Scrivener vs Final Draft Go
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Scrivener
This app is a comprehensive writing tool designed for long-form manuscripts. It allows users to compose text in any order, manage research materials alongside their writing, and export to various formats. It supports flexible outlining and restructuring of content.
- Manuscript composition in sections
- Research material integration
- Flexible outlining and reorganization
- Export to multiple formats
- Interactive tutorial
- Project-wide search
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“The biggest software advance for writers since the word processor.” —Michael Marshall Smith, bestselling author Typewriter. Ring-binder. Scrapbook. Scrivener combines all the writing tools you need to craft your first draft, from nascent notion to final full stop. Tailor-made for creating long manuscripts, Scrivener banishes page fright by allowing you to compose your text in any order, in sections as large or small as you like. Got a great idea but don’t know where it fits? Write when inspiration strikes and find its place later. Grow your manuscript organically, idea by idea. Whether you plan or plunge, Scrivener works your way: meticulously outline every last detail first, or hammer out a complete draft and restructure later. Or do a bit of both. All text sections in Scrivener are fully integrated with its outlining tools, so working with an overview of your manuscript is only ever a tap away, and turning Chapter Four into Chapter One is as simple as drag and drop. Need to refer to research? In Scrivener, your background material is always at hand. Write a description based on a photograph. Reference a video or PDF. Check for consistency with an earlier chapter. On the iPad, open two documents side-by-side; on the iPhone, flip between research and writing with just two taps. Once you’re ready to share your work with the world, simply compile everything into a single document for printing, or export to popular formats such as Word, PDF, Final Draft or plain text. You can even share using different formatting, so that you can write in your favorite font and still keep your editor happy. FEATURES Get Started • Interactive tutorial project • Keep each manuscript and supporting materials in a self-contained project • Import Word, RTF, Final Draft and plain text files • Easily split imported text into separate sections Get Writing • Write your manuscript in sections of any size • View all sections as a single text using the “Draft Navigator” (iPad only) • Quickly navigate sections using the “binder” sidebar • Format with fonts and presets • Comments, footnotes, links and highlights • Simple bullets and lists • Insert images • Pinch-zoom to resize text • Full-screen mode (iPad only) • Typewriter scrolling mode keeps typed text center-screen (iPad only) • Write a screenplay using scriptwriting mode • Live word and character counts • Set word and character count targets • Find and replace • Customizable keyboard row provides quick-access buttons for formatting, navigation and punctuation • Comprehensive keyboard shortcuts for external keyboard users • Dark mode Find Your Structure • Write in any order and reorganize later • Write a synopsis for any text section and see it in the outline • Expand, collapse and drill down into sections of your project • Rearrange sections as index cards on the corkboard (iPad only) • Project-wide search • Track ideas using labels and status • Apply custom icons to your sections Refer to Research • Import research material such as image, PDF and media files • View research files or other sections right alongside your writing (iPad only) • Every section has its own notes area for jotting down ideas • Supports multitasking split screen mode (supported devices only) Share Your Work • Compile to a single document for sharing or printing • Use different formatting in your exported or printed document • Export to Word, RTF, Final Draft, PDF or plain text • Convert rich text to Markdown for sharing with Markdown apps • Create and email zipped backups of your projects Work Anywhere • Use Dropbox to sync between devices and with the macOS and Windows versions of Scrivener* • Copy projects between devices via iTunes * Requires a Dropbox account (not compatible with iCloud). SUPPORT You can contact us at ios.support@literatureandlatte.com, visit our forums at http://www.literatureandlatte.com/forum, or find us @scrivenerapp on Twitter.
Final Draft Go
Write, edit, and read screenplays on your mobile device. Seamlessly sync scripts across platforms and enjoy industry-standard formatting. Ideal for writers on the go.
