Recent Comparisons for Quark Vs. InDesign

Adobe InDesign was originally known as "PageMaker."

Adobe InDesign and Quark are two of the most well-known names in the desktop publishing world. However, Quark has not fared as well in recent years as its counterpart has. According to an April 2010 article in "Inc.," Quark has steadily lost market share to InDesign since 2003 when Adobe first bundled the program with its Creative Suite. InDesign and Quark each have their followers and their detractors. The most recent releases of the software packages continue to highlight the differences between the two, but also show increasing similarities.

Price

Quark and InDesign can each represent a significant investment for your home or business-based graphic needs. A May 2011 review of Quark in "Desktop" magazine found that InDesign remains the less expensive option of the two. InDesign retails for $699 while Quark retails for $799. Both offer an upgrade option for existing customers. Again, InDesign falls below Quark at $119 compared to $299. InDesign customers can also choose to pay a monthly subscription price of $35.

Web Capabilities

While InDesign remains a more affordable product at its core, a July 2010 report from IT Enquirer finds you may need to purchase the full Adobe Creative Suite at a cost of $1500 and more to access many of the Web-based features available in the single Quark product. The report points out that you cannot create Web pages in InDesign without the accompanying Adobe Dreamweaver. Quark, however, makes it possible for you to develop Web pages through basic CSS support. Likewise, creating an online photo gallery in InDesign is difficult without Adobe Photoshop and Flash whereas Quark requires no additional tools.

Electronic Publishing

Electronic readers and tablets have helped increase the popularity of electronic publications. Accordingly, the latest releases of InDesign and Quark have introduced new features to support the creation of e-pubs. According to a June 2010 article on Ars Technica, InDesign and Quark have similar interfaces for building e-pubs with the nearly identical palettes. However, the article finds InDesign to have a better set of features. For example, InDesign allows you more control over page breaks, spacing and objects. The software also includes more dynamic video and audio support.

Desktop Publishing

InDesign and Quark were introduced as tools to help users design brochures, magazines and other print publications. An April 2011 review of Quark in Tech Radar finds that, although the software has traditionally lagged behind InDesign when it comes to desktop publishing, its recent improvements have helped bring it up to speed with the Adobe product. Quark now includes a feature known as "conditional styles" that are similar to "nested styles" in InDesign and allow you to create one style based on multiple rules. A July 2011 article from "Macworld" also sees Quark catching up to InDesign with features like its story editor that lets you text blocks in separate windows.

References

• IT Enquirer: InDesign CS5 vs. QuarkXPress 8 for Web and Interactive Design
• ARS Technica: InDesign CS5.5 Review: E-Books Made Easy
• Desktop Magazine: A Review of QuarkXPress 9
• Quark: Quark Store: QuarkXPress 9 Americas Edition
• Adobe: Adobe Store: North America: Adobe InDesign CS5.5
• Tech Radar: QuarkXPress 9 Review
• Macworld: QuarkXPress 9