Comparison

Freewrite vs Notedown

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

Head to head
About

Freewrite

Features
Read full description

A minimal app that allows you to take immediately start writing flow, for small thoughts or long essays. Use this to dump all your ideas on the go and refine as you go.

About

Notedown

Features
Read full description

Notedown is a featherweight markdown notes app for people who just want to write. No accounts, no sync, no clutter โ€” every note is saved as a plain .md text file on your device and never leaves it. WRITE IN MARKDOWN Use familiar markdown to structure your thoughts: headings, bold and italic, bulleted lists, checkboxes, quotes, code, and links. A one-tap formatting toolbar inserts the syntax for you, so you never have to remember it. EDIT OR PREVIEW Flip between a distraction-free editor and a clean rendered preview with a single tap. See exactly how your note looks, then jump back to writing. FULLY OFFLINE, FULLY YOURS Your notes are stored as standard markdown files in the app's own folder on your device. There is no cloud, no login, and nothing to set up. What you write stays with you. FIND ANYTHING FAST Search across all of your notes instantly. The list keeps your most recently edited notes at the top. SHARE WHEN YOU WANT Export any note as markdown text through the standard share sheet. SIMPLE BY DESIGN - Light and dark themes - English and Japanese - Portrait, one-handed friendly layout - Free to use (contains ads) Notedown is the calm, lightweight alternative to heavy note apps โ€” just markdown, and nothing in your way.

Screenshots

Freewrite2 screens
Notedown4 screens

Verdict

The call

Freewrite and Notedown are too close to call on the numbers: across 5 compared parameters โ€” price, ads, in-app purchases and device support among them โ€” neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.

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.

ScorecardNo meaningful differences
Freewrite versus Notedown: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFreewriteNotedown
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyโ€”Every 4 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
DevicesiPhone, iPad โ€” betteriPhone
Requires iOS18.617.0 โ€” better
Further details โ€” not scored
Size1 MB24 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDhrumil PatelYuki Okawa

In-app purchases

None

Freewrite

No in-app purchases

None

Notedown

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Freewrite free?
Freewrite is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Notedown free?
Notedown is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Freewrite or Notedown have ads?
Neither Freewrite nor Notedown shows ads.

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