Substack vs yWriter
Substack
substack.comyWriter
spacejock.comSide by side
| Figure | Substack | yWriter |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | — |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | — | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | Yes |
| Android | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 4 | 11 |
| Spec score · Writing Apps | 9.4 (#4) | 8.8 (#26) |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Integrations | Official integrations include RSS, podcast distribution to Apple and Spotify, Google Analytics 4, Google Tag Manager, X and Facebook pixels, Google site verification, YouTube and LinkedIn account connections. | Mobile editions use Dropbox to edit desktop projects, while the desktop program can back up to FTP when server credentials are supplied. |
| Mobile apps | Native iOS and Android apps provide reading, subscriptions, push notifications, saved posts and mobile earnings or statistics views. | Yes |
| Purpose | Substack is a publishing platform for writers, creators, and subscribers. | yWriter is novel-writing software that organizes a novel into chapters and scenes and does not generate plot ideas or perform creative tasks. |
| Rating on Apple App Store | 4.9 out of 5 from 540K ratings | 3.1 out of 5 from 25 ratings |
| Rating on Google Play | 4.8 out of 5 from 319K reviews | 3.2 out of 5 from 161 reviews |
| Support | Substack directs users to its Help Center for FAQs and walkthroughs and handles subscriber support questions on behalf of writers. | Support channels include a Google Group, Facebook page, email and an Android user forum. |
| What it does | Substack is a publishing and subscription platform for writers, podcasters, video creators and media companies, combining content creation, email distribution, payments, community and analytics. | yWriter is a novel-writing word processor that structures projects as chapters and scenes. |
Plans
Substack
- Free publishingFree
- Free to startFree
- Custom domain$50, paid once
- Paid subscriptionsPrice not published
yWriter
- DesktopPrice not published
- AndroidPrice not published
- iOSPrice not published
- Mac betaFree
- Windows desktopFree
- yWriter7 for WindowsFree
- yWriter for MacOS betaFree
- Android app$5.49, paid once
- iPhone/iPad app$14.99, paid once
- yWriter for AndroidPrice not published
In their own words
Substack
Substack is a publishing platform for writers, creators, and subscribers, bringing posts, newsletters, podcasts, video, live streams, and pages into one publishing flow. Its editor supports scheduling, autosaved drafts, version history, templates, SEO metadata, and headline A/B testing. Creators can offer free or paid posts, subscriptions, trials, gifts, and group plans. Discovery tools include recommendations, Notes, leaderboards, referrals, and search; audience segmentation and email automation are also available. Podcast episodes can be distributed automatically to Apple Podcasts and Spotify, while video can go automatically to YouTube and LinkedIn. Publishing is free. When creators enable paid subscriptions, Substack keeps 10% of subscription revenue, and Stripe charges payment processing fees. Creators own their intellectual property and mailing list and can export their data. Substack serves writers, journalists, podcasters, video creators, experts, educators, and media companies. It is available on the web, Android, and iOS. Substack directs users to its Help Center and handles subscriber support questions on behalf of writers.
yWriter
yWriter is novel-writing software that organizes a manuscript into chapters and scenes; it does not generate plot ideas or perform creative tasks. Scenes can be moved between chapters by drag and drop, and unused scenes can be left out of word counts and exports without being deleted. Each scene can record a viewpoint character, goal, conflict, and outcome, and can include multiple characters. The program tracks word counts per file and for the project, and keeps a daily log of words written. Automatic backups can run at user-set intervals, and the editor can save timed scene snapshots. yWriter is available for Windows, with Linux use tested through Wine, as well as Android and iOS apps. The Windows application stores data on the user's computer and needs no internet connection for ordinary use. The site says mobile versions are intended for editing PC projects on the go using Dropbox. The Windows version is free to use and supports Windows 7 SP1 or newer; the macOS beta is temporarily free but unstable. Mobile apps are described as available for a small charge, with no amount listed.