Penbook vs Drawing ▫
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Penbook
Create custom digital notebooks with a vast library of stationery or import your own PDFs for annotation. Write naturally with a stylus and organize your notes with dynamic features like live planners and searchable handwriting.
- Live Paper dynamic stationery
- Over 400 stationery types
- Import and annotate PDFs
- Natural handwriting with stylus
- Searchable handwritten notes
- Shape recognition
- Customizable notebook covers
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Write naturally with your Apple Pencil on Live Paper with Penbook. Build your perfect notebook from more than four hundred types of stationery. Then, use the best digital inking technology to pour your ideas, notes, plans, and dreams into it. Penbook's Live Paper is way smarter than ordinary stationery. Schedule your life on a monthly planner that shows a real calendar, organize your day with a day planner that shows you what time it is, and record your nutrition on a food diary that knows what day it is. Or, bring your own stationery! Import your PDFs into Penbook for quick annotation and editing. Give your notebooks colorful covers with fun art, and share them so your notes are always where you need them. FEATURES • Live Paper, the dynamic stationery that uses the smarts of your iPad and iPhone • Over 400 of academic, scientific, and planning stationeries • Import PDFs and use them as notebooks • Write naturally with your Apple Pencil, stylus, or finger • Unlimited unique cover combinations for your notes • Search your handwritten notes for words or phrases • Snap your strokes to perfect shapes with shape recognition INCLUDED STATIONERIES Penbook has a huge selection of customizable stationery. Each page of your notebook can be different, turning your iPad or iPhone into a magic notebook: • Blank stationery, with an optional date and configurable margin • Ruled paper with variable density • Graph paper with four options for square sizes • Dot stationery, either squared or isometric (offset) • Cross stationery with configurable margins and density • To Do pages with four layout options • Monthly habit paper for tracking streaks, habits, and goals • Day planner paper with a live updating timeline and calendar, and three layouts • Weekly planner paper that highlights the current time and date • Monthly planner paper that keeps track of the current day and shows you what's coming next • Yearly stationery for getting a complete overview of your next 365 days • Cornell paper for taking perfect study notes • French ruled (Séyès) paper • Penmanship practice paper • Table stationery for hand-written spreadsheets • Polar graph paper for plotting radial data • Semi-log and loglog paper for data with exponential growth or decay • Isometric stationery with equilateral (60-60-60) or isosceles (75-75-30) triangles • Perspective paper, configurable with one, two, or three vanishing points • Developer stationery with device stencils and configurable note-taking areas • Storyboard paper with 3 frame aspect ratios • Engineering paper with variable density • Chemistry paper for easily sketching molecules • Staff and tablature (music) paper with optional linked staves GET THE MOST OUT OF PENBOOK Use all of Penbook's stationery and writing features in a single notebook for free for as long as you like. Upgrade to Penbook Premium to create and export unlimited notebooks, receive access to new stationery and covers as they're designed, and get regular app updates. Penbook Premium is available by purchasing a yearly subscription or a one-time (lifetime) in-app purchase. When you choose to upgrade with the yearly subscription, you can start using Penbook Premium for free with a 7-day free trial. During the trial, cancel any time until 24 hours before the trial expires, and you will not be charged. If you do not cancel, you will be automatically billed for the yearly subscription when your free trial ends. Payment will be charged to your Apple ID account at the confirmation of purchase. Subscription automatically renews unless it is canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Your account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period. You can manage and cancel your subscriptions by going to your account settings on the App Store after purchase. Our customer-first privacy policy: https://penbook.app/privacy-policy Penbook's terms of use: https://penbook.app/terms-of-use
Drawing ▫
Unleash your creativity with a versatile drawing and painting app. Explore a wide array of brushes, colors, and tools to sketch, paint, and design on your iPhone or iPad. Features include custom mandalas, coloring pages, and a dedicated kids' desk.
