Publishing · ranked shortlist
Best Publishing software in 2026
20 approved publishing listings, ordered by published rating with the method stated below rather than assumed.
- Tools ranked
- 20
- Entry price range
- $1.99-$299
- Publish a $0 plan
- 12 of 20
How this ranking is derived
The sort key
Published rating, highest first. Ties break on the number of ratings behind the score, then on product name so the order never depends on what the API happened to return first. That is the whole rule, there is no weighting, no score of our own, and nothing paid: no sponsored slot runs on these pages.
Where the ratings come from
No listing in this set carries a rating, so the order falls back to name. Those scores are aggregated from public sources rather than collected here, Softwr hosts no reviews of its own, which is also why no rating on this page is marked up as ours in structured data.
What the pool is
Approved publishing listings, capped at 20 per page; 20 came back for this one. It is not the whole market, and a tool being absent means we hold no record of it rather than that it failed a test. The unranked full set is on the publishing category page.
The ranking
Each entry lists why it sits where it sits, drawn from its own published rating and pricing.
- #1
Affinity Publisher
Highest rated hereDesktop page layout application, free since the Affinity range was relaunched by Canva
- No rating on record, so it ranks below everything that has one.
- Free, no paid tier is published at all.
- Billing
- Free, no licence fee
- Published tiers
- 1 tier
- Tags
- Page Layout, Desktop Publishing, Prepress, Print
- #2
BookBaby
Pay-per-book self-publishing service for ebook conversion, print on demand and distribution
- No rating on record, so it ranks below everything that has one.
- Paid from $299 a month, with no free plan.
- 3 published tiers, topping out at $2,190.
- Billing
- One-time purchase per project
- Published tiers
- 3 tiers
- Tags
- Self Publishing, Ebook Conversion, Print On Demand, Isbn
- #3
Draft2Digital
Ebook and print distribution aggregator that takes a percentage instead of a fee
- No rating on record, so it ranks below everything that has one.
- Its top tier is unpriced and sold by quote.
- Billing
- 10% of retail list price, no upfront fee
- Published tiers
- 1 tier
- Tags
- Self Publishing, Ebook Distribution, aggregator, Isbn
- #4
Everand
Unlimited ebook, audiobook, magazine and sheet music subscription, the consumer reading service formerly called Scribd
- No rating on record, so it ranks below everything that has one.
- Paid from $11.99 a month, with no free plan.
- Billing
- Per user per month, unlimited
- Published tiers
- 1 tier
- Tags
- Ebooks, audiobooks, subscription, magazines
- #5
Goodreads
Amazon-owned book cataloguing, review and recommendation app
- No rating on record, so it ranks below everything that has one.
- Free, no paid tier is published at all.
- Billing
- Free, no subscription or in-app purchases; funded by Amazon as a commerce and data feeder
- Published tiers
- 1 tier
- Tags
- books, reading, reviews, social reading
- #6
IngramSpark
Print-on-demand and distribution into the wholesale catalogue that bookshops order from
- No rating on record, so it ranks below everything that has one.
- Its top tier is unpriced and sold by quote.
- Billing
- Free title setup, then per-unit print cost and revision fees
- Published tiers
- 1 tier
- Tags
- Print On Demand, distribution, Self Publishing, Bookshops
- #7
Kindle
Amazon's consumer e-book reading app, distinct from Kindle Direct Publishing, the author-facing service
- No rating on record, so it ranks below everything that has one.
- Publishes a $0 plan, with paid tiers from $10.99 a month.
- Billing
- Free app, revenue from book purchases and optional subscription
- Published tiers
- 2 tiers
- Tags
- E Books, reading, amazon, audiobooks
- #8
Kobo
Rakuten e-reader hardware, app and ebook store, the reader-facing side of the Kobo ecosystem
- No rating on record, so it ranks below everything that has one.
- Publishes a $0 plan, with paid tiers from $9.99 a month.
- Billing
- Free store and app; hardware sold separately; optional subscription
- Published tiers
- 2 tiers
- Tags
- Ebooks, E Reader, audiobooks, Epub
- #9
Kotobee
Interactive EPUB authoring that also exports native mobile apps and hosted libraries
- No rating on record, so it ranks below everything that has one.
