Dabble vs IngramSpark Comparison 2026
Both cover self-publishing. Here is what separates them on price, billing, what you can take with you, and coverage.
A novel manuscript, its plot grid beside it
Print a book into the retail supply chain
At a glance
- Only IngramSpark has a free tier.
Side by side
Dabble | IngramSpark | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | From $19 | Not listed |
| Pricing model (they differ) | Free trial, then paid | Free plan, paid tiers |
| Free tier (they differ) | No | Yes |
| Billing | Monthly or annual | Not stated |
| Free trial | 14 days | Not stated |
| API | Not stated | Not stated |
| Data export | Everything, in an open format | Not stated |
| Their cut | Not stated | Not stated |
| Runs on (they differ) | Web, iOS, Android |
Shaded rows are where the two answers disagree and both listings have answered. A row where one side has not stated a fact is left plain, because silence is not a difference.
Dabble
A novel manuscript, its plot grid beside it
Dabble holds a manuscript, its outline and its story notes in one place, with a plot grid you can open alongside the chapter you are writing. It syncs to a phone, which matters more than it sounds when the useful idea arrives away from the desk. Everything you wrote stays readable and exportable after you stop paying.
Our note
Dabble is the pick if you outline before you draft, because the plot grid is genuinely good and genuinely central. Novlr is cheaper and has a free plan; Plottr does the planning better and does not want to be your editor.
Only on this side
- Covers writing & scripts
IngramSpark
Print a book into the retail supply chain
IngramSpark is how an independent author gets a physical book into the catalogue bookshops and libraries actually order from, which Amazon's own printing does not do on the same terms. Setup costs nothing now, print is charged per copy, and the distribution reach is the reason to be here rather than the interface. Returns, discounts and trim sizes are decisions with real money attached, and the site is better at listing them than at explaining them.
Ratings are the average of reviews readers left. The facts are stated by each tool’s own listing and are not verified by CloutStack. How we make money.