aText vs PhraseExpress

aText

• People who want a low-cost text expander on a Mac or a Windows PC
• Syncing snippets between Windows and macOS through a cloud folder already in use
• Work inside virtual machines and remote desktop sessions

PhraseExpress

• Help desks, call centers, law offices and medical practices with large phrase libraries
• Teams that want phrases kept on their own network or SQL Server, not a vendor cloud
• Personal users who want a text expander at no cost
• Buyers who prefer a one-time license to a subscription

aText

• Mac and Windows licenses are separate purchases; a license for one platform does not work on the other.
• A license for version 3 for macOS does not cover version 2 or a future version 4, and there is no upgrade discount from version 2.
• The website's downloads are dated 2024: version 3.21 for macOS, listed for macOS 10.12 to 15, and version 1.41 for Windows.
• Personal One year and Floating licenses expire after a year, and the site does not say what the free Windows version leaves out.

PhraseExpress

• License prices are not shown on the vendor's site: the shop lists Standard, Professional and Enterprise editions, and the price appears only in the PayPro Global checkout.
• Free use is for personal users only. In a professional setting, license reminders and inserted license text begin after 30 days.
• A license includes 12 months of updates. Later versions need a paid maintenance renewal, and the vendor keeps no archive of old installers.
• Features described on the website refer to the Windows version; the Mac editions have a different feature set.

aText

Abbreviation expansion

Typing an abbreviation in any application replaces it with a phrase you defined. Snippets can also be searched and inserted without typing the abbreviation.

Rich text snippets

Snippets can hold formatted text, images and attachments for insertion into apps such as Word, Mail, Outlook, Pages and Gmail.

Fields, dates and scripts

Advanced functions include editable fields, date and time calculations, generated keystrokes, mouse scripts and scripting; the Windows app supports Batch, PowerShell, JavaScript and VBScript.

Auto-correction and built-in snippets

Capitalizes new sentences and corrects double capitals, and ships with snippet sets for common misspellings, HTML and JavaScript coding, and emoji.

Sync and sharing

Data syncs through OneDrive, Dropbox, Google Drive, iCloud Drive or a shared network folder, between Macs and Windows PCs, and can be shared in a multi-user setup.

Virtual machines and remote desktops

The vendor says aText works in virtual machines and remote desktop clients, and offers a configurator for adapting it to individual applications.

PhraseExpress

Autotext in any program

Typed abbreviations expand into stored phrases in any program, and a menu can suggest phrases from their first letters. Phrases are kept in multi-level folders.

Fill-in forms and macro functions

Forms collect input that is placed into a template, and macro functions add dates, calculations, conditions and external data. Input forms need the Professional edition.

Phrase sharing

Phrases can be shared through a network folder, a NAS, a synced cloud folder or a client-server setup on Microsoft SQL Server. SQL Server support needs Professional or Enterprise.

AI support

AI can summarize or rewrite phrases and process text in any application, using self-hosted or cloud-based language models. It is part of the Enterprise edition.

Document Generator

Builds a whole document, saved as a Microsoft Word file, from a chosen set of templates. With multi-language phrases and the Outlook add-in, it is in the Windows Enterprise edition.

Clipboard and spelling tools

Clipboard Collections keep a history of clipboard contents, from the Professional edition up, and a system-wide spelling correction fixes typing mistakes as you type.

aText

• Personal One year$4.99

  for one year, 1 user; does not renew automatically

  One user on up to 3 computers. The license cannot be moved between computers and expires after a year without an automatic charge.

• Personal Lifetime$29.99

  one-time purchase, 1 user

  One user on up to 5 computers, with transfers between computers allowed up to 5 activations a year.

• Business$29.99

  one-time, per computer; $14.99 or $9.99 at volume

  A lifetime license for one computer with unlimited users. The single-license price is set higher to deter personal use.

• Floating$9.99

  per concurrent user, for one year

  One concurrent user at a time on unlimited computers, with a 30-minute seat time-out. Needs an internet connection; suggested for the portable version.

PhraseExpress

Pricing could not be confirmed. See phraseexpress.com.

aText

• Lifetime license

  Personal Lifetime license for $29.99

  A one-time Personal Lifetime license costs $29.99 for one user on up to 5 computers, against $4.99 for a license that lasts one year.

• Other savings

  Volume pricing on Business licenses

  The buy page shows Business licenses at $29.99, $14.99 or $9.99 depending on quantity, and says volume discounts also apply to Personal One year licenses.

PhraseExpress

• Other savings

  Volume discounts from five licenses

  The shop page advertises volume discounts for five or more licenses, shown in the cart once the quantity is entered. The vendor says it gives no coupons for single purchases.

• Other savings

  Discounted maintenance renewal

  Existing customers can renew maintenance at a discount by entering their license key, which restores access to updates and new major versions.