- Its top tier is unpriced and sold by quote.
- Billing
- Per licence per year
- Published tiers
- 1 tier
- Tags
- Interactive Ebooks, Epub3, Education, Elearning
- #10
Libro.fm
Audiobook subscription that splits revenue with an independent bookstore of your choice
- No rating on record, so it ranks below everything that has one.
- Paid from $14.99 a month, with no free plan.
- Billing
- Per credit per month, credits never expire
- Published tiers
- 1 tier
- Tags
- audiobooks, Independent Bookstores, subscription
- #11
Moon Reader
Android ebook reader app with a one-time purchase, deep format support and no subscription or store lock-in
- No rating on record, so it ranks below everything that has one.
- Publishes a $0 plan, with paid tiers from $4.99 a month.
- Billing
- One-time purchase, free ad-supported version available
- Published tiers
- 2 tiers
- Tags
- Ebook Reader, Epub, android, Offline Reading
- #12
Pressbooks
Open source book production built on WordPress, and the default tool for open textbooks
- No rating on record, so it ranks below everything that has one.
- Free, no paid tier is published at all.
- Billing
- Open source, no licence fee
- Published tiers
- 1 tier
- Tags
- Open Source, Oer, Textbooks, wordpress
- #13
PublishDrive
Ebook distribution aggregator that moved from a royalty-share model to flat-fee subscription pricing, so authors now keep 100% of the store royalty rather than splitting it with the platform
- No rating on record, so it ranks below everything that has one.
- Free, no paid tier is published at all.
- Its top tier is unpriced and sold by quote.
- Billing
- Flat-fee subscription, no commission on paid plans
- Published tiers
- 2 tiers
- Tags
- Ebook Distribution, Wide Distribution, Self Publishing, Subscription Pricing
- #14
Reedsy
Vetted marketplace of publishing freelancers with free writing and formatting tools attached
- No rating on record, so it ranks below everything that has one.
- Free, no paid tier is published at all.
- Billing
- Free tools; freelancers quote per project
- Published tiers
- 1 tier
- Tags
- Self Publishing, Freelance Marketplace, editing, Book Design
- #15
Scrivener
Long-form writing and manuscript organisation software sold as a one-time purchase per platform, with no subscription at any tier
- No rating on record, so it ranks below everything that has one.
- Paid from $23.99 a month, with no free plan.
- 3 published tiers, topping out at $121.93.
- Billing
- One-time purchase
- Published tiers
- 3 tiers
- Tags
- Writing Software, Manuscript Organisation, Novel Writing, one-time-purchase
- #16
Storytel
Unlimited audiobook and ebook subscription, strong in Europe and Latin America, no library card needed
- No rating on record, so it ranks below everything that has one.
- Paid from $14.99 a month, with no free plan.
- Billing
- Per user per month, unlimited
- Published tiers
- 1 tier
- Tags
- audiobooks, Ebooks, subscription, streaming
- #17
Wattpad
User-generated fiction publishing and reading app, owned by Naver alongside Webtoon
- No rating on record, so it ranks below everything that has one.
- Publishes a $0 plan, with paid tiers from $4.99 a month.
- Billing
- Free with ads; paid ad-free subscription and optional in-app coin purchases
- Published tiers
- 2 tiers
- Tags
- Fiction, reading, User Generated Content, Serialised Fiction
- #18
Webtoon
Naver-owned vertical-scroll digital comics platform with a paid-early-access coin system
- No rating on record, so it ranks below everything that has one.
- Publishes a $0 plan, with paid tiers from $1.99 a month.
- Billing
- Free to read on a delay; Webtoon Coins purchased to unlock early chapter access
- Published tiers
- 2 tiers
- Tags
- comics, Digital Comics, Webtoon, User Generated Content
- #19
Kindle Direct Publishing
Amazon self-publishing platform that is free to use, earning Amazon a royalty cut instead of a fee, with a hard price band and per-megabyte delivery cost governing the 70% rate
- No rating on record, so it ranks below everything that has one.
- Free, no paid tier is published at all.
