Comparison

Fraksl vs Mandalas Drawing Studio

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

Head to head
About

Fraksl

Explore and create mesmerizing fractal art with interactive touch controls. Apply various filters and mirrors, and even use your camera to generate unique visual patterns. Save, share, and export your creations in high resolution.

Highlights
  • Navigate fractal space with touch gestures
  • Apply filters and mirrors
  • Interact with fractals using phone camera
  • Record in-app videos
  • Export high-resolution images
  • Save fractals for later use
Features
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Fraksl turns your device into a real-time fractal visual engine. Powered by live video feedback, it transforms simple inputs into endlessly evolving, mesmerizing patterns — perfect for live performances, music visuals, generative art, and creative exploration. FILTERS & MIRRORS Apply color filters and mirror transformations to reshape your fractals into new forms. Combine them with layers and modulators for infinite creative possibilities. LAYERS Mix multiple visual sources into your fractals. Use your live camera as input, import images and videos from your library, or receive NDI streams from other apps and devices. Each layer has full control over blend mode, opacity, hue, position, rotation, scale, and chroma keying. SEQUENCES Capture bookmarks of your visual state — filter, mirror, color, and more. Arrange them into sequences with custom transition and hold times for smooth, cinematic playback. Export and share your sequences with others. MODULATORS Automate any parameter with real-time signal sources: Audio — react to sound from your microphone MIDI — connect hardware controllers and DAWs Beat Clock — sync to BPM with adjustable divisions Waveform — generate smooth LFO patterns Motion — use your device's gyroscope and accelerometer Gamepad — connect any controller for hands-on performance Create complex, evolving visuals that respond to music, movement, or external control. CAPTURE & RECORDING Take high-resolution screenshots or record video with optional microphone audio. Share directly from the app. NDI STREAMING Stream your output live over the network to any NDI-compatible software or device. Ideal for live shows, streaming setups, and multi-screen installations. PRESETS Save and recall your complete setup — layers, modulators, mappings, sequences, and all settings — in a single tap. AVAILABLE IN 9 LANGUAGES English, Dutch, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Russian, Portuguese, and Polish. FREE TO USE Fraksl is free with core features included. Unlock additional filters, mirrors, layers, modulators, capture, streaming, and save slots individually or as a full bundle. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Mandalas Drawing Studio

Create intricate mandala paintings with a simple virtual canvas. Enjoy a clean, modern interface designed to keep you focused on your creativity. Produce high-quality vector drawings with smooth zoom and sharp graphics, all without any advertisements.

Highlights
  • Create beautiful mandala paintings
  • Simple virtual canvas
  • High quality vector based drawings
  • Smooth zoom with sharp graphics
  • No ads for uninterrupted drawing
Features
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Create beautiful mandalas with just a few simple strokes. Mandalas: Drawing Studio turns every line you draw into a perfectly symmetrical pattern. Choose how many rotations you want, start drawing, and watch an intricate mandala bloom around the center. No artistic training required. Focus on your drawing and let your creativity flow. SYMMETRY DOES THE WORK • Set your number of rotations and every stroke is repeated around the canvas instantly • Mirror mode for perfectly balanced, reflected designs • On-screen guides show your symmetry axes while you draw, and step aside when you don't need them TOOLS THAT STAY OUT OF YOUR WAY • Brush, paint roller and eraser — that's all it takes • Full-spectrum color picker with transparency support • Adjustable line width and canvas background color • A clean, modern editor designed for both iPhone and iPad MADE FOR APPLE PENCIL • Hover preview shows exactly where your stroke will land before you touch the canvas • Squeeze your Apple Pencil Pro for a quick tool palette — switch tools and undo without breaking your flow • Low-latency drawing that keeps up with your hand TRUE VECTOR ARTWORK • Every stroke is a vector, so you can zoom as deep as you like and your artwork never looks pixelated • Export high-resolution images to share, post or print • Export SVG vectors to use in Illustrator, Affinity, Figma or your cutting machine WORK IN LAYERS • Build up a piece in layers, and show or hide them as you go • Undo and redo freely as you build up your drawing YOUR FILES, YOUR WAY • Your mandalas live in the Files app and iCloud Drive — open, rename, duplicate and organize them however you like • No account, no sign-up, and it works completely offline NO ADS. NO SUBSCRIPTION. Draw whenever and wherever you want. There are no ads anywhere in Mandalas: Drawing Studio, and premium features — layers, HD image export and alternative app icons — are unlocked with a single one-time purchase. Never a subscription. Mandalas: Drawing Studio is made by an independent developer, and every purchase goes directly into making it better.

