Comparison

MetaBrush vs FocalPaint

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

Head to head
About

MetaBrush

Transform your photos into artistic paintings with a variety of brush presets and advanced settings. This app offers layers support and the ability to import Photoshop brushes, allowing for detailed customization of your artwork.

Highlights
  • 30 brush presets
  • Layers support
  • Import Photoshop brushes (.abr)
  • Customizable stroke settings
  • Paint with images
Features
Read full description

With Metabrush you can easily turn your photos into paintings. The result images are very artistic, as you brush with different presets and settings. Visit the gallery at http://instagram.com/metabrush for many examples. Features: • 30 brush presets for artistically clone your original image. • Layers support • 500+ brushes bitmaps • Support for importing directly Photoshop brushes (.abr) • Include many settings for the strokes as dynamical size, rotation, shadow, and opacity. • You can assign colors to the strokes, but also paint with images (as if they were colors). Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula

About

FocalPaint

This app offers a unique brush engine for realistic paint simulation, pigment mixing, and canvas textures. It allows for custom brush and layer creation using Metal GPU or Javascript code, with advanced features like spectral color models and Apple Pencil Pro support.

Highlights
  • Realistic paint and pigment mixing
  • Custom brush and layer creation
  • Transparent ink simulation
  • Apple Pencil Pro support
  • Spectral color model
  • Open source shader code library
Features
Read full description

FocalPaint's unique brush engine simulates thick paint and real pigment mixing with accurate physics models. Features: - Realistic color blending behaves like real paint! - Real canvas texture and paint thickness - Transparent Ink simulation - Open Source GPU shader code library for reference and customization - Write your own custom brush with Metal GPU or Javascript code - Write your own custom layer modes with Metal GPU code - Apple Pencil Pro support with hover - 16 channel "spectral" color model (256 bits per pixel) - Wide color gamut (P3) Please note: Apple A12 GPU or newer is required Terms of Use: https://www.focalpaint.com/p/terms-of-use.html Privacy Policy: https://www.focalpaint.com/p/privacy.html Special Thanks to: Scott Allen Burns Troy James Sobotka & Friends colour-science.org python library MyPaint painting software team Anna Timm (@anti-art)

Screenshots

FocalPaint1 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: MetaBrush at Free against FocalPaint's $4.99. MetaBrush also leads on iOS requirement (16.6 vs 18.6). FocalPaint's advantage is rating (4.2 vs 3.7) and update cadence (monthly vs every 2 months). On ratings volume, ads, in-app purchases 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

MetaBrush is free to download; FocalPaint costs $4.99 up front. MetaBrush sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per 7 days and FocalPaint sells 3 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

FocalPaint holds the better App Store score, 4.2 against 3.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 21 and 13 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 65% of MetaBrush's written reviews are positive against 79% of FocalPaint's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

MetaBrush ships an update every 2 months, FocalPaint monthly. The most recent releases landed on September 20, 2026 and August 15, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
MetaBrush versus FocalPaint: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterMetaBrushFocalPaint
PriceFree — better$4.99
Rating3.7 (21 ratings)4.2 (13 ratings) — better
Positive reviews65.4% of reviews78.6% of reviews — better
Number of ratings21 — better13
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsMonthly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterPaid
DevicesiPadiPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS16.6 — better18.6
Further details — not scored
Size253 MB557 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developertalonsodevbrien dieterle

Customer experience

MetaBrush

All ratings21 ratings
Positive71.4%
Neutral4.8%
Negative23.8%
Written reviews26 reviews
Positive65.4%
Neutral3.8%
Negative30.8%

FocalPaint

All ratings13 ratings
Positive84.6%
Neutral0.0%
Negative15.4%
Written reviews14 reviews
Positive78.6%
Neutral0.0%
Negative21.4%

In-app purchases

3 purchases

MetaBrush

Subscriptions2
  • Metabrush PRO3 Days trial$0.997 Days
  • Metabrush PRO3 Days trial$6.991 Year
One-time1
  • Metabrush PRO$9.99
3 purchases

FocalPaint

One-time3
  • Generous Tip$0.99
  • Big Tip$4.99
  • Huge Tip$9.99

Questions

Is MetaBrush free?
MetaBrush is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is FocalPaint free?
FocalPaint costs $4.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, MetaBrush or FocalPaint?
FocalPaint is rated higher. MetaBrush averages 3.7 out of 5 from 21 ratings, while FocalPaint averages 4.2 from 13 ratings.
Do MetaBrush or FocalPaint have ads?
Neither MetaBrush nor FocalPaint shows ads.
Which is updated more often, MetaBrush or FocalPaint?
MetaBrush ships an update every 2 months, and FocalPaint monthly. Most recently, MetaBrush was updated on September 20, 2026 and FocalPaint on August 15, 2026.

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