Dr.Explain vs HelpScribble
Dr.Explain
drexplain.comHelpScribble
helpscribble.comSide by side
| Figure | Dr.Explain | HelpScribble |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $24.17/mo | — |
| Free plan | Yes | — |
| Free trial | Yes | Yes |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 8 | 8 |
| Spec score · Help Authoring Tools | 8.5 (#4) | 7.9 (#11) |
| Founded | 2004 | 1996 |
| Headquarters | New York, New York, USA | Rawai, Phuket, Thailand |
| Payment security | The maker says financial transactions are handled by PayPro Global and transaction and credit card information is not passed to third parties. | The maker says card and other payment details are sent directly to PayPal or FastSpring and are not shared with it. |
| Support | The maker offers multilingual technical and sales support by email and toll-free voicemail. | Purchased licenses include free technical support by email; evaluators can receive support for problems that prevent proper evaluation. |
Plans
Dr.Explain
- FreeFree
- Business Temporary$290 a year
- Business Perpetual v.7$690, paid once
- Home Perpetual v.7$9,000, paid once
- Free Restricted LicenseFree
- Business License — Temporary$290 a year
- Business License — Perpetual for v.7$690, paid once
- Home License — Perpetual for v.7$9,000, paid once
HelpScribble
- HelpScribble 100-user license$35.99, paid once
- HelpScribble single user license$99, paid once
- HelpScribble 5-user license$399, paid once
- HelpScribble 10-user license$699, paid once
- HelpScribble 20-user license$1,199, paid once
- HelpScribble 30-user license$1,649, paid once
- HelpScribble 50-user license$2,399, paid once
- HelpScribble 75-user license$3,099, paid once
In their own words
Dr.Explain
Dr.Explain is a Windows help authoring tool for creating user guides, operating instructions, help files, and manuals. It captures application windows or web pages and adds numbered callouts to interface elements. Documentation can be exported as HTML, CHM, PDF, or DOCX; imports include CHM, HLP, HTML, XML, DOC/DOCX, and TXT, with project structure and formatting preserved. For software integration, it supports Help Context IDs and creates map files in.h,.vb, and.inc formats. Multiple authors can work on a project through the free Tiwri.com service or a corporate server on the company's internal network. An in-program AI Assistant offers generation, translation, and proofreading. The desktop application requires 64-bit Windows 11, 10, 8, or 7. The free license has no time limit but restricts project size and watermarks exported images; it includes 20 topics. Business Temporary costs $290 a year for five users, and Business Perpetual v.7 costs $690, paid once for five users. Home Perpetual v.7 costs $9,000, paid once for one user and excludes commercial use.
HelpScribble
HelpScribble is a paid Windows desktop help-authoring tool that takes documentation from writing through publication. A single project can produce WinHelp files, HTML Help files, printed manuals and online HTML documentation. Writers can import HPJ and RTF files from other authoring tools or reuse material with a help decompiler. Single-sourcing, version control and translation support are included. A bundled HelpContext property editor maps topics to controls in Delphi and C++Builder, while generated help works with Windows applications built in other environments, including.NET, Visual Basic and Office VBA. The maker lists compatibility from Windows 98 through Windows 11. It is Windows-only, though the maker says VMware or Win4Lin can run it on Linux, and HTML output can document Linux applications. A free evaluation download is available, with anonymous downloading and no personally identifiable information collected during evaluation. Licenses include free email support, updates and bug fixes. The single-user license costs $99 as a one-time purchase.