Vellum pricing comes down to two one-time licences: Vellum Ebooks at $199.99 and Vellum Press at $249.99, which adds print. There is no subscription, updates are free, and you can download and use the app free until you want to generate publishable files.
Every figure here was checked against vellum.pub and Vellum’s purchasing FAQ as of September 2026. Prices exclude tax, and they can change, so confirm on those pages before you buy.
In this breakdown, you will get:
- Exactly what each tier costs and what separates them
- The upgrade trap that can cost you an extra $20
- The hidden cost if you do not own a Mac
- An honest read on where Vellum beats what we build
Here are the numbers.
How Much Does Vellum Cost?
Vellum costs $199.99 for Vellum Ebooks or $249.99 for Vellum Press, paid once. Vellum’s FAQ answers the subscription question directly: “It’s a one-time purchase.” Both licences cover unlimited books and unlimited pen names, and updates cost nothing.
| Item | Cost | Structure |
|---|---|---|
| Vellum download and preview | $0 | Free, no time limit |
| Vellum Ebooks | $199.99 | One-time, ebooks only |
| Vellum Press | $249.99 | One-time, ebooks plus print |
| Ebooks → Press upgrade (after 30 days) | $69.99 | One-time |
| Ebooks → Press exchange (within 30 days) | Price difference | One-time |
| Additional books and pen names | $0 | Unlimited |
| Software updates | $0 | Included |
| Refund window | — | 30 days |
Prices are in US dollars and do not include tax, per the Vellum homepage. Vellum stopped selling single-book ebook credits in 2017, so there is no pay-per-book option any more.
Vellum Ebooks vs Vellum Press: What Is the Difference?
The difference is print. Vellum Ebooks formats your book as an ebook only. Vellum Press does everything Ebooks does and adds a print edition you can have produced as a paperback or hardcover. The extra $50 buys the print interior.
Vellum Ebooks — The $199.99 Vellum licence that generates ebook files for retailers such as Kindle, Apple Books and Kobo, with no print output.
Vellum Press — The $249.99 Vellum licence that generates both ebook files and print-ready interiors for paperback and hardcover editions.
Choose Ebooks only if you are certain you will never publish in print. Most self-published authors eventually want a paperback, because readers ask for them and they anchor your ebook price on the Amazon page. If you plan a KDP paperback or a hardcover edition, start with Press.
Can You Upgrade From Vellum Ebooks to Vellum Press?
Yes. Within 30 days of buying Vellum Ebooks, Vellum will exchange it for Press if you pay the difference in price. After 30 days, the upgrade costs $69.99, started from the Purchases menu inside the app.
That timing matters more than it looks:
- Buy Press up front: $249.99
- Buy Ebooks, exchange inside 30 days: $199.99 + the difference = $249.99
- Buy Ebooks, upgrade later: $199.99 + $69.99 = $269.98
Waiting costs you roughly $20. It is not a fortune, but it is a penalty for indecision. If there is a realistic chance of a paperback within the next year, buy Press on day one.
Is There a Vellum Free Trial?
Vellum has no time-limited trial. Instead, the app itself is a free download with no time limit. You can import your manuscript, apply styles and preview the finished book without paying. Payment only unlocks generating the final files for publishing.
This is genuinely better than a typical trial. You can format your entire book, check every chapter opening and ornament, and only pay once you are happy with the result. The FAQ confirms: “Is there a time limit to using the free download? No.”
If you do buy and it still does not work for you, Vellum states you “can cancel your purchase within 30 days for a refund.” So the real financial risk is close to zero, as long as you own a compatible Mac.
What Is Not Included in the Vellum Price?
Vellum does not include a Mac, writing tools, editing, cover design, ISBNs or printing. It turns a finished manuscript into formatted book files. Everything before and after that step sits in your wider self-publishing budget.
Budget separately for:
- A Mac — Vellum requires macOS 13 Ventura or newer. It runs natively on Apple silicon and Intel Macs, but not on Windows or iPad.
- Printing — print costs depend on your print-on-demand service, page count and colour. Vellum points you to Amazon KDP’s printing costs as an example.
- A cover — Vellum formats interiors only.
- Editing and proofreading — there is no grammar checker or developmental feedback.
- The manuscript itself — Vellum imports Word files. It does not draft anything.
Licences also have limits worth knowing. You can install your licence on a second computer you own, and you can format books for other authors. You cannot share a licence with a co-worker or assistant, because each one is tied to an individual.
What Does Vellum Cost If You Use Windows?
On Windows, the real Vellum price is $249.99 plus access to a Mac. Vellum has no Windows version and, per its FAQ, no plans to build one. Its official Windows guide recommends renting a cloud Mac through MacinCloud, which it says offers plans “as low as $1 USD per hour.”
For one or two books a year, renting a cloud Mac is workable. You format once, generate files and log off. For a prolific author who tweaks interiors often, the meter and the remote-desktop lag add up.
