Free World Anvil AlternativesTop Novel Authoring Tools & World Building Games like World Anvil

The best free alternative to World Anvil is Fantasia Archive, which is also Open Source. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 10 alternatives to World Anvil and 14 is free so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting free alternatives to World Anvil are Lore Forge, kanka.io, Campfire Write and World Scribe.

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World Anvil alternatives are mainly Novel Authoring Tools, but if you're looking for World Building Games or Note-taking Tools you can filter on that. These are just examples - use the filter bar below to find more specific alternatives to World Anvil.
World Anvil iconWorld Anvil
  12
  • ...

Write articles to detail and keep track of everything in your world! Choose from over 25 templates designed to inspire you with prompts and deepen your worldbuilding! Embed your maps, and include images, music and sound...

More about World Anvil
More about World Anvil
World Anvil alternatives page was last updated Mar 3, 2025
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  1. Fantasia Archive icon

    Fantasia Archive

     17 likes
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    Free offline worldbuilding and story creation tool with dozens of templates, complex tagging options, document linking, and project-wide search. Template examples: characters, places, events, religions, currencies, magic, species, languages.

    24 Fantasia Archive alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    Fantasia Archive screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Local Storage
    2.  Integrated Search
    3.  Content Templates
    4.  Tagging
    5.  Character database
    6.  Track Characters
    7.  Works Offline
    8.  No Tracking
    9.  No registration required
    10.  Ad-free
    11.  Places tracking
    12.  Custom characters

    Fantasia Archive VS World Anvil

     
    Comments about Fantasia Archive as an Alternative to World Anvil
    Guest
    Positive Jul 22, 2022
    0

    Free, open-source and good performance

    Guest
    Positive Aug 2, 2021
    0

    It's offline and totally free.

    World Anvil Icon
    Fantasia Archive icon

    • Almost everyone thinks Fantasia Archive is a great World Anvil alternative.

    • Fantasia Archive is the most popular Linux alternative to World Anvil.

    • Fantasia Archive is the most popular Open Source & free alternative to World Anvil.

    • Fantasia Archive is Free and Open SourceWorld Anvil is Freemium and Proprietary
    • Fantasia Archive is LightweightWorld Anvil is not according to our users
  2. Lore Forge icon

    Lore Forge

     12 likes
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    The only app you'll need to write your novels and build your worlds. Organize your thoughts and cross-reference anything at any time.

    39 Lore Forge alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Proprietary

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    Overview screen

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight
    2.  Distraction-free
    3.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Places tracking
    2.  Character database
    3.  Custom characters
    4.  Dark Mode
    5.  Ad-free
    6.  Works Offline
    7.  Portable
    8.  Hierarchical Structure
    9.  Spell Checking
    10.  No Tracking
    11.  WYSIWYG Support
    12.  Live Preview

    Lore Forge VS World Anvil

     

    • Lore Forge is the most popular Web-based alternative to World Anvil.

    • Lore Forge is Free and ProprietaryWorld Anvil is Freemium and Proprietary
    • Lore Forge is Lightweight and Privacy focusedWorld Anvil is not according to our users
  4. kanka.io icon

    kanka.io

     5 likes
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    Kanka is an easy and flexible tool to worldbuild and manage your RPG campaign online. Create and organize people, places, organizations, events and much more.

    17 kanka.io alternatives

    License model

    • Freemium • Proprietary

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • CH flagSwitzerland

    Platforms

    • Online
    Mobile dashboard
    Desktop dashboard
    Character view

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Dark Mode
    2.  Real time collaboration
    3.  Campaign Management

    kanka.io VS World Anvil

     
    Comments about kanka.io as an Alternative to World Anvil
    karuga
    Positive Mar 1, 2025
    1

    I find it more useful than WA for handling my TTRPG campaigns

    Ufthack
    Positive Mar 3, 2025
    1

    Its the best, its constantly updated and really customizable for whatever weird needs you need for your original world

    World Anvil Icon
    kanka.io icon

    • Most users think kanka.io is a great World Anvil alternative.

    • kanka.io is Freemium and ProprietaryWorld Anvil is also Freemium and Proprietary
    • kanka.io is LightweightWorld Anvil is not according to our users
  5. Campfire Write icon

    Campfire Write

     7 likes
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    Campfire provides a one-stop-shop for novelists: organizational and writing tools (Campfire Write), a hub of writing resources (Campfire Learn), & a writing and reading platform for building an audience and sharing your work (Campfire Explore).

    63 Campfire Write alternatives

    License model

    • Freemium • Proprietary

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Software as a Service (SaaS)
    • Windows
    • Mac
    • iPad
    • Android Tablet
    Campfire Write screenshot 1

    Campfire Write Features

    1.  Goal Tracking
    2.  Storyboard
    3.  Distraction-free Writing
    4.  Collaborative writing
    5.  Reading
    6.  Sci-fi

    Campfire Write VS World Anvil

     
    Comments about Campfire Write as an Alternative to World Anvil
    lalomartins
    Negative Jan 16, 2022
    0

    This is for writing a book, World Anvil is for creating a world (for a book, series, RPG, game, or any other reason). There's some feature overlap but not much.

