Fade In Alternatives for Windows, Mac and Linux Screenwriters

Fade In is alive and still sold as a one-time purchase. Its maker, GCC Productions, lists version 5.0.15 on the Fade In download page for Windows 7 or later, macOS 10.10 or later and 64-bit Linux. An individual licence costs US$79.95 one-time, charged in your local currency at checkout.

People who search for a replacement usually want one of three things: a free editor, live co-writing without paying for the optional Fade In Access service, or the Final Draft format a producer insists on. The seven picks cover each, starting with the industry format and the free cross-platform option, then moving to cloud and Mac apps.

Prices below are as of November 8, 2026. Our method is on How we review tools.

Quick comparison

Final Draft

Final Draft is still the format many producers, agencies and studios ask for, so it is the default move if a buyer wants native .fdx files. Version 13 runs on macOS 12 or later and Windows 11 with an Intel or AMD processor, and one licence can be signed in on two computers at once.

The Final Draft product page lists US$249.99 to buy outright, roughly three Fade In licences, or US$99.99 a year or US$16.99 a month for the Final Draft Suite subscription, which includes Final Draft Cloud. Subscriptions start with a 5-day trial, and there is a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Best for: Writers whose agent, showrunner or studio requires Final Draft files.

Pricing:

• One-time: US$249.99
• Subscription: US$99.99 a year or US$16.99 a month
• 5-day trial; 30-day money-back

Watch out for:

• Fade In users on Linux cannot follow: the requirements list only macOS and Windows, and Chromebooks are not supported.

Official site: Final Draft.

Trelby

Trelby is the closest free match to what Fade In does on Windows and Linux. It is open source under the GPL, it has downloads for both systems, and a Mac install goes through Python's pip.

The Trelby releases page credits version 2.4.13 with a fix for importing Fade In files, which helps when moving old scripts across. The latest version, 2.4.16.2, came out on October 3, 2025 and added translation support with an Italian interface. It is a script editor and nothing more: no cloud, no mobile app and no co-writing.

Best for: Linux and Windows writers who want a free, offline script editor.

Pricing:

• Free and open source (GPL)

Watch out for:

• Releases are slow; the most recent one is dated October 3, 2025.
• There is no packaged Mac app, so setup on macOS takes a terminal.

Official site: Trelby.

WriterDuet

WriterDuet covers the one feature Fade In's demo leaves out. Realtime collaboration is the heart of the product, and on paid plans partners can work on the same script in a browser without installing anything. On the free plan, collaborators can only read.

The free plan keeps 3 projects with one document each. Plus costs US$9.99 a month or US$89.88 a year and adds the desktop app, while Premium at US$13.99 a month adds history and ReadAloud, per the WriterDuet subscription guide.

Best for: Writing partners who need to type in the same draft at the same time.

Pricing:

• Free: 3 projects, one document each
• Plus: US$9.99 a month, or US$89.88 a year
• Pro: US$11.99 a month, or US$107.88 a year
• Premium: US$13.99 a month, or US$125.88 a year

Watch out for:

• A single year of Plus costs more than a Fade In licence, and you keep paying every year after that.

Official site: WriterDuet.

Highland Pro

Highland Pro is the Apple pick for writers who prefer typing plain-text Fountain to clicking through element menus. A Navigator maps sections, scenes and notes, Revision Mode tracks changes in colour, and iCloud keeps Mac, iPad and iPhone in step.

It is a subscription at US$9.99 a month or US$59.99 a year in the US, after a 30-day trial. Highland Pro replaced Highland 2 in March 2025, and our Highland 2 alternatives page explains what changed.

Best for: Mac and iPad writers who like Fountain and want sync built in.

Pricing:

• Monthly: US$9.99
• Yearly: US$59.99 (US$4.99 a month)
• 30-day free trial

Watch out for:

• It runs only on Apple devices, and its creator John August described iCloud syncing as frustrating and unreliable in a post from April 2026.

Official site: Highland Pro.

Beat

Beat is free and open source on macOS under GPL v3, and it imports Fade In scripts along with Final Draft, Highland and Celtx files. FDX imports keep notes and revisions.

It writes in Fountain and exports Final Draft and PDF, with an outline view, scene cards, revision tracking and statistics. The iOS app is 12.99 euros once. Its developer posted a project update on the Beat site on September 26, 2026.

Best for: Mac writers who want a free editor that opens their Fade In files.

Pricing:

• macOS: free (GPL v3)
• iOS: 12.99 euros one-time, less in some countries
• Separate low-cost edition for schools and organisations

Watch out for:

• No Windows or Linux version is planned, so it replaces Fade In only on a Mac.
• Files stay on your machine. There is no cloud sync or co-writing.

Official site: Beat.

Arc Studio

Arc Studio is a cloud editor whose Pro plan adds outlining, season outlines, history, revision management and collaborator invites. Paid plans include desktop and iPhone and iPad apps, so a draft started in the browser follows you to the couch.

Prices are yearly only: US$69 for Essentials and US$99 for Pro, with a 7-day Pro trial and US$70 off Pro for students with an .edu email, according to the Arc Studio pricing page. The free plan keeps 2 scripts.

Best for: TV writers who plan seasons and want revisions tracked in the cloud.

Pricing:

• Free: 2 scripts, watermarked PDF
• Essentials: US$69 a year
• Pro: US$99 a year
• Students with an .edu email: US$70 off Pro

Watch out for:

• Essentials drops outlining, history and custom formats, so the structure tools that draw Fade In users here start at US$99 a year.

Official site: Arc Studio.

Slugline

Slugline 2 is a minimal Mac editor built on Fountain, and like Fade In it is a one-time purchase. The app is free without watermarks up to page six; US$49.99 removes the page limit and adds FDX export.

Scripts sync between Mac, iPhone and iPad through iCloud or Dropbox, per the Slugline site. The Mac app needs macOS 10.14 or later and the mobile app iOS or iPadOS 14.

Best for: Mac writers who want a small, distraction-free editor and to pay once.

Pricing:

• Free up to page six
• Unlimited writing and FDX export on Mac: US$49.99 one-time
• iPhone and iPad app: sold separately on the App Store

Watch out for:

• Apple only, and there are no collaboration features.

Official site: Slugline.

How to choose

When to stay with Fade In

Keep Fade In if you write alone or swap files by email and want software you own. At US$79.95 with free updates for that version, it costs less than a year of most subscriptions here, and the licence covers your own Windows, Mac and Linux machines, per the Fade In support page. Add Fade In Access only if you need the phone and tablet apps.

Frequently asked questions