Whether you’re a student, professional blogger, or just looking to get organized, here are some of the best writing apps that can help you write faster while also improving your workflow.
These tools have been tested with the iPad Pro, but most of them will also work just fine on Android devices. Below is a list of different options for each specific writing purpose. Each of the apps in this list is great for a different writing purpose, so you can do a lot of experimenting and find out what works best for your needs.
Shortly: A.I. Writing Assistant (free)
We’ve left the, well, weirdest until last. Shortly is a writing app with a difference — it has another tiny writer caged inside it, who learns from your writing and pens their own additions to your story when asked. All right, so it’s really an A.I., but Shortly’s writing assistant is actually pretty good, and it’s the perfect tool for getting over a small writer’s block. Using your past pennings as a template, it’ll take the reins and type away, adding new ideas and story turns you might not have thought of. While it’s unlikely to finish your story for you, it’s a great way to get the creative impulses firing up again. Worth a download and a try, even if you’re using another app.
Ulysses (subscription)
The first app in this list to really push itself to “writers,” rather than people who just need to write, Ulysses is a strong contender for the app for serious writers. You can keep almost anything in Ulysses, including your screenplay, novel notes, a to-do or shopping list, or even your blog’s latest post. There is a strong spelling and grammar checker, it syncs up with the MacOS version of Ulysses, and it can even export as an e-book. Unfortunately, you won’t get this for free, and Ulysses requires a subscription to work. It’ll set you back $6 a month, with discounts for year-long plans — but if you’re serious about writing, Ulysses is a good investment.
Scrivener ($20)
Possibly the most powerful single tool for writing, Scrivener is one of our favorite writing apps. It costs an upfront $20, which is a lot of money for an iOS app, but for that price you get a solid writing platform, a place to keep all your research (including images), notes on characters or locations, and a useful “corkboard”-style view for your chapters, which allows you to view everything at a glance, or even move individual chapters around easily like you would on a real corkboard. It exports to e-book and other popular formats, and syncs up with the MacOS version — though you’ll need to buy that too. Still, even with those added costs, Scrivener is the real deal.
Microsoft Word (subscription)
It’s the classic app we all know and love, and probably the program we all immediately think of when anyone says “word processor.” Word comes with a number of templates for different styles of document, handles images, and has a full formatting toolbar to boot. Word is effectively Microsoft’s answer for Google Docs — except you have to pay for it. Regardless of that, if you already have an Office subscription, Word is a strong option with support for importing from and exporting to many formats, cloud-based storage, and real-time editing with collaborators, plus the advantage of being the word-processing program of choice for many professional editors.
PlainText
If you’re looking for something clean and simple, PlainText has got you covered. It’s not as feature-rich or as pretty to look at as some of the others on this list, but it does what it is supposed to do: help you get writing done. The team behind it also developed the very populat WriteRoom (Hog Bay Software), so they’ve got experience in this realm. It does allow for syncing via Dropbox and is perhaps the most frictionless app on this list because of its stripped-down nature.
Byword
The new kid on the iOS block, Byword has been around on the Mac for some time. Now available for both the iPhone and iPad, it brings much of what the Mac app had to the mobile platform. Featuring Markdown support, syncing in the cloud, and an interface that balances feature set, focus and function, Byword already makes this list based on my limited time with it. Those using Byword on the Mac should jump into using it on the iPad to create a continuum in their writing workflow, and the consistency across all platforms is what makes this one a winner in my books during my brief look at it for the iPad.
There are others to consider (Notesy immediately comes to mind), but hopefully with this guide you’ll be able to find the writing app for your iPad that best suits you. Because there’s nothing worse than playing around with writing tools rather than actually writing with them.
Notability
If we had to recommend just one iPad note-taking app, it would be Notability. The app offers a delightful writing experience, yet it also makes it easy to embed images, annotate PDFs, and even record voice memos.
Sketching and drawing in Notability is easy and downright delightful. Being able to doodle and quickly sketch out illustrations is one of our favorite things about taking notes on paper. Notability does an excellent job of emulating this experience, while also allowing you to do things you can’t do on paper such as resizing and moving your drawings.
In addition, Notability includes a variety of flexible layout options. This allows you to, for instance, have a slide or reference material open on one side of the page while you take notes on the other.
And beyond the layout of individual pages, you can also organize your notes using digital “Dividers” (which is perfect if you’re used to taking notes in a physical binder).
Finally, Notability gives you plenty of options for exporting and sharing your notes, including Google Drive, Dropbox, and AirDrop.
Price: $8.99
Check out the video below to see Notability in action:
Noteshelf
Noteshelf was our favorite note-taking app for the iPad before we discovered Notability, and it’s still a superb option.
It has many of the features we love in Notability, including the option to annotate PDFs and multitask with the iPad’s split screen. You can also record voice notes to go along with your handwritten notes, which is perfect for recapping a lecture or meeting at a later date.
If you speak/write multiple languages, you’ll also be pleased to know that Noteshelf can recognize handwriting in 65 different languages. This makes it a powerful tool whether you’re taking a language class or learning a language on your own.
Finally, Noteshelf lets you export your notes to iCloud, Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive, and Evernote. The option to export to Evernote is noticeably missing from Notability, making Noteshelf our top pick for serious Evernote users.
Apple Watch users will also benefit from the app’s ability to record voice notes using the Noteshelf Apple Watch app.
Price: $9.99
GoodNotes 5
Up next, we have GoodNotes 5. This app has everything you want for taking notes, including the ability to switch between typing and writing. Plus, you can choose from several built-in note layouts and templates, as well as import your own.
Notably, GoodNotes 5 lets you adjust the sensitivity and palm recognition of the pen to match your writing style. This is perfect if you’re like me and tend to press very hard when writing.
Finally, GoodNotes 5 includes a “Presentation Mode” that lets you turn your iPad into a digital whiteboard. Using either AirPlay or an HDMI cable, you can project what you’re writing onto a larger screen while still being able to see the GoodNotes interface on your iPad. This is handy whether you’re giving a class presentation or pitching a business idea.
Price: $7.99
Want to learn how to take better notes? Check out our guide to the best note-taking systems.
Apple Notes
We couldn’t discuss iPad note-taking apps without mentioning Apple Notes. The app comes free with macOS/iOS devices, and it does a great job of letting you type or take notes by hand. The app’s drawing features are also solid, making it easy to add sketches and illustrations to your notes.
Aside from being free, the biggest advantage of Apple Notes is its deep integration with iOS. If you use iCloud and other Apple devices, you can effortlessly switch between taking notes on your iPad, iPhone, and Mac.
Plus, everything you create is automatically backed up to iCloud, and you can even create voice notes using Siri while you’re on the go.
Price: Free
Penultimate
Developed by Evernote, Penultimate is designed to be the go-to note-taking app for Evernote users. It has all the standard note-taking features you want, including a variety of layouts and the ability to search your handwritten notes with optical character recognition.
If you already use Evernote, then you can seamlessly add Penultimate to your workflow. Once you sign into the app with your Evernote account, all your notes will automatically sync to the Evernote notebook of your choice.
While the additional writing features of Noteshelf still make it our preferred note-taking app to use with Evernote, Penultimate remains a solid choice (especially if you’re looking for a free app).
Price: Free
Conclusion
What are the best apps for writers on the iPad?We all know that, because we’ve heard it over and over again. But the iPad gives us something better than even desktop computers: portability.