| Fact |  iA WriterMarkdown editor sold once per platform, no subscription offered |  Typora |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $49.99 | $14.99 |
| Licence | This versionThe next major is a new purchase | This versionThe next major is a new purchase |
| The catch | Each platform is a separate purchase, and major versions may cost extra | A major version jump like 1.x to 2.x can require paying again |
| Against a subscription | 15 monthsAgainst Ulysses at $40 a year | 5 monthsAgainst Ulysses at $40 a year |
| Seats | No Mac count statedOne Mac purchase covers several Macs belonging to the same person; the iPhone/iPad and Windows apps are separate purchases. | 3 MacsThree activations counted per install, not per person or per platform: one key covers macOS, Windows and Linux, so a Mac, a PC and a Linux box use all three. |
| Developer account | None needed | None needed |
| Works offline | Yes | Yes |
| Apple Silicon | Native | Native |
| Free trial | Yes | Yes |
| On Setapp | No | No |
| Minimum macOS | macOS 10.15 | not established |
| Buy direct | Buy direct |
Both prices read 22 Sep 2026, on the pages these buttons open. App Store rating is not established for either app, so that row is left out.
In their own right
iA Writer
A plain-text markdown editor built around getting words down: one typeface, a focus mode that dims everything but the current sentence, and highlighting that flags adverbs, filler and weak nouns.
Typora
A markdown editor that renders formatting in place as you type, with no split preview pane. One $14.99 licence key covers three device activations across macOS, Windows and Linux.