Scrivener vs Word: Which is the Best Writing Software?

If you‘re a writer embarking on a long-form project like a book or novel, you‘ve probably asked yourself: "What‘s the best software to write my manuscript in?" Microsoft Word is the default choice. It‘s familiar, it‘s everywhere, and it will get the job done. But is it really the best tool for the job?

Enter Scrivener. This purpose-built app for writers promises to make the daunting task of writing a long document easier to manage. It‘s affordable and popular among authors. But is it worth learning new software when you already know how to use Word?

In this post, we‘ll pit Scrivener against Word and compare them across the features that matter most to writers. If you‘re on the fence about which to use for your next project, read on. We‘ll help you decide.

Program Overviews

What is Scrivener?

Scrivener is a writing program created by Literature & Latte. It‘s available for Mac, Windows, and iOS (but not Android or web). Scrivener was built to handle long-form writing projects—things like novels, non-fiction books, scripts, and academic works.

Its hallmark feature is the ability to break your manuscript into sections and easily reorganize them. Scrivener also includes tools to keep track of research, format your work, and export it for publication. It‘s a one-stop shop for the entire writing process, from the first idea to the final draft.

What is Microsoft Word?

Unless you‘ve been living under a rock, you‘re probably familiar with Microsoft Word. It‘s the most popular word processor in the world. Chances are you‘ve used it to write everything from school essays to business reports.

As a general-purpose writing tool, Word can handle any text-based task you throw at it, including penning the next great American novel. It has a familiar interface and more features than you‘ll ever need (or use). The ubiquity of Word also makes it easy to share drafts with collaborators or editors who may not have specialized writing software.

Feature Comparisons

Now let‘s see how Scrivener and Word stack up across key features and capabilities.

User Interface & Writing Environment

Both Scrivener and Word offer the essential tools you need to write and edit—a place to type, basic formatting options, spell check, etc. Neither has a significant advantage here.

Scrivener‘s writing interface is clean and uncluttered. The inspector pane on the right gives you quick access to common formatting. You can also set up "Scrivenings" mode to view multiple sections as a single document.

Word‘s interface is busier, with a ribbon of options across the top. But you‘re probably already comfortable with it. You can hide the ribbon and enter Focus mode for distraction-free writing.

Winner: Tie. Both offer a comfortable environment for writing and have distraction-free modes.

Organizing & Structuring Manuscripts

Here‘s where Scrivener really shines. Long documents are made up of many smaller parts—chapters, scenes, sections. Scrivener allows you to write these in isolation, then combine them into a single manuscript.

The Binder pane on the left of the screen shows your document‘s structure. You can drag and drop to reorder sections. Folders can be used to organize chapters or other elements hierarchically.

The Corkboard view lets you see your sections as index cards and reorder them visually. It also shows a synopsis of each section, which is a handy way to overview your entire project.

With Word, your manuscript is one long, linear document. The Navigation pane does let you hop quickly between headings and sections. But there‘s no easy way to view parts in isolation or experiment with different arrangements.

While Word has an Outline view, it‘s not as intuitive as Scrivener‘s Cork board for visualizing and restructuring a manuscript.

Winner: Scrivener. The ability to write in small chunks and easily rearrange them is a game-changer for long projects. Scrivener makes it easy to structure and restructure your draft.

Research, Reference & Notation

Most non-fiction projects and many fictional ones require a lot of research and reference material. It‘s convenient to be able to store this information alongside your writing. Scrivener lets you do that.

In your project‘s Research folder, you can save ideas and background information in text files. You can also store images, PDFs, webpages, and other media. Think of it as a built-in filing system for all the raw materials that feed into your manuscript.

Scrivener also supports footnotes, comments, and annotations.

With Word, research and reference material has to be stored separately, outside the actual document. You can add footnotes, comments and links in the text itself. But there‘s no built-in way to collect and organize research files.

Winner: Scrivener. Having a dedicated Research area that‘s integrated with your project keeps everything together.

Tracking Progress

When embarking on a long writing project, it‘s helpful to set goals and track your progress. Both Scrivener and Word have features for this, but Scrivener‘s are more robust.

Scrivener‘s Project Targets let you set a desired word count for the entire manuscript. You can also specify a deadline, and Scrivener will calculate writing targets to keep you on track.