- 40+ handcrafted brushes
- Millions of colors
- Import and draw on pictures
- Custom mandalas and coloring pages
- Dedicated kids' desk
- Apple Pencil and 3D Touch support
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DrawingApp - Create amazing drawing art on the go with Drawing App for iPhone & iPad. Create amazing drawing ideas to life. Use DrawingApp's state-of-the-art brushes & tools to sketch, type, paint, and draw. Take your drawing creations to wherever your thoughts want to go! 1. Sketch Desk: DrawingApp has 40+ handcrafted style paintbrush and millions of colors to choose from. Focusing on food & shelter is for common men. Pouring your creativity through DrawingApp is for unique humans: the misfits, the rebels, the art markers. The ones who not only see things differently but produce different, creative art. Here's to the common men who can now be an artist with the DrawingApp! Here is a minimalistic set of tools that can help you create the art you want: a. 40+ handcrafted brush tools that can help you imitate the real paintbrush; b. Ruler to create straight lines to your needs; c. Eraser to change or modify a drawing on the go; d. Embed picture and drawing in one art; e. Install the DrawingApp to know more! FEATURES - Paint. Draw, Sketch. Repeat - Draw smoothly like never before on iPad or iPhone. - Draw creative sketches using 40+ brushes and tools - Enhance your drawing by importing pictures and photos - Zoom to paint fine details - Share instantly 2. Doodle Desk (NEW) With Doodle Desk you can create dazzling sketches, wonderful paintings & awesome illustrations! Key Feature: -Draw, Sketch & Paint anything. -You will find Every color to draw. -You can customize your color as you wish. -Import photo from gallery or by capturing a new photo. Draw on photo. Have fun! -Rotate & scale photos as much as you want. -You can change Brush size & Opacity settings. -Undo & Redo option for your every action. -Made very easy & convenient to use. -Save artworks in gallery & share them into any social network you want. -Record & share your art work 3. Coloring Desk: - Custom mandalas: bring your unique designs to life in the mandala creation mode - 20+ categories of unique colouring pages from talented illustrators - 40+ beautiful preset Solid & Gradient colour palettes - Custom palettes: combine any colours you like to create a matchless work of art - Various colouring tools - Post-editing effects 4. Kids Desk: - Funkiest canvas with 10+ drawing tools including pen, pencil, chalk, marker, Fill, glitter, gradient & watercolor brushes - Shapes & brushes, magical pattern brushes & an enchanting wand effect on every brush stroke - 50+ educational coloring pages *We Support Apple Pencil for iPad Pro & 3D Touch sensitivity for iPhones with Angle and Pressure with Water Color, Pencil, Pen tools etc.* Get DrawingApp Premium – weekly subscription (which comes with a 3-day free trial) for $4.99 USD, Monthly subscription for $7.99 USD, OR yearly subscription for $29.99 USD OR one-time purchase with $35.99 for life-time. Upgrade to the Premium version and get unlimited access to Sketch Desk, Coloring Desk, Kids Desk, and Doodle Desk - without ads & watermarks! • Subscription payments will be charged to your iTunes account at confirmation of your purchase & upon commencement of each renewal term. Subscription with a free trial period will automatically renew to a paid subscription. You can cancel your subscription or free trial in the iTunes settings at least 24-hours before the end of the free trial period. • Note: any unused portion of a free trial period (if offered) will be forfeited when you purchase a premium subscription during the free trial period. • Payment will be charged to your iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase. Account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period. Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when the user purchases a subscription to that publication, where applicable. Privacy: http://drawingapp.me/privacy-policy.html Term: http://drawingapp.me/terms-of-use.html EULA: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Penbook at 58% against Drawing ▫'s 24%. Penbook also leads on rating (4.5 vs 4.1) and update cadence (every 5 days vs every 2 weeks). Drawing ▫'s advantage is iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.1). 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. Penbook sells 11 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Drawing ▫ sells 13 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Penbook holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 46K and 15K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 58% of Penbook's written reviews are positive against 24% of Drawing ▫'s.
