RagTime

What RagTime does

RagTime.de Development GmbH is a privately held German software company founded in 1986 and headquartered in Garbsen, Germany, operating with a 1–10 person team under Managing Director Helmut Tschemernjak. It develops and sells RagTime, a cross-platform (macOS and Windows) business publishing application whose defining feature is a frame-based page layout that combines word processing, spreadsheet calculation, charts, diagrams, and graphics in a single environment — a design that differentiates it from mainstream office suites. The current flagship is RagTime 7 (64-bit, released final for macOS in September 2023 and for Windows in June 2024), sold in Business Publishing, Office, and EDU editions, with add-on extensions covering FileMaker/ODBC connectivity (FileTime X, Connect Pro), calculation functions (Power Functions, MetaFormula), booklet printing (Johannes), and format conversion (CSV, PalmDoc).

The company monetizes through one-time perpetual software licenses priced at €737–€1,474 per user depending on version and upgrade path, plus paid add-on extensions such as FileTime X (€199). Distribution is direct-to-consumer via the ragtime.de website with email-based ordering and a 30-day free trial, supplemented by a French-speaking channel partner (Infographix) for France and Francophone markets. There is no external funding, no parent company, and no disclosed enterprise customers; the user base is composed of individual professionals, SMBs, and educational institutions producing technical catalogs, business forms, and database-driven documents. The firm has operated continuously for four decades on a single-product line, sustaining product currency through frequent builds (most recently Build 2092 in April 2026 with macOS 26 Tahoe compatibility).

Name

RagTime

Legal name

RagTime.de Development GmbH

Website

https://ragtime.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

RagTime.de Development GmbH is a German software firm that develops RagTime, a cross-platform macOS/Windows business publishing application combining word processing, spreadsheets, charts, and graphics in a frame-based layout, sold via perpetual licenses to professionals, SMBs, and educators.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Desktop Publishing Software

NAICS

Software Publishers (5132)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYHDAEAGAL

Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) & Document Generation/Templating

Hardware, Technology & Telecom/Enterprise Platforms & Databases/Enterprise Content Management (ECM) & Document Management

Keywords

• Desktop publishing software
• Page layout software
• Cross-platform publishing
• Prepress publishing
• Database publishing

Headquarters

HQ city

Garbsen

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Software Licenses: One-time perpetual license purchases for RagTime software, including single-user and multi-user full versions. Prices vary by version (full version vs upgrade) and user count.
2. Software Upgrades: Upgrade pricing for existing users moving to newer versions (e.g., from RagTime 6.x to RagTime 7). Upgrade prices are lower than full version prices.
3. Extensions and Add-ons: Additional functionality sold as extensions including FileTime X (FileMaker connectivity), Johannes (booklet printing), Power Functions, MetaFormula, and CSV Converter.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

RagTime develops and sells RagTime, a cross-platform (macOS and Windows) desktop publishing and document composition application that uses a frame-based layout to combine word processing, spreadsheets, charts, images, drawings, and PDF documents within a single publication. The software is offered in multiple editions (Business Publishing, Office, EDU) under a perpetual license model and is targeted at professional document creation, prepress, office, and database publishing workflows. Supplementary utilities such as FileTime X, RagTime Connect Pro, and SlideTime extend the core suite with file management, external data integration, and presentation capabilities.

Product overview

RagTime is a business publishing solution combining word processing, spreadsheet calculations, diagramming, and graphics in a frame-based page layout environment. The core product is RagTime 7 (with legacy RagTime 6.6 still supported), available in Business Publishing, Office, and EDU editions. Extensions include FileTime X (FileMaker connectivity), Connect Pro (SQL/ODBC), Power Functions, MetaFormula, Johannes (booklet printing), CSV Converter, and PalmDoc Converter. The product supports both macOS and Windows with full cross-platform compatibility.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• FileTime X: FileMaker connectivity extension for RagTime enabling drag-and-drop database field insertion and mail merge functionality
• RagTime Connect
• Johannes
• PowerFunctions
• MetaFormula
• CSV Converter
• FileTime

Products and services

• RagTime 7 Cross-platform (macOS and Windows) desktop publishing and document composition application that uses a frame-based layout to combine word processing, spreadsheets, charts, images, drawings, and PDF documents into a single publication. Sold under a perpetual license in Business Publishing, Office, and EDU editions for professional, office, and educational users.
• RagTime 6.6 Legacy version of the RagTime desktop publishing suite, retained for existing customers who have not yet migrated to RagTime 7 and offered as an upgrade path.
• FileTime X Standalone file management utility sold as part of the RagTime product family, priced separately (€199) to help users organize and manage document files across macOS and Windows.
• RagTime Connect Pro Data import and database publishing connector that allows users to bring external data into RagTime layouts, enabling data-driven document composition for business and prepress workflows.
• SlideTime Presentation/slideshow module that allows RagTime users to create and run slideshows and presentations derived from their document layouts, extending the core DTP suite into presentation use cases.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration8 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• InfographixcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 23 October 2015Infographix is the authorized reseller and support partner for RagTime in France and Francophone countries. They provide French-language technical resources and assistance for RagTime users, including localized product information and support services.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Adobe InDesign: Industry-leading desktop publishing software within Adobe's broader Creative Cloud portfolio. Competes with RagTime for professional layout and document design use cases but is bundled into a much larger design ecosystem.
• CorelDRAW Graphics Suite: Professional design and layout suite from Alludo with vector, photo, and page layout tools. Overlaps with RagTime's layout and document design use cases but as part of a much wider graphics portfolio.
• Microsoft Publisher: Entry-level desktop publishing application historically bundled with Microsoft Office and targeting SMB document design. Direct overlap with RagTime's office/document use cases, though Microsoft announced end-of-sales for the standalone product.
• Apple Pages: Free word processor and page layout application bundled with every Apple device. Competes with RagTime's lighter office and layout use cases among Mac users, with substantially broader reach and zero cost.

Direct peers

• QuarkXPress: Long-standing commercial desktop publishing software for page layout, similar in category and target user to RagTime. Both are professional, paid DTP tools serving designers and business publishers on macOS and Windows.
• Affinity Publisher: Modern, one-time-purchase desktop publishing application from Serif, positioned as a lower-cost alternative to Adobe InDesign. Direct competitor to RagTime's professional page-layout category, particularly for individual and SMB buyers.
• iStudio Publisher: macOS-only desktop publishing software for page layout and document design. Closely comparable niche DTP product targeting Apple-platform users with a similar frame/canvas-based approach to RagTime.

Emerging players

• Scribus: Open-source desktop publishing application for Linux, macOS, and Windows. Competes with RagTime in the professional DTP niche at zero license cost, appealing to technically inclined users and small publishers.
• LibreOffice Writer: Free, open-source word processor within the LibreOffice suite. Substitutes for some of RagTime's office productivity and document creation use cases, particularly for cost-sensitive European SMBs and education customers.
• Swift Publisher: Affordable macOS-only desktop publishing software targeting small business and home users. Competes with RagTime's lighter office and SMB document layout use cases at a much lower price point.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/watch?v=F7dbb6baAtE

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about RagTime