When comparing FocusWriter vs Byword, the Slant community recommends Byword for most people. In the question“What are the best distraction-free word processors?” Byword is ranked 1st while FocusWriter is ranked 3rd.
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Open Source and free with donation
Pro Customizable themes
This program has a number of good pre-made themes and allows you to create your own.
Pro Can save as ODT, RTF, DOCX and TXT
In addition to Text Open Document (ODT), FocusWriter allow to save as Office Open XML (docx), Righ Text Format (RTF) and text file (TXT).
Pro Cross platform including Linux, Windows, Mac OS X
Pro Word count
Pro Word count support
Pro A dark theme is available
Pro Can publish directly to external services
Pro Can export to html, pdf, rtf
In addition to plaintext, Byword can export to HTML, PDF, RTF.
Pro Exemplary Markdown support
Byword de-emphasizes the syntax itself, while emphasizing its effects. It appropriately adds style, like italic and bold, to text that's designated by markdown and dims the syntax so it does not getting in the way of comprehension. Additionally, there are commonly used hotkeys (⌘b, ⌘i, etc) that can be used to apply style without having to know the syntax or having to type it out each time.
Pro Includes features that speed up writing
For example, while authoring a bulleted list hitting return automatically prepares a new bulleted line.
Pro Available for all Apple devices
Byword is available on a Mac, an iPhone and an iPad.
Pro Syncs using iCloud and Dropbox
Documents can be synced using iCloud or Dropbox from within the editor for use across all devices.