# Cairn vs Folio Writer

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Cairn at none against Folio Writer's 8. On price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Folio Writer sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Cairn asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Cairn against 5.0 for Folio Writer. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 1 and 2 respectively. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.

Cairn ships an update every 5 days, Folio Writer every 4 days. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Cairn | Folio Writer |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cairn-markdown-tasks/id6786663000/reviews) | [5.0 (2 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/folio-writer/id6788252860/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 1 | **2** |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 5 days | **Every 4 days** |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Size | 9 MB | 6 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 17.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, Mac** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Young Hun JEONG](https://appshunter.io/developer/6786662344) | [Bin Chen](https://appshunter.io/developer/1503463579) |

## What reviewers say

### Cairn

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/cairn-markdown-tasks/id6786663000)

Manage tasks and notes directly within your existing Markdown files. This app offers focused views, quick capture, and robust task management features, all while keeping your data private and locally stored. It integrates seamlessly with Obsidian and other file sync services.

**Highlights:** Native Markdown task and note management, Works with Obsidian vaults or any folder, Quick capture with date, tag, and priority parsing, Multiple task views (Today, Upcoming, Inbox, Pool), Full support for sub-tasks and recurring tasks, Local reminders and Live Activity integration, Data stays local, no cloud sync required

**In-app purchases:** none


### Folio Writer

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/folio-writer/id6788252860)

This writing studio allows you to work on long-form projects like books and manuscripts on your iPhone and iPad. It supports plain text formats like Markdown and Typst, syncing seamlessly with its Mac counterpart. Features include a special keyboard bar, project organization, and citation management.

**Highlights:** Plain-text writing (Markdown, Typst), iCloud Drive, Dropbox, Files integration, Special Markdown key bar, Typewriter scrolling and sentence focus, Binder for project organization, Snapshots for version control, Project-wide search, BibTeX citation support

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (8)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Cloud Pro Monthly | $1.99 | per month |
| Premium Monthly | $3.99 | per month |
| Pro Yearly | $19.99 | per year |
| Premium Yearly | $39.99 | per year |
| Pro Lifetime | $19.99 | one-time |
| Pro to Premium Upgrade | $19.99 | one-time |
| Premium Lifetime | $39.99 | one-time |
| Unlock Pro Features | $39.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Cairn free?

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

### Is Folio Writer free?

Folio Writer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Cairn or Folio Writer?

Cairn and Folio Writer are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 1 and 2 ratings respectively.

### Do Cairn or Folio Writer have ads?

Neither Cairn nor Folio Writer shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Cairn or Folio Writer?

Cairn ships an update every 5 days, and Folio Writer every 4 days. Most recently, Cairn was updated on October 24, 2026 and Folio Writer on October 24, 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.*