ScriptBuilder vs CardBeat
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
ScriptBuilder
Capture and develop screenplay ideas on the go. This app guides you through clarifying your movie concept, structuring your story arc with act builders, and fleshing out characters and scenes with targeted questions. Prepare to write compelling stories with a solid foundation.
- Idea clarification questions
- Story arc structure (Act 1, 2, 3)
- Character development prompts
- Scene building guidance
- On-the-go idea capture
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Welcome to ScriptBuilder! ScriptBuilder was made to capture and build screenplay ideas on the go. Before you face the dreaded blank page, build up your screenplay idea with ScriptBuilder! Features: • The Idea section helps you clarify your movie idea by answering specific questions, getting to the heart of your story • Structure your story arc with Act 1, Act 2, and Act 3 builders. All three act sections contain Act Beat questions to facilitate new ideas and notes which will prepare you when you're ready to build scenes • The "Character Builder" feature prompts you to answer questions about your characters to help you get to know your characters better and to discover their arcs. Getting to know your characters will make writing your scenes with these characters smoother. (Access through in-app purchase) • The "Scene Builder" feature provides useful questions that when answered help bring clarity to what the scene does to move your story and characters forward. (Access through in-app purchase) Unlimited Access: All Access (1 Month) $5.99 All Access (1 Year) $49.99 -------------------------------- I originally built this app because I found myself coming up with ideas for screenplays but didn't have a dedicated place to capture them. I also wanted a tool that would help me flesh out the story, characters, and scenes before I sat down in front of my computer to write. I want to continue to iterate on ScriptBuilder with new features to make it even better. If you have any feature requests, questions or comments, please go to the support url and send me an email :) I hope ScriptBuilder helps you along your path in creating compelling stories in both feature films and television. If it does help, please share ScriptBuilder with your family and friends. Thank you! -------------------------------- Privacy Policy: https://www.scriptbuilderapp.com/_files/ugd/b622d0_f5722cd213394590bbd181559a0af540.pdf Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
CardBeat
This app provides a digital cork board for writers to plot novels, screenplays, or short stories. It allows users to break down stories into acts, sequences, and scenes, and rearrange them freely. Users can customize cards with colors, lines, or grids, and choose from various drawing tools or keyboard input.
- Digital cork board for story plotting
- Structure stories into acts, sequences, and scenes
- Rearrange plot elements freely
- Customizable cards with colors and backgrounds
- Multiple drawing tools and keyboard input
- Export boards as PDF
- iCloud syncing
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A digital corkboard for plotting your novel, screenplay or short story. CardBeat keeps all the fun things about index cards – and gets rid of all the rest. Break your story into acts, sequences and scenes. Put each beat on a card, pin it to the board and shuffle until the structure works – without wasting ink or paper. WRITE YOUR WAY - Handwrite with Apple Pencil or just your finger – pens, pencils, markers and brushes in any color. - Prefer typing? Every card takes keyboard input, too. - Choose blank, lined, dotted or grid cards in different colors to track characters, subplots or timelines. SEE THE WHOLE STORY - Place cards anywhere on the board – no rows, columns or table cells. Turn on snap-to-grid when you want things tidy. - Zoom out for the big picture, zoom in to work on a single scene. - Working in a writers' room? Connect a TV, monitor or projector and show a clean view of the board while you plot. SHARE AND SYNC - Your boards stay in sync across iPhone and iPad with iCloud – or turn sync off with a single switch. - Export a board as a PDF for feedback, or as a CardBeat file your co-writer can import and keep working on. PRIVATE BY DESIGN No accounts, no ads, no third-party analytics. CardBeat doesn't collect any data. FREE TO START Plot up to two boards for free. Unlock unlimited boards with a one-time purchase – no subscription.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: ScriptBuilder at 4.6 against CardBeat's 3.5. ScriptBuilder also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months) and iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.0). CardBeat's advantage is review sentiment (46% vs 36%) and ratings volume (33 vs 7). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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
Both are free to download. ScriptBuilder sells 6 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month and CardBeat sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
ScriptBuilder holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 3.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 7 and 33 respectively. Written reviews complicate that: 36% of ScriptBuilder's written reviews are positive against 46% of CardBeat's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
ScriptBuilder ships an update every 3 weeks, CardBeat every 2 months. Both last shipped on October 24, 2026.
| Parameter | ScriptBuilder | CardBeat |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (7 ratings) — better | 3.5 (33 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 35.7% of reviews | 45.8% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 7 | 33 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks — better | Every 2 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 — better | 26.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 23 MB | 7 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | patrick ridd | Stefan Stuckmann |
Customer experience
ScriptBuilder
CardBeat
Bugs and requests
ScriptBuilder
Reported bugs
16 issues- Save function not working
- App crashes frequently
- App freezes
- Data loss after crashes
- Content deleted after saving
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- Export functionality is poor
- Poor translation of terms
- Ads persist after payment
- App closes by itself frequently
- Information lost even after saving
- Last box in Act 2 never saves
- Cursor moves unexpectedly while typing
- In-app purchases are greyed out
- Auto-loads name, no author identification
- Setup is not helpful
- Loading screen for purchases
Requested features
12 requests- Fix bugs
- Improve save functionality
- Add autosave system
- Add dark mode
- Add notepad for drafts
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- Add templates for TV scripts
- Allow author identification
- Offer a global price for all add-ons
- Improve export options (Markdown, OPML)
- Fix translation issues
- Allow multiple acts, prologue, epilogue
- Make characters and scenes free
CardBeat
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
ScriptBuilder
- All Access (1 Month)7 Days trial$5.991 Month
- All Access (1 year)7 Days trial$49.991 Year
- Character Builder$0.99
- Scene Builder$0.99
- No Ads$1.99
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- All Access (Lifetime)$69.99
CardBeat
- Unlimited Story Boards$19.99
Questions
Is ScriptBuilder free?
Is CardBeat free?
Which has better reviews, ScriptBuilder or CardBeat?
Do ScriptBuilder or CardBeat have ads?
Which is updated more often, ScriptBuilder or CardBeat?
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