Comparison
Alhora vs Vellum
Vellum is the reference point for indie book formatting and has been for a decade: the output is excellent and it is quick to learn. It also runs on exactly one operating system. This page is about the differences that actually decide it.
The short version: Vellum runs only on macOS and is bought outright at a higher price. Alhora runs on macOS, Windows, Linux and ChromeOS, is free to format and preview, and adds the print-production checks — spine width, gutter, pre-flight — that Vellum leaves to you and the printer's website.
What each one is
Alhora
A desktop book-formatting studio for macOS, Windows, Linux and ChromeOS. Import a finished manuscript, typeset the interior, and export a retail-ready EPUB and a print-ready PDF.
- Free — format and preview an entire book. Export is locked.
- Monthly — £8.99 a month.
- Annual — £89.99 a year.
- Lifetime — £139.99 once, or £99.00 while founder licences last.
Vellum
A macOS-only formatting app, sold as a one-off purchase in two editions: Vellum Ebooks, and Vellum Press which adds paperback and hardcover PDFs. It is the tool most indie authors mean when they say their book “looks professionally typeset”.
- Vellum Ebooks — $199.99. One-off. Ebook formats only.
- Vellum Press — $249.99. One-off. Adds paperback and hardcover PDFs.
Vellum capabilities and prices as publicly documented by each vendor, checked 2026-08-08. Products change — check the vendor's own site before you buy. Corrections: [email protected].
What each one is good at
Alhora
- Runs on every desktop platform, with the same output on each.
- Print-readiness checks — spine, gutter, image DPI, cost — run offline before you upload.
- Series-wide re-export: change the back matter once, rebuild every book.
In short: A production tool for a finished manuscript, on every desktop platform — free to format and preview a whole book, with a plan unlocking export.
Vellum
- The output quality is excellent and has set the bar for indie formatting for a decade.
- Genuinely fast to learn — most authors format their first book in an afternoon.
- A single one-off purchase covers unlimited books, with no subscription.
In short: macOS only, bought outright in two editions, and concentrated on typesetting rather than on print production.
Feature by feature
Every row below is either published by the vendor or, where it is not, marked as undocumented rather than assumed to be missing. If you spot something out of date, tell us at [email protected] and we will correct it.
| Feature | Alhora | Vellum |
|---|---|---|
| Platform & access | ||
| Operating systems | macOS, Windows, Linux, ChromeOS | macOS only — a Mac is required |
| Installed app or browser | Installed desktop app | Installed Mac app |
| Works with no internet connection | Yes — after activation, editing and export are local | Yes — a local Mac app |
| Where your manuscript is stored | On your own machine | On your own Mac |
| Pricing | ||
| Pricing model | Free to format and preview; a plan unlocks export. Monthly, annual, or one-off Lifetime. | One-off purchase, per edition of the app |
| Lifetime option | Yes — Lifetime licence, one payment | Yes — the purchase is the licence |
| Subscription option | Yes — monthly or annual, if you would rather not pay up front | No |
| Try before paying | Format and preview an entire book free; export is what a plan unlocks | Yes — build the book and preview it; you pay to generate the files |
| What it is for | ||
| Writing or formatting | Formatting and production. There is an editor, but the book arrives written. | Formatting and production |
| Manuscript editing built in | Yes, for revision and proofing — not designed for first drafts | Light editing of imported text |
| Import | ||
| Microsoft Word (.docx) | Yes — headings become chapters; italics, small caps, footnotes and images carried | Yes — the standard import route |
| Scrivener | Yes — reads the .scriv project directly, binder order and all | Compile to Word or RTF in Scrivener first, then import that |
| Google Docs | Yes — download as .docx; Alhora classifies Google's direct-formatted headings by size and weight | Download as .docx and import that |
| Re-import after edits elsewhere | Yes — shows every change against your styled book before you accept it | Not documented |
| Export | ||
| EPUB | EPUB 3.0, with Kindle, Apple Books, Kobo and generic variants | Yes, with retailer-specific builds |
| Print-ready PDF | Yes — bleed, crop marks and an embedded ICC profile | Yes, in the edition that includes print |
| Trim sizes | 23 presets across mass-market, novel, B-format, full-size and large print, plus fully custom | A fixed set of standard sizes |
| Hardcover | Yes — case-wrap dimensions are calculated, and flagged as estimates to check against your printer's template | Yes, in the edition that includes print |
| Publishing | ||
