The Best iA Writer AlternativesTop Note-taking Tools & Text Editors like iA Writer

iA Writer is described as 'The key to good writing is not that magical glass of Bordeaux, the right kind of tobacco or that groovy background music. The key is focus. What you need to write well is a spartan setting that allows you to fully concentrate on your text and nothing but your text' and is a popular Note-taking tool in the news & books category. There are more than 100 alternatives to iA Writer for a variety of platforms, including Mac, Windows, Linux, Web-based and iPhone apps. The best iA Writer alternative is Joplin, which is both free and Open Source. Other great apps like iA Writer are Typora, Zettlr, Simplenote and ghostwriter.

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Alternatives list

  1. Joplin icon

    Joplin

     875 likes

    Open source app for managing notes and to-dos with Markdown support. Syncs seamlessly across devices using services like Dropbox and OneDrive. Offers end-to-end encrypted synchronicity, offline access, rich import/export options, and a Web Clipper for browsers.

    109 Joplin alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    • Self-Hosted
    • AppImageHub
    • Snapcraft
    • Google Chrome
    • Flathub
    • PortableApps.com
    • F-Droid
    • Cloudron
    • Homebrew
    • Chocolatey
    • Termux
    • Mozilla Firefox
    Desktop and mobile apps
     
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    1
    Comments about Joplin as an Alternative to iA Writer
    diver_down
    Positive
    0

    FOSS and (most importantly!) works on ALL platforms. Ubuntu, Manjaro, iOS, Android, Windows, MacOS... it will sync effortless between them. Oh, and it's also E2EE which is mandatory for good security practices as far as I'm concerned. Thanks L.C. <3

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Joplin icon
    Joplin icon

    • Most users think Joplin is a great iA Writer alternative.

    • Joplin is Freemium and Open SourceiA Writer is Paid and Proprietary
    • Joplin is MinimalisticiA Writer is not according to our users
  2. Typora icon

    Typora

     326 likes

    A minimalist Markdown editor offering cross-platform synchronization, live preview, and seamless export/import in various formats like PDF, DOCX, and LaTeX. Features include distraction-free Focus and Typewriter modes, file management with tree and articles panels, and content organization through an outline panel.

    178 Typora alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Paid
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Electron
    Typora screenshot 1
     
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    6
    56
    Comments about Typora as an Alternative to iA Writer
    Top Positive Comment
    Guest
    2

    Very nice interface, themes, markdown support is awesome. Exactly what I was looking for. I thought it was impossible to find a quality software of this type on Windows.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Alec Kinnear
    Positive
    0

    Typora is great if you like to write in preview mode. iAWriter is better if you prefer to see Markdown in the edit window and have access to a preview window (old WordPerfect paradigm). Both are excellent apps. Typora is great for Markdown tables.

    arximughal
    Positive
    -5

    It's free and opensource and packed with a lot of useful features. I just love writing in Typora.

    3 of 6 comments
    Typora icon
    Typora icon

    • Almost everyone thinks Typora is a great iA Writer alternative.

    • Typora is Paid and ProprietaryiA Writer is also Paid and Proprietary
    • Typora is Minimalistic and CustomizableiA Writer is not according to our users
  4. Zettlr icon

    Zettlr

     245 likes

    Unified writing platform offering note-taking, easy citations with Zotero integration, LaTeX/Word templates, snippets, themes, dark modes, code highlighting, multi-language support, and knowledge management with Zettelkasten for seamless writing from notes to books.