    World Anvil Icon
    Campfire Write icon

    • Campfire Write is the most popular SaaS & Android Tablet alternative to World Anvil.

    • Campfire Write is Freemium and ProprietaryWorld Anvil is also Freemium and Proprietary
  6. World Scribe icon

    World Scribe

     7 likes
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    World Scribe eases the creation process by letting you keep track of every important element in your fictional setting, including the ways in which they're connected.

    License model

    • Free • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Android
    World Scribe screenshot 1
    World Scribe screenshot 2
    World Scribe screenshot 3

    World Scribe VS World Anvil

     

    • Most users think World Scribe is a great World Anvil alternative.

    • World Scribe is the most popular Android alternative to World Anvil.

    • World Scribe is Free and ProprietaryWorld Anvil is Freemium and Proprietary
  7. NovaScriber icon

    NovaScriber

     8 likes
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    A most awesome tool to outline and write novels, stories, scripts and keep track of all your characters, locations, notes and ideas.

    77 NovaScriber alternatives

    License model

    • Free Personal • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows
    Write your story

    NovaScriber Features

    1.  Real time collaboration
    2.  Tree structure
    3. Microsoft Word icon  Export to Word
    4.  Corkboard
    5.  Export to EPUB

    NovaScriber VS World Anvil

     
    Comments about NovaScriber as an Alternative to World Anvil
    lalomartins
    Negative Jan 16, 2022
    0

    This is for writing a story, World Anvil is for creating a world (for a book, series, RPG, game, or any other reason). There's some feature overlap but not much.

    World Anvil Icon
    NovaScriber icon
    • NovaScriber is Free Personal and ProprietaryWorld Anvil is Freemium and Proprietary
  9. Fortelling - Writer Tools icon

    Fortelling - Writer Tools

     8 likes
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    Fortelling provides the tools you need to plot & write your book.

    50 Fortelling - Writer Tools alternatives

    License model

    • Freemium • Proprietary

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • NL flagNetherlands
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Android
    • iPhone
    • iPad
    • Web Browser
    Fortelling is optimised for both a smal and a large screen.

    Properties

    1.  Distraction-free
    2.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Character database
    2.  Track Characters
    3.  Portable
    4.  Works Offline
    5.  Dark Mode
    6.  Goal Setting
    7.  Real time collaboration
    8.  WYSIWYG Support
    9.  Goal Tracking
    10.  Built-in viewer
    11.  Cloud Sync
    12.  File Versioning

    Fortelling - Writer Tools VS World Anvil

     
  10. Character Story Planner 2 icon

    Character Story Planner 2

     6 likes
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    The new version of Character Story Planner, planning and building a story cannot be easier with the help with this app. It helps the writer to plan the building of character, relation, group, race, creature, etc with the new template system which let the user fill the...

    License model

    • Free • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Android
    • Android Tablet
    Character Story Planner 2 screenshot 1
    Character Story Planner 2 screenshot 2
    Character Story Planner 2 screenshot 3

    Character Story Planner 2 Features

    1.  Works Offline
    2.  Places tracking
    3.  Character database
    4.  Track Characters
    5.  Custom characters
    6.  Tracking of plots
    7.  Custom templates
    8.  Data export/import
    9.  Standard Detailed Templete

    Character Story Planner 2 VS World Anvil

     
    Comments about Character Story Planner 2 as an Alternative to World Anvil
    lalomartins
    Negative Jan 16, 2022
    0

    This is for writing a book, World Anvil is for creating a world (for a book, series, RPG, game, or any other reason). There's some feature overlap but not much.

    World Anvil Icon
    Character Story Planner 2 icon
    • Character Story Planner 2 is Free and ProprietaryWorld Anvil is Freemium and Proprietary
  11. Notebook.ai icon

    Notebook.ai

     3 likes
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    Notebook is a set of tools for writers, game designers, and roleplayers to create magnificent universes — and everything within them.

    18 Notebook.ai alternatives

    License model

    • Freemium • Proprietary

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    Notebook.ai screenshot 1

    Notebook.ai Features

    1.  Portable
    2.  Note organization
    3.  Collaborative writing
    4.  Custom templates

    Notebook.ai VS World Anvil

     
    Comments about Notebook.ai as an Alternative to World Anvil
    Guest
    Positive Aug 24, 2020
    0

    Notebook.ai has a way cleaner interface and seems a lot easier to use. You have to pay to get private pages on World Anvil, but that's a free feature on Notebook.ai and it seems to have a lot more features geared towards writing and worldbuilding instead of just playing RPG games.

    World Anvil Icon
    Notebook.ai icon

    • Most users think Notebook.ai is a great World Anvil alternative.

    • Notebook.ai is Freemium and ProprietaryWorld Anvil is also Freemium and Proprietary
  12. Obsidian Portal icon

    Obsidian Portal

     1 like
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    Obsidian Portal takes the pain out of managing your tabletop RPG.

    8 Obsidian Portal alternatives

    License model

    • Freemium • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Online
    Obsidian Portal screenshot 1

    Obsidian Portal Features

    1.  Campaign Management

    Obsidian Portal VS World Anvil

     
10 of 14 World Anvil alternatives