Final Draft vs Google Docs
Final Draft
finaldraft.comGoogle Docs
docs.google.comSide by side
| Figure | Final Draft | Google Docs |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $0.69/mo | $7/mo |
| Free plan | — | — |
| Free trial | Yes | Yes |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | — |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| iOS | Yes | Yes |
| Android | — | Yes |
| Plans published | 12 | 11 |
| Spec score · Text App | 9.1 (#1) | 8.3 (#7) |
| Collaboration | Final Draft supports real-time collaboration on the script and Beat Board, while Final Draft Cloud provides asynchronous collaboration. | People can edit and comment together, assign tasks, manage access permissions, and restore earlier document versions. |
| Free plan | No | Yes |
| Security | Final Draft says encrypted cloud storage protects scripts from AI scraping and describes its collaboration and sharing as enterprise-secure. | Google says Docs data is encrypted by default and supports privacy controls and advanced client-side encryption. |
Plans
Final Draft
- Final Draft Suite Annual$99.99 a year
- Final Draft Suite Monthly$16.99 a month
- Final Draft 13$249.99 a month
- Final Draft Suite annual$8.33 a year
- Final Draft Suite$16.99 a month
- Upgrade to Final Draft 13$79.99, paid once
- Educational Edition$99.99, paid once
- Final Draft 13 Student$99.99, paid once
- Final Draft 13 Personal$199.99, paid once
- Final Draft 13 Educators & Non-profitsPriced on request
Google Docs
- Business Starter — Flexible$8.40 a month
- Business Starter — Annual/Fixed-Term$7 a month
- Business Starter — Annual payment$84 a year
- Business Standard — Flexible$16.80 a month
- Business Standard — Annual/Fixed-Term$14 a month
- Business Plus — Flexible$26.40 a month
- Business Plus — Annual/Fixed-Term$22 a month
- Business PlusPrice not published
- Business StandardPrice not published
- Business StarterPrice not published
In their own words
Final Draft
Final Draft is screenwriting software that automatically formats scripts and supports planning, drafting and production workflows. Beat Board, Outline Editor and Structure Lines help writers brainstorm, outline and navigate drafts. SmartType completes common character names and locations, and writers can store multiple dialogue versions. The software includes templates, customizable workflows, autosave, sprint timers and writing statistics. Production tools cover revision, location tracking, casting, scheduling, budgeting, production tagging and reporting. Real-time collaboration works on scripts and the Beat Board; Final Draft Cloud adds asynchronous collaboration, Vault storage, project folders, ScriptNotes, sharing and optional desktop-to-cloud syncing. Final Draft is available for macOS, Windows, web and iOS, but the numbered desktop versions do not run on iPad or iPhone; Final Draft Go is separate. Desktop requirements are macOS 12 Monterey or later, or Windows 10 or later with an Intel or AMD processor; Chromebook is not supported. Suite plans include Final Draft 13 and Cloud: $99.99 a year or $16.99 a month, each with a 5-day trial.
Google Docs
Google Docs is an online document editor for creating content and collaborating with others. It includes templates, smart canvas building blocks, smart chips, pageless mode, and document tabs. Collaborators can edit and comment together, assign tasks, manage permissions, and restore earlier versions. Gemini in Docs can draft documents using information from Drive, Gmail, and Chat. Docs can create meeting notes from Calendar events and supports electronic signatures and contract templates. Microsoft Word and PDF files can be imported, while Word files can be edited while preserving the original. Documents can be created, accessed, and edited offline. Docs connects with Gmail, Drive, Sheets, Calendar, Chat, and Meet. Anyone with a Google Account can create documents, although some features require a Google Workspace plan. It runs in web browsers and on Android and iOS devices. A free plan and 14-day trial are listed; paid Workspace plans start at 7 USD per user per month with annual billing. Google says data is encrypted by default.