Not Emacs vs Vimlike
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Not Emacs
A programmer's text editor that mimics common Emacs keybindings and supports iCloud document syncing across devices. It offers syntax highlighting for several languages and is optimized for external keyboards, with an extended virtual keyboard as a backup.
- Emacs keybinding support
- iCloud document editing
- Syntax highlighting (Lisp, Scheme, JS, CSS, XML)
- External Bluetooth keyboard optimization
- Extended virtual keyboard
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Not Emacs is a text editor for programmers that supports many of the most common emacs keybindings. It allows editing iCloud documents that are automatically available from other devices. The app has been designed to be used with an external Bluetooth keyboard, but if you forgot it at home, it is still possible to get by with the extended virtual keyboard. This app is based on the ymacs editor (http://www.ymacs.org) and the Gambit Scheme programming system (http://gambitscheme.org). It has syntax highlighting for the following languages: Lisp, Scheme, JavaScript, CSS and XML.
Vimlike
Enhance web browsing with keyboard shortcuts, mimicking a Vim-like editor experience. Navigate pages, manage tabs, and interact with links using customizable key bindings. Offers features like dark mode and reader view for a streamlined workflow.
- Keyboard shortcuts for navigation
- Customizable key mappings
- Link interaction (open, new tab)
- Tab management (new, close, switch)
- Insert and normal modes
- Reader view and dark mode
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Vimlike is a Safari extension to browse the web by keyboard shortcuts like a vim-editor. See the default key binding below and you can customize every key mapping. Page Navigation: j Scroll down k Scroll up h Scroll left l Scroll right ctrl+f Page down ctrl+b Page up d Half page down u Half page up g g Go to bottom of the page g Go to top of the page i Go to the first edit box a Open the link below the cursor s Open the link below the cursor in a new window Mode: Esc/`/§ Normal mode ctrl+i Insert mode ctrl+d Dark mode shift+r Reader view ? Help History: shift+h Go back shift+l Go forward Link: f Toggle links shift+f Toggle links (open a link in a new tab) n Move to next link shift+n Move to previous link Tab: t New tab q Previous tab w Next tab x Close tab shift+x Undo close tab r Reload tab Search Bar o Open Search Bar / Search links Video: ctrl+u Play video in a fullscreen ctrl+p Play video in a PIP cmd+. Exit fullscreen video Privacy Policy: • Vimlike requires access to the websites to override the keyboard shortcuts • Vimlike never collects any data from your browser. None of the data will leave your device.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Vimlike at 4.7 against Not Emacs's 4.0. Vimlike also leads on review sentiment (85% vs 50%). Not Emacs's advantage is update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 2 months) and iOS requirement (6.1 vs 16.6). On price, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Vimlike holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 21 and 30 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 50% of Not Emacs's written reviews are positive against 85% of Vimlike's.
Not Emacs ships an update every 2 weeks, Vimlike every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 30, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Not Emacs | Vimlike |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.0 (21 ratings) | 4.7 (30 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 50.0% of reviews | 84.6% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 21 | 30 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks — better | Every 2 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| Requires iOS | 6.1 — better | 16.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 18 MB | 34 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Marc Feeley | Jasmine Studios |
Customer experience
Not Emacs
Vimlike
Bugs and requests
Not Emacs
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
Vimlike
Reported bugs
14 issues- Default mode setting does not work
- Scrolling bug on iPadOS
- Cannot use 'f' to press buttons on webpage
- Hitting F again does not cancel navigation
- Extension not working after a while, requires reinstallation
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- Scrolling no longer works on iPadOS
- Memory leak after Ventura update
- Issues with custom bindings in Gmail
- Scrolling animation feels choppy
- Scrolling stuttery on iPad Pro with ProMotion
- Cannot get out of YouTube fullscreen with control+u
- Reconfigs don't work
- Safari no longer inserts username/passwords
- Extension not working on Google Domains
Requested features
15 requests- Open search result in current tab
- Customized new tab URL
- Support for opening bookmarks/favorites
- Visual mode for highlighting text
- Custom search URL support
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- Ability to move tabs left/right
- Option to disable scrolling animation
- More subtle color scheme for link selection
- Website specific settings to exclude key bindings
- Simulate 'o' and 'O' from other Vim plugins
- Command focus the URL of the page
- Specify keys for ACTIVATE_LINK command with 'Ignore keyboard layout'
- Command for changing tab order
- Easy in-app config for exclusion list
- Dark mode option
In-app purchases
Not Emacs
No in-app purchases
Vimlike
No in-app purchases
