Comparison

PureWrite vs Folio

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

Head to head
About

PureWrite

Features
Read full description

PureWrite is a writing app that gets out of the way. Open a folder of Markdown files you already keep, open a document, and start typing. The file sidebar and the table of contents fade out completely โ€” not dimmed, gone โ€” until only the page is left. Move the pointer back and they return. Nothing else is on screen. No tabs, no split panes, no graph, no badges, no notifications, no sync spinner. One document at a time, by design. That is the whole idea. Everything else is there to serve it. โ€ข A folder you already have. No import step, no vault format, no database. The same folder can stay an Obsidian vault or a git repository โ€” keep using them. PureWrite is simply the window you open when the task is to write. โ€ข Formatted text, plain files. You edit the document as it looks, and the file on disk stays ordinary Markdown โ€” tables and links included. โ€ข Search the whole folder for the moment you do need to leave the page, with the context around every match. โ€ข Footnotes and images, kept in the file as you wrote them. Drop an image in or paste a screenshot, and it is saved beside the document. โ€ข Focus mode and typewriter scrolling, find and replace, quick open (โŒ˜P), and a word count that stays out of sight until you look for it. โ€ข A first-line indent that makes long text read like a printed page โ€” on the right in Hebrew, on the left in English โ€” and undo and redo right in the toolbar. โ€ข A toolbar you can pare down to nothing. Keep as many of the 18 buttons as you want, or none. โ€ข Hebrew and English in one document, each paragraph facing the direction its own words ask for, with nothing written into your file to make it work. โ€ข Autosave a second after you stop typing. There is no save button to remember. Nothing leaves the device: no network, no account, no telemetry. macOS, iPhone and iPad. Free, with no in-app purchases.

About

Folio

Features
Read full description

Folio is a personal workspace for the things you want to remember, make, and get done. CAPTURE YOUR THOUGHTS Write notes, organize them into notebooks, pin favorites, and build checklists. KEEP DOCUMENTS CLOSE Scan documents into editable text while keeping the original attached. Read PDFs, highlight passages, and keep linked notes alongside the source. MAKE ROOM TO DRAW Sketch on a canvas, choose colors and drawing tools, and export your work. PLAN YOUR EVERYDAY Organize tasks, keep shopping lists with totals, and collect useful information in your workspace. YOUR PERSONAL WORKSPACE Folio stores your content locally and requires no account. Export and share a copy when you choose. Optional calendar, map, and reminder features use Apple system services.

Screenshots

PureWrite4 screens
Folio4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Folio at daily against PureWrite's every 3 days. PureWrite's advantage is device support (4 vs 1) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.0). On price, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS

CostPrice ยท In-app purchases ยท Ads ยท Monetization

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

UpkeepUpdate frequency

PureWrite ships an update every 3 days, Folio daily. The most recent releases landed on October 31, 2026 and October 16, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences ยท 3 level
PureWrite versus Folio: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPureWriteFolio
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 3 daysDaily โ€” better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac โ€” betteriPhone
Requires iOS15.0 โ€” better18.0
Further details โ€” not scored
Size7 MB36 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperYechiel Ben DavidNagarjuna Reddy Bhimavarapu

In-app purchases

None

PureWrite

No in-app purchases

None

Folio

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is PureWrite free?
PureWrite is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Folio free?
Folio is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do PureWrite or Folio have ads?
Neither PureWrite nor Folio shows ads.
Which is updated more often, PureWrite or Folio?
PureWrite ships an update every 3 days, and Folio daily. Most recently, PureWrite was updated on October 31, 2026 and Folio on October 16, 2026.

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