KilnLink vs ClayLab
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
KilnLink
Monitor and manage multiple kilns remotely. Check firing status and stay connected to your equipment from anywhere, ensuring peace of mind during operation.
- Connect to multiple kilns
- Check kiln firing status remotely
- Real-time monitoring
- Backend API infrastructure updates
- Password reset fix
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Stay connected to your kiln ON THE GO! KilnLink allows you to connect to multiple kilns so you can check their status as they are firing. Features of version 2.0.2: - Updated for backend API infrastructure updates - Fix for reset password problem Requires: - A Skutt KilnMaster-Touchscreen (KMT or GMT) controller - Wi-Fi connection for each kiln - Data connection for your mobile device
ClayLab
A digital diary for ceramists to meticulously document their pottery projects. Track every stage, from forming to firing, and record detailed information about glazes, clay bodies, and application techniques. Organize and retrieve your work with advanced search and backup features.
- Comprehensive progress tracking
- Detailed documentation of glazes and materials
- Advanced search and filtering
- Data backup and import/export
- Layering and application details logging
- Unlimited photos per piece
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Never lose track of a pottery piece again. ClayLab is a pottery journal and studio tracker designed by potters for potters. Track pieces, glazes, firings, experiments, and inventory in one place. Whether you work in a home studio or a shared community studio, ClayLab helps you stay organized, find your work, and learn from every experiment. Track every stage of your pottery journey, from wet clay to finished work. Record glazes, underglazes, slips, oxides, stains, clay bodies, forming methods, dimensions, weight, firing results, and more. Keep detailed notes and photos so you always know what worked and what didn't. ▶ Stay Organized Track pieces through every stage Record sold, gifted, traded, available, and archived pieces Organize work with custom locations Quickly find pieces in shared studios Unlimited pieces Unlimited photos ▶ Track Your Process Glazes and underglazes Clay bodies Forming methods Slips, oxides, and stains Stage tracking Status tracking Detailed notes Dimensions and weight tracking ▶ Learn From Every Experiment Compare results across pieces Search and filter by glaze, clay body, form, stage, and more Record glaze layering and application details Track dipping times Calculate shrinkage and monitor changes through firing ▶ Backup & Restore Protect your pottery records with export and import tools. Easily back up your data and move it between devices. Perfect for potters, ceramic artists, students, hobbyists, and studio members who want to keep better records, stay organized, and improve their craft. ▶ What's Included No ads Unlimited pieces Search and filtering Custom glazes Custom underglazes Custom clay bodies Custom stains Custom oxides Custom forms Custom forming methods Custom locations Dimensions tracking Weight tracking Stage tracking Status tracking Unlimited photos General note-taking ▶ ClayLab Pro Backup export Backup import Unlimited glaze layers Coat tracking Application method logging Glaze annotations Dipping time tracking Duplicate pieces (up to 20 copies) Custom stage definitions ▶ How do ClayLab Pro subscriptions work? ClayLab Pro Monthly: billed monthly ClayLab Pro Yearly: billed annually at a discounted rate Payment will be charged to your Apple ID account upon confirmation of purchase. Subscriptions automatically renew unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. You can manage subscriptions and turn off auto-renewal in your App Store account settings. www.claylabapp.com/terms www.claylabapp.com/privacy-policy
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: ClayLab at 92% against KilnLink's 17%. ClayLab also leads on rating (4.6 vs 2.0) and ratings volume (358 vs 82). KilnLink's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and device support (3 vs 1). On price, update cadence 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
Both are free to download. ClayLab sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. KilnLink asks for nothing beyond the download.
ClayLab holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 2.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 82 and 358 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 17% of KilnLink's written reviews are positive against 92% of ClayLab's.
