Markd.ly vs iA Writer— honest comparison
Looking for an iA Writer alternative? Here is an honest Markd.ly vs iA Writer comparison — what each one does well, and where the other one wins. iA Writer is a polished, opinionated writing app with a long brand history and a beautifully restrained typography system. Markd.ly is a newer native markdown editor that is free on every platform and ships features iA Writer does not (Pandoc export, live KaTeX and Mermaid, full vim mode, encrypted documents, MCP integration) for one $19 lifetime desktop license.
| At a glance | Markd.ly | iA Writer |
|---|---|---|
| Entry price | Free | $19.99 iPhone/iPad |
| Most popular plan | $19 lifetime (launch) | $49.99 Mac |
| Lifetime license | $19 launch / $29 retail (Mac + Windows desktop, one purchase) | Sold per platform: $49.99 Mac + $29.99 Windows + $19.99 iOS = ~$99 to cover three. No Android. |
| Platforms | Mac · Windows · iPhone · iPad · Android | Mac · Windows · iPhone · iPad |
Pick iA Writer if
- ·Stronger brand and a writing-app design language refined over a decade. If 'feels right' matters more than feature count, iA Writer feels right out of the box.
- ·More polished multi-cloud document handling on iPhone and iPad — iCloud, Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive integration is mature.
- ·Authorship tracking that distinguishes typed text from pasted or AI-generated content. Markd.ly does not do this.
- ·Custom duospaced typography and grammar/style checks tuned for prose writing.
- ·Established Mac App Store distribution with editorial features and a long review history.
Pick Markd.ly if
- +Free on every platform. Markd.ly Mac, Windows, iPhone, iPad, and Android are all free local editors. iA Writer charges per platform — about $99 to cover Mac + Windows + iOS, and there is no Android version anymore (iA discontinued Android in 2020).
- +Live KaTeX math and live Mermaid diagrams render in the desktop preview as you type. iA Writer has neither. Technical writers, PMs, and engineers documenting systems use these every day.
- +Pandoc export to DOCX, EPUB, slides, and styled PDF in the desktop Pro tier. iA Writer exports to HTML, PDF, and Word only.
- +Full vim mode in the editor for keyboard-driven writers. iA Writer has no vim mode.
- +Encrypted documents using AES-256-GCM with PBKDF2 key derivation, stored as .md.enc files you can sync via any cloud you already use. iA Writer has no document encryption.
- +Model Context Protocol integration: agents like Claude Code can read your markdown library out of the box, and (in Pro) write to it with explicit consent. iA Writer has no MCP server.
- +`markd` CLI to open files from the terminal and set Markd.ly as your default .md handler. iA Writer has no CLI.
- +$19 lifetime desktop license at launch covers both Mac and Windows desktop. No subscription. Mobile clients are free, no in-app purchase required at launch.
Full feature comparison
Verified 2026-05-02. Source linked at the bottom.
| Feature | Markd.ly | iA Writer |
|---|---|---|
| Price (entry) | Free | $19.99 iOS (lowest paid platform) |
| Lifetime / one-time | $19 launch / $29 retail (Mac + Windows desktop, one license) | Sold per platform: $49.99 Mac + $29.99 Windows + $19.99 iOS |
| Subscription option | None | None (per-platform one-time) |
| Platforms | Mac + Windows + iPhone + iPad + Android (free editor) | Mac + Windows + iPhone + iPad (Android discontinued 2020) |
| Free trial / free tier | Free editor on every platform, no time limit | 14-day trial on Mac and Windows; iOS and Mac App Store builds are paid up front |
| Live KaTeX math | Yes (Mac + Windows desktop preview) | No |
| Live Mermaid diagrams | Yes (Mac + Windows desktop preview) | No |
| HTML export | Yes (free) | Yes |
| PDF export (standard) | Yes (free) | Yes |
| DOCX / Word export | Yes — via Pandoc (Pro) | Yes |
| EPUB / slides / styled PDF (Pandoc) | Yes (Pro, Mac today; Windows rolling) | No |
| Custom CSS / theme editor | Yes (Pro, Mac today; Windows rolling) | Built-in templates only; no in-app CSS editor |
| Snippet library with variables | Yes (Pro, Mac today; Windows rolling) | No |
| Advanced workspace search | Yes (Pro, Mac today; Windows rolling) | Standard search |
| Full vim mode | Yes (Pro, Mac today; Windows rolling) | No |
| Encrypted documents | Yes — AES-256-GCM .md.enc (Pro, Mac today; Windows rolling) | No |
| MCP integration | Read free, write Pro (with explicit per-user opt-in) | No |
| CLI (`markd`) | Yes (free, Mac) | No |
| Authorship / paste-vs-typed tracking | No | Yes |
| Multi-cloud sync polish (iCloud / Dropbox / GDrive / OneDrive) | Files are local; sync any cloud you already use | Mature multi-cloud integration |
| Style / grammar checks | No | Yes |
From Jeff, founder
I have used iA Writer for years. It is a beautiful app and that brand earned every point of polish it has. I built Markd.ly for the writers who want live KaTeX, Mermaid, Pandoc export, vim, and encrypted documents in a native editor that is free on every platform and costs $19 once for desktop Pro. If you want the iA Writer aesthetic, buy iA Writer. If you want the feature surface for $19, try Markd.ly. — Jeff
— Jeff Schiesser · Bravely Studios
FAQ
Is Markd.ly really free on every platform?+
Yes. Mac, Windows, iPhone, iPad, and Android all ship a complete native editor with live preview, HTML and PDF export, and local file editing for free. The $19 desktop Pro license unlocks Pandoc export, custom CSS, snippets, vim, encrypted documents, advanced search, and MCP write mode on Mac and Windows desktop. Mobile is free with no in-app purchase at launch.
Does iA Writer have KaTeX or Mermaid?+
No. iA Writer has not shipped live KaTeX math or Mermaid diagram rendering. Markd.ly renders both as you type in the desktop preview.
Why is iA Writer more expensive across platforms?+
iA Writer is sold per platform — about $49.99 Mac, $29.99 Windows, $19.99 iOS. There is no longer an Android version. To cover Mac + Windows + iOS you spend roughly $99. Markd.ly is free on every platform and $19 once at launch (lifetime) for desktop Pro features on Mac and Windows.
Can Markd.ly open my existing iA Writer documents?+
Yes. Markd.ly works on plain markdown files (.md) on local disk. There is no proprietary library or vault format. Point Markd.ly at the folder iA Writer is using and your documents open immediately.
More Markd.ly comparisons
Pricing verified 2026-05-02. iA Writer pricing source. Subject to change.