# Gingko Writer

> Tree-based writing app that breaks long documents into cards

Gingko Writer is a web-based writing app in which a document is a tree of small cards instead of one long page. Notes, outline and draft sit side by side in a single view, so a writer can move between the overall structure and a specific passage and rearrange both along the way. It is sold by subscription after a 14-day free trial, and a finished draft can be exported to conventional document formats.

- **Category:** Writing Tools
- **Made by:** Gingko Inc (since 2013)
- **Website:** https://gingkowriter.com
- **Runs on:** Web
- **Facts last checked:** Oct 9, 2026

## Pricing

Gingko Writer is a paid product with a free trial, starting at $9.75 per month, billed yearly ($117).

- **Pricing model:** Free trial
- **Free plan:** None.
- **Free trial:** 14-day free trial, no credit card required.

| Plan | Price | What you get |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Pay Yearly | $9.75 per month, billed yearly ($117) | The full app, billed once per year. The pricing page puts the saving against monthly billing at $36. |
| Pay Monthly | $12.75 per month, billed monthly | The full app with monthly billing. It can be canceled at any time, and refunds are given on request. |

Read from https://gingkowriter.com/pricing on Oct 9, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with Gingko Writer before buying.

## Ways to pay less

- **Save $36 a year with yearly billing** (Annual discount): The pricing page lists $117 billed once per year against $12.75 a month, and states the saving as $36. Source: https://gingkowriter.com/pricing

## Key features

- **Documents as a tree of cards:** Text is written in small chunks called cards, so a novel, thesis or legal brief is worked on one piece at a time instead of as a single long page.
- **Notes, outline and draft in one view:** The overall premise, the outline and the detailed text stay on screen together, so an idea for a specific scene can be written down without leaving the big picture.
- **Organize while writing:** There is no separate outlining mode: cards are written and arranged in the same place, so the structure can change as the draft grows.
- **Export and print:** A draft can be exported to conventional document formats or printed. Anything placed between HTML comment markers in a card is left out of the output.
- **Import from the older Gingko:** Trees from a legacy gingkoapp.com account can be brought in from the File menu, or as a JSON export for very large trees.
- **Templates by duplication:** Any tree can be duplicated from the sidebar, which is how the vendor suggests making a reusable template for new documents.

## Good for

- Writers who outline and draft at the same time
- Long projects such as a thesis, a novel or a legal brief
- People who lose track of structure in a single long document

## Worth knowing

- There is no free plan: after the 14-day trial the app needs a subscription.
- The vendor's FAQ, last updated about four years ago, says collaboration and LaTeX are not supported yet and points to the legacy gingkoapp.com version for both.
- Images cannot be uploaded: the FAQ says they are added by linking to a file hosted elsewhere with Markdown image syntax.
- The current version is a web app. An older desktop version is still on GitHub, but the vendor says it has not been brought up to date.

**Tags:** Long-form writing, Markdown

## Alternatives

- [Scrivener](https://toolgpa.com/tools/scrivener): Manuscript writing app with a binder, corkboard and outliner. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/gingko-writer-vs-scrivener)
- [Plottr](https://toolgpa.com/tools/plottr): Visual book outlining and series bible software. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/gingko-writer-vs-plottr)
- [Dabble](https://toolgpa.com/tools/dabble): Novel writing app with plotting, story notes and sync. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/dabble-vs-gingko-writer)
- [Ulysses](https://toolgpa.com/tools/ulysses): Markup-based writing app for Mac, iPad and iPhone. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/gingko-writer-vs-ulysses)
- [Novlr](https://toolgpa.com/tools/novlr): Browser-based novel writing workspace built around writing goals. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/gingko-writer-vs-novlr)

## Sources

The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Oct 9, 2026:

- https://gingkowriter.com/pricing
- https://gingkowriter.com/
- https://gingkowriter.com/about
- https://gingkowriter.com/refunds
- https://gingkowriter.com/privacy
- https://docs.gingkowriter.com/
- https://docs.gingkowriter.com/gingko-versions-v1-desktop
- https://github.com/gingko/client

Page: https://toolgpa.com/tools/gingko-writer
Listed by ToolGPA (toolgpa.com).