Scrivener

About Scrivener
Scrivener is a content creation and editing software that helps novelists, academicians, screenwriters, non-fiction writers, lawyers, translators, and journalists create manuscripts, set goals, track project completion status, and edit text, among other operations. The corkboard functionality lets content developers create index cards to plan and arrange the content creation process according to individual preferences and requirements.
Scrivener allows novelists to format text, highlight specific phrases, post comments, add annotations, create lists, and insert images during text editing processes. With the outliner tool, users can view chapter overviews, check word counts, review synopsis, and arrange drafts in multiple custom folders and subfolders. The split screen module enables writers to open and view multiple documents on a single screen, streamlining research, translating, and transcribing processes.
Administrators can use Scrivener to create project templates, add custom project icons, and define creative and academic content writing formats, such as MLA, scriptwriting, and APA. It also lets professionals set targets, view writing history, monitor keyword usage, and create status tracking labels.
Scrivener facilitates integration with MathType and allows users to export created content in multiple file formats, including Microsoft Word, PDF, RTF, and OpenOffice. It also lets writers schedule automatic backups and conduct manuscript revisions using the version comparison tool.
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- Industry: Writing & Editing
- Company size: Self Employed
- Used Daily for 2+ years
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Review Source
Overall rating
- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support
- Likelihood to recommend 10.0 /10
I'm beyond impressed!
Reviewed on 2021/11/18
Scrivener is my go-to app for writing my novels and screenplays. It allows me to organize all of my...
Scrivener is my go-to app for writing my novels and screenplays. It allows me to organize all of my work in one place, and with the ability to save different drafts, I never have to worry about losing anything. With Scrivener, I can easily find the information I need. The interface is intuitive and easy to understand, and it is always available on all of my devices.
Pros
The organisational capabilities of both writing and research are invaluable. And the compile feature, once you get it set up, is astonishingly powerful and, with a bit of work, as good as Vellum.
Cons
It can take a while to learn Scrivener's unique features, but if you take the time, you'll find there's a lot more going on than you see at first. If there's one thing that bugs me is that the compile functions in Scrivener 3 are difficult compared to version 2.
- Industry: Writing & Editing
- Company size: Self Employed
- Used Weekly for 2+ years
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Review Source
Overall rating
- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support
- Likelihood to recommend 10.0 /10
Scrivener is the gold standard of writing software
Reviewed on 2023/09/26
I've been using Scrivener for years. I like that it's flexible in that I can use the features that...
I've been using Scrivener for years. I like that it's flexible in that I can use the features that I find helpful and not worry about ones I don't need.
Pros
Scrivener is as easy or complicated to use as you want it to be. You can get started quickly, then learn more about it's more advanced features as you need them.
Cons
About the only thing I don't like about it is that it's rather dull visually. For some people, however, this might be a plus, as it isn't distracting when you're writing.
- Industry: Writing & Editing
- Company size: Self Employed
- Used Daily for 2+ years
-
Review Source
Overall rating
- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Likelihood to recommend 7.0 /10
Authoring tools: still some way to go
Reviewed on 2021/09/17
My impression is that most software for authors is designed by IT people with insufficient...
My impression is that most software for authors is designed by IT people with insufficient collaboration with authors. Scrivener appears to be an exception. Basic writing, scene organisation, editing are all 10/10 fine, but for anything below the surface, users can expect an arduous learning curve. While I congratulate the designers, I admit to not liking Scrivener - but it is the best of the bunch.
Pros
Excellent user manual. Broad adoption in many countries and active support community. Good for keeping research, notes, images with the manuscript. Good backup features, saving as draft to DropBox for use on Android and auto-syncing back to PC. I've tried many other authoring programs and LibreOffice and Word, and find Scrivener suits my requirements best. I've used it for two books of 80,000 words.
Cons
Seems to be designed primarily for Mac users. Windows version works OK, but there's no Android version. Compiling process is complex and, as yet, I've not mastered it. Indexing and contents pages with page numbers is a process that gives me nightmares. Settings configuration and interface are very unintuitive. Again, I haven't mastered these.

- Industry: Writing & Editing
- Company size: Self Employed
- Used Monthly for 2+ years
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Review Source
Overall rating
- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Likelihood to recommend 9.0 /10
Great for managing writing and research projects
Reviewed on 2022/05/26
My overall experience with Scrivener is positive. I like that it's not a subscriber-based applicatio...
My overall experience with Scrivener is positive. I like that it's not a subscriber-based application, and I can access it on both my desktop and iOS devices.
Pros
I've used Scrivener for several years for my long-form writing projects. What I like about it most is that it enables me to manage my writing, research, and ideas all in one place. I can organize my research and track notes, store my drafts and ideas, and save them all in one place. When the developers created an iOS version of Scrivener, it enabled me to read my writing on my iPad as if I were reading on printed paper. Scrivener has tons of features, but I particularly like the Typewriter Mode feature that keeps the line of text in a fixed position on my screen so I don't have to keep scrolling up as I type. The ability to filter sections and drafts of writing is also helpful. I can label sections of writing any way I want. And finally, Scrivener also allows for exporting documents to various formats, including ePub. Scrivener takes a while to learn, but it's highly useful for serious writers.
Cons
The export features are complicated, but there's plenty of documentation to show to use it.

- Industry: Translation & Localization
- Company size: Self Employed
- Used Daily for 2+ years
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Review Source
Overall rating
- Value for Money
- Ease of Use
- Customer Support
- Likelihood to recommend 9.0 /10
Productivity and focus booster
Reviewed on 2022/06/27
Pros
Scrivener is without a doubt one of the richest app function-wise on the. market. It is actually so powerful and rich that most of its functions require extensive research. It is so powerful that if you are thinking of a function you need, Scrivener will most probably have it – you just need to look for it.
Cons
What I don't like about it is mostly related to the abundance and wealth of options it offers. The learning curve is really a long one and it requires research and finding out in order to really discover every single option there is.
Scrivener FAQs
Below are some frequently asked questions for Scrivener.Q. What type of pricing plans does Scrivener offer?
Scrivener offers the following pricing plans:
- Starting from: US$49.00/one-time
- Free Trial: Available
Scrivener is available on a perpetual license across multiple bundles, outlined below. It also offers a 30-days free trial. MacOS: Standard: $51.95 (? 3,890) Educational: $44.88 (? 3,360.50) Windows: Standard: $51.95 (? 3,890) Educational: $44.88 (? 3,360.50) iOS: $19.99 Windows + MacOS Bundle: $86.83 (?6,500)
Q. Who are the typical users of Scrivener?
Scrivener has the following typical customers:
Self Employed, 2–10, 11–50, 51–200, 201–500, 501–1,000, 1,001–5,000
Q. What languages does Scrivener support?
Scrivener supports the following languages:
English
Q. Does Scrivener support mobile devices?
Scrivener supports the following devices:
iPhone (Mobile)
Q. What other apps does Scrivener integrate with?
We do not have any information about what integrations Scrivener has
Q. What level of support does Scrivener offer?
Scrivener offers the following support options:
Email/Help Desk, FAQs/Forum, Knowledge Base, Phone Support
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