Penbook ships an update every 5 days, Drawing ▫ every 2 weeks. Both last shipped on October 27, 2026.
| Parameter | Penbook | Drawing ▫ |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.5 (46K ratings) — better | 4.1 (15K ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 57.8% of reviews — better | 23.7% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 46K — better | 15K |
| Update frequency | Every 5 days — better | Every 2 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | #119 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Vision Pro | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 18.1 | 15.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 142 MB | 184 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Pencil Research | Vora Bhavik |
Customer experience
Penbook
Drawing ▫
User reviews
Penbook
From 46K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Intuitive and user-friendly interface
- 🎨 Variety of customization options for notebooks
- 📝 Smooth writing experience with Apple Pencil
- 🗓️ Useful calendar integration
- 💡 Innovative features like washi tape and stickers
Room to improve
- 🐛 Occasional crashes and data loss issues
- 🔒 Lack of password protection or locking feature
- 🔧 Glitchy zooming and ruler functionality
- 🧭 Poor notebook and page management
- 💰 Restrictive free version, expensive subscription
Drawing ▫
From 15K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Great drawing experience
- 👍 Friendly app introduction
- 💡 Ability to draw on photos
Room to improve
- 🐛 Frequent crashes and glitches
- 💰 Aggressive monetization with paywall
- 🔍 Limited color and brush options in free version
- 🔍 Confusing navigation and lack of clear exit options
Bugs and requests
Penbook
Reported bugs
5 issues- Sticker resizing issues causing app freezes
- Ruler placement and alignment problems
- Inconsistent behavior when switching between pages
- Calendar sync not working as expected
- PDF import and annotation functionality not reliable
Requested features
5 requests- Allow custom notebook covers or images
- Add text box and typing capabilities
- Improve organization with folders or tags
- Provide more customization options for templates
- Implement a more intuitive undo/redo system
Drawing ▫
Reported bugs
3 issues- Drawings disappearing or not saving properly
- Undo/redo functionality not working as expected
- App freezing or crashing during use
Requested features
4 requests- More color and brush options
- Improved layering and editing tools
- Better save/load functionality
- Tutorials or in-app guidance
In-app purchases
Penbook
- Penbook Premium5 variants$4.991 Month
- Penbook Premium$7.991 Month
- Penbook Premium7 Days trial3 variants$14.991 Year
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- Penbook Premium7 Days trial2 variants$19.991 Year
- Penbook Premium7 Days trial2 variants$29.991 Year
- Penbook Premium$29.991 Year
- Penbook Premium7 Days trial3 variants$39.991 Year
- Premium Lifetime (Loyalty)$29.99
- Penbook Premium Lifetime2 variants$49.99
- Penbook Premium Lifetime$59.99
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- Penbook Premium Lifetime$69.99
Drawing ▫
- Drawing Apps Premium Weekly$4.997 Days
- Drawing Games Gold - Monthly3 Days trial$5.991 Month
- Drawing Apps Premium Monthly$8.991 Month
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- DrawingApp Premium Year France3 Days trial$19.991 Year
- Drawing Games Gold - Yearly$24.991 Year
- Drawing Apps Premium Yearly3 Days trial$29.991 Year
- Drawing App - Low Credits$4.99
- AI Pad - 11 Credits$9.99
- AI Pad - 17 Credits$14.99
Show 4 moreShow fewer
- Remove Ads and Popups$16.99
- One Time Purchase Premium$22.99
- Drawing App - Premium Credits$29.99
- Drawing App One-time Purchase$35.99
Questions
Is Penbook free?
Is Drawing ▫ free?
Which has better reviews, Penbook or Drawing ▫?
Do Penbook or Drawing ▫ have ads?
Which is updated more often, Penbook or Drawing ▫?