- Write and edit scripts
- Sync scripts via cloud services
- Industry-standard formatting
- SmartType for auto-completion
- ScriptNotes and character highlighting
- Grammarly integration
- Multi-language support
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Final Draft Go Final Draft™ – the #1-selling screenwriting software in the world – brings you Final Draft Go for iPhone and iPad. With this convenient, subscription-based app, you can write, edit and read Final Draft scripts on your iPhone or iPad. Go paperless and carry all your scripts with you everywhere you go, create new scripts or edit existing ones with easy-to-use features such as Tab and Enter navigation, ScriptNotes, SmartType, and more. Easily move your Final Draft scripts from desktop to iPhone or iPad and back again via iCloud, Dropbox, or email. Your scripts will appear perfectly paginated and formatted to industry standards every time. NEW FEATURES INCLUDE: ENHANCED UI New and improved user interface PINCH TO ZOOM Use multi-touch gestures to zoom in and out and customize the text size of your script view IMPROVED NIGHT MODE Change from day to night mode easily without having to leave the app UNIVERSAL CONTROL SUPPORT Work seamlessly between your iPad and Mac, using your Mac keyboard, mouse, or trackpad GRAMMARLY INTEGRATION Use the Grammarly app with FD Go to edit and proofread your work Creativity is truly portable with Final Draft Go. - Send or share your Final Draft FDX file between all your devices and computers and always be on the same page with Dropbox, OneDrive, or iCloud - Easily change script elements with classic Tab and Enter functionality or through the Elements bar (iPad) or Menu (iPhone) - Use SmartType to remember your character names, scene headings and more - Multi-language support – Write in over 95 different languages - Bluetooth keyboard support - Character Highlighting allows you to keep track of your characters for table reads or character development - Add, color-code, label, and edit ScriptNotes - Perfectly paginates to US Letter and standard European (A4) page sizes - Send feedback directly through the app - Professionally formatted TV, Film, and Stage Play templates to help get you started - Search your entire script for characters, locations, or other script elements - Export scripts to PDF via Dropbox, iCloud or email - Saves the last page you’re working on to get back to work quickly - iPhone Page View shows 100% accurate Final Draft pagination, formatting and line breaking - Automatic More’s and Continued’s - Multi-page Title Pages are supported for TV production scripts - Includes production features like Scene Numbering, Omit Scenes, Colored and Locked Pages - Shows Active or Collated Revisions with Colored Pages - Quickly switch from one revision set to another - Track key information with Cast Reports, Scene Reports, Location Reports, and more - iPhone Scene Navigator allows you to easily jump to different scenes in your script - Access all of the tools you need while maintaining context in your script in the iPhone Tools Menu - Edit your Header and Footer TESTIMONIALS: “Where has this been all my career?!? I put it through its paces doing a rewrite on the go-go-go. Does a great job. This is a real step forward! What more do you need on the road? (Maybe a chauffeur?).” David Seidler – Writer/Academy Award® winner The King’s Speech, By Dawn’s Early Light, Tucker: The Man and His Dream.
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Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Final Draft Go at Free against Scrivener's $23.99. Final Draft Go also leads on update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 3 months). Scrivener's advantage is review sentiment (46% vs 10%) and in-app purchases (none vs 2). On ratings volume, 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
Final Draft Go is free to download; Scrivener costs $23.99 up front. Final Draft Go sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Scrivener asks for nothing beyond the download.
Scrivener holds the better App Store score, 4.2 against 4.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2.6K and 1.7K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 46% of Scrivener's written reviews are positive against 10% of Final Draft Go's.
Scrivener ships an update every 3 months, Final Draft Go every 5 weeks. Both last shipped on October 1, 2026.
| Parameter | Scrivener | Final Draft Go |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $23.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.2 (2.6K ratings) — better | 4.0 (1.7K ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 45.6% of reviews — better | 10.2% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 2.6K — better | 1.7K |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Every 5 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Paid — better | Subscription |
| Best chart rank | #9 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 — better | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 27 MB | 195 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Literature & Latte | Cast & Crew Production Software, LLC |
Customer experience
Scrivener
Final Draft Go
Bugs and requests
Scrivener
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
Final Draft Go
Reported bugs
5 issues- Constant login issues
- Crashes and freezes
- Scrolling and cursor problems
- Formatting and editing bugs
- Sync and file management issues
Requested features
4 requests- Add Dropbox support
- Improve Magic Keyboard integration
- Add Beat Board and other advanced features
- Unify account system with desktop version
In-app purchases
Scrivener
No in-app purchases
Final Draft Go
- Monthly$1.991 Month
- Annually$9.991 Year
Questions
Is Scrivener free?
Is Final Draft Go free?
Which has better reviews, Scrivener or Final Draft Go?
Do Scrivener or Final Draft Go have ads?
Which is updated more often, Scrivener or Final Draft Go?
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