Many screenwriters assume formatting is what separates one script app from another, but it's table stakes now. What differs is why you're leaving: a different writing feel, real-time co-writing, or a script that flows straight into production planning. Decide which of those three matters most, then try two apps with a scene from your own script.
Fade In describes itself as professional screenwriting software for film, TV, games, stage and radio, with outlining and revision tools built in. If you're reading this, something about it doesn't suit you any more, whether that's the way you work with a co-writer, the platform you write on or what happens to the script after you type the last line. The nine below are grouped by the job each one does best.
Bottom line before you switch editors
Most screenwriters don't need a new tool so much as a change to one part of how they work. If it's collaboration, look at the apps built for co-writing in a browser. If it's the blank page, look at the drafting apps that help you write before you format. If your scripts go straight into a shoot, look at the tools that carry a script into breakdowns, call sheets and schedules.
Whatever you pick, export a script you've already finished and check it reopens cleanly. A new editor that mangles your scene headings isn't an upgrade, however nice the interface looks.
Nine screenwriting apps, in no particular order
Sorted by the alphabet only. Each line is a short description of what the maker says the app does.
Arc Studio
Best for: Writing partners and rooms who want real-time co-writing with comments and script chat, plus visual outlining, in a browser or on their devices.
Celtx
Best for: Writer-producers who want the script to feed story development and pre-production, such as breakdowns and schedules; the vendor's line is a production-ready script.
Final Draft
Best for: Writers who want scripts formatted automatically to entertainment industry standards; the vendor calls it the industry standard screenwriting software.
Highland Pro
Best for: Mac users writing scripts, novels or other projects in a distraction-free space with writing sprints; it comes from screenwriter John August and his team.
Movie Magic Screenwriter
Best for: Writers on Windows or Mac working across screenplays, stage plays and teleplays in desktop software sold as a download.
Scrivener
Best for: Long-form writers who want drafting, research and organising together, described by its maker as typewriter, ring-binder and scrapbook in one.
Story Architect
Best for: Series writers on Mac, Windows or iPhone who want as many series of a story as they like stored in one project.
StudioBinder
Best for: Production teams who want a screenwriting tool sitting next to call sheets, shot lists and schedules, all in one planning platform.
Trelby
Best for: Anyone after a free, open-source program that enforces script format and pagination, with a name database and a script compare tool.
Writing, co-writing or production: where each one sits
Formatting-first editors
Final Draft, Movie Magic Screenwriter and Trelby all centre on getting the page right: scene headings, dialogue and page breaks where a reader expects them. One of the three is free and open source, which makes it an easy one to test alongside whatever else you're trying.
Co-writing in a browser
Arc Studio is the one built around writing with someone else at the same time, with comments and chat inside the script. If your partner lives in another city, this is the group that'll change your week most.
Drafting before formatting
Scrivener and Highland Pro are for the messy part. They're happiest when you're gathering notes, research and rough pages, and one of them is aimed squarely at Mac users. Writers who also work on novels tend to feel at home here.
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From script to shoot
Celtx and StudioBinder carry the script into planning. If you also produce what you write, they save you copying scenes into a separate breakdown or shot list, and the whole crew works from one version.
A free app that stopped updating
If you've seen KIT Scenarist recommended as a free option, check before you move your work into it. It's been replaced by Story Architect, and its own page says there'll be no more KIT updates.
That doesn't rule out the successor; it means the name you remember isn't the product you'd install today. Screenwriting tools come and go more often than writers expect, so whichever app you choose, keep a PDF of every draft and an export your next editor can read.
Nine apps side by side
| Tool | Kind of app | Who it suits |
|---|---|---|
| Arc Studio | Collaborative screenwriting app | Writing partners co-writing in real time |
| Celtx | Writing plus pre-production suite | Writers whose script goes straight into production planning |
| Final Draft | Industry-standard screenwriting app | Writers wanting automatic formatting to industry standards |
| Highland Pro | Mac writing app | Mac writers who like distraction-free drafting |
| Movie Magic Screenwriter | Desktop screenwriting software | Screenplays, stage plays and teleplays on a desktop |
| Scrivener | Long-form drafting app | Long projects needing research and drafting in one place |
| Story Architect | Screenwriting app (formerly KIT Scenarist) | Series writers keeping many seasons in one project |
| StudioBinder | Production management platform | Productions needing call sheets, shot lists and a script |
| Trelby | Free open-source screenwriting program | Writers wanting a free open-source script editor |
A two-editor scene test
Pick two apps from the group that matches your reason for leaving, and give each the same small job.
- Export a finished scene from your current editor in a format the new app says it can open.
- Open it in both and check scene headings, character names and page breaks survived the move.
- Write two new pages in each, using only the keyboard, and notice which one got out of your way.
- If you co-write, invite your partner and make one change each at the same time.
- Export a PDF from both and send it to someone who reads scripts for a living.
Keep the app you were still writing in at the end of the evening without noticing the time.
One piece of advice: never switch mid-draft
Don't switch mid-draft. Finish what you're writing in the tool you know, then move across on a fresh project, when a hiccup won't hurt a deadline. Keep your old editor installed until you've reopened every script you might need to revise.
If you want a wider view, my list of screenwriting software covers more, there's a separate guide to free screenwriting software, and if you plan shots as well as scenes, have a look at my storyboard software list.
Do you make screenwriting or script software? Tool makers can ask to be considered for a featured place on this list.
Want your tool on this list? Featured spots and reviews here are paid partnerships. Here's how to partner with me.
Frequently asked questions
What should I check before leaving my current screenwriting app?
Whether your existing scripts open cleanly in the new one. Export a finished script, open it in the app you're considering and look at scene headings, dual dialogue and page breaks before you commit.
Is there a free screenwriting app that's still updated?
Several apps here state a free plan or describe themselves as free and open source. Check each one's own site for recent updates, since at least one well-known free app has stopped.
Which kind of app suits co-writing?
One built for real-time collaboration in a browser, with comments and chat inside the script. Desktop apps can work for partners too, but usually by passing files back and forth.
Can I write a novel and a screenplay in the same app?
Some drafting apps here say they're made for novelists as well as screenwriters. If you write both, test a chapter and a scene in the same project before you move everything.
Do I need production tools in my screenwriting software?
Only if you produce what you write. Writer-directors and small production teams save time when the script feeds breakdowns and schedules; a writer selling specs rarely needs that.
Will my script format change if I switch?
It can, especially with less common elements. Always compare a PDF from your old editor with one from the new app, page by page, before you send anything out.
