aText vs Espanso

aText replaces abbreviations you define with frequently used phrases in applications, helping speed up repeated typing on Windows and macOS. Snippets can insert formatted text, images, and attachments into applications such as Word, Mail, Outlook, Pages, and Gmail. It can capitalize new sentences and correct double capitals. Advanced snippets can use date and time scripts, editable fields, keystrokes, scripting, and mouse scripts; built-in options cover misspelling correction, HTML and JavaScript coding, and emojis. Data can sync between computers through OneDrive, Dropbox, Google Drive, iCloud Drive, or a shared network folder, including across Windows and macOS. The maker describes collaboration in a multi-user environment and support for virtual machines and remote desktop clients. Its privacy policy says the app monitors keystrokes globally to expand abbreviations, but does not collect, save, or transmit keystrokes typed in other applications or transmit user-created data. A 21-day trial is available, and a free plan is listed. Personal One year costs $4.99 a year for one user on three computers and expires without automatic charge. Other listed options include lifetime and business licenses, with terms and limits varying by plan.

Espanso detects configured keywords as they are typed and replaces them with saved text. It supports reusable templates for customer support replies, sales pitches, and medical reports, while a search bar opened with Alt+Space helps users find and insert snippets. Snippets can also insert dates, including past and future dates, or emoji shortcuts. They may run shell commands or custom scripts, and forms can pass values to scripts. Users can install or build reusable packages through Espanso Hub, which includes a package manager and store. Espanso says it works with most applications and supports app-specific configurations. It is available for Windows, macOS, and Linux, and costs nothing under the GPL-3 open-source license. Configuration is handled through YAML files; a graphical interface is described as planned for the future. Users can sync configuration through cloud storage such as Dropbox or Google Drive, or through GitHub, although the unmanaged-directory method is experimental. The software ships with very few built-in matches, and some trigger types remain unsupported.