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Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
Head-to-head

Drafts vs Checkers ・

Drafts 4.8★ · Free + IAP 85
Winner Drafts
Checkers ・ 4.5★ · Free to download 40

Drafts is a powerful and versatile text editor for those who need advanced features and customization, while Checkers ・ is a simple game that is heavily hampered by an overwhelming number of ads.

Full reviews: Drafts · Checkers ・

Drafts offers a highly customizable and powerful text editing experience, praised for its automation and seamless syncing across Apple devices, though some users find its interface complex and dislike the subscription model. Checkers ・, on the other hand, is a straightforward game of checkers, but its user experience is severely degraded by an excessive and often unskippable ad presence.

Head to head

Features & Functionality edge: DraftsR2R8R10R11
Drafts Drafts is lauded as a "text editor on steroids" and a "Swiss army knife for text," offering extensive customization, scripting, and automation capabilities for managing and transforming text R2R8. Users appreciate its ability to capture text quickly from various sources, including Apple Watch, and seamlessly transfer it to other apps R11. However, some find its advanced features and menu system overly complex and user-unfriendly for simple note-taking R10.
Checkers ・ Checkers ・ provides a basic checkers game experience, which some users find relaxing and entertaining . The game includes computer opponents, though some players find them either too hard or not challenging enough . A significant drawback is the lack of an iPad landscape mode .
Ease of Use & Reliability edge: DraftsR4R5R13R15
Drafts Many Drafts users praise its speed and responsiveness for quick text input and seamless syncing across Apple devices R5R35. It's considered an "essential app" for daily workflow by many R29. However, recent updates have introduced significant bugs, including invisible text, cursor placement issues, freezing, and crashes, making the app unusable for some R4R13R15. There are also reports of lost notes during reinstallation or updates .
Checkers ・ Checkers ・ is generally simple to play, but its reliability is severely impacted by frequent freezing and unskippable ads that prevent gameplay R61R64R67. Some users report the game getting stuck after winning against the computer .
Price & Value edge: DraftsR5R12R29R33
Drafts Drafts offers a free version with key features behind a subscription, which many users find too expensive or unnecessary for a notes app R12R33R36R37. Some users who previously purchased Drafts 4 feel downgraded by the subscription model for features they already paid for . However, those who utilize its advanced features and automations consider the subscription a worthwhile investment R5R29.
Checkers ・ Checkers ・ is free to download, but the user experience is severely compromised by an overwhelming number of long, unskippable ads that often prevent gameplay R61R64R66R67. Some ads are impossible to close without force-quitting the app or downloading the advertised app . The app offers an in-app purchase to remove ads, which some users mention .
Cross-Platform & Syncing edge: DraftsR5R9R11R21
Drafts Drafts is highly praised for its seamless syncing between Apple devices (iPhone, iPad, MacBook, Apple Watch), which is a critical feature for many users R5R11R29R35. However, a significant number of users express disappointment about the lack of cross-platform support for Windows or a web version, limiting its utility for those outside the Apple ecosystem R9R21.
Checkers ・ Reviews for Checkers ・ do not provide significant information regarding cross-platform capabilities or syncing, focusing primarily on the gameplay experience and ads.
Support & Updates edge: DraftsR13R15R16R22
Drafts Drafts developers have been responsive to user feedback, for example, by providing instructions to turn off rating prompts R22. However, recent updates have introduced bugs that significantly impact usability, such as freezing, crashing, and cursor issues, which users report are not being fixed quickly enough R13R15. There are also complaints about aggressive pop-ups for updates R16.
Checkers ・ Reviews for Checkers ・ indicate that recent updates have worsened the ad experience, making the game nearly unplayable for many . Users report that the issue with unskippable ads persists even after updates .
Pick Drafts if

You are deeply embedded in the Apple ecosystem and need a powerful, customizable text editor for capturing, organizing, and transforming text across your devices, and you are willing to pay for a subscription for advanced features R2R5R8R11.

Pick Checkers ・ if

You are looking for a very basic checkers game and are willing to tolerate an extremely high volume of intrusive and often unskippable ads, or if you plan to play in airplane mode .

Evidence note: The evidence for Checkers ・ is heavily skewed towards negative reviews regarding ads, making it difficult to assess other aspects of the game in detail. The free-to-download model of Checkers ・ clearly leads to significant user frustration due to ad monetization, whereas Drafts, with its free tier and paid subscription, receives criticism for its pricing but is generally praised for its core functionality by its user base.

Frequently asked

Is Drafts a free app?
Drafts is free to download and use, but key features and advanced capabilities are locked behind a subscription R12R33R36R37.
Are there many ads in Checkers ・?
Yes, Checkers ・ is heavily criticized for having an excessive number of long, intrusive, and often unskippable ads that frequently interrupt gameplay and can make the app unusable R61R64R66R67.
Does Drafts sync across devices?
Yes, Drafts is highly praised for its seamless and reliable syncing capabilities across various Apple devices, including iPhone, iPad, MacBook, and Apple Watch R5R11R29R35.

What reviewers actually said

Built only from these 120 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.