Screenshots

Fraksl4 screens
Mandalas Drawing Studio3 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Mandalas Drawing Studio at every 6 weeks against Fraksl's every 12 months. Mandalas Drawing Studio also leads on ratings volume (3.1K vs 625). Fraksl's advantage is iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). On price, rating, review sentiment and ads 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. Fraksl sells 15 in-app purchases, starting at $1.49 per month and Mandalas Drawing Studio sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Fraksl against 4.7 for Mandalas Drawing Studio. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 625 and 3.1K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 88% of Fraksl's written reviews are positive against 84% of Mandalas Drawing Studio's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Fraksl ships an update every 12 months, Mandalas Drawing Studio every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 29, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Fraksl versus Mandalas Drawing Studio: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFrakslMandalas Drawing Studio
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (625 ratings) — better4.7 (3.1K ratings)
Positive reviews87.8% of reviews — better84.0% of reviews
Number of ratings6253.1K — better
Update frequencyEvery 12 monthsEvery 6 weeks — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size92 MB7 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperEmiel HarmsenMarco Antônio Pompei

Customer experience

Fraksl

All ratings614 ratings
Positive95.6%
Neutral1.6%
Negative2.8%
Written reviews139 reviews
Positive87.8%
Neutral5.0%
Negative7.2%

Mandalas Drawing Studio

All ratings3,084 ratings
Positive94.0%
Neutral3.5%
Negative2.5%
Written reviews219 reviews
Positive84.0%
Neutral6.4%
Negative9.6%

User reviews

Fraksl

From 625 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Mesmerizing visuals
  • 👍 Intuitive controls
  • 💡 Endless creative potential
  • 🤯 Mind-blowing effects
  • 🎨 Beautiful fractals

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional crashes
  • 🔒 Difficulty restoring purchases
  • 🔋 Overheating issues
  • 🤕 Can cause eye strain
  • 🤯 Overwhelming complexity

Mandalas Drawing Studio

From 3.1K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Fun and entertaining
  • 🧘‍♀️ Calming and relaxing
  • 👍 Simple and intuitive
  • 💯 Excellent for meditation
  • 🎨 Allows creative expression

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional crashes or bugs
  • ✏️ Needs better line smoothing
  • 🎨 Limited color/tool options in free version
  • 💾 Difficulty saving/exporting designs
  • 🔍 Zooming in could be improved

Bugs and requests

Fraksl

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Camera feature crashes app on iOS 16
  • Recording feature produces slow videos
  • Saving high-res images not working as expected

Requested features

5 requests
  • Full-screen mode
  • More color/shape options
  • MIDI/audio integration
  • Custom mirror editor
  • Ability to import user photos

Mandalas Drawing Studio

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Saving issues resulting in lost progress
  • Inconsistent performance after updates
  • Difficulty accessing certain settings

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add a fill tool
  • Improve undo/redo functionality
  • Allow saving designs as vector files
  • Provide more color customization options
  • Enhance the zoom and panning capabilities

In-app purchases

15 purchases

Fraksl

Subscriptions2
  • Fraksl Subscription (monthly)$1.491 Month
  • Fraksl Subscription$14.991 Year
One-time13
  • Mirror Pack$3.99
  • Filter Pack$3.99
  • Save Pack$8.99
Show 10 more
  • Sequences Pack$8.99
  • Capture Pack$8.99
  • Layers Pack$12.99
  • Modulators Pack$12.99
  • Drivers Pack$12.99
  • Seeds Pack$12.99
  • Fraksl Pro$14.99
  • Streaming Pack$17.99
  • All Packs Bundle (upgrade from pro)$34.99
  • All Packs Bundle$44.99
1 purchases

Mandalas Drawing Studio

One-time1
  • Premium Features Package$2.99

Questions

Is Fraksl free?
Fraksl is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Mandalas Drawing Studio free?
Mandalas Drawing Studio is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Fraksl or Mandalas Drawing Studio?
Fraksl is rated higher. Fraksl averages 4.8 out of 5 from 625 ratings, while Mandalas Drawing Studio averages 4.7 from 3.1K ratings.
Do Fraksl or Mandalas Drawing Studio have ads?
Neither Fraksl nor Mandalas Drawing Studio shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Fraksl or Mandalas Drawing Studio?
Fraksl ships an update every 12 months, and Mandalas Drawing Studio every 6 weeks. Most recently, Fraksl was updated on October 26, 2026 and Mandalas Drawing Studio on October 29, 2026.

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