Disclosure
I make Authorlytica. I wrote this post. You should assume a bias. I have tried to counter that bias by giving real credit to competitors where they earn it and by being specific about what Authorlytica does not do. If you finish this article and pick a different tool, I consider that a win for the writing community.
How I Picked the Tools
To be included, a tool had to meet four criteria:
- Have a genuinely usable free plan. Not a seven-day trial. Not a "free until you add any useful feature." A free tier you can actually finish a novel on.
- Focus on writing tracking. Not just a general habit app repurposed for writing.
- Be actively maintained in 2026. No abandoned projects.
- Be accessible to a beginner. No command- line-only tools, no 40-page setup guides.
Quick Comparison
| Tool | Free plan quality | Streaks | Deadline pace | Analytics | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Authorlytica | Full | Yes | Yes | Deep | Novelists, long projects |
| Pacemaker.press | Full | No | Yes | Medium | Custom pace curves |
| 4thewords | Trial only | Yes | Quest-based | Light | Gamified writing sprints |
| MyWriteClub | Full | Yes | Yes | Light | Social accountability |
| TrackBear | Full | Yes | Yes | Medium | Open-source, privacy |
| Habit apps (Streaks, Habitica) | Varies | Yes | No | Minimal | Writers who want a binary "wrote today" |
| Spreadsheet (DIY) | Full | Manual | Manual | Manual | Writers who love systems |
1. Authorlytica
What it is. A web-based writing tracker focused on daily word count, streaks, pace projection against a deadline, mood tracking, a Writer Profile, and a year-in-review.
Free plan. Covers daily tracking, streaks, charts, up to three active projects, mood tracking, basic achievements, and a year of history. No card required.
What it does well. The combination of streak, pace projection, and long-term charts is the most complete of any tool in this round-up. Works on any device with a browser, so it fits Mac, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android, and Chromebook users equally.
What it does not do. Does not have a writing editor. Does not sync from other apps automatically; you log session counts manually (about ten seconds per session). Does not have social/community features.
Paid plan. Premium ($6/month or $59/year) adds Authorlytica Rewind, the full Writer Profile, extended analytics, and the complete achievement set.
Best for. Novelists, dissertation writers, and anyone committed to a multi-month project who needs visible progress to keep going.
2. Pacemaker.press
What it is. A classic pace-calculation tool. You enter a word goal and deadline, and Pacemaker builds a schedule with custom pace curves (write more on weekends, taper at the end, avoid specific dates).
Free plan. Full core functionality. Some advanced features are paid, but the free tier is genuinely usable.
What it does well. The pace curve customization is unmatched. If you want to say "write 2,000 words every Saturday and 300 on weekdays," Pacemaker handles that directly. Clean, focused interface.
What it does not do. No streak counter. Limited long-term analytics. No mood tracking, no identity features, no year-in-review. The focus is on hitting one project goal, not on building a long-term writing practice.
Best for. NaNoWriMo-style single-project sprints where the pace curve matters more than long-term habit building. See our dedicated Authorlytica vs Pacemaker comparison.
3. 4thewords
What it is. A gamified writing app that wraps word count in an RPG. You fight monsters by writing a certain number of words in a certain time. Quest-based, with chains, timed battles, and streak mechanics.
Free plan. Limited trial, then a monthly subscription. It is on this list because it is frequently searched for and worth considering, not because the free plan is a long-term option.
What it does well. Genuinely fun. If you respond to gamification the way RPG players do (external rewards, achievements, loot-equivalents), 4thewords can turn writing into something you look forward to.
What it does not do. Not really an analytics tool. No long-term charts in the dissertation or novelist sense. The fun layer is the main layer; the data layer is incidental.
Best for. Writers who respond strongly to gamification and want writing sprints framed as combat. Full comparison at Authorlytica vs 4thewords.
4. MyWriteClub
What it is. A web-based writing tracker with a social layer. You set writing goals, log progress, and can see friends' progress too. Includes sprint sessions.
Free plan. Full core functionality.
What it does well. The social layer works for writers who thrive on accountability from others. If "my friend will see I did not write today" is motivating, MyWriteClub leans into that. Sprint sessions are good for group NaNoWriMo energy.
What it does not do. Analytics are fairly light. No mood tracking, no time-of-day analysis, no Writer Profile-style identity features.
