# Open Draft Screenwriting vs Novalist

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Novalist at 100% against Open Draft Screenwriting's 75%. Novalist also leads on rating (4.5 vs 4.3). Open Draft Screenwriting's advantage is iOS requirement (15.0 vs 27.0). On price, ratings volume, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

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

Novalist holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 4 and 2 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 75% of Open Draft Screenwriting's written reviews are positive against 100% of Novalist's.

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on November 5, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Open Draft Screenwriting | Novalist |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.3 (4 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/open-draft-screenwriting/id6761807809/reviews) | **[4.5 (2 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/novalist-novel-writing/id6793009476/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **4** | 2 |
| Positive reviews | 75.0% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 5 days | Every 5 days |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 24 MB | 190 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 27.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac** | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Base Information Management Pvt. Ltd.](https://appshunter.io/developer/506021550) | [Dominik Goblirsch](https://appshunter.io/developer/6793009478) |

## What reviewers say

### Open Draft Screenwriting

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/open-draft-screenwriting/id6761807809)

This application provides professional screenplay formatting, real-time collaboration, and visual planning tools for writers. It offers robust version control, character management, and versatile export options to various formats. The software is free, open-source, and available across multiple platforms.

**Highlights:** Professional screenplay formatting, Real-time collaboration, Visual beat boards and index cards, Git-based version history, Character profiles and production tools, Export to PDF, FDX, Fountain, and TXT, Cross-platform availability

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### Novalist

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/novalist-novel-writing/id6793009476)

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:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Open Draft Screenwriting free?

Open Draft Screenwriting is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Novalist free?

Novalist is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Open Draft Screenwriting or Novalist?

Novalist is rated higher. Open Draft Screenwriting averages 4.3 out of 5 from 4 ratings, while Novalist averages 4.5 from 2 ratings.

### Do Open Draft Screenwriting or Novalist have ads?

Neither Open Draft Screenwriting nor Novalist shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Open Draft Screenwriting or Novalist?

Open Draft Screenwriting ships an update every 5 days, and Novalist every 5 days. Most recently, Open Draft Screenwriting was updated on November 5, 2026 and Novalist on October 31, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*