  1. [R2] Drafts 5/5 · US A text editor on steroids.: I have never used anything like this. I’ve been using it for years now. It’s one of my most used apps. I discover new functionality that I didn’t know. existed on a regular basis in this app.
  2. [R8] Drafts 5/5 · US Never lose text you need: Simple, extensible, automatable, text capture and editing
  3. [R10] Drafts 1/5 · US Whut: Bizarre little app in how user-unfriendly it is. I suppose this is primarily for people that write code and are used to those sort of tools. I just wanted a straightforward app to write out full chapters of fanfic and my original stories. Guess I simply picked the wrong app. Idk. 🤷🏾‍♂️
  4. [R11] Drafts 5/5 · US Outstanding; Perfect for the Age of AI: I absolutely love Drafts as my premium capture place when I am out and about or wherever I am, even in the office. I can record quickly something on my phone, which goes to Drafts, or I can press the action button on my watch and whatever I record goes straight to Drafts. From there I can edit it and move it into whatever destination I choose, whether it's a
  5. [R4] Drafts 1/5 · US Everything is invisible: Something happened that I didn't do and now everything in the editor window is invisible. I cannot access any notes because the content is invisible. Adding content is invisible too. I tried toggling the modern editor (new TextKit) but that didn't change things.
  6. [R5] Drafts 5/5 · US “It feels like a safe place for creativity and organization to coexist.”: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ I’ve tried a lot of note-taking apps, but Drafts has become my favorite. I love that it’s only $1.99, and everything syncs seamlessly between my iPhone and MacBook. That alone makes it worth it for me. I use it for all kinds of things, planning systems, planning guides, bills, important dates, routines, and regimens.
  7. [R13] Drafts 1/5 · US Freezes in iPad IOS26.1 with External Kayboard: I have been a user for several years. That is until IOS26.0 and it freezing and crashing with external keyboard. They said it would be fixed in IOS26.1, but the problem still exists. I will be switching to Obsidian which is not as straight forward or simple to use, but at least it works.
  8. [R15] Drafts 3/5 · US New bug in v40 can’t placed cursor: I love this app. It’s my go-to when other apps aren’t letting me type out my ideas because of poorly designed interfaces or character restrictions. I can get just what I want here, then copy and paste where I need it. And until today it was 100% reliable. Now I can’t place the cursor back in my text where I want it. If I touch where I want it, it lands 5-6 l
  9. [R12] Drafts 3/5 · US Some handy features.: Some handy features… However, if you been using Drafts and not checked out the default Apple Notes for sometime, it’s worth checking out. The new Apple Notes is greatly improved and negates any reason to subscribe to Drafts. The ability to add photos with your default Apple Notes as one great example! The subscription and rating process is broken... App is free, so it allow
  10. [R29] Drafts 5/5 · US Indispensable to my workflow: I use Drafts every day to switch seamlessly between my iPhone, iPad and MacBook to work on anything from short posts to long articles. It is a critical part of my workflow and one I pay for gladly.
  11. [R33] Drafts 3/5 · GB Coulda been a contender....: This is an upgrade I’d pay for ... but not month after month for the rest of my life.
  12. [R9] Drafts 3/5 · US Not cross platform: Great app but not cross platform. Sadge.
  13. [R21] Drafts 3/5 · US Good app but lacks non-iOS compatibility: Overall I really like this app and want to use it more but the lack of support for a Windows version or Web version that could be accessed from a Windows PC is the main drawback. Hopefully the developers will add this functionality so the app could become even more of a core piece to my productivity stack.
  14. [R16] Drafts 1/5 · US Stop with the pop ups: I only use this for frictionless writing that doesn’t distract me so I can get my idea out before it goes because I have significant brain damage. If you cease to provide this functionality and make me lose another good idea I will cease to find this app relevant. I want an option to see updates WHEN I FEEL LIKE IT. Otherwise I DO NOT CARE. I ONLY care about not having a dis
  15. [R22] Drafts 1/5 · US pop up ratings push: I automatically give three stars to any app that interrupts me to try and get me to give it a rating. UPDATE the developer sent an email, explaining how to turn off the ratings push. Thank you. Back to a five star rating.
  16. [R36] Drafts 3/5 · GB Priced for power users: I like Drafts 4 and would be happy to pay an upgrade feeof 9.99 or maybe even 14.99, but 17.50 a year recurring feels too much. I know it does great things and am sure it is worth it for some people, but I fear it's overshooting it for most users.
  17. [R37] Drafts 1/5 · US Subscriptionware: No lifetime purchase option; greedy and expensive.
  18. [R61] Checkers ・ 1/5 · US The adds: The adds are atrocious and they don’t even give you an option to close it out it’s just an add machine.
  19. [R64] Checkers ・ 1/5 · US Adware: Can’t get past the ad for another game
  20. [R66] Checkers ・ 3/5 · US Too Many Ads: The game is a great game. I have been using the app for a number of years. The ads being inserted in-between games has become absolutely annoying. I am contemplating getting rid of the app.
  21. [R67] Checkers ・ 1/5 · US All ads no game: I know that advertising pays for these games but when you have to sit through 5-6 LONG commercials to get to the game. I deleted after the 6th ad.
  22. [R35] Drafts 5/5 · US Write anything fast: Been using this app for years. Love the sync with the Mac and the ability to quickly start any note.

Synthesized from 120 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store