Best for. Writers in an active writing group, or anyone whose main motivation is social accountability rather than self-knowledge.
5. TrackBear
What it is. An open-source writing tracker. You can self-host it or use the hosted version. Streaks, word goals, leaderboards, tags for project types.
Free plan. Fully free on the hosted version. Free to self-host.
What it does well. Privacy-first by design. If you are worried about your writing data sitting on a commercial SaaS, self-hosted TrackBear is the strongest option in this list. Also good for writing groups with a shared leaderboard.
What it does not do. Less polished than commercial trackers. Fewer analytics. Self-hosting has a technical overhead most writers will not want. Actively developed but still catching up on feature breadth.
Best for. Technical writers who want full control over their data, or small writing groups willing to self-host a shared tracker.
6. General Habit Apps (Streaks, Habitica, Way of Life)
What they are. Generic habit trackers. You mark "wrote today" as a binary check. They were not built for writing specifically.
Free plan. Varies. Most have a free tier with limited habits.
What they do well. Binary "did I do the thing" is sometimes exactly right. If your only question is "did I write today, yes or no," these work.
What they do not do. No word count. No pace toward a deadline. No book-specific analytics. You cannot see whether you wrote 50 words or 5,000.
Best for. Writers who already track other habits in one of these apps and want to add "write" without opening another tool.
7. The Spreadsheet
What it is. Google Sheets, Excel, or Numbers with a custom template.
Free. Yes, assuming you have access to a spreadsheet tool.
What it does well. Full control. Any formula, any chart, any layout. If you love systems, the spreadsheet rewards that love.
What it does not do. Friction. Opening a spreadsheet to log one number takes more willpower than most people have at the end of a writing session. Most writers who start with a spreadsheet stop within two months.
Best for. Writers who genuinely enjoy building and maintaining tracking systems. Most people are not this writer; they just think they are. Related reading: How to track your writing without spreadsheets and Authorlytica vs Excel.
How to Pick the Right One
Three questions get most writers to the right tool.
1. How long is your project?
- Short (under a month): Pacemaker, 4thewords, a habit app, or nothing.
- Medium (1 to 6 months): Authorlytica, Pacemaker, MyWriteClub.
- Long (6+ months): Authorlytica or TrackBear for long-term streaks and analytics.
2. What motivates you?
- Seeing your own consistency: Authorlytica, TrackBear, habit apps.
- Social accountability: MyWriteClub.
- Games and quests: 4thewords.
- Precise pace math: Pacemaker.
- Binary yes/no: a habit app.
3. What do you want to know about yourself as a writer?
- "Am I being consistent?": any tracker with streaks.
- "Will I finish on time?": Pacemaker or Authorlytica.
- "When do I write best? What are my patterns?": Authorlytica.
- "Nothing, I just want the book done": the one you will actually use.
The Question That Actually Matters
Which tracker you pick matters less than whether you use it. The best tracker is the one that is open on your screen when you finish a writing session and that takes no friction to update. All the tools in this list meet that bar for somebody. None of them meet it for everybody.
If you are stuck between two, try one for a month. If you are still tracking, keep going. If you quit after a week, the tool was wrong for you and that is useful data. Switch.
The Honest Pitch
Authorlytica's free plan is designed to be enough to finish a novel or dissertation on its own. The paid plan exists for writers who want the year-in-review and the Writer Profile, not to gate basic tracking. If you are picking a tracker today and want the most complete set of features on a free plan, start with Authorlytica. If it is the wrong fit, the list above has six alternatives.
Common Questions
Is any tracker really better than writing every day without one?
If you already write every day without one, no. A tracker helps the people who do not yet have the habit or who have it but lose it under stress. For already-disciplined writers, it is decoration.
Are paid trackers worth it?
Only if the paid features directly target something you care about. Authorlytica's Premium exists because a year-in-review and a Writer Profile are genuinely useful analytics that cost real compute. But the free plan finishes books.
Can I switch trackers mid-project?
Yes. You can manually enter historical data into most of them. Most writers do not bother; they just start fresh with the new tracker. A reset is not a big deal when the point is going forward.
What if I want a private, offline tracker?
Self-hosted TrackBear is the best option. A paper notebook also works; it is under-appreciated for writers who already sit near a journal.