For more granular tracking, you can set a word count goal for each section. A progress bar shows how close you are to the target.

In the Outline view, you can see your total word count and the number of words in each section at a glance. It‘s an easy way to check if chapters are a similar length and spot sections that are too long or short.

Word has a word count feature that shows the total number of words and characters in your document. You can also get a count for a selected section of text. But there‘s no way to set project targets or see section-specific stats.

For motivation and accountability, you‘ll need to track your daily output manually or use a third-party plugin.

Winner: Scrivener. Writers will appreciate the ability to set goals and easily monitor progress.

Collaboration & Editing

Once you have a solid draft, you‘ll probably work with an editor to polish it. Most editors expect to work in Word, using the Track Changes and commenting features.

Track Changes lets your editor suggest edits directly in the document. You can then accept or reject each change. Comments allow your editor to explain suggested revisions or ask questions without altering your text.

Since Scrivener is designed as a solo writing tool, it doesn‘t have a change tracking feature. You can export your draft to Word and go through the editing process there. But that does negate some of the organizational benefits you get from drafting in Scrivener.

Winner: Word. Its collaboration features make it the industry standard for editing.

Exporting & Publishing

Getting your words out of the app and into a publishable format is the final step. Both programs have exporting options, but Scrivener offers more control and customization.

Scrivener‘s Compile feature lets you export your finished work in a variety of formats, including:

• Word (.doc and .docx)
• PDF
• Plain text
• HTML
• ePub
• Kindle (.mobi)

You can choose from pre-built templates for common formats like novel manuscripts and screenplays. Or you can customize the formatting to your exact specifications—font, line spacing, margins, etc.

Compiling creates a new document outside Scrivener with all your selected content and formatting. From there, you can send it to an agent, publisher, or printer.

Word has a Save As option to export to .pdf, .txt, or .htm. But customizing the output requires manually formatting the document and tweaking the layout settings. There are no built-in templates for industry standard formats.

Winner: Scrivener. The Compile feature is incredibly powerful and makes it easy to output your manuscript in submission-ready or publish-ready form.

Supported Platforms

To use any writing software, it has to be available on your devices. Scrivener and Word differ quite a bit in their supported platforms.

Word is available for Windows and Mac computers, plus Android, iOS, and Windows mobile devices. There‘s also a web version you can use in any browser, although it has fewer features than the desktop apps.

In contrast, Scrivener is only available for Mac, Windows, and iOS (iPad and iPhone). There are no Android, web, or Windows mobile versions. The developers say they are working on an Android port but don‘t give an estimated completion date.

Winner: Word. It‘s hard to beat Word‘s cross-platform availability. Scrivener‘s lack of mobile and web apps may rule it out for some people.

Pricing & Value

Scrivener is sold as a one-time purchase. A standard license costs:

• $49 for Mac
• $45 for Windows
• $19.99 for iOS

You can bundle the desktop versions for $80 to save a bit. Discounts are available for students and as an upgrade from earlier versions.

Microsoft Word is available as a one-time Office 2021 purchase for $159.99. But most users now get it through a Microsoft 365 subscription. Prices start at
$6.99/month or $69.99/year. That includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and 1 TB of cloud storage.

Winner: Scrivener. While Word itself is more expensive, an Office subscription is a great overall value if you need the other apps. For just a writing tool though, Scrivener delivers a lot of bang for your buck.

The Bottom Line

For most long-form writing projects, Scrivener is the better choice. Its organizational features and exporting options are hugely beneficial for authors. And the affordable price makes it a worthwhile investment in your writing productivity.

The main reason to choose Word is if you‘re already comfortable with it and don‘t want to learn a new program. You can make Word work, especially if your project is relatively short or simple.

But if you‘re serious about writing, Scrivener‘s purpose-built tools will serve you well. Even though there‘s a learning curve, it‘s a curve worth climbing. By the time you finish your first draft, the time spent learning Scrivener will seem minor compared to the time it saved you.

Ready to get started with Scrivener? Download the free trial today. Then dive into the built-in tutorial project to learn the ropes. There are also tons of third-party resources, from blog posts to entire books, to help you master the software.

Happy writing!