Comparison

ShadowDraw vs ScribbleJelly

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

Head to head
About

ShadowDraw

Learn to draw with guided, step-by-step lessons designed for beginners. Follow the strokes of professional artists to build confidence and master fundamental techniques. Explore thousands of tutorials across various popular art subjects.

Highlights
  • Step-by-step guided drawing lessons
  • Thousands of tutorials
  • Manga, anime, people, animals, and nature subjects
  • Art Teacher Mode
  • Sketch My Way Mode
  • Builds drawing fundamentals
Features
Read full description

Learn to draw with confidence using your Apple Pencil. Featured by Apple as App of the Day in 2023 and 2025. ShadowDraw® is the easiest way for beginners to learn how to draw on iPad using their Apple Pencil. Our guided lessons teach you step-by-step by showing the real strokes of professional artists, helping you build confidence, accuracy, and real drawing fundamentals from your very first session. LEARN TO DRAW THE SMART, BEGINNER-FRIENDLY WAY
 ShadowDraw breaks every drawing into simple, guided steps. You follow the same strokes as a professional artist, learning: * Line control * Shapes & construction * Proportions * Shading * Final detailing
 Each step unlocks only after you complete the previous one, giving you a structured, supportive learning path—like having a private art teacher with you on your iPad. THOUSANDS OF STEP-BY-STEP LESSONS
 Explore beginner-friendly drawing lessons across the most popular art subjects: * Manga & Anime Characters * People & Portraits * Animals (cats, dogs, horses, birds, dragons, and more) * Architecture & Buildings * Botanical & Nature Drawing * Birds & Butterflies * Coloring & Simple Shading * Holiday & Seasonal Art * Warm-Ups & Foundations * Sketching Basics
 With over 2,000 guided tutorials, there’s always something inspiring to draw. PRACTICE YOUR WAY
 ShadowDraw offers two flexible learning modes: Art Teacher Mode
 We pick brushes and colors so beginners can focus on fundamentals. Sketch My Way
 Choose your own tools and colors for creative freedom. BUILD A DAILY DRAWING HABIT 
Short, approachable lessons help you build confidence and stay consistent. ShadowDraw makes daily practice easy, fun, and motivating—even for busy beginners. RECOGNIZED BY APPLE & TRUSTED WORLDWIDE 
ShadowDraw has been featured in the App Store collections, including: * Incredible iPad Apps * Great with Apple Pencil * Apple Pencil Starter Kit * Better with Apple Pencil * The Best Drawing Apps * The Best Apps for Creatives ShadowDraw has also ranked as the #1 Drawing App in its category. Apple writes: 
“With over 1,500 hand-drawn lessons developed by real artists, ShadowDraw is a drawing app for beginners who want to improve their skills through daily step-by-step exercises.” PRAISED BY THE PRESS
 The New York Times
“ShadowDraw… teaches drawing forms by having you follow along the animated pen strokes of another artist in an updated take on the ‘copying the masters’ approach.” MacBreak Weekly — Pick of the Week
“…the next generation of step-by-step.” Also featured by CNET and Creative Bloq. LEARN TOGETHER WITH SHADOWDRAW+
 A ShadowDraw+ membership unlocks the full library and supports Family Sharing, so everyone in your household can learn to draw at their own pace. WE’RE HERE TO HELP 
Need support or have feedback? Contact us anytime through in-app Chat Support. Email: support@shadowdrawapp.com
 Website: shadowdrawapp.com 
Instagram: @shadowdraw For our EULA agreement, please visit: 
https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ ShadowDraw® and Shadow Draw™ are trademarks of Shadow Draw Inc.

