Comparison

SoloMD vs MathNote

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

Head to head
About

SoloMD

A distraction-free Markdown editor for iPad, focusing on writing with live preview, rich syntax, and export options. Your notes are stored locally as plain text files.

Highlights
  • Distraction-free writing environment
  • Live Markdown preview
  • KaTeX math and Mermaid diagram support
  • Multiple export formats (HTML, PDF, DOCX)
  • File tree and outline view
  • Focus and typewriter modes
  • Split-view and multitasking support
Features
Read full description

SoloMD is a lightweight, distraction-free Markdown editor for iPad. One file. One window. Just write. Built from the ground up as a focused writing tool - no account, no cloud, no telemetry, no subscription. Your notes stay in plain .md and .txt files on your iPad, readable by any editor on any platform, today and in ten years. CORE EDITING - Live preview - Markdown symbols fade out after the cursor leaves the line. - Rich syntax styling - real big headings, real bold, real monospace for code. - Light and Dark themes that follow iPad system appearance. - Multi-encoding - auto-detects UTF-8, UTF-16, GBK, Big5. - Tabs with dirty indicators. - File tree sidebar, outline view, and global search. MARKDOWN POWER - KaTeX math - inline and block math render instantly. - Mermaid diagrams - flowcharts, sequence diagrams, Gantt charts. - Task lists with clickable checkboxes. - Footnotes, YAML front-matter, text highlighting. - Syntax highlighting for 13 plus languages. - Synced split-pane scroll. - Tap an image or Mermaid diagram to open a pinch-zoomable overlay. BUILT FOR IPAD - 44 pt touch targets across toolbar, outline, and file tree. - Larger default font sizes tuned for iPad screen distance. - Split-view and multitasking friendly. - Works with hardware keyboards. - Portrait and landscape, every orientation. WRITER TOOLS - Focus mode - non-current paragraphs dim for deep work. - Typewriter mode. - Session restore - auto-saves so you never lose a line. - Chinese power tools - simplified/traditional conversion, pinyin, CJK word counts. - Spell check. - Custom CSS. EXPORT - HTML (newsletter quality) - PDF with KaTeX and Mermaid baked in - Word (.docx) with tables preserved - Copy as HTML, plain text, or Markdown PRIVACY FIRST SoloMD collects no personal data. No account. No analytics. No ads. No tracking. All your notes live locally in files you own. SoloMD is open source (MIT). Source: github.com/zhitongblog/solomd

About

MathNote

A document editor for researchers and students that supports live rendering of LaTeX and Markdown notes with full math capabilities. It integrates with AI apps, allowing you to bundle notes, photos, and PDFs for analysis and verification.

Highlights
  • Live preview with KaTeX math rendering
  • LaTeX and Markdown editing
  • Attach photos and reference PDFs
  • LaTeX-friendly keyboard
  • Diff panel for change review
  • Ask AI for proof verification and reformatting
  • Customizable prompts for AI assistance
Features
Read full description

MathNote is a document editor for researchers and students who write in LaTeX or Markdown. It renders your notes live with full math support — theorems, proofs, equations, matrices — powered by KaTeX. Ask AI lets you bundle your source, photos, and reference PDFs into a single file and hand it off to any AI app on your device via the iOS share sheet. Six built-in prompts help you verify proofs, find counterexamples, fill gaps, reformat notes, and more. Create your own custom prompts, too. Features: • Live preview with KaTeX math rendering • LaTeX and Markdown editing with syntax-aware toolbar • Attach photos and reference PDFs to your notes • LaTeX-friendly keyboard • Diff panel to review changes between edits • LaTeX and Markdown editing with syntax-aware toolbar • Customizable preamble, macro, and snippet • Ask AI: one-tap bundling and share to any AI app. • Six research-tuned prompt cards plus custom prompts MacOS version is available on https://github.com/kihun-nam/MathNote-releases. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://github.com/kihun-nam/MathNote-releases/blob/main/PRIVACY.md

Screenshots

SoloMD4 screens
MathNote4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: MathNote at 5.0 against SoloMD's 1.0. SoloMD's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and device support (4 vs 2). On price, ratings volume 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. MathNote sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. SoloMD asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

MathNote holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 1.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1 and 1 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 4 level
SoloMD versus MathNote: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSoloMDMathNote
PriceFreeFree
Rating1.0 (1 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Number of ratings11
Update frequencyWeekly—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size20 MB8 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developer向东 李Kihun Nam

Customer experience

SoloMD

All ratings1 ratings
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%

MathNote

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

In-app purchases

None

SoloMD

No in-app purchases

2 purchases

MathNote

Subscriptions2
  • Ask AI Monthly$1.991 Month
  • Ask AI Annual7 Days trial$12.991 Year

Questions

Is SoloMD free?
SoloMD is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is MathNote free?
MathNote is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, SoloMD or MathNote?
MathNote is rated higher. SoloMD averages 1.0 out of 5 from 1 ratings, while MathNote averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do SoloMD or MathNote have ads?
Neither SoloMD nor MathNote shows ads.

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