Comparison

Paintwork vs Charcoal

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Paintwork

Create handwritten notes, diaries, and drawings with a vast array of tools. Features include customizable brushes, vector graphics, a rich color palette, and image import. Export your creations as PDFs or images.

Highlights
  • Customizable brushes and erasers
  • Extensive vector graphics tools
  • Rich color palette
  • Image and material import
  • Handwriting assistance
  • PDF and image export
  • Customizable backgrounds and canvas
Features
Read full description

Paintwork is a simple and powerful software for handwritten notebooks, diaries, and hand drawn images. It includes functions such as: brush list (hundreds of brush effects, customizable brush thickness, color, transparency, dynamic strength weights, etc.), eraser list (each brush effect can be used as an eraser), Vector graphics tools (including lasso, vector eraser, vector pen, annotation pen, highlighter, wavy pen, double line pen, text box, illustration, dashed line, horizontal and vertical dashed line, curve, closed shape, text pen, rectangle, ellipse, straight line, arrow, triangle, pentagram, polygon, etc.), and also include many related attribute settings, Color list (with a rich color palette and customizable manual configuration of commonly used colors), copy and cut the content of specified areas on the page, import images or materials, as well as a simple calculator, handwriting assistance, and photo scanning of document files. Unlimited writing, ruler, recognition of text, printing of text, filling, and the ability to export PDF files or images. Supports custom background functionality, custom canvas paper, and more. It can be used to write for classroom or book learning notes, handwritten notes for work meetings, hand drawn mind maps, hand drawn account creation, hand made account book making, writing diaries, recording life thoughts, calligraphy practice, handwritten brush and pencil characters, hand drawn artistic characters, and so on. Supports Apple pencil. Can export images or PDFs. If you have any comments or feedback, please feel free to contact us. Contact email: pw_team@163.com If you like our application, please give us a good review. Thank you.

About

Charcoal

This app offers a simple yet powerful sketching experience with rich tools and beautiful color palettes. Easily create and export your artwork for use in other graphics programs. It supports modern iOS features like multiple windows and dark mode for enhanced productivity.

Highlights
  • Simple sketching interface
  • Rich drawing tools
  • Beautiful color palettes
  • Export sketches
  • Multiple window support
  • Dark mode
Features
Read full description

• Charcoal is incredibly easy to use: Just create or open a sketch and start sketching. There are no layers or confusing settings. Instead, Charcoal features rich tools and beautiful color palettes. • Charcoal allows you to export a sketch to use it in your favorite graphics program. • Charcoal supports modern iOS and iPadOS features like multiple windows and dark mode: use it at night or open multiple sketches, even side by side.

Screenshots

Paintwork4 screens
Charcoal3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Charcoal at none against Paintwork's 3. Charcoal also leads on review sentiment (77% vs 65%). Paintwork's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 2 months) and ratings volume (17K vs 143). On price, rating, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Paintwork sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Charcoal asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Paintwork against 4.5 for Charcoal. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Paintwork has 17K ratings behind it against 143, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 65% of Paintwork's written reviews are positive against 77% of Charcoal's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Paintwork ships an update weekly, Charcoal every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and September 8, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Paintwork versus Charcoal: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPaintworkCharcoal
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (17K ratings) — better4.5 (143 ratings)
Positive reviews65.4% of reviews76.9% of reviews — better
Number of ratings17K — better143
Update frequencyWeekly — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod, Vision Pro — better
Requires iOS15.615.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size200 MB28 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developer伟典 苏Lars Augustin

Customer experience

Paintwork

All ratings17,166 ratings
Positive88.1%
Neutral5.4%
Negative6.5%
Written reviews237 reviews
Positive65.4%
Neutral13.9%
Negative20.7%

Charcoal

All ratings141 ratings
Positive87.2%
Neutral7.1%
Negative5.7%
Written reviews117 reviews
Positive76.9%
Neutral13.7%
Negative9.4%

User reviews

Paintwork

From 17K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🎨 Vast selection of brushes and tools
  • 💻 Works well on various devices
  • 🎨 Allows for creative expression
  • 💰 Free to use with no paywall

Room to improve

  • 🔒 Certain features locked behind paywall
  • 🐛 Bugs and glitches causing crashes or data loss
  • 🎨 Limited color palette and blending options
  • 🔍 Lack of intuitive UI and tutorials

Charcoal

From 143 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Simple and intuitive
  • 👍 Great for quick sketching
  • 🎨 Aesthetically pleasing design
  • 💰 Free with no ads

Room to improve

  • 🎨 Limited color palette
  • 🎨 Lack of customization options
  • 🎨 Missing advanced drawing tools
  • 🐛 Occasional bugs and crashes

Bugs and requests

Paintwork

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • App freezing or crashing when using certain features
  • Artwork getting deleted or not saving properly
  • Inability to import or work with external images

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add more color options and blending tools
  • Improve stability and reduce crashes
  • Provide more tutorials and onboarding for new users
  • Allow users to save and access their artwork easily

Charcoal

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Saved sketches lose quality
  • Palette colors change unexpectedly
  • Freezing when opening color palette

Requested features

4 requests
  • Ability to change brush/pen size
  • Layers and blending tools
  • Color wheel and custom color selection
  • Import/export options

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Paintwork

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly subscription premium$0.991 Month
  • Annual subscription premium$3.991 Year
One-time1
  • Unlock local version$9.99
None

Charcoal

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Paintwork free?
Paintwork is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Charcoal free?
Charcoal is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Paintwork or Charcoal?
Paintwork is rated higher. Paintwork averages 4.6 out of 5 from 17K ratings, while Charcoal averages 4.5 from 143 ratings.
Do Paintwork or Charcoal have ads?
Neither Paintwork nor Charcoal shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Paintwork or Charcoal?
Paintwork ships an update weekly, and Charcoal every 2 months. Most recently, Paintwork was updated on September 23, 2026 and Charcoal on September 8, 2026.

Other comparisons