- Billing
- Free to publish; Amazon earns a royalty share rather than a fee
- Published tiers
- 2 tiers
- Tags
- Self Publishing, Ebook Royalties, Print On Demand, Amazon Kdp
- #20
Kobo Writing Life
Rakuten Kobo self-publishing platform paying a 70% royalty with no delivery fee deduction and no upper price cap, a materially different structure from Amazon KDP
- No rating on record, so it ranks below everything that has one.
- Free, no paid tier is published at all.
- Billing
- Free to publish; Kobo earns a royalty share rather than a fee
- Published tiers
- 2 tiers
- Tags
- Self Publishing, Ebook Royalties, Kobo, Wide Distribution
What publishing software costs
Counted from the published pricing of the 20 listings on this page. A tool counts as free only where it publishes a $0 plan, an open-source licence or a starting price of zero.
- Cheapest paid plan
- $1.99Webtoon
- Median entry price
- $11.49across 10 priced
- Dearest entry price
- $299BookBaby
- Publish a $0 plan
- 12of 20
Paid publishing plans in this set start anywhere from $1.99 a month for Webtoon to $299 for BookBaby. The median entry price across the 10 tools that publish one is $11.49, half of them start below that figure and half above it.
Entry price is not the ceiling. The dearest published tier anywhere in this category is BookBaby's at $2,190 a month, 7.3× the highest entry price on the page. Read the top of each ladder as well as the bottom, because that is where you land after two years of growth.
12 of 20 publish a $0 plan, and 7 of those charge nothing at all. 5 tools have no free tier of any kind.
4 of 20 keep at least one tier unpriced and sold by quote, which in practice means the number you end up paying at the top end is not on this page or on theirs.
How these vendors bill
The billing model each of the 20 publishing listings publishes, counted. Two tools at the same headline price are not the same purchase if one of them charges per seat.
- Per user per month, unlimited
- 2
- 10% of retail list price, no upfront fee
- 1
- Flat-fee subscription, no commission on paid plans
- 1
- Free app, revenue from book purchases and optional subscription
- 1
- Free store and app; hardware sold separately; optional subscription
- 1
- Free title setup, then per-unit print cost and revision fees
- 1
- Free to publish; Amazon earns a royalty share rather than a fee
- 1
- Free to publish; Kobo earns a royalty share rather than a fee
- 1
- Free to read on a delay; Webtoon Coins purchased to unlock early chapter access
- 1
- Free tools; freelancers quote per project
- 1
- Free with ads; paid ad-free subscription and optional in-app coin purchases
- 1
- Free, no licence fee
- 1
- Free, no subscription or in-app purchases; funded by Amazon as a commerce and data feeder
- 1
- One-time purchase
- 1
- One-time purchase per project
- 1
- One-time purchase, free ad-supported version available
- 1
- Open source, no licence fee
- 1
- Per credit per month, credits never expire
- 1
- Per licence per year
- 1
Separately, 4 of 20 publish at least one tier with no price attached. Those are sold by quote, so the top of the ladder is negotiable, and unknowable, until you talk to sales.
What “Publishing” covers in practice
The subject tags that recur across these 20 listings, with the number of tools carrying each. A category label is a filing decision; this is the closer read of what is actually filed under it.
- Self Publishing7
- audiobooks5
- Print On Demand4
- Ebooks3
- Isbn3
- reading3
- subscription3
- Ebook Distribution2
- Ebook Royalties2
- Education2
- Epub2
- User Generated Content2
Carried by a single tool: aggregator, Book Design, distribution, editing, Freelance Marketplace, Manuscript Organisation, Page Layout, streaming. If one of those is the reason you are here, the category page is the wrong lens, go straight to that product.
How to choose between them
Four things the numbers above should change about your shortlist.
Start with the free tiers if there are enough of them
12 of 20 publishing tools here publish a $0 plan, which is enough to run a real trial without a purchase order. A free tier is worth more than a free trial when you are evaluating: a trial expires on the vendor's schedule, a free plan expires when you outgrow it. The thing to check before you commit is which of the capabilities below sit above the free line, starting with no delivery fee deducted, the single most frequently named capability in this category's published tiers.
Read the spread before you read the features
$1.99 to $299 is a $297.01 spread on entry price alone, and a spread that wide is never about polish, it is about who the vendor built for. Tools at the bottom of this ladder are priced for one person or a small team; tools near $299 are priced for a department with a procurement process. Decide which of those you are before you compare capability, or you will shortlist four tools that were never competing for the same buyer.
