Software Alternatives & Reviews

espanso VS aText

Compare espanso VS aText and see what are their differences

espanso logo espanso

An Open Source, Cross-platform Text Expander on steroids

aText logo aText

aText accelerates your typing by replacing abbreviations with frequently used phrases you define.
  • espanso Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-25
  • aText Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-08-03

espanso videos

Complilation CD x CD32 Espanso, AMiGA 1200 Espanso e AMiGA 4000

More videos:

  • Review - Sfatiamo i miti riguardanti l'universo espanso (EU) di Star Wars!

aText videos

aText a $4.99 alternative to TextExpander, demo / tutorial

More videos:

  • Review - aText - Save Time with Text Expansion on the Mac
  • Review - Type Faster with aText #30DaysOfVideos

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to espanso and aText)
Writing Tools
64 64%
36% 36
Automation
66 66%
34% 34
Personal Productivity
71 71%
29% 29
Windows Tools
63 63%
37% 37

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare espanso and aText

espanso Reviews

  1. SO much better than PhraseExpress!

    This setup is a little more hands on to install and setup, but it is worth it. No weird glitches, crashing or other issues, it just a simple system works as it should.

    It doesn't have all the same features as PhraseExpress, but if you are like me and just want a text expander, they are features you will never need or use anyway.

    The setup instructions are clear and concise. They do take a minute to get your head around compared to other software installs that I am used to, but as the instructions are on point, it is not difficult.

    I am using this on macOS and will be trying it on Windows soon too.

    🏁 Competitors: PhraseExpress
    👍 Pros:    Works perfectly|Cost effective|Great, clear setup instructions
    👎 Cons:    Requries some more setup beyond the usual 'double click' and done

aText Reviews

  1. Indispensable productivity tool

    I've been using aText for quite some time, and it's been amazing. If you are typing a lot, I'm sure you would be able to optimize your work tremendously. You can have abbreviations for your closing email phrases, URLs, and whatever can come to your mind.

    Also, I'd suggest to think of a trigger character and use it at the beginning of all abbreviations. That way you will avoid collisions. I'm using a comma. For example, these are some of my abbreviations:

    You get the idea. Once you get used to the app, it will save you a lot of time and typing.


Best Text Expander apps for MacOS
aText is marketed as a text accelerator by its makers. The aText lacks the TextExpanders interface but it does make it up when it comes to other aspects. With aText you can preset a slew of texts and other stuff that you can use as and when you want. Setting it up is effortless and thanks to the labelled fields you can easily manage your workflow. One can also setup aText to...
Source: techwiser.com
What's a good alternative to Textexpander for Mac?
10aTextView ProductMichelle NickolaisenOwner, Bombchelle Industries · Written 4y agoI use aText and I've had 1-2 very minor issues with it over the years, but nothing major. It's definitely worth the $5 fee if you just want something that does text shortcuts & don't necessarily want or need TextExpander's other features.🙏 helpful 4Comments (1)ShareAllan CaegFounder,...
Alternative products to aText
Alfred 3The Mac's best launcher just got a whole lot betterMacProductivityMac Menu Bar Apps+ 12,316get itRecommendationsJeff DavisWhen I sit in front of a Mac that doesn't have Alfred installed, I have no idea what to do. It is like when I am at a friend's house and I drop food on the floor and realize they don't have a dog. Why not just get a dog? It makes like so much...

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, espanso seems to be a lot more popular than aText. While we know about 96 links to espanso, we've tracked only 2 mentions of aText. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

espanso mentions (96)

  • You don't have to type faster to type faster
    If you want a standalone cross platform text expander I currently enjoy using Espanso[1] [1]: https://espanso.org/. - Source: Hacker News / 22 days ago
  • Add-on that makes it possible to paste one sentence?
    This should work for you. Free, cross-platform and works everywhere not just the browser. https://espanso.org/. Source: 5 months ago
  • Bad Emacs Defaults
    Huh, didn't know abbrev had that limitation (wonder why?). Gave it a go in espanso (https://espanso.org/), and it does work there. - Source: Hacker News / 7 months ago
  • Show HN: I automated 1/2 of my typing
    I use a tool called "Espanso" to accomplish something similar at work. It only runs locally, so no weird data scraping issues to worry about. And it's easy to update as things changes becauase everything lives in a simple yml file. https://espanso.org/ It can do simple text replacement, so I have words, phrases, and sentences I use frequently compressed into a few keyboard clicks. It can also grab what is in your... - Source: Hacker News / 8 months ago
  • [DEV] Open source text expander - Bugs fixed, new updates, now available on IzzyOnDroid - might be worth trying again :D
    If you don't know what a text expander is, see: https://espanso.org. Source: 10 months ago
View more

aText mentions (2)

  • Add suites (playing cards)
    I think I have a solution for you. I use an app called aText (there are many similar, but this one's my favorite) on my Mac and my PC to make my own shortcuts for phrases and symbols, like this. Source: 10 months ago
  • How to change the date format?
    Not quite the answer you're looking for, but I use aText, so I can make my own date format, and my own shortcut, and it can be universal — and I can make all kinds of shortcuts for all kinds of other things, like symbols, emojis, and phrases. This way, I never have to worry about apps that don't have a YYYY-MM-DD option. :). Source: 10 months ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing espanso and aText, you can also consider the following products

Beeftext - Beeftext is an open-source text substitution tool for Windows.

PhraseExpress - PhraseExpress is one of the best and most fully featured text expansion apps available to Windows users.

TextExpander - TextExpander: Communicate Smarter. Gather, Perfect, Share Your Knowledge. Recall your best words instantly, repeatedly.

AutoHotkey - The ultimate automation scripting language for Windows.

FastKeys - Latest Version 4. 05. 28th December 2017 - Engine optimization, - Language translation updates, - General improvements and bug fixes. View Version History Your FEEDBACK is highly appreciated - send us an email or make a comment on FastKeys Forum.

Typinator - Have you ever experienced the tedium and frustration of having to repeatedly type your name, e-mail address, home page url, or other words or phrases again, again and again? Do you frequently need to quickly insert images like your signature, locati…