Comparison

Authora vs Tola

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

Head to head
About

Authora

This writing companion helps aspiring authors reclaim lost minutes for their book projects. It offers tools for writing, storyboarding, and self-publishing directly from a mobile device, turning commutes and waiting times into productive writing sessions.

Highlights
  • Six writing format templates
  • Rich text editor optimized for mobile
  • Storyboard for characters, plot, and world-building
  • Export to EPUB/PDF for self-publishing
  • Speech-to-text dictation
  • On-device writing analysis
  • Encrypted cloud sync (Premium)
Features
Read full description

Turn waiting into writing. Most people who want to write a book never finish one - not for lack of ideas, but for lack of time to sit down. Authora is a mobile writing companion built for the life you actually have. Waiting rooms, commutes, flight delays, lunch breaks - the minutes that usually disappear into doomscrolling, reclaimed for the book you've always meant to write. WRITE ANYWHERE Six format templates - novel, journal, manuscript, academic paper, non-fiction, poetry collection. Rich text editor optimised for phones and tablets, not a desktop UI stuffed onto a small screen. Auto-save every two seconds. Focus mode for distraction-free writing. Preview mode to read your draft as a reader will see it. STORYBOARDING THAT MATCHES HOW WRITERS THINK Characters with bios, traits, and relationships. Plot arcs with scenes you can link to chapters. World-building notes. Colour-coded labels. Keep the people, places, and threads of your story organised without leaving your phone. FROM BLANK PAGE TO PUBLISHED BOOK Authora isn't just a writing app - it's a self-publishing pipeline. When your draft is done, add a cover image, and export as EPUB or PDF that's ready to upload straight to Amazon KDP, Apple Books, or Kobo. Front matter, back matter, TOC, metadata - all handled. Your finished book goes into your personal library inside Authora too, readable with a built-in ebook reader. No separate formatting tool. No desktop required. Draft to published, all on your phone. CAPTURE ON THE GO Speech-to-text dictation with live transcription. Chapter import from .docx, .rtf, and .txt - start with existing drafts, no retyping. On-device writing analysis flags passive voice, adverb overuse, clichés, and readability issues as you write. FREE FOREVER, PREMIUM WHEN YOU'RE READY Full writing experience, export, personal library, and a starter storyboard - all free, all local, no account required. Premium ($2.99/mo or $29.99/yr) adds encrypted cloud sync and backup across phone and tablet, unlimited storyboarding, inline figures with captions, and priority support. PRIVATE BY DEFAULT Free users never sign in. Premium users' chapters, world notes, character bios, and plot descriptions are encrypted at rest with AES-256, and in transit with TLS - even in a breach, your draft stays unreadable. Biometric app lock on both platforms. We never read your work, never train on your writing, never sell your data. BUILT FOR PHONES AND TABLETS Native iOS App. Dark and light theme. Responsive layout on tablets. Biometric unlock. Full offline support. Dashboard showing word count trends and your completion stats. The book is already in you. Authora is where you finish it.

About

Tola

A minimalist to-do list designed for focus and clarity. It helps you manage today's tasks, defer ideas to a 'Someday' list, and offers flexible planning options. Completed tasks are archived for later review, and it features a clean interface with optional iCloud sync across Apple devices.

Highlights
  • Focused agenda for today's tasks
  • Defer tasks to a 'Someday' list
  • Flexible scheduling and reminders
  • Archived completed tasks
  • Home-screen widgets
  • Optional iCloud Sync
Features
Read full description

Tola is a calm, local-first task list for what matters today and the ideas that can wait. KEEP TODAY CLEAR See overdue, today, and upcoming tasks together in a focused agenda. LET GOOD IDEAS WAIT Move flexible tasks to Someday without inventing a deadline. PLAN ONLY WHEN IT HELPS Add dates, times, reminders, and flexible repeating schedules—from weekdays to custom intervals and end dates. KEEP EVERY WIN Completed tasks stay available in Archive, where you can review or reopen them whenever you need. MADE FOR YOUR APPLE DEVICES Check your next tasks from the home-screen widget. Optional iCloud Sync keeps tasks current across your Apple devices, while your tasks remain available locally when iCloud is offline. QUIET BY DEFAULT Choose a warm Paper appearance or focused Ink mode. There are no accounts, ads, analytics dashboards, or productivity scores—just a thoughtful place to decide what comes next.

Screenshots

Authora4 screens
Tola4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Tola at 5.0 against Authora's 4.5. Tola also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 2) and update cadence (every 4 days vs fortnightly). Authora's advantage is ratings volume (4 vs 1). On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement 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. Authora sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Tola asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Tola holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 4 and 1 respectively.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Authora ships an update fortnightly, Tola every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Authora versus Tola: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterAuthoraTola
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (4 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings4 — better1
Update frequencyFortnightlyEvery 4 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFreemiumFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.015.0
Further details — not scored
Size43 MB32 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRonan Campbell惠文 林

Customer experience

Authora

All ratings4 ratings
Positive75.0%
Neutral25.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Tola

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

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Authora

Subscriptions2
  • Authora Premium (Monthly)$4.991 Month
  • Authora Premium (Yearly)$49.991 Year
None

Tola

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Authora free?
Authora is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Tola free?
Tola is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Authora or Tola?
Tola is rated higher. Authora averages 4.5 out of 5 from 4 ratings, while Tola averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Authora or Tola have ads?
Neither Authora nor Tola shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Authora or Tola?
Authora ships an update fortnightly, and Tola every 4 days. Most recently, Authora was updated on October 23, 2026 and Tola on October 31, 2026.

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