# Shovel Study Planner vs School Planner | DormWay

The clearest difference is rating: Shovel Study Planner at 4.3 against School Planner | DormWay's 3.3. Shovel Study Planner also leads on ratings volume (247 vs 7) and iOS requirement (15.5 vs 26.0). School Planner | DormWay's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and update cadence (every 5 days vs every 5 weeks). On price, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Shovel Study Planner sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. School Planner | DormWay asks for nothing beyond the download.

Shovel Study Planner holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 3.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Shovel Study Planner has 247 ratings behind it against 7, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 52% of Shovel Study Planner's written reviews are positive against 67% of School Planner | DormWay's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Shovel Study Planner ships an update every 5 weeks, School Planner | DormWay every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 22, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Shovel Study Planner | School Planner | DormWay |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.3 (247 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shovel-study-planner/id1467742357/reviews)** | [3.3 (7 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/school-planner-dormway/id6744615044/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **247** | 7 |
| Positive reviews | 52.3% of reviews | **66.7% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 5 weeks | **Every 5 days** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Ad-supported** |
| Size | 28 MB | 79 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.5** | 26.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Mac |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [How To Study Smart, LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1467742356) | [DormWay LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1808474957) |

## What reviewers say

### Shovel Study Planner

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shovel-study-planner/id1467742357)

This app helps students manage their academic workload through time-blocking and executive functioning skills. It predicts if tasks can be completed on time and allows for flexible schedule adjustments. It requires initial setup on a web platform.

**Highlights:** Time-blocking for tasks, Real-time time cushion estimates, Consolidated task management, Ideal schedule building, Rotating class schedule support, Detailed task progress tracking, Weighted grade calculation

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Lifetime plan | $13.99 | one-time |
| Lifetime plan | $46.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 📚 Excellent for student organization and time management
- ⏱️ Unique time-blocking and scheduling features
- 🎓 Course and assignment-focused organization system
- 💻 Desktop/web version works reliably and comprehensively
- 🎨 Clean, minimalist, and aesthetically pleasing interface

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Mobile app frequently crashes and becomes unresponsive
- 📱 Mobile app significantly less functional than web version
- ⚠️ App shows blank screens and fails to load content
- 🔌 Requires constant internet connection, no offline access
- 🛠️ Appears to be abandoned with no recent updates

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes when attempting to edit task times
- Blank white screen on app launch
- Touch input not responding on iPad with Apple Pencil
- Tasks and calendar items disappear after login
- Tasks fail to save when entered

**Requested features**

- Push notifications for tasks and assignments
- Dark mode for mobile app
- Widget functionality that works reliably
- Offline access and offline storage
- Landscape mode for iPad


### School Planner | DormWay

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/school-planner-dormway/id6744615044)

This app consolidates assignments and deadlines from various sources like syllabi and learning platforms into a single, accurate view. It offers an AI assistant to answer course-specific questions and works across thousands of universities without requiring IT approval.

**Highlights:** Consolidates assignments from syllabi and learning platforms, Connects to Canvas and Moodle for auto-syncing, AI assistant for course-specific questions, Works at over 6,000 universities, Data privacy focused with read-only access, Free to use with no premium tiers

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Shovel Study Planner free?

Shovel Study Planner is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is School Planner | DormWay free?

School Planner | DormWay is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Shovel Study Planner or School Planner | DormWay?

Shovel Study Planner is rated higher. Shovel Study Planner averages 4.3 out of 5 from 247 ratings, while School Planner | DormWay averages 3.3 from 7 ratings.

### Do Shovel Study Planner or School Planner | DormWay have ads?

Neither Shovel Study Planner nor School Planner | DormWay shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Shovel Study Planner or School Planner | DormWay?

Shovel Study Planner ships an update every 5 weeks, and School Planner | DormWay every 5 days. Most recently, Shovel Study Planner was updated on October 26, 2026 and School Planner | DormWay on October 22, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*