Comparison

Spirograph Maker vs Cruciverbalist

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

Head to head
About

Spirograph Maker

Easily create intricate spirograph patterns by adjusting gear size and pen color. Explore a variety of designs with this intuitive drawing application.

Highlights
  • Easy spirograph creation
  • Adjustable gear size
  • Customizable pen color
  • Draw various figures
  • Intuitive interface
Features
Read full description

Create mesmerizing geometric art with a single tap. Released in 2017 with over 110,000 downloads — a math-meets-art tool refined over 9 years. Spirograph Maker turns the timeless mechanical drawing toy into a digital playground for your iPhone and iPad. Choose your gears, pick your colors, and watch hypnotic patterns bloom across the screen — no drawing skill required. WHERE MATH MEETS ART The patterns Spirograph creates aren't accidents — they're governed by GCD/LCM and parametric equations. Watch how the lobe count is determined by n/gcd(n,m), see hypotrochoids and epitrochoids come alive on your screen. A visual companion for middle-school number theory and high-school parametric curves. Whether you're a curious learner, a math enthusiast, or just love beautiful patterns, this is where math becomes mesmerizing. In 2022, this app was acknowledged in an academic paper on algebraic combinatorics — the smoothness criteria for Positroid varieties (Billey & Weaver, arXiv:2207.06508). From a child's toy to cutting-edge mathematical research — that's how deep these patterns go. FOUR GEAR SHAPES Not just circles. Draw with ellipse, rounded triangle (a curve of constant width), and teardrop gears too. Change the gear's shape and the symmetry of the pattern changes with it: circles stay regular, ellipses stretch, triangles beat in threes, teardrops curve organically. A strength slider tunes each shape continuously — from nearly circular to a flat ellipse, or a sharply pointed triangle or teardrop. KEY FEATURES - Auto-draw mode: tap once and beautiful patterns appear on their own - Custom color palette with gradient mode for endless combinations - Adjustable gear shapes and sizes: circle / ellipse / rounded triangle / teardrop, plus tooth count - Save your creations directly to your Photo Library - Share to Instagram, Facebook, or anywhere - Full iPad support — a bigger canvas for finer detail - Light and Dark mode WHY SPIROGRAPH MAKER - A meditative break from a busy day — without leaving your phone - A visual bridge between middle-school math and university geometry - Inspired by the classic Spirograph toy, reimagined for modern iOS - Perfect for parents, students, artists, and math enthusiasts - Works offline, anywhere PERFECT FOR - Winding down before bed - Sparking creativity with kids - A short math meditation anytime - Making one-of-a-kind wallpapers - Sharing unique art on Instagram - A short, calm focus break during your day In Japan, downloads notably spike around the start of new school terms and summer breaks — pointing to a growing use as a learning companion. Pull out your phone, tap once, and watch sacred geometry unfold. Whether you're a designer, a doodler, a student, or just love beautiful patterns, Spirograph Maker is the simplest way to make art that mesmerizes. Free to download. Optional ad-free upgrade available.

About

Cruciverbalist

Design and build your own crossword puzzles with customizable grid sizes and word lists. Get suggestions for words and phrases to complete your puzzles, then export them in various formats for sharing or submission.

Highlights
  • Customizable grid sizes
  • Black square and letter placement
  • Word and phrase suggestions
  • Import custom word lists
  • Export to PDF (blank or formatted)
  • No ads or subscriptions
Features
Read full description

Write your own crossword puzzles! No ads and no subscriptions. CREATE - Pick a grid size: 5x5, 9x9, 15x15, or 21x21 - Fill in black squares and letters - Receive suggestions for valid words and phrases to complete partially filled rows and columns - A 550,000+ word list of English words, names, and phrases is included to make suggestions, but you can also import your own word list to augment or replace this dictionary SHARE - Export completed puzzles to PDF, either blank with clues to share with friends, or formatted to submit to the New York Times

Screenshots

Spirograph Maker4 screens
Cruciverbalist3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Cruciverbalist at none against Spirograph Maker's 1. Cruciverbalist also leads on ads (none vs shown) and review sentiment (73% vs 53%). On price, rating, ratings volume and update cadence 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. Spirograph Maker sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Cruciverbalist asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.4 for Spirograph Maker against 4.4 for Cruciverbalist. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 88 and 33 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 53% of Spirograph Maker's written reviews are positive against 73% of Cruciverbalist's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Spirograph Maker ships an update fortnightly, Cruciverbalist every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Spirograph Maker versus Cruciverbalist: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSpirograph MakerCruciverbalist
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (88 ratings)4.4 (33 ratings) — better
Positive reviews52.9% of reviews72.7% of reviews — better
Number of ratings88 — better33
Update frequencyFortnightly — betterEvery 3 weeks
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS18.013.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size22 MB9 MB
Age rating4+12+
DeveloperKYWorksMiranda Strand

Customer experience

Spirograph Maker

All ratings88 ratings
Positive83.0%
Neutral9.1%
Negative8.0%
Written reviews17 reviews
Positive52.9%
Neutral11.8%
Negative35.3%

Cruciverbalist

All ratings30 ratings
Positive83.3%
Neutral10.0%
Negative6.7%
Written reviews22 reviews
Positive72.7%
Neutral22.7%
Negative4.5%

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Spirograph Maker

One-time1
  • Remove Ads$3.99
None

Cruciverbalist

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Spirograph Maker free?
Spirograph Maker is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Cruciverbalist free?
Cruciverbalist is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Spirograph Maker or Cruciverbalist?
Cruciverbalist is rated higher. Spirograph Maker averages 4.4 out of 5 from 88 ratings, while Cruciverbalist averages 4.4 from 33 ratings.
Do Spirograph Maker or Cruciverbalist have ads?
Spirograph Maker shows ads; Cruciverbalist does not.
Which is updated more often, Spirograph Maker or Cruciverbalist?
Spirograph Maker ships an update fortnightly, and Cruciverbalist every 3 weeks. Most recently, Spirograph Maker was updated on November 2, 2026 and Cruciverbalist on November 3, 2026.

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