Dev tools · alternatives · 2026

24 alternatives to River Writer

A quiet Mac app for screenplays, stage plays and novels

Below are 24 products that do a similar job, ranked by how close each is in meaning and then by launch-day votes.

1. 1
   FocusWrite▲115

   A local-first writing app with focus modes.

   15d ago · focuswrite.app · its alternatives →

2. 2
   Paragraph Notes▲155

   A private Markdown notes app for Mac

   Sep 2026 · paragraphnotes.md · its alternatives →

3. 3
   Jotterpad▲115

   The writing app for creatives

   2015 · 2appstudio.com · its alternatives →

4. 4
   Ulysses for iPhone▲165

   Write. Anything. Anywhere.

   2016 · apps.apple.com · its alternatives →

5. 5
   WriteRoom▲67

   Distraction Free Writing

   2014 · apps.apple.com · its alternatives →

6. 6
   Hemingway Desktop App▲218

   An editor that makes your writing bold and clear.

   2014 · hemingwayapp.com · its alternatives →

7. 7
   Stack▲120

   A beautiful and smart key-value based writing app

   2017 · stack-writer.com · its alternatives →

8. 8
   Highland▲66

   Distraction-free screenwriting app for Mac

   2014 · apps.apple.com · its alternatives →

9. 9
   Typewrite▲103

   Real-time collaborative writing

   2014 · typewrite.io · its alternatives →

10. 10
    Curator▲95

    A visual notes app for iPad

    2014 · curator.co · its alternatives →

11. 11
    Hinter▲65

    Making comedy interactive

    2016 · apps.apple.com · its alternatives →

12. 12
    Yu▲127

    A Mac app for soothing background sounds

    2015 · yu.hackplan.com · its alternatives →

13. 13
    MuM▲93

    A reading-first Markdown engine for macOS

    27d ago · mum.jiker.ai · its alternatives →

14. 14
    Composé▲91

    An editor for creating interactive iOS prototypes and apps

    2015 · its alternatives →

15. 15
    A WYSIWYM Markdown editor and brainstorming tool on the web▲5

    Minimal yet powerful writing app

    2022 · wrighter.vercel.app · its alternatives →

16. 16
    Hum▲84

    Songwriting for iPhone

    2014 · justhum.com · its alternatives →

17. 17
    Openbroca▲96

    Lightweight AI dictation for Mac that sounds like you

    12d ago · openbroca.com · its alternatives →

18. 18
    Hi▲62

    A real-time writing community.

    2014 · its alternatives →

19. 19
    Bear▲38

    Beautiful writing app for notes and prose

    2016 · apps.apple.com · its alternatives →

20. 20
    Commonplace Book App▲78

    Digitally record quotes and book notes

    2017 · its alternatives →

21. 21
    Polymer▲71

    A polyphonic voice distributor app for Mac

    2014 · polymer-app.com · its alternatives →

22. 22
    Word Flow 2.0▲80

    Blazing fast keyboard for iOS now with GIFs and more

    2016 · apps.apple.com · its alternatives →

23. 23
    Collate Notes▲9

    A flexible cross-platform note-taking application

    2017 · collatenotes.com · its alternatives →

24. 24
    ShallowParse▲6

    A text editor for creative writing

    2014 · shallowparse.com · its alternatives →

Ranked by how close each launch is in meaning, then by votes. Prices were read from each product’s own site when checked and can change. Refine with your own description →