About

ScribbleJelly

Read full description

ScribbleJelly is a grown-up-supervised creative studio where little drawings become big sticker magic. DRAW WITH LOTS OF COLOR Fill the large canvas with 12 friendly colors. Separate Colors, Stickers, and Magic tabs keep the creative tools close without crowding the drawing. DECORATE A WHOLE WORLD Place 105 painted stickers from seven themed collections: Halloween & Fall, Dinosaurs, Weather, Vehicles, Animals, Ocean, and Party. Each collection has 15 stickers. Six starter drawings make it easy to jump in, and Undo and Redo help you explore without losing a favorite idea. EXPLORE PLAYFUL EXAMPLES Browse 11 bundled before-and-after comparisons, including five full scenes made from drawings and groups of stickers. These are clearly labeled illustrative AI demonstrations included with the app. Viewing them does not upload a drawing or use live AI. PICK SOME MAGIC Choose one of four playful styles and mix up to three words from a curated set of 50. Keep the original colors or try a fresh palette. MAKE THREE FREE STICKERS Create three sticker previews on your device, pick your favorite, and go back to change the recipe whenever inspiration strikes. ONLINE SERVICE AVAILABILITY Optional AI, adult-account access, and server-backed credit purchases are currently unavailable. Free on-device drawing, stickers, and exports remain available. The AI/wallet sections below describe implementation that requires those services to be available. OPTIONAL AI WITH A GROWN-UP After the grown-up check, the person self-attests that they are the parent or guardian, reviews the privacy notice, expressly consents, and continues with Apple. An AI upgrade sends the current drawing and selected recipe through ScribbleJelly’s service to OpenAI for moderation and image editing and returns three new sticker choices for one credit. ScribbleJelly’s application database and object storage do not retain submitted drawings or generated images. OpenAI may retain AI request content and related safety metadata under its standard API retention terms. GROWN-UP CREDIT WALLET A new grown-up account starts with 3 AI credits and may receive one free credit on eligible later days. Parents can add 2-credit or 12-credit consumable packs through Apple’s secure purchase sheet. Prices are localized by Apple. Purchases are optional; free on-device sticker-making remains available. SAVE, SHARE, OR PRINT WITH A GROWN-UP Save a uniquely named PNG through Apple’s Files picker to keep original quality and transparent edges. Save a uniquely named white-background JPG, share the PNG to compatible installed cutter or printer apps, or use AirPrint with a nearby printer. One grown-up check unlocks these adult actions for the current supervised app session. DESIGNED FOR CREATING TOGETHER Free sticker-making stays on-device. Optional AI is separated behind the grown-up gate, self-attested parent or guardian consent, and Sign in with Apple for the grown-up. Apple sign-in does not independently verify age or parental relationship. There are no child profiles, ads, third-party analytics, public gallery, messaging, or tracking. Grown-ups can sign out, revoke AI consent, or delete their pseudonymous account in Privacy & Help. ScribbleJelly supports iPhone and iPad and requires iOS 17 or later. Printer and third-party app compatibility depends on the selected device, app, and hardware.

Screenshots

ScribbleJelly4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: ScribbleJelly at none against ShadowDraw's shown. ScribbleJelly also leads on update cadence (every 4 days vs every 6 weeks). On price, in-app purchases, device support and iOS requirement 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. ShadowDraw sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per month and ScribbleJelly sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ShadowDraw ships an update every 6 weeks, ScribbleJelly every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on November 2, 2026 and October 17, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
ShadowDraw versus ScribbleJelly: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterShadowDrawScribbleJelly
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.2 (1.8K ratings) — better—
Positive reviews59.4% of reviews—
Number of ratings1.8K — better—
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeksEvery 4 days — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPadiPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS16.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size820 MB34 MB
Age rating12+4+
DeveloperShadow DrawAnthony Fasano

Bugs and requests

ShadowDraw

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Drawings disappearing after completion
  • App crashing on launch for some users
  • Eraser tool not working properly with coloring feature

Requested features

5 requests
  • More free drawing content
  • Canvas rotation and reference image positioning
  • Ability to save progress on drawings
  • Clearer visual indicators for brush/pen changes
  • Side-by-side drawing mode to practice without tracing

ScribbleJelly

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

2 purchases

ShadowDraw

Subscriptions2
  • ShadowDraw: Monthly Plan7 Days trial$7.991 Month
  • ShadowDraw: Yearly Plan7 Days trial$49.991 Year
2 purchases

ScribbleJelly

One-time2
  • 2 AI Sticker Credits$0.99
  • 12 AI Sticker Credits$4.99

Questions

Is ShadowDraw free?
ShadowDraw is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is ScribbleJelly free?
ScribbleJelly is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do ShadowDraw or ScribbleJelly have ads?
ShadowDraw shows ads; ScribbleJelly does not.
Which is updated more often, ShadowDraw or ScribbleJelly?
ShadowDraw ships an update every 6 weeks, and ScribbleJelly every 4 days. Most recently, ShadowDraw was updated on November 2, 2026 and ScribbleJelly on October 17, 2026.

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