KilnLink ships an update every 3 months, ClayLab every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 18, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | KilnLink | ClayLab |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 2.0 (82 ratings) | 4.6 (358 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 17.2% of reviews | 91.6% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 82 | 358 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 3 months | Every 2 months — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Freemium |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 11.0 — better | 16.4 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 70 MB | 27 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Skutt Ceramic Products, Inc. | Lorenzo Calvani |
Customer experience
KilnLink
ClayLab
User reviews
KilnLink
From 82 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Basic monitoring is helpful
- 👍 Can track temperature remotely
- 👍 App details improved in recent update
- 👍 Connects and monitors firing status
- 👍 Free version is pretty good
Room to improve
- 🐛 App doesn't work
- 🐛 Connection issues
- 🐛 Poor UI and design
- 🐛 Limited functionality
- 🐛 App is frustrating
ClayLab
From 358 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Helpful for organizing pottery pieces
- 👍 Customizable options for clays, glazes, and forms
- 📸 Ability to take and store photos of pieces
- 🗒️ Detailed notes and tracking capabilities
- 🔍 Useful for remembering glaze combinations
Room to improve
- 🔒 No backup or export functionality
- 🔍 Lack of search and filtering options
- 🔢 Limited to 3 glaze layers per piece
- 📏 No metric measurement options
- 🗑️ Unable to delete pre-populated options
Bugs and requests
KilnLink
Reported bugs
59 issues- App completely doesn't work
- Cannot see history or skip ahead
- Ridiculously complicated to connect
- Nothing works
- App forgets kiln when switching views
Show 54 moreShow fewer
- Cannot reconnect while kiln is running
- Doesn't work anymore
- Screens don't display correctly on iPad
- Dead links, endless loops
- Poor UI, ambiguous icons
- Lack of utility
- Cannot log in after update
- Cannot update password
- App works less than half the time
- Constantly have to close and reopen app
- Kiln often disappears from list
- Never remembers login info
- Never had success fully connecting
- App gets stuck at naming the kiln
- App won't link to kiln
- App stopped working
- Error when trying to reset password
- App is a basic readout of temperature, not formatted for vertical orientation
- Loses first and last digit of temp over 1000°
- Cannot get app to accept info and open
- App stinks, Skutt does not have IT support
- Often loses connection and unable to reconnect
- Don't trust app for accurate reading outside studio
- App doesn't work at all after moving kiln
- Getting same error as others
- Tried deleting app and starting over, no luck
- App gives message 'we could not get data for this kiln at this time'
- Hard to find customer support link
- App fails to work consistently
- Cannot rely on app
- Worked once, then wouldn't recognize barcode/serial number
- Won't even recognize kilns
- No help given on website
- Lost connection during fire, need to fully close app to reconnect
- App never shows kiln as connected
- Refresh button does nothing
- Kiln not connected when it's connected
- Kiln hasn't updated for a while, 'click here' does nothing
- App struggles to stay WiFi connected
- When rarely connected, kiln does not update
- App has never worked with iOS
- Kiln hasn't reported in a while, clicking refresh does nothing
- Relinking kiln didn't work
- Deleting and reinstalling app did nothing
- App login fails to connect after phone OS update
- Cost per firing inaccurate, showing without decimals
- Cannot log in after app update
- App no longer retains linked kiln info
- Must re-link kiln with serial number every time
- Temperature reading is extremely off after update
- Cannot get confirmation to work, confirmation code sent but no response
- App doesn't open, just flashes icon and closes
- App crashes immediately on iPhone
- Will not open after download
Requested features
20 requests- Upgrade to premium functionality
- Over-time displays
- Return to 'New View' functionality
- Functionality with Apple shortcuts
- Notifications for firing/cooling events
Show 15 moreShow fewer
- Ability to move to next segment remotely
- Ability to end program remotely
- Alerts for errors with sound notifications
- Sound notifications for alarms set in program
- Access to the graph of the program running
- Add users more easily
- Control over KTM to shut off remotely
- Show graph seen on controller screen
- Show estimated completion time
- Push notifications for status updates
- Accurate cost per firing calculation
- Show chart seen on KM screen
- Improve temperature reading accuracy
- Add dark mode option
- Advanced analytics dashboard
ClayLab
Reported bugs
2 issues- Occasional crashes or performance issues
- Data loss when changing devices or reinstalling
Requested features
6 requests- Add hand-building option alongside thrown pieces
- Ability to track firing details (cone, atmosphere, etc.)
- Option to create custom categories (e.g., sold, gifted)
- Search and filter by glaze, clay, form, etc.
- Sync data across devices (iCloud, etc.)
Show 1 moreShow fewer
- Export data to CSV or PDF format
In-app purchases
KilnLink
No in-app purchases
ClayLab
- Monthly$4.991 Month
- Yearly$49.991 Year