Check which tier you actually land on
2 of 20 tools here publish three or more tiers, and the median vendor in this category ships 1.5 of them. The advertised price is the first rung, and the things teams tend to need, no delivery fee deducted, offline downloads, are named in higher plans far more often than in entry ones. Price your shortlist at the tier that contains what you need, not at the tier on the pricing page's left edge.
The billing model matters more than the headline number
This category splits across 19 billing models: Per user per month, unlimited on 2 listings, 10% of retail list price, no upfront fee on 1, and 17 other arrangements across the rest. A per-user price and a flat subscription at the same headline figure are not the same purchase, the first one grows with headcount and the second does not. Multiply by your real team size before you compare two numbers side by side.
Compare publishing tools directly
Every pairing below is a full comparison: the same checklist applied to both, so a gap in one is a gap in the other.
- Affinity Publisher vs BookBaby
- BookBaby vs Draft2Digital
- Draft2Digital vs Everand
- Everand vs Goodreads
- Goodreads vs IngramSpark
- IngramSpark vs Kindle
- Kindle vs Kobo
- Kobo vs Kotobee
Go straight to the numbers
- Affinity Publisherpricingalternatives
- BookBabypricingalternatives
- Draft2Digitalpricingalternatives
- Everandpricingalternatives
- Goodreadspricingalternatives
- IngramSparkpricingalternatives
Questions people ask about publishing software
Answered from the listings on this page, and nowhere else.
- How is this publishing ranking decided?
- Mechanically. The 20 approved publishing listings on this page are sorted by their published rating, highest first, with the number of ratings behind each score as the tie-break and the product name as a final tie-break so the order is stable. Those ratings are aggregated from public sources, not collected from Softwr readers, this site hosts no reviews, so the order is a summary of what is already published elsewhere, not a verdict of our own. Nothing on this page is paid placement.
- How much does publishing software cost?
- Across the 20 publishing tools listed here, paid plans start between $1.99 and $299 a month, with a median entry price of $11.49. The most expensive single tier published in the category is $2,190 a month (BookBaby). 12 of 20 also publish a $0 plan.
- What is the cheapest publishing software?
- 7 of the 20 tools listed here cost nothing at all. Among the ones that charge, Webtoon has the lowest published entry price at $1.99 a month. Cheapest and best value are different questions: check which tier the capability you need actually appears in before you compare starting prices.
- Is there free publishing software?
- Yes, 12 of 20 tools in this category publish a plan priced at $0. 7 of them are free outright, with no paid tier above. A tool is only counted as free here when it publishes a $0 plan, an open-source licence, or a starting price of zero, a free trial does not count.
- How is publishing software usually billed?
- Per user per month, unlimited (2), 10% of retail list price, no upfront fee (1), Flat-fee subscription, no commission on paid plans (1), Free app, revenue from book purchases and optional subscription (1), plus 15 less common arrangements, counted across the 20 listings on this page. The distinction that costs money is per-seat versus flat: a per-user plan at the same headline price scales with your headcount and a flat subscription does not. 4 of 20 tools also keep at least one tier unpriced and sold by quote.
- What does publishing software actually cover?
- The 20 tools on this page do not describe themselves the same way. The subject tags they carry most often are self publishing (7), audiobooks (5), print on demand (4), ebooks (3), isbn (3). That spread is the honest answer to what the category means in practice: it is not one product shape, and two tools filed under publishing may overlap on very little.
- How many pricing tiers do publishing tools offer?
- 20 of 20 tools here publish a plan breakdown, and the median one has 1.5 tiers. 2 of 20 publish three or more. More tiers is not generosity, it usually means the capability you are buying for sits two rungs above the advertised price, so price your shortlist at the tier that contains it.
- How many publishing tools are listed on Softwr?
- 20 approved publishing listings appear on this page, including Affinity Publisher, BookBaby, Draft2Digital, Everand. Each links to a full breakdown with its pricing tiers and plan detail, and the category can be filtered by price and sorted by rating above. You can also read the shortlist view at /best/publishing, which ranks the same set by published rating.
Keep reading
Neighbouring categories
Adjacent in the same taxonomy, not a ranking.