I think I have tried virtually every all-in-one writing app oriented at people who do big writing projects like books. Scrivener, Zettlr, Atlas, etc. Ulysses beats them all, for me. It is the perfect blend of feature-rich, well-designed UI, and minimalist, streamlined writing. Every time I think another app can do it better (or cheaper) than Ulysses, I find myself crawling back and falling in love with it all over again. Writing with it is just so smooth, I never have to think about saving or doing backups, and writing on mobile is just as delightful. No other app does exporting as easily or beautifully as Ulysses. There is a bit of a learning curve when you first use it, but once you get over that hump, it's all smooth sailing. I've been using it for almost three years now, and I plan to continue for the foreseeable future. I'll admit, I do wish there was a way to hide the markdown since I really don't like seeing it (or seeing the unsightly spaces when you use a theme that semi-hides it) but that's a very small gripe in the grand scheme of things. The pricing is also a bit steep, but again, there's just nothing else on the market like this, and the developers have done a very good job keeping it lightweight and polished for long-term use. The only thing that would make me seriously reconsider using it is if there was a subscription price increase.If you're reading this, Ulysses devs, thank you so much for the app. It's become a daily driver for me, and I would cry if it was discontinued at some point.
First of all, thank you so much for this kind review. We're really glad to hear that Ulysses fits your writing so well and that it beats the competition for you. It especially means a lot that you called out the minimalist UI and the features — that's exactly what our small team pours its energy into every day. On hiding the markup in the editor: I've forwarded your request to the team. In the meantime, are you currently using a theme that shows the markup fairly prominently? If you'd like something closer to a clean, WYSIWYG feel, the theme "Barely There" minimizes the markup nicely. It's free at styles.ulysses.app. On pricing: totally fair to bring up, and I'd love to understand it a bit better. Ulysses works out to about 10 cents a day, so I'm curious whether it's the amount itself that feels like a lot, or more that subscriptions in general add up once you're juggling several. If it's the latter, it might be worth checking out Setapp, Ulysses is part of that bundle, so it could be a good way to get more value across the subscriptions you're already paying for. We also offer a discount for students and academic staff, so if you're eligible, it's worth applying. Behind the app is a small European team who build every feature you enjoy and are paid fairly for their work, and we set the price hoping people who use Ulysses daily, like you, would find it a fair trade. That said, if there's anything specific that would make it feel more worth it, I'd genuinely like to hear it, feel free to reach out anytime at help@ulysses.app.