| Kindle Direct Publishing | Yes — files built to KDP's ebook and print requirements, checked before you upload | Yes — a long-standing KDP workflow |
| IngramSpark | Yes — IngramSpark's own spine formula (pages ÷ PPI) and cover template, not KDP's applied twice | Yes — print PDFs suitable for IngramSpark |
| Draft2Digital | Yes — EPUB built to the generic retail profile D2D distributes | Yes — a standard EPUB can be uploaded |
| Pre-flight against store requirements | Yes — runs offline before upload and names the store rule each finding breaks | Not documented |
| Spine width and cover template | Calculated live from the real page count, per printer | Not documented |
| Print cost and royalty estimate | Yes, from the page count and paper stock | Not documented |
| Accessibility | ||
| Accessibility checks on the EPUB | Yes — an audit that must pass before the accessible-EPUB metadata is written | Produces structurally sound EPUB; no published audit tool |
| Large-print and dyslexia-friendly interiors | Yes — two built-in styles, plus large-print trim sizes | Not documented |
| Series | ||
| Series-wide re-export | Yes — rebuild every book in a series in one command | Each book is exported individually |
| Back matter that updates itself | Yes — the Also By page is generated from the series and rebuilt on export | Yes — an Also By element maintained per book |
| AI | ||
| AI features | Optional paid add-on. Checks and an in-app operator — it never writes prose. | None published |
| Is your manuscript used for training | No. Text sent for a check is used for that check and discarded. | Not applicable — no AI features |
| Languages | ||
| Books written in languages other than English | 15 languages, typeset and proofed in the book's own language | Not documented |
Vellum capabilities and prices as publicly documented by each vendor, checked 2026-08-08. Products change — check the vendor's own site before you buy. Corrections: [email protected].
Which should you choose?
Vellum runs on macOS and nothing else, and is bought outright in the two editions the table above sets out. Its typesetting deserves the reputation it has, and nothing on this page pretends otherwise.
Alhora is the one we would put in front of you. It runs on macOS, Windows, Linux and ChromeOS and produces the same files on each. It is free to format and preview an entire book, so you can see your own pages typeset before you pay anything. And it carries the print production through to the upload: spine width from your real page count using each printer's own formula, gutter checked against the page-count band, cost and royalty estimated, pre-flight run before the file leaves your machine. On Windows or Linux the comparison does not really arise. On a Mac, that list is the argument.
The cheapest way to settle it is to try both. Alhora and Vellum will each show you a formatted book before you commit — and it is worth doing with your own manuscript rather than a sample, because it is your chapter headings and scene breaks that will find the differences.
Questions, answered
Does Vellum work on Windows?
No. Vellum is a macOS application and there is no Windows version. The usual workarounds are renting a cloud Mac by the hour, or borrowing one. Alhora runs natively on Windows, which is the main reason Windows authors end up here.
Is Alhora cheaper than Vellum?
Alhora costs less up front in every case, and it is free to format and preview an entire book — you only pay to export. Whether it is cheaper over ten years depends on which plan you take; the Lifetime licence is a single payment, like Vellum's.
Can Alhora open my Vellum files?
No. Vellum's project format is its own and undocumented. The route across is the manuscript: export or compile to Word from wherever the text originally came from, and import that. You re-choose the styling, which takes minutes, not the text.
Is Vellum's typesetting better?
Vellum's typesetting is very good and deserves its reputation. Alhora's is a different approach — 17 built-in styles, and your own licensed fonts if you want them, rather than a curated set. For a straightforward novel, a reader would not be able to tell which tool made which book.
Which is better for print?
Both produce a print-ready PDF that KDP and IngramSpark accept. Alhora goes further into the production side: it calculates spine width from your real page count for each printer's own formula, checks the gutter against the page-count band, estimates print cost and royalty, and runs a pre-flight before you upload.
Do I need a Mac to use Alhora?
No. Alhora runs on macOS, Windows, Linux and ChromeOS, and produces the same files on each.
Format your book with Alhora
Import your manuscript, typeset the interior, and see every page exactly as it will print. Formatting and previewing a whole book is free — a plan unlocks export.
Download Alhora free See pricing
macOS, Windows, Linux and ChromeOS. No card needed to format and preview.