Comparison

Mach Write vs TextEdit

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

Head to head
About

Mach Write

This app offers robust editing and viewing capabilities for RTF, TXT, and PDF files across iOS and macOS. It features iCloud synchronization, syntax highlighting for code formats, and PDF annotation tools.

Highlights
  • iCloud document synchronization
  • RTF Read/Write support
  • TXT and code format Read/Write with syntax highlighting
  • PDF Creation, Viewing, and Editing
  • Freehand PDF writing on iOS
  • DOC and DOCX viewing on iOS
Features
Read full description

**Please visit our website or search for "Mach Write" in the Mac App Store to download the macOS version, only $3.99!** Mach Write is a powerful new RTF, TXT, PDF (Rich Text Format, Plain Text, PDF) Editor and Viewer for iOS and macOS! Featuring full iCloud document synchronization, RTF in multiple styles, sizes, and colors; as well as PDF Viewing/Creating/Annotation; and TXT files in addition to supporting nearly 15 plain text code formats; Mach Write makes it super easy to create in many different formats while still being incredibly powerful! And the best part is Mach Write is free for iOS and only $3.99 (U.S.) on macOS! - iCloud document synchronization; Mach Write keeps all your documents up to date on all your iOS and OS X devices (iPhone, iPad, and Mac) - RTF Read/Write support; easily Create and Edit Rich Text with multiple styles, alignment, font sizes, color, shadows, line spacing, and more -- one of the most popular word processor formats widely compatible across OS X, Windows, and Linux - TXT Read/Write support; as well as HTML/JS/PHP/RB/PL/JAVA/C/H/M/CP/MM Read/Write with Syntax Highlighting support for HTML, Javascript, PHP, Ruby, Perl, Java, C, C++, Objective-C++ and more - PDF Creation, Viewing, Editing; PDF Free-hand writing on iOS -- Create Blank PDFs super easy and draw diagrams, take notes, etc. (Large PDF documents in iCloud, such as large eBooks, are not recommended) - DOC and DOCX Viewing on iOS (DOC/DOCX Read/Write support on OS X) - Export as PDF makes it easy to annotate PDF's for grading papers, making corrections, or signing documents (iOS only) - Revolutionary PDF Magnifer feature makes it super easy to take Notes and automatically save as PDF (iOS only) - Incredibly advanced, yet super easy to use!

About

TextEdit

A fast and versatile text editor for mobile devices, offering compatibility with various file formats and editors. It provides a distraction-free writing experience with advanced formatting, organization, and sharing features.

Highlights
  • Supports TXT, RTF, Markdown, TeX, and PDF formats
  • Cross-device and computer syncing via iCloud/Files
  • Distraction-free writing interface
  • Customizable keyboard extension for faster typing
  • Visual rich text formatting and one-tap options
  • Syntax highlighting for Markdown and TeX
  • Instant statistics and counters
Features
Read full description

