Comparison

iWriter Pro vs PDF Indexer

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

PDF Indexer

This app creates fast navigation for PDFs by turning title-to-page mappings into searchable indexes. It allows you to import mappings from various file formats and opens directly to the mapped page within the PDF. All data is stored locally on your device for privacy.

Highlights
  • Search across multiple indexed PDFs
  • Exact, prefix, substring, and alias matching
  • Jump directly to mapped pages
  • Import mappings from CSV, JSON, XLSX, and text
  • Page-offset calibration
  • Mapping correction and export
  • Local-first data storage
Features
Read full description

PDF Indexer turns a separate title-to-page mapping into fast navigation for a PDF. Choose a PDF, add its index, and search titles across your library. On import, the app divides the PDF into private on-device sections at indexed title pages and removes its temporary full-size copy. A result opens only the matching section at the mapped PDF page. Page offsets handle documents whose printed page numbers do not match their PDF positions. Import mappings from CSV, JSON, XLSX, pasted text, or manual entry. Review validation warnings before saving, correct individual rows later, replace a mapping without copying the PDF again, and export a mapping as CSV or JSON. PDF Indexer is local-first. It needs no account and has no publisher-operated analytics or app-run cloud service. Your app library stays in private device storage unless you choose to export a mapping. The free app may show non-personalized banner ads after any required privacy choices. PDFs, mappings, titles, and searches are not sent to the ad service. See the Privacy Policy for operating-system backup details. Highlights: • Search across multiple indexed PDFs • Exact, prefix, substring, and alias matching • Jump directly to mapped pages • CSV, JSON, XLSX, pasted-text, and manual mapping input • Page-offset calibration and bounds validation • Mapping correction, replacement, and export • Missing-file recovery without losing the mapping • Light and dark appearance PDFs and mappings are supplied by the user. PDF Indexer does not include third-party books or indexes.

Screenshots

iWriter Pro4 screens
PDF Indexer4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: PDF Indexer at Free against iWriter Pro's $5.99. PDF Indexer also leads on update cadence (every 2 days vs every 3 months) and rating (5.0 vs 4.7). iWriter Pro's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (132 vs 2). On 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

PDF Indexer is free to download; iWriter Pro costs $5.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

PDF Indexer holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: iWriter Pro has 132 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

iWriter Pro ships an update every 3 months, PDF Indexer every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on November 1, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
iWriter Pro versus PDF Indexer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameteriWriter ProPDF Indexer
Price$5.99Free — better
Rating4.7 (132 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews68.5% of reviews—
Number of ratings132 — better2
Update frequencyEvery 3 monthsEvery 2 days — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterAd-supported
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS2616.4 — better
Further details — not scored
Size20 MB53 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSerpensoft GroupMATTHEW BYONG BAE

Customer experience

iWriter Pro

All ratings131 ratings
Positive93.1%
Neutral2.3%
Negative4.6%
Written reviews92 reviews
Positive68.5%
Neutral4.3%
Negative27.2%

PDF Indexer

All ratings2 ratings
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

PDF Indexer

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

iWriter Pro

No in-app purchases

None

PDF Indexer

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is iWriter Pro free?
iWriter Pro costs $5.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is PDF Indexer free?
PDF Indexer is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, iWriter Pro or PDF Indexer?
PDF Indexer is rated higher. iWriter Pro averages 4.7 out of 5 from 132 ratings, while PDF Indexer averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.
Do iWriter Pro or PDF Indexer have ads?
PDF Indexer shows ads; iWriter Pro does not.
Which is updated more often, iWriter Pro or PDF Indexer?
iWriter Pro ships an update every 3 months, and PDF Indexer every 2 days. Most recently, iWriter Pro was updated on November 1, 2026 and PDF Indexer on October 31, 2026.

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