iA Writer
Deliberately plain markdown editor built for focus, with authorship marking for AI text.
why this verdict
Keep paying — Microsoft has not replaced it
Microsoft's version overlaps, but does not finish the writing job, so this one still earns its $5/mo.
- A named launch, not a vibe named, unlinked
- Copilot drafting inside every editor and turning blank pages into finished text. Microsoft, December 3, 2024 — no announcement link recorded yet.
- How much of the job it covers not the job editorial call
- Parts of it. The job still needs the tool to get finished.
- Is there a free way to do it? yes
- 1 of 3 listed replacements have a usable free tier: Obsidian.
- What the call is worth $60/yr
- $5/mo at the entry paid tier — $60 a year per seat.
- Threatened by
- Microsoft
- Since
- December 3, 2024
- List price
- $5/mo
- Per year
- $60
The backstory
iA Writer strips the writing surface back to markdown and focus mode, and added authorship marks that visually separate what you wrote from what a model or another person contributed. Assistants that draft for you attack the idea of a blank page. iA Writer survives by taking the opposite position: it is bought precisely by people who want to do the thinking themselves and keep plain files they own.
Escape hatches
Markdown files on disk with a full plugin ecosystem
obsidian.md open_in_newApple-native long-form writing environment
ulysses.app open_in_newClean markdown editor with a one-time price
typora.io open_in_new1 of 3 replacements have a usable free tier.