{
    "products": [
        {
            "slug": "ulysses",
            "name": "Ulysses",
            "kind": "app",
            "website": "https://ulysses.app/",
            "page": "https://listme.name/software/ulysses",
            "tagline": "Writing app for Apple devices with project organization and export",
            "summary": "Ulysses is a writing app for Mac, iPad and iPhone from Ulysses GmbH & Co. KG. It keeps drafts in projects, syncs them through iCloud and exports to PDF, Word and ebook formats. It is sold as an annual or monthly subscription.",
            "developer": "Ulysses GmbH & Co. KG",
            "platforms": [
                "macos",
                "ios",
                "ipados"
            ],
            "pricing": "subscription",
            "price_note": "$39.99 a year or $5.99 a month in the US; free trial on all devices",
            "free_to_use": false,
            "open_source": false,
            "strengths": [
                "Syncs across Mac, iPad and iPhone through iCloud",
                "Exports to PDF, Word and ebook formats",
                "Family Sharing for up to five other members"
            ],
            "limits": [
                "Apple devices only, with no Windows or Android app",
                "Subscription only, with no one-time purchase listed"
            ],
            "checked": "2026-10-10",
            "connected_to_publisher": false,
            "overview": "Ulysses keeps drafts in projects and syncs them across Apple devices through iCloud. Its editor is built for long texts, with styles and themes you can switch after the writing is done. Goals let you set a character limit for a piece or a daily writing target and track it over time.\n\nExport covers the usual manuscript outputs. Ulysses turns text into PDFs, Word documents and ebooks, and it can publish to WordPress, Ghost, Medium and Micro.blog. The app is Apple-only, so Windows and Android users need another tool. It costs $39.99 a year or $5.99 a month in the US, with Apple Family Sharing for up to five other members."
        },
        {
            "slug": "vellum",
            "name": "Vellum",
            "kind": "app",
            "website": "https://vellum.pub/",
            "page": "https://listme.name/software/vellum",
            "tagline": "Mac app that formats novels into ebook and print files",
            "summary": "Vellum is a book formatting program for macOS that turns a finished manuscript into EPUB ebooks and print PDFs. It adds title pages, tables of contents and book styles, and it builds box sets when a series is complete. Drafting happens in another app, because Vellum starts from an imported manuscript.",
            "platforms": [
                "macos"
            ],
            "pricing": "paid",
            "price_note": "Paid Mac license; ebook-only and ebook plus print tiers",
            "free_to_use": false,
            "open_source": false,
            "strengths": [
                "Builds ebook and print files from one manuscript",
                "Print output with 24 trim sizes and PDF/X-1a",
                "Chapter styles apply to chapters added later"
            ],
            "limits": [
                "Mac only, with no Windows or web version",
                "Starts from an imported manuscript, not a draft"
            ],
            "checked": "2026-10-10",
            "connected_to_publisher": false,
            "overview": "Vellum imports a manuscript and builds the title page, table of contents and chapter layout automatically. You choose a book style, and it applies to every chapter, including chapters you add later. The preview updates as you edit and shows how the print edition will look, as well as the ebook on a range of devices.\n\nOutput includes EPUB 3 and EPUB 2 files that pass validation, and print editions with 24 trim sizes, full-bleed pages and PDF/X-1a files. Vellum sells two Mac licenses, one for ebooks and one for ebooks and paperbacks, so the price depends on whether you need print. The app runs only on macOS, so Windows authors need another formatting tool."
        }
    ],
    "differences": [
        "Only Ulysses runs on iOS.",
        "Ulysses: subscription. Vellum: paid."
    ],
    "shared_rankings": [
        {
            "list": "novel-and-long-form-writing-apps",
            "name": "Novel and long-form writing apps",
            "page": "https://listme.name/best/novel-and-long-form-writing-apps",
            "of": 10,
            "results": [
                {
                    "product": "ulysses",
                    "rank": 3,
                    "score": 90.5,
                    "verdict": "A polished writing app with iCloud sync, goals and exports to PDF, Word and ebook. It runs only on Apple devices and costs a subscription, while Scrivener is a one-time purchase.",
                    "best_for": "Apple users who write daily and export to Word",
                    "spec": {
                        "planning": "Projects with writing goals",
                        "export": "PDF, Word, ebook, blog posts",
                        "storage": "iCloud sync across Apple devices"
                    }
                },
                {
                    "product": "vellum",
                    "rank": 6,
                    "score": 87.5,
                    "verdict": "Strong ebook and print output, but it runs only on Mac and it starts from a finished manuscript. Atticus covers the same formatting job on Windows and Linux as well.",
                    "best_for": "Mac authors who want polished ebook and print files",
                    "spec": {
                        "planning": "Imports a finished manuscript",
                        "export": "EPUB 2 and 3, print PDF/X-1a",
                        "storage": "Local Mac app"
                    }
                }
            ]
        }
    ],
    "ranks_higher_in_closest_shared_list": "ulysses",
    "page": "https://listme.name/compare/ulysses-vs-vellum",
    "json": "https://listme.name/api/v1/compare/ulysses-vs-vellum.json",
    "notes": [
        "Scores are editorial and only comparable inside one list. Products with connected_to_publisher true receive a disclosed ranking lift: https://listme.name/methodology"
    ],
    "source": "https://listme.name",
    "license": "Free to read and cite with attribution to listme.name.",
    "docs": "https://listme.name/developers"
}