Comparison
Atticus vs Vellum: Which Should You Buy?
The two best-known book formatting tools, head to head on the things that decide it: what they cost, where they run, whether you can try them, what they export, and where your manuscript lives. With Lacuna, the desktop option for Windows, Mac, and Linux, as the third column, because that is what we make.
By Corey Jackson, developer of Lacuna
Reviewed by Melissa Erin Jackson, author of 15 self-published books
Updated October 5, 2026 · Read about us
Full disclosure. We build Lacuna, so we are a competitor to both. Every Atticus and Vellum fact on this page is quoted from their own sites and help centers, footnoted at the bottom, and checked on 2026-10-05. Where one of them beats us, the table says so.
The short version
Lacuna is the best alternative to Atticus and Vellum in 2026 for authors who want a desktop app on Windows, Mac, or Linux, and yes, we build it.
- More customization freedom: build the book you want, not the book the app allows.
- Windows, Mac, and Linux, with the manuscript on your own computer.
- An unlimited trial: format the whole book, and pay only to generate the final files.
- EPUB, a print PDF, and DOCX from one project.
Between the other two: Vellum is Mac only and costs the most, with a free build-and-preview before you pay. Atticus runs in a browser on anything, including a Chromebook, and lets two people work in one book; it has no free trial.
Atticus vs Vellum vs Lacuna, side by side
Check marks and X marks where a yes or no is honest; words where it is not. Numbers point to the sources at the foot of the page.
| Feature | Atticus | Vellum | Lacuna |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price12 | $147 one-time | $199.99 ebooks; $249.99 with print | $149 one-time |
| Runs on12 | Any browser: Windows, Mac, Linux, Chromebook | Mac only, macOS 13 or newer | Desktop app: Windows, Mac, Linux |
| Native desktop app1 | Progressive web app | Mac app | Windows, Mac, and Linux apps |
| Try before you pay32 | No free trial; 30-day money-back guarantee | Free to build, style, and preview; pay to generate | Unlimited trial; pay to generate the final files |
| Ebook output12 | EPUB | Validated EPUB 3 and EPUB 2 | EPUB 3 and EPUB 2, built to pass EPUBCheck |
| Print output12 | PDF | PDF/X-1a with Vellum Press only | PDF/X-1a, black and white or color |
| Word (DOCX) export18 | Yes | Ebook and print files only | Yes |
| Styles14 | 17 templates, custom theme builder | Dozens of built-in styles, configurable and savable | 32 pre-made styles, per-section overrides, your own styles |
| Where your files live1 | Saved and backed up to Atticus’s cloud | Your Mac | Your computer |
| Works offline17 | Writing, yes; import and export need a connection | Yes | Yes, import and export included |
| Two people in one book5 | Invite editors, co-writers, and beta readers with roles | One Mac, one file | Single-user desktop app |
| Writing goals and habit tracker1 | Book goals, habit tracker, word counter | Not offered | Live word count per section; no goals or streaks |
| Write and format in one app | Yes | Built-in editor; imports Word | Yes; imports Word |
| Lifetime updates12 | Yes | Free updates | Yes |
Prices in US dollars before tax, from each company’s own site on 2026-10-05. Lacuna’s trial has no time limit and every feature switched on; the one thing payment unlocks is generating the final files, which is why all sales are final.
Which one is for you
Start with your computer. Only two of the three run on Windows and Linux, and only one on a Chromebook.
Lacuna
Runs on WindowsDesktop app for Windows, Mac, and Linux
- Price
- $149 one-time
- Try first
- Unlimited trial; pay to generate the files
- Your files
- On your computer, offline, export included
- Co-writing
- Single user
Atticus
Runs on WindowsBrowser app on any computer, including a Chromebook
- Price
- $147 one-time
- Try first
- No free trial; 30-day money-back guarantee
- Your files
- Backed up to Atticus’s cloud; import and export need a connection
- Co-writing
- Editors, co-writers, and beta readers with roles
Vellum
Not on WindowsDoes not run on Windows. Mac app, macOS 13 or newer.
- Price
- $199.99 ebooks; $249.99 with print
- Try first
- Build and preview free; pay to generate
- Your files
- On your Mac
- Co-writing
- Single user
The same facts as the table above, from each company’s own site and help center.1237
The three differences that decide it
Most of the table is a tie. These three rows are not.
Platform: a Mac, a browser, or a desktop app anywhere
Vellum is Mac only and needs macOS 13 or newer; its own help page says the way to use it from a PC is to rent a Mac in the cloud.6 Atticus is a progressive web app, so it runs in any browser on Windows, Mac, Linux, or a Chromebook, online or off.1 Lacuna is a native app for Windows, Mac, and Linux (a .deb for Ubuntu, Debian, and Mint and an .rpm for Fedora). If you are on a PC, Vellum is out; if you want a Chromebook, Lacuna is out.
