Expo Go vs Textastic Code Editor
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Expo Go
Build mobile applications using web technologies like JavaScript and React. This tool allows you to develop interactive experiences with gestures and graphics directly from your iOS device and computer. Some programming experience is recommended for optimal use.
- Build apps with web technologies
- Interactive gesture and graphics development
- JavaScript and React support
- iOS device and computer integration
- React Native 0.81.1 support
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Start learning to build projects using web technologies with just your iOS device. Expo Go is an educational developer tool for learning to create experiences with interactive gestures and graphics using JavaScript and React. Note: some basic programming experience is recommended. Technical specs: this version of Expo uses React Native 0.86
Textastic Code Editor
A powerful text and code editor for mobile devices, offering syntax highlighting for over 80 languages, code completion, and formatting tools. It allows connection to various servers and cloud storage for seamless file management and editing.
- Syntax highlighting for 80+ languages
- SFTP, FTP, WebDAV, and Dropbox client
- Built-in SSH terminal
- Code completion and formatting
- External keyboard and trackpad support
- Split View and Slide Over multitasking
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Textastic is a comprehensive and versatile text and code editor for iPad and iPhone. It supports syntax highlighting for more than 80 programming and markup languages. Connect to SFTP, FTP, and WebDAV servers or to your Dropbox account. Use the built-in SSH terminal to work directly on your server. Features: - Syntax highlighting for more than 80 languages, including HTML, JavaScript, CSS, C++, Swift, Objective-C, Rust, XML, Markdown, PHP, Perl, Python, Ruby, Lua, YAML, JSON, SQL, shell scripts, and many more (full list available on the website) - Compatible with Sublime Text 3 and TextMate 1 syntax definitions and themes - Code completion for HTML, CSS, JavaScript, C, Objective-C, and PHP - SFTP (SSH), FTP, FTPS (FTP over SSL), WebDAV, and Dropbox clients - SSH terminal connections - Code formatter for HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and JSON - Git repositories from the Git client app Working Copy can be opened as external folders in Textastic - Emmet support - JavaScript console - iCloud Drive file synchronization - WebDAV server for easy file transfer between Textastic and your Mac or PC over Wi-Fi - Symbol list for quick navigation within a file - Full support for external keyboards, trackpads, and mice - Configurable keyboard shortcuts - Additional keys above the virtual keyboard for frequently used programming characters - Cursor navigation wheel for easy text selection - Move the cursor using swipe gestures - Split View and Slide Over multitasking on iPad - Open multiple files in tabs - Multiple windows on iPadOS - Dark Mode support - Support for common text encodings such as UTF-8, UTF-16, and ISO-8859-1 - Support for different tab widths and soft tabs (spaces instead of tabs) - Custom fonts - Find and Replace, including regular expression search - Find in multiple files - File information such as character and word counts - Local and remote web preview for HTML and Markdown files Pricing: Textastic requires a monthly or yearly subscription or a one-time purchase. Each subscription includes a 7-day free trial with full access to all features. Privacy Policy: https://www.textasticapp.com/privacy.html Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Expo Go at none against Textastic Code Editor's 3. Textastic Code Editor's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and review sentiment (69% vs 55%). On price, rating, ratings volume and update cadence 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. Textastic Code Editor sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Expo Go asks for nothing beyond the download.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Expo Go against 4.7 for Textastic Code Editor. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 7.3K and 2.5K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 55% of Expo Go's written reviews are positive against 69% of Textastic Code Editor's.
Expo Go ships an update fortnightly, Textastic Code Editor every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 16, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Expo Go | Textastic Code Editor |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (7.3K ratings) — better | 4.7 (2.5K ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 55.4% of reviews | 68.9% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 7.3K — better | 2.5K |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly — better | Every 3 weeks |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Ad-supported — better | Subscription |
| Best chart rank | #6 — better | #16 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 16.4 | 16.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 109 MB | 26 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Nametag | Alexander Blach |
Customer experience
Expo Go
Textastic Code Editor
User reviews
Expo Go
From 7.3K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Smooth and fast development
- 👍 Great for testing apps on real devices
- 💡 Helpful for beginners and experts
- 🚀 Efficient development process
- 👍 Convenient and easy to use
Room to improve
- 🐛 Crashes and bugs after updates
- 🔒 Compatibility issues with older versions
- 🐛 Inability to open projects or scan QR codes
- 🐛 Persistent login and account issues
Textastic Code Editor
From 2.5K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Highly performant
- 👍 Versatile and feature-rich
- 💡 Excellent integration with other apps (e.g. Working Copy)
- 👍 Customizable and intuitive UI
- 👍 Reliable and stable
Room to improve
- 🐛 Occasional crashes or freezes
- 🔒 Restrictive paywall for basic functionality
- 👎 Confusing file management and upload/download workflow
- 👎 Lack of modern code editing features (e.g. auto-indent, code folding)
Bugs and requests
Expo Go
Reported bugs
4 issues- App crashes on startup
- Unable to connect to development server
- Persistent white screen issues
- Inability to delete or manage accounts
Requested features
4 requests- Bring back QR code scanning functionality
- Improve SDK compatibility and backward support
- Add more customization and configuration options
- Enhance debugging and error reporting tools
Textastic Code Editor
Reported bugs
3 issues- Issues with SSH/SFTP connectivity and authentication
- Problems with handling large files or files with certain extensions
- Inconsistent text selection and editing behavior
Requested features
4 requests- Add support for more cloud storage providers (e.g. Google Drive, OneDrive)
- Implement a more seamless remote file editing and syncing workflow
- Improve code editing features like code folding, multi-cursor support, and code beautification
- Add a built-in terminal or ability to run code directly within the app
In-app purchases
Expo Go
No in-app purchases
Textastic Code Editor
- Textastic Pro (Monthly)7 Days trial$2.991 Month
- Textastic Pro (Yearly)7 Days trial$19.991 Year
- Textastic Pro (One-Time)$69.99
