Comparison

Skein Notes vs BitEditor

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

Head to head
About

Skein Notes

Features
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Skein is a notes app for people who want to keep their own files. Your vault is a folder of plain Markdown on your device or in iCloud Drive. Skein reads and writes those files directly — the same folder you open in Skein for Mac, or in any other editor. Nothing is locked in a database, and there is no service in the middle. Write it down before you lose it The app opens on a capture field. Type the thought and send it; the first line becomes the note's title and Skein files it where you told it to. No dialog, no folder picker, no naming a file before you have written anything. Find it again Search matches titles the moment you start typing and searches inside every note once the index is ready, ranked, with the matching lines and their line numbers — tap one and land on it. The Vault filters by name, by #tag or by folder in one field, and tags are real: tap one anywhere in the app to see everything carrying it. Real Markdown, properly Headings, lists, task lists, tables, footnotes, code blocks, callouts, ==highlights== and [[wikilinks]] — read cleanly and edited as text. A keyboard bar puts the things you actually reach for above the keys, including arrows that move by character and by word, and you can choose which of them appear. Type / for a command, #for a tag it already knows. Canvas Open a JSON Canvas board, move cards, connect them, colour them and write on them. The same file, the same format Obsidian writes, so a board made on the Mac opens here and back again. It keeps your writing safe Skein keeps earlier versions of a note as you edit, so you can go back to what you wrote this morning. When the same note has been changed in two places, Skein keeps both and asks — it never picks a winner quietly. Also Share text from any app straight into your vault. Four themes, including one for reading at night. Dynamic Type throughout, and full VoiceOver support. Skein does not have an account, a subscription for the basics, a server, or telemetry. Your notes never leave your device except through iCloud Drive, which is yours. Skein for Mac is a separate app on the same purchase.

About

BitEditor

Features
Read full description

BitEditor is a simple text editor for working with text files (.txt) and Markdown files (.md). Open your own files and folders, view and edit text, and save changes directly. No proprietary file formats or accounts are required. Your files remain your files. A simple editor for writing and editing.

Screenshots

Skein Notes4 screens
BitEditor4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: BitEditor at every 3 days against Skein Notes's every 2 weeks. On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Skein Notes ships an update every 2 weeks, BitEditor every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 15, 2026 and October 8, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard1 real difference · 7 level
Skein Notes versus BitEditor: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSkein NotesBitEditor
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksEvery 3 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
DevicesiPhone, MaciPhone, iPad, Mac — better
Requires iOS17.016.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size22 MB3 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTomasz SmiejaEISAKU MAKI

In-app purchases

None

Skein Notes

No in-app purchases

None

BitEditor

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Skein Notes free?
Skein Notes is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is BitEditor free?
BitEditor is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Skein Notes or BitEditor have ads?
Neither Skein Notes nor BitEditor shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Skein Notes or BitEditor?
Skein Notes ships an update every 2 weeks, and BitEditor every 3 days. Most recently, Skein Notes was updated on October 15, 2026 and BitEditor on October 8, 2026.

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