The alternative is buying Apple hardware, which turns a $250 purchase into a much larger one. If that is your situation, compare Atticus pricing first. Atticus costs $147 one-time and runs on Windows, Mac, Linux and Chromebook.
Vellum Pricing vs Atticus and Chapter
Vellum is the most expensive of the popular one-time book tools, and the only Mac-only option. Here is how the numbers line up as of September 2026.
| Tool | Price | Payment | Platforms | What it is for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chapter (our product) | $97 one-time | Once, 2 books included | Browser | Writing the whole book with AI |
| Atticus | $147 | Once | Windows, Mac, Linux, Chromebook | Writing plus formatting |
| Vellum Ebooks | $199.99 | Once | Mac only | Ebook formatting |
| Vellum Press | $249.99 | Once | Mac only | Ebook plus print formatting |
| Freelance formatter | Varies per book | Per project | n/a | Done-for-you formatting |
Atticus undercuts Vellum Press by about $103. The trade-off is polish: Vellum’s default interiors remain slightly cleaner and its workflow smoother. Our Atticus vs Vellum comparison covers that trade in detail, and Vellum alternatives covers the wider market.
Where Vellum Beats Chapter
This is our blog, so weigh the recommendation accordingly. The honest version: for typesetting a finished book, Vellum beats Chapter clearly. They solve different problems, and on Vellum’s home ground it wins on every count that matters.
- Print interior quality. Vellum produces press-grade print PDFs with careful page balancing, trim size options and chapter-opening design. Chapter exports clean EPUB, PDF and DOCX files that upload to KDP, but it is not a typesetter.
- Styles you can see. Vellum’s style library gives your book a designed look in a few clicks, with ornaments, drop caps and headings that match. Chapter gives you sensible defaults.
- Preview before paying. Vellum lets you format and preview your entire book free, with no time limit. That is a more generous try-before-you-buy than almost any software, ours included.
- One tool for every future book. Once written, every book you publish goes through the same Vellum licence at no extra cost. Chapter charges per manuscript generated, because each full draft costs real compute.
Where Chapter wins is the step before any of that. Vellum needs a finished manuscript. If you do not have one, $249.99 buys a beautiful frame for an empty page.
Our Product — Chapter
Chapter is an end-to-end AI book writing platform: research, outline, full manuscript and export in one workflow. 2,147+ authors have used it, 5,000+ books have been created on it, and it has been featured in USA Today and the New York Times.
Best for: Authors who do not have a finished manuscript yet. Pricing: $97 one time, 2 books included (fiction or nonfiction), 30-day money-back guarantee. Full detail in our Chapter pricing breakdown. Honest caveat: Chapter is not a typesetter. If interior design is your bottleneck and you own a Mac, buy Vellum.
The two stack well. Draft in Chapter, export DOCX, import into Vellum Press, style and generate. That is $346.99 total for an idea-to-publication workflow. The full side-by-side is in Chapter vs Vellum.
Is Vellum Worth the Price?
Vellum is worth the price if you own a Mac and plan to publish more than one book. The licence covers unlimited titles, so a five-book series brings Press down to about $50 per book. Paying a formatter for every release overtakes that quickly.
It is a weaker buy in three cases:
- You publish a single book. A one-off title may cost less through a book formatting service.
- You use Windows. Atticus gets you most of the way for less and runs on your hardware.
- You have not written the book. Solve the manuscript first. Formatting can wait.
For the full assessment of strengths and weaknesses, read our Vellum review or browse the broader guide to book formatting software.
FAQ
Is Vellum a one-time payment or a subscription?
Vellum is a one-time payment, not a subscription. Vellum Ebooks costs $199.99 and Vellum Press costs $249.99, before tax. Updates are free, with no renewal fees. Vellum says it may add optional paid features later, but you will never pay for updated versions.
Does Vellum have a free trial?
Vellum has no time-limited free trial, but the app is a free download you can use indefinitely. You can import, style and preview your whole book without paying. A purchase is only needed to generate publishable files, and Vellum offers refunds within 30 days.
How much is the Vellum Press upgrade?
The upgrade from Vellum Ebooks to Vellum Press costs $69.99 after 30 days. Within 30 days of purchase, Vellum will exchange your licence for the price difference instead. Buying Ebooks and upgrading later totals $269.98, about $20 more than buying Press up front.
Can I use Vellum on Windows?
Vellum is Mac-only and has no plans for a native Windows version. Its official guide recommends renting a cloud Mac through MacinCloud, from about $1 per hour. The cheaper cross-platform alternative is Atticus at $147, which runs on Windows, Mac, Linux and Chromebook.
Can I use one Vellum licence on two computers?
Yes. A Vellum licence can be installed on a second computer you own using the Restore feature. It covers unlimited books and pen names, and you may format books for other authors. You cannot share a licence with a co-worker or assistant, because it belongs to one person.
Pricing verified against vellum.pub, the Vellum purchasing FAQ and the Vellum Windows guide on 17 September 2026. Atticus pricing from atticus.io, verified 12 September 2026.