    182 Zettlr alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Flathub
    Zettlr Main Window (dark mode)
     
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    1
    Comments about Zettlr as an Alternative to iA Writer
    Guest
    Negative
    1

    iA Writer is for writing longer texts. Zettlr is for note taking.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Zettlr icon
    Zettlr icon
    • Zettlr is Free and Open SourceiA Writer is Paid and Proprietary
  5. Ad
    Screenshot
    Daino Notes icon
    Daino Notes

    Offers fast, distraction-free note-taking via a high-performance editor with real-time Markdown, local-first storage, image support, Kanban task boards, intuitive drag-and-drop, keyboard shortcuts, configurable themes, fast searc...

    https://www.get-notes.com
    Learn More
  6. Simplenote icon

    Simplenote

     604 likes

    Made by the company behind WordPress, Simplenote enables users to take notes, lists, and ideas. These notes are stored on the cloud and are accessible across multiple devices.

    114 Simplenote alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    Simplenote screenshot 1
     
  7. ghostwriter icon

    ghostwriter

     109 likes

    ghostwriter is a feature-rich text editor using Markdown syntax which makes it suitable for note-taking, document redaction, simple HTML website creation and much more.

    139 ghostwriter alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Snapcraft
    • Flathub
    • Haiku
    ghostwriter screenshot 1
     
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    1
    8
    Comments about ghostwriter as an Alternative to iA Writer
    NA0341
    Positive
    0

    Fast, lean, open source, many useful features, well integrated with different Markdown parsers - Hemmingway mode. Although for anything beyond just writing I'd suggest something more advanced - like Obsidian.

    ghostwriter icon
    ghostwriter icon

    • Almost everyone thinks ghostwriter is a great iA Writer alternative.

    • ghostwriter is Free and Open SourceiA Writer is Paid and Proprietary
  8. FocusWriter icon

    FocusWriter

     208 likes

    Simple but configurable and themeable, distraction-free text editor for writers. Open-source and available across desktop platforms.

    103 FocusWriter alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Linux
    • PortableApps.com
    FocusWriter screenshot 1
     
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    18
  10. QOwnNotes icon

    QOwnNotes

     96 likes

    Plain text notepad with markdown support and todo list manager for Linux, Mac OS X and Windows, that works together with the notes application of ownCloud.

    265 QOwnNotes alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Flathub
    • PortableApps.com
    • Qt
    QOwnNotes main screen
     
  11. Mark Text icon

    Mark Text

     120 likes

    Open-source Markdown editor on Mac, Windows, and Linux offering real-time preview, clean interface, and various themes. Supports math expressions, exports HTML/PDF, allows image pasting, and more.

    106 Mark Text alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source (MIT)

    Application type

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    GitHub Flavored Markdown
     
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    1
    Comments about Mark Text as an Alternative to iA Writer
    Guest
    Positive
    1

    Interface is great, and you can edit the font from the preferences.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Mark Text icon
    Mark Text icon
    • Mark Text is Free and Open SourceiA Writer is Paid and Proprietary
  12. Dendron icon

    Dendron

     71 likes

    Dendron is an open-source, local-first, markdown-based, note-taking tool built on top of VSCode. It supports all the usual features you would expect like tagging, backlinks, a graph view, split panes, and so forth.

    207 Dendron alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Visual Studio Code
    Dendron screenshot 1
     
  13. Foam icon

    Foam

     52 likes

    Foam is a personal knowledge management and sharing system inspired by Roam Research, built on Visual Studio Code and GitHub.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Self-Hosted
    • Visual Studio Code
    Foam screenshot 1
     
  14. Bear icon

    Bear

     95 likes

    Flexible note-taking and writing tool featuring advanced markdown with in-line images, cross-note links, live preview, hashtags, Focus Mode, plain text storage, iCloud sync, one-tap formatting, smart data recognition, and multiple export formats for portability.

    250 Bear alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Online
    • iPhone
    • iPad
    Bear screenshot 1
     
  15. Marknote icon

    Marknote

     21 likes

    Marknote lets you create rich text notes and easily organise them into notebooks. You can personalise your notebooks by choosing an icon and accent color for each one, making it easy to distinguish between them and keep your notes at your fingertips.

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Flathub
    Marknote screenshot 1
     
12 of 120 iA Writer alternatives