenarist

Subscriptions2
  • Name: Monthly$6.991 Month
  • Annual$29.991 Year
One-time1
  • Scenarist Pro Lifetime$49.99

Questions

Is Open Draft Screenwriting free?
Open Draft Screenwriting is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Scenarist free?
Scenarist is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Open Draft Screenwriting or Scenarist?
Open Draft Screenwriting and Scenarist are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 1 and 3 ratings respectively.
Do Open Draft Screenwriting or Scenarist have ads?
Neither Open Draft Screenwriting nor Scenarist shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Open Draft Screenwriting or Scenarist?
Open Draft Screenwriting ships an update every 6 days, and Scenarist every 3 days. Most recently, Open Draft Screenwriting was updated on September 22, 2026 and Scenarist on September 18, 2026.

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