TextEdit+ is the text editor your iPhone and iPad were missing. Like TextEdit on the Mac, it opens to a clean page and stays out of your way. Unlike it, it also speaks Markdown and LaTeX, marks up PDFs and puts an AI assistant right inside your document. Jot down a quick TXT, format a rich-text letter, write a README in Markdown or compile a LaTeX paper. One lightweight app, no clutter. ONE EDITOR, EVERY TEXT FORMAT • Create and edit TXT, RTF, RTFD, Markdown and LaTeX files • Open RTF files from macOS TextEdit, WordPad, Word and Scrivener, and keep working on them on your Mac or PC • Open PDFs and mark them up with highlights, notes and text • Work on files right where they live: Files, iCloud Drive or your cloud storage • Organize your documents in folders and subfolders A CLEAN PLACE TO WRITE • Distraction-free editor with Full Screen and Typewriter modes • Keep several documents open in tabs and switch with a tap • Extended keyboard row for cursor moves, selection and the characters you use most • Keyboard shortcuts for hardware keyboards • Read Aloud with your choice of voice and speed • Light and dark appearance, plus custom document colors RICH TEXT WITHOUT THE BLOAT • Fonts, sizes, colors, highlights, bold, italic, underline and strikethrough • Alignment, indents, lists, line and paragraph spacing, superscript and subscript • Insert images, tables and inline equations • Install your own fonts and use them in any document MARKDOWN AND LATEX, DONE PROPERLY • Syntax highlighting for Markdown and TeX • Live Markdown preview: edit, preview or split view side by side • Compile LaTeX right on your device and preview the PDF next to your source • Article, report, book and letter templates, command completion, error diagnostics and a document outline • Multi-file projects with included files and bibliographies AI THAT WORKS IN YOUR DOCUMENT • Turn a prompt into a first draft • Rewrite, shorten, expand, summarize or translate the selected text • Fix grammar, spelling and punctuation, or switch the tone between casual, concise, friendly and professional • Ask the assistant about your own documents and get answers with sources • Prefer to write without AI? Hide every AI feature with one switch TOOLS FOR EDITING • Find and replace across the whole document • Word, character, sentence, paragraph, line and page counts with reading time • Readability scores: Flesch Reading Ease, Flesch–Kincaid Grade, SMOG and Automated Readability Index • Automatic backups, so an edit is never lost • Scan paper documents with the camera EXPORT AND SHARE • Export to PDF, Word (DOCX), RTF, RTFD, Markdown, TXT, TeX and PNG • Print, email or send your work to any app • Send text, links and files to TextEdit+ from other apps with the share sheet • Shortcuts actions to create, open, search and rename documents Built for iPhone, iPad and iPhone Duo, and localized in more than 70 languages. Privacy Policy https://www.noteswriter.com/Kairoos_Privacy_Policy.html Terms of Use https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Mach Write4 screens
TextEdit4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: TextEdit at 3.7 against Mach Write's 1.0. TextEdit also leads on ads (none vs shown) and update cadence (weekly vs every 10 months). Mach Write's advantage is review sentiment (46% vs 17%) and iOS requirement (15.6 vs 26.0). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model 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. Mach Write sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and TextEdit sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

TextEdit holds the better App Store score, 3.7 against 1.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: TextEdit has 380 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 46% of Mach Write's written reviews are positive against 17% of TextEdit's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Mach Write ships an update every 10 months, TextEdit weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and November 6, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Mach Write versus TextEdit: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMach WriteTextEdit
PriceFreeFree
Rating1.0 (1 ratings)3.7 (380 ratings) — better
Positive reviews45.8% of reviews — better17.1% of reviews
Number of ratings1380 — better
Update frequencyEvery 10 monthsWeekly — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.6 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size19 MB461 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMach Software DesignKairoos Solutions SL

Customer experience

Mach Write

All ratings1 ratings
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%
Written reviews24 reviews
Positive45.8%
Neutral4.2%
Negative50.0%

TextEdit

All ratings380 ratings
Positive65.8%
Neutral5.0%
Negative29.2%
Written reviews210 reviews
Positive17.1%
Neutral7.1%
Negative75.7%

Bugs and requests

Mach Write

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

TextEdit

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes when opening certain file types
  • Formatting issues when copying/pasting text
  • Inconsistent behavior across devices

Requested features

3 requests
  • Allow users to choose iCloud directory
  • Offer one-time purchase option instead of subscription
  • Restore previous paid versions without AI

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Mach Write

One-time1
  • Remove Ads$0.99
4 purchases

TextEdit

Subscriptions3
  • Weekly$1.997 Days
  • TextEdit+ Monthly3 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • TextEdit+ Annual3 Days trial$14.991 Year
One-time1
  • TextEdit+ Full Unlock$14.99

Questions

Is Mach Write free?
Mach Write is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is TextEdit free?
TextEdit is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Mach Write or TextEdit?
TextEdit is rated higher. Mach Write averages 1.0 out of 5 from 1 ratings, while TextEdit averages 3.7 from 380 ratings.
Do Mach Write or TextEdit have ads?
Mach Write shows ads; TextEdit does not.
Which is updated more often, Mach Write or TextEdit?
Mach Write ships an update every 10 months, and TextEdit weekly. Most recently, Mach Write was updated on November 1, 2026 and TextEdit on November 6, 2026.

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