Comparison

NotanIzer vs Overgrid

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

Head to head
About

NotanIzer

This app helps artists analyze the light and dark elements in their images. It offers various tools to convert images to black and white, grayscale, or multi-level palettes, allowing for detailed structural analysis and design enhancement. Users can also invert filter displays and share their processed images.

Highlights
  • Black and white conversion with adjustable threshold
  • Grayscale and color display modes
  • Multi-level color palette generation (3, 4, 10 levels)
  • Adjustable level sliders
  • Slice function to highlight value ranges
  • Invert filter display option
  • Image sharing capabilities
Features
Read full description

Nōtan is a Japanese design concept involving the play and placement of light and dark elements next to the other in the composition of art and imagery. The Yin Yang symbol is an example of this design philosophy. The use of Nōtan in art composition is a powerful tool to help the artist identify the structure of the light and dark portions of the image they want to incorporate into their project. The first function simply divides the image into black and white with colors above the set value being white and those below being black. You can then use the slider to move that line to enhance detail that may otherwise be obscured. The second and third functions displays the image in either a grayscale or color so the artist can focus on the structure and design of the image. The next 3 functions are Levels. They set either 3, 4, or up to 10 levels of color spread over black, gray and white pallets. The 3 and 4 levels have sliders to adjust where those levels are while the Levels function just evenly divides the image by the number of levels. Finally the last function is Slice. It allows you to select a small range of values and highlight those in black and everything else white. And as of version 3.1 you can now invert the display of each of the filters. Lighter values have been displayed in white, but now you can invert them to see those in black which can really help bring out detail. And of course, share your image in many ways. Any artist will benefit from seeing their work in a different light. NotanIzer is that light.

About

Overgrid

Easily add a customizable grid to any photo for accurate drawing and painting. Scale your reference image to match your canvas dimensions and transfer proportions with confidence. Features include adjustable grid lines, adaptive contrast, value studies, and temperature overlays.

Highlights
  • Add customizable grids to photos
  • Scale reference to canvas dimensions
  • Adjustable grid lines, color, and opacity
  • Adaptive contrast for visibility
  • Value study and temperature overlay
  • Save and apply grid presets
  • Export at high resolution
Features
Read full description

Add a grid to any reference photo. Transfer proportions to canvas with confidence. Import from your gallery, or shoot with your camera on iPhone and iPad. Set rows, columns, line weight. Done. Match your canvas first. Crop the reference to your canvas ratio, then enter your real dimensions. 16x20, 12x12, whatever you are working on. Every square lines up when you transfer. No guesswork, no wasted paint. Customize everything. Grid color, opacity, thickness, diagonals for composition, numbering to track your squares. Make the grid work the way you work. Adaptive contrast reads your image and picks grid colors that stay visible on any background. Dark lines on light areas. Light lines on dark. You never lose the grid. Value study breaks the image into tonal levels so you can plan light and shadow before you start. Temperature overlay maps warm and cool zones across the composition. Save setups as templates. One tap to apply your favorite configuration to any new project. Export at full resolution, up to 4096px, for printing or reference at any size. Free includes three projects, basic grid, and 1024px export. Full access is a one-time purchase. Not a subscription. No account. No cloud. No ads. Your images never leave your device.

Screenshots

NotanIzer4 screens
Overgrid4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Overgrid at Free against NotanIzer's $1.99. Overgrid also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.3) and update cadence (weekly vs every 2 months). NotanIzer's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and ratings volume (105 vs 11). On 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

Overgrid is free to download; NotanIzer costs $1.99 up front. Overgrid sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. NotanIzer asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Overgrid holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: NotanIzer has 105 ratings behind it against 11, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 82% of NotanIzer's written reviews are positive against 100% of Overgrid's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

NotanIzer ships an update every 2 months, Overgrid weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard9 real differences · 2 level
NotanIzer versus Overgrid: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNotanIzerOvergrid
Price$1.99Free — better
Rating4.3 (105 ratings)5.0 (11 ratings) — better
Positive reviews81.8% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings105 — better11
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#35 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, MaciPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better
Requires iOS1715.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size30 MB32 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developerbigpantsgroup LLCPaintingstack Technologies SpA

Customer experience

NotanIzer

All ratings103 ratings
Positive83.5%
Neutral1.0%
Negative15.5%
Written reviews44 reviews
Positive81.8%
Neutral2.3%
Negative15.9%

Overgrid

All ratings9 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

NotanIzer

Reported bugs

6 issues
  • Sidebar overlays slider controls and prevents their use on macOS
  • Images come out white on Mac
  • Watermark on prints after paying
  • App won't open after 30 days
  • Export images crashes app on iPad
Show 1 more
  • Export to photos option doesn't appear on iPhone

Requested features

6 requests
  • Allow saving named files to chosen folder
  • Disable sound effect for level limits
  • Improve photo access to retain position
  • Fix macOS sidebar overlay issue
  • Fix Mac image export issue (white images)
Show 1 more
  • Fix update issues with export/crashing on iPad/iPhone

Overgrid

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

NotanIzer

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Overgrid

One-time1
  • Overgrid Premium$12.99

Questions

Is NotanIzer free?
NotanIzer costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Overgrid free?
Overgrid is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, NotanIzer or Overgrid?
Overgrid is rated higher. NotanIzer averages 4.3 out of 5 from 105 ratings, while Overgrid averages 5.0 from 11 ratings.
Do NotanIzer or Overgrid have ads?
Neither NotanIzer nor Overgrid shows ads.
Which is updated more often, NotanIzer or Overgrid?
NotanIzer ships an update every 2 months, and Overgrid weekly. Most recently, NotanIzer was updated on November 2, 2026 and Overgrid on October 31, 2026.

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