Just Write vs Happy Squid
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Just Write
A minimalist text editor designed to streamline the writing process. It supports both RTF and TXT formats, offering rich text editing and Markdown support. Sync your work across devices with iCloud integration.
- RTF and TXT file support
- Markdown styling
- iCloud file syncing
- Rich text editing tools
- Multiple themes
- Smart selection tool (iPad)
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Just Write text editor aims to simplify writing process. The app is carefully designed so that the only things that are absolutely essential to the writing process are included. Just Write supports RTF (rich text format) and TXT (plain text format) that are cross-platform formats you can open and edit in virtually any platforms. + RTF , a WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) format, is best suitable for creating your next big story. + While TXT, supported Markdown styles, is best for notes, outline, to-do list and anything else you do with a plaintext format. Just Write has iCloud support (opt-in) so you can sync your rtf and txt files across all your devices. RTF editing features include: - Font size increase and decrease - Text color selection - Text style editing such as Bold, Italic, Underline and Strikethrough - Text alignments: Left, Right, Center, Justified - Undo, Redo - Move arrow to jump the cursor - Selection tool to select paragraph, sentence and word super fast and easy (iPad only). Using smart selection tool, you can select paragraph, sentence and word in just 1 tap!!!!!! TXT editing features include: - Accessory row includes many characters essential to writing Markdown. - Multiple fonts to choose from - Preview Markdown (in left menu) - Three themes (Light, Dark, Sepia) - Support plain text format extensions: txt, text, md, mmd, markdown, markdn, mdown, mkdn, markd, fountain - Selection tool to select paragraph, sentence and word super fast and easy (iPad only). Using smart selection tool, you can select paragraph, sentence and word in just 1 tap!!!!!! * Note: Just Write is supported by ads, but you can buy an in app purchase to remove the ads.
Happy Squid
This intelligent website blocker allows you to block distracting sites while enabling access to specific content through custom exceptions. It helps users focus on their work by blocking unrelated websites and allows scheduling of focused work sessions.
- Block any website
- Add intelligent exceptions
- Block by category
- Lock blocks for duration
- Schedule free time
- Focus on specific tasks
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Happy Squid is the world’s first intelligent website blocker. Traditional blockers are designed to block websites without exceptions. When you need to watch a lecture for class or want to find a recipe, they won’t let you. Happy Squid understands the difference between distractions and the content you need. Say you want to block YouTube, Reddit, Netflix, or any other site that distracts you too often. When setting up your blocks, you can add your own exceptions for each site. Happy Squid makes sure the content you see when visiting the site fits the exception you picked. This way you can block addictive sites while preserving access to the content that’s worthwhile. Happy Squid’s Features: • Block any website • Add intelligent exceptions to blocked websites so you can still access what you need. Happy Squid makes sure the content you visit fits the exception. • Explain to Happy Squid what you want to work on. Happy Squid blocks all unrelated websites while allowing the ones you need. • Block entire categories of websites by choosing from predefined lists • Lock your blocked websites for a set duration • Schedule Free Time in advance and enjoy a break while keeping your blocks in place Learn more about every feature at https://happy-squid.com/documentation and about how we process your information at https://www.happy-squid.com/privacy. Our Terms of Service can be found at https://www.happy-squid.com/terms. Any questions or feedback? Send us a message at support@happy-squid.com. We would love to hear from you. If you enjoy Happy Squid, we would appreciate a 5-star review. It helps others discover Happy Squid too.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: Happy Squid at none against Just Write's shown. Happy Squid also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 67%). Just Write's advantage is ratings volume (1.8K vs 1) and rating (4.3 vs 4.0). On price, update cadence, in-app purchases and monetization model 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
Both are free to download. Just Write sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Happy Squid sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Just Write holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Just Write has 1.8K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 67% of Just Write's written reviews are positive against 100% of Happy Squid's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Just Write ships an update every 11 days, Happy Squid every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on November 11, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Just Write | Happy Squid |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.3 (1.8K ratings) — better | 4.0 (1 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 66.7% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 1.8K — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 11 days | Every 9 days — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 26.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 10 MB | 28 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Tung Vu | Brunnel Maar Zinn GbR |
Customer experience
Just Write
Happy Squid
Bugs and requests
Just Write
Reported bugs
4 issues- Frequent crashes and data loss
- Inability to reopen saved documents
- Unreliable auto-save functionality
- Compatibility issues on older devices
Requested features
7 requests- Add dark mode option
- Implement more font and formatting choices
- Introduce paragraph spacing and indentation controls
- Integrate spell check and grammar tools
- Enable file syncing across devices
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- Add image/multimedia support
- Provide better file management and organization
Happy Squid
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Just Write
- No Ads$6.99
Happy Squid
- Happy Squid Pro7 Days trial$3.991 Month
- Happy Squid Pro7 Days trial$35.991 Year









