Comparison

iWriter Pro vs Markcurial

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

Head to head
About

iWriter Pro

A minimalist text editor with robust Markdown support and distraction-free writing. It offers iCloud sync, live syntax highlighting, and various export options for documents.

Highlights
  • Clean and minimal interface
  • iCloud sync
  • Live Markdown syntax highlighting
  • HTML Preview
  • Typewriter mode
  • Document Browser with tags
  • Export to HTML, PDF, EPUB, DOCX, and more
Read full description

# iWriter Pro is elegant and minimalist text editor with built-in Markdown support. Distraction-free and subscription-free. ## Features: - Clean and minimal interface. - iCloud sync across iPad, iPhone, and Mac¹ devices. - Text editing with live Markdown syntax highlighting. - HTML Preview for Markdown and MultiMarkdown documents. - Typewriter mode² with focusing on line, sentence, or paragraph. - Powerful Document Browser³ with tags support. - Integrated counters for words, symbols, sentences, and paragraphs. - Fast and responsive editing even for large files. ## iWriter Pro supports: - Highlighting and rendering of LaTeX equations. - Flowchart and Mermaid diagrams. - Source code highlight in HTML preview. - Exporting documents as HTML, PDF, RTF, EPUB, LaTeX, and DOCX. - Keyboard shortcuts⁴ for text formatting and quick navigation. - Search and Replace in your documents. - Light and dark layouts (auto-switching included). - Automatic number/bullet/task list formatting. ¹ - iWriter Pro for Mac is available as a separate purchase on the Mac App Store. ² - Typewriter and Focus modes are available only on iPad. ³ - Editing files in Dropbox, Google Drive, and other 3d-party storage providers is not guaranteed. ⁴ - External keyboard is required.

About

Markcurial

A lightweight markdown editor with syntax highlighting and live preview. Customize themes and manage files locally for secure document creation on the go. Easily share your work to other platforms.

Highlights
  • Markdown editor with syntax highlighting
  • Live preview with working links and images
  • Theme customization for background and syntax
  • On-device file management for security
  • Easy document sharing to other sources
Features
Read full description

Key Features: Markdown Editor: Fully featured markdown editor with syntax highlighting and shortcuts to assist you with quickly sketching out ideas and getting documents put together quickly on the go. Documents can also be shared to other sources easily and effectively if you start a document on your device and want to edit or view it somewhere else. Live Previewing: View your markdown document instantly with live previewing with working links, images, and beautiful formatting. Theme Customization: Customize your editor with new background colors and syntax themes to make your experience perfectly tailored to you. File Management: Files are stored on device and you have control over them, so never worry about accidentally losing your documents again.

Screenshots

iWriter Pro4 screens
Markcurial4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Markcurial at Free against iWriter Pro's $4.99. Markcurial also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 68%) and update cadence (every 11 days vs every 3 months). iWriter Pro's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and ratings volume (130 vs 11). On ads 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

Markcurial is free to download; iWriter Pro costs $4.99 up front. Markcurial sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. iWriter Pro asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Markcurial holds the better App Store score, 4.9 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: iWriter Pro has 130 ratings behind it against 11, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 68% of iWriter Pro's written reviews are positive against 100% of Markcurial's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

iWriter Pro ships an update every 3 months, Markcurial every 11 days. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and June 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 2 level
iWriter Pro versus Markcurial: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameteriWriter ProMarkcurial
Price$4.99Free — better
Rating4.7 (130 ratings)4.9 (11 ratings) — better
Positive reviews68.1% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings130 — better11
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 11 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS18.615.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size19 MB2 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSerpensoft GroupCharles Fager

Customer experience

iWriter Pro

All ratings130 ratings
Positive93.1%
Neutral2.3%
Negative4.6%
Written reviews91 reviews
Positive68.1%
Neutral4.4%
Negative27.5%

Markcurial

All ratings11 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews3 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

iWriter Pro

Reported bugs

31 issues
  • App crashes and freezes frequently
  • Data loss or corruption during editing/syncing
  • iCloud and Dropbox sync issues
  • Exported DOCX files are not fully compatible
  • Autocorrect option is confusingly named
Show 26 more
  • Cannot rename documents outside of iWriter folder
  • List indentation can be problematic
  • Markdown menus on keyboard have delayed response
  • Automatic dark mode not working after update
  • Mermaid plugin not working with iOS 18
  • Preview barely works
  • App not being updated to fix bugs
  • Developer does not respond
  • Multiline LaTeX not supported
  • App crashes on iPad Pro 2020 after update
  • Conversion to DOCX has restrictions
  • No preview section in settings for plugins
  • Photos cannot be inserted (folder access permission issue)
  • Cannot read images from hidden folders
  • Line breaks in exported documents turn into spaces
  • Formulae not working
  • Occasional rendering bug where text doesn't fill screen
  • App crashes immediately upon opening
  • Google Drive sync issues and inability to open/save files
  • iCloud synchronization consumes too much battery
  • App deletes work for no reason
  • Dropbox connection is poor and leads to conflicts/data loss
  • Font compatibility issues in document names
  • App is very basic and doesn't work well with other Markdown editors
  • Impolite developers
  • App is unstable

Requested features

22 requests
  • Add table support (Markdown)
  • Allow reordering of shortcuts
  • Cycle visibility on headings using Tab
  • Add Mark Set and cut region
  • Wordpress export
Show 17 more
  • Syntax highlighting
  • File tree or explorer in sidebar
  • Regex search
  • Auto dark mode
  • Select and open a folder
  • Obsidian support (hyperlink function)
  • Chinese support
  • Add math input
  • Passcode lock feature
  • Change font color
  • Hybrid/mixed editor/preview mode
  • Automatic backup to Dropbox/other cloud storage
  • Add file opening options in preview mode
  • Enter title edit mode immediately after creating a new file
  • Change shortcut keys from moving cursor to indent
  • Customizable paste symbols
  • Full-text search

Markcurial

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

iWriter Pro

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Markcurial

One-time1
  • Markcurial+$0.99

Questions

Is iWriter Pro free?
iWriter Pro costs $4.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Markcurial free?
Markcurial is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, iWriter Pro or Markcurial?
Markcurial is rated higher. iWriter Pro averages 4.7 out of 5 from 130 ratings, while Markcurial averages 4.9 from 11 ratings.
Do iWriter Pro or Markcurial have ads?
Neither iWriter Pro nor Markcurial shows ads.
Which is updated more often, iWriter Pro or Markcurial?
iWriter Pro ships an update every 3 months, and Markcurial every 11 days. Most recently, iWriter Pro was updated on September 24, 2026 and Markcurial on June 5, 2026.

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