ArchAIDE vs ClayNote
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
ArchAIDE
This tool assists archaeologists in identifying pottery fragments by analyzing images. It leverages an intelligent system trained on a reference database to classify decorations and forms, streamlining the documentation process for fieldwork.
- Automatic potsherd recognition
- Image analysis for decoration and form
- Reference database for classification
- Save and archive identified sherds
- Share information with the community
- Paperless scientific references
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ArchAIDE App is a tool for the automatic recognition of the archaeological potsherds. The ArchAIDE app is the result of ArchAIDE project (www.archaide.eu): a research and innovation project led by a consortium of European Universities and SMEs, which has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 under grant agreement No. 693548. ArchAIDE is an innovative app for tablets and smartphones, designed as an essential tool for archaeologists. ArchAIDE wants to optimise and economise the process of pottery identification, making knowledge accessible wherever archaeologists are working. Using the ArchAIDE tools users will be supported by intelligent agents in the identification of the decoration class or the form type of a pottery sherd starting forme an image eventually taken with the mobile device camera. The automatic classification is based on the classes defined in the Reference Database develop by the ArchAIDE project. Anonymous users are missing the capability of storing the sherds in the device and on the ArchAIDE Server. The registration is FREE and gives the users a set of useful functionalities for the documentation of pottery sherds. Registered users may help the ArchAIDE team to improve the intelligent engines enriching its collections with new archaeological classes of ceramics. ArchAIDE is building a wide archaeological collaborative network to do that and everyone can be a part of it. For more information write to archaideproject@gmail.com. Recognising a potsherd with ArchAIDE App is very simple, users have just to: 1) Take a photo via a mobile device 2) send the photo to the system 3) wait few seconds and receive the answers 4) choose the better one 5) save and archive it in your assemblage 6) share the information with the community. ArchAIDE system is now available for Roman Amphorae, Terra Sigillata Italica, Terra Sigillata Hispanica, Majolica of Montelupo. Recognition tools are now available for Roma Terra Sigillata Italica and Majolica of Montelupo Fiorentino. ArchAIDE helps archaeologist to simplify their job, bringing with them paperless scientific references, sharing information with their team and with the archaeological community around the world, collecting, organising and archiving data of archaeological potsherds. Functionalities Users can access 1) ArchAIDE knowledge-base: a collection of search & retrieval tools that allows accessing the database of reference classes for types, decoration and stamps. ArchAIDE system is now available for Roman Amphorae, Roman Terra Sigillata (Italica, Hispanica, and South Gaulish) and Majolica of Montelupo Fiorentino. 2) Decoration recognition process which consists: - Select the image - Modify the image using the manipulation tools - Isolate the sherd in the image - Evaluate the results - Save the results (if the user is logged in and the results are good) - Manually classify the image by visual comparison 3) Shape recognition process which consists: - Image selection and manipulation - Definition of the scale factor - Extraction of the external profile - Extraction of the internal profile - Evaluation of results - Manual classification (alternative) - Save the info in a sherd (for authenticated users) 4) Stamp classification process which consists of a search engine. Authenticated users (only) - May collect and store data through the app. The information about sherds should be registered under a specific assemblage that belongs to a site. All the registered users own at least one site (i.e. “Default site”) in which it exists at least one predefined assemblage (i.e. “Uncategorised”). Sites and assemblages are the minimum context information required to store a sherd. - May synchronise off-line data when they are online. The synchronisation process is seamlessly carried on in the background each time the device is connected to the internet via WI-FI or 3G/4G/5G. Users can access the Synchronisation process through a dedicated monitor.
ClayNote
This app assists potters and ceramicists in documenting their creative process. It allows users to record stage notes, annotate images, save inspirations from the web, and organize their work with custom tags and collections. It serves as a digital journal to refine artistic skills.
- Stage notes for each step
- Save web inspirations (Sparks)
- Annotate images for surface treatments
- Customizable studio options
- Organize pieces with collections and tags
- Quick-add notes and reminders
- Reflect on process to refine craft
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Track every pot from wet clay to the finished shelf. ClayNote helps potters and ceramicists document, track and reflect on every piece — from the first idea to the final glaze. Photograph a piece, tick off each stage as it dries, gets trimmed, bisqued and glazed, and write down what you did while you still remember it. FOLLOW EVERY PIECE Ideas, Formed, Trimmed, Bisqued, Glazed, Finished. Tick each stage as your piece gets there, and see at a glance what's drying on the shelf and what's waiting for the kiln. NOTES THAT COME BACK TO YOU Write a note at any stage — the clay body, how thin you pulled it, which shelf it sat on. Next time you make something similar, ClayNote shows you what you wrote the last time round. MAP YOUR SURFACE DECISIONS Record glazes, underglazes, slips, oxides and stamps, and mark on the photo itself exactly where each one went. YOUR WORK IS YOURS One tap saves everything — every piece, note and photo — as a spreadsheet and a folder of pictures you can keep on your computer or a cloud drive. No account, nothing locked in. SPARKS Save the shapes, glaze recipes and reels you love from Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest and YouTube, and keep them right next to your own work. ALSO • Your materials and methods, customisable to your studio • Collections and tags to organise your work your way • Search your collection by name, grouped by month • A home screen widget • Reminders to keep your journal going between sessions
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: ClayNote at 63% against ArchAIDE's 0%. ClayNote also leads on rating (2.7 vs 1.3) and ratings volume (26 vs 3). ArchAIDE's advantage is device support (3 vs 1) and iOS requirement (10.0 vs 18). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
ClayNote holds the better App Store score, 2.7 against 1.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ClayNote has 26 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 0% of ArchAIDE's written reviews are positive against 63% of ClayNote's.
ArchAIDE ships an update every 2 weeks, ClayNote monthly. The most recent releases landed on June 3, 2026 and September 17, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | ArchAIDE | ClayNote |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 1.3 (3 ratings) | 2.7 (26 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 0.0% of reviews | 62.5% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 3 | 26 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks — better | Monthly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 10.0 — better | 18 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 161 MB | 56 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Inera s.r.l. | Ying-Chao Tung |
Customer experience
ArchAIDE
ClayNote
In-app purchases
ArchAIDE
No in-app purchases
ClayNote
No in-app purchases









