Best Outlining Writing Apps in 2025

Storyline Creator is an elegant writing tool that helps you streamline your writing process. It's incredibly fun to draft ideas, to visualize, enhance and organize your stories - so you can focus on your plot and the creativity instead of the paper war.

Platforms: Online

Best for: Outlining, Book, Story, and Free

Website: https://www.storylinecreator.com/

Lists for Writers is a great addition to any writer’s toolbox. Helpful to both novice and expert writers alike, this app delivers list after list of prompts and ideas for your brainstorming sessions: names, character traits, plot lines, occupations, obsessions, action verbs, and much more!

Platforms: iPhone, iPad, Android

Best for: Note-taking, Outlining, Drafting, Book, Story, and Essay

Website: https://thinkamingo.com/lists-for-writers/

Also rated 4.7 ★ on the App Store

The best outlining app for your best work. Where brilliant ideas are captured, fleshed out, and realized.

Platforms: Online, Android, iPhone, iPad, Windows, PC

Best for: Outlining, Book, Story, Blog, Essay, and Free

Website: https://dynalist.io/

Also rated 4.2 ★ on Google Play

Get organized. Stay creative. Milanote is an easy-to-use tool to organize your ideas and projects into visual boards.

Platforms: iPhone, iPad, PC, Windows, Mac, Android, Chrome, Online

Best for: Note-taking, Outlining, Book, Story, Journal, and Free

Website: https://milanote.com/

Also rated 3.0 ★ on PC Magazine

So, You’re looking to write a book. Well, wavemaker is here to help. It’s much much more than a text editor.

Platforms: Mac, Windows, Chrome, Android, Online, PC

Best for: Outlining, Drafting, Book, Story, and Free

Website: https://wavemaker.cards/

Also rated 3.7 ★ on Google Play

Start your book, plot your book, write your book, organize your book, and export it for publishing all in one place. Leave your word processor in the dust.

Platforms: Online, Windows, Mac, iPhone, iPad, PC

Best for: Outlining, Drafting, Publishing, Book, and Story

Website: https://livingwriter.com/

Also rated 3.5 ★ on the App Store

The only online writing and editing platform that guides your hand based on data from real, bestselling books, AutoCrit is built to match the genuine demands of publishing professionals and discerning readers.

Platforms: Online

Best for: Outlining, Drafting, Proofreading, Book, Story, and Free

Website: https://www.autocrit.com/

Also rated 4.0 ★ on TechRadar

The only writing platform with unlimited potential through project management, collaboration, and publishing.

Platforms: Online, Chrome

Best for: Outlining, Drafting, Book, and Story

Website: https://www.squibler.io/

With our writing tools you can track your progress thus far, plan your novel, write your novel and be able to focus on what matters for you the most: FINISHING THE DAMN BOOK!

Platforms: Android

Best for: Outlining, Worldbuilding, Book, Story, and Free

Website: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=net.ajp_gam...

Also rated 4.0 ★ on Google Play

Mind mapping starts with a main idea in the center of your mind map. As your map takes shape, add context to topics with attachments, embedded media and more. MindMeister’s features guide you through your first mind maps onto maximum creativity.

Platforms: Online, iPhone, iPad, Android

Best for: Outlining, Journal, Poetry, and Free

Website: https://www.mindmeister.com/

Also rated 4.7 ★ on Capterra

Ever scribbled ideas on a piece of paper and drawn lines between related thoughts? Then you already know what Scapple does. It's a virtual sheet of paper that lets you make notes anywhere and connect them using lines or arrows.

Platforms: Mac, Windows, PC

Best for: Note-taking, Outlining, Journal, Book, Story, Essay, Poetry, and Blog

Website: https://www.literatureandlatte.com/scapple/overview

Also rated 5.0 ★ on TechRadar

Writer Assistant (Wassi) is an application created specifically for inventors! We all constantly invent new characters for our stories, be it a comic, a novel, a script, a play, or a game. And so that our characters are alive and riveted the attention, they need to be developed a lot! That is what the Writer Assistant was created for! Plus, with Wassi you can easily outline your stories on the go.

Platforms: Mac, iPhone, iPad

Best for: Outlining, Book, Story, and Free

Website: https://apps.apple.com/app/writer-assistant-wassi/id14686...

Also rated 3.9 ★ on the App Store