Trying it: a trial or a refund window
Atticus’s help center says it does not provide a free trial and offers a 30-day money-back guarantee instead.3 Vellum lets you download it free, build, style, and preview, and purchase when you are ready to publish.2 Lacuna works the same way as Vellum with no time limit: format the whole book, read every page, and pay only to generate the final files. That one restriction is why all Lacuna sales are final, and it is the restriction competitors point at, so here it is in plain words.
Your files: their cloud or your computer
Atticus saves your words as you write and backs them up to its cloud, which is what makes the collaboration and the any-device access work; importing and exporting need a connection.17 Vellum keeps a file on your Mac. Lacuna keeps the project on your computer and works offline, export included. Neither model is wrong. If you want to open the book on a library computer, the cloud wins; if you want the manuscript to exist nowhere but your own machine, the desktop wins.
Smaller EPUBs earn more on the 70% royalty option because Amazon charges a delivery fee by the megabyte. Lacuna compresses images, subsets fonts, and writes lean CSS on export; we do not make file-size claims about Atticus or Vellum because we have not measured them. The royalty calculator shows what a megabyte costs over a thousand sales.
What authors are saying about Lacuna
Real authors. Real books. Formatted with Lacuna.
I’m a cover designer and interior formatter by profession and run my own small publishing press, so trust me when I say I’m picky and my standards are high. InDesign has always been the only program that formats for print with the level of customization I need. For years, I’ve used it for print and another program entirely for ebooks to get the results I wanted. When I saw Lacuna, I immediately went to check it out and within an hour from having downloaded the trial, I was hooked.
This gives me so much more freedom with print options than other formatting programs like Atticus or Vellum while still making ebooks a breeze. The ability to work from one file and have separate print and ebook settings is a complete gamechanger. I’m still learning my way around the program and loving every second.
JJ Carpenter
The Haunting of Kenmore Asylum
I originally checked out Lacuna because somebody in a KDP publishing group I belong to asked if anyone had tried Lacuna out yet. I published nine other books using a different formatter, but I wasn’t happy with it. I ended up taking a look at Lacuna even though I was pretty much sold on Atticus or Vellum. Once I started diving into Lacuna and saw the ease of use and flexibility, I was absolutely floored. It was a no-brainer, and I purchased Lacuna. Since then the program has only improved. Corey is amazing at fixing things and streamlining processes.
If you take a look at the book that I formatted with Lacuna you will see, it would be pretty difficult to do something like that with one of those other formatting programs. Plus they cost more. In my opinion Lacuna is already the best formatter on the market and only getting better. Thanks, Corey and Melissa, for making this available.
NextGen Victory Press
3-Minute Wrestling Devotionals for Rising Athletes
I tried numerous formatting methods and followed endless instructions from publishing websites, but nothing ever turned out right. Since finding Lacuna, everything has changed. I’ve been able to update all my manuscripts effortlessly and give them the professional look they deserve.
Lacuna helped me perfect one of my most cherished stories, The Magic Globe, and finally present it exactly as I envisioned. It’s truly been a game changer for my author journey.
Samuel Graham Astley
The Magic Globe
Atticus and Vellum questions
What authors ask when they are choosing between the two, and the honest answers.
Sources
- Atticus, $147 one-time with all future updates; Windows, Mac, Linux, Chromebook; progressive web app, online and offline; EPUB, PDF, DOCX; 17 templates and a custom theme builder; book goals, habit tracker, word counter; saves and backs up to the cloud; 30-day money-back guarantee. Checked 2026-10-05.
- Vellum, Only available for Mac, macOS 13 or newer; $199.99 and $249.99; validated EPUB 3 and EPUB 2; PDF/X-1a; download free, build, style, and preview, purchase when ready to publish. Checked 2026-10-05.
- Does Atticus offer a free trial?, Atticus help center: no free trial, 30-day money-back guarantee. Checked 2026-10-05.
- Applying styles, Vellum help: “dozens of built-in style options”, Configure, Saved Styles. Checked 2026-10-05.
- Atticus help center: Collaboration, “Working with others in Atticus”: collaboration roles, invitations, editors, co-writers, and beta readers. Checked 2026-10-05.
- Using Vellum on Windows, Vellum help: Mac-only; rent a Mac in the cloud and access it from a PC. Checked 2026-10-05.
- Do I need to be connected to the internet to upload or export?, Atticus help center: “Yes, you will need an internet connection to upload an existing document and export your book”. Checked 2026-10-05.
- Generating books, Vellum help: files for each ebook platform, a Generic EPUB, and print. Checked 2026-10-05.
Try the third option before you buy either
Download Lacuna free on Windows, Mac, or Linux, import your manuscript, and format the whole book. Pay $149 only when you are ready to export.
Want the details first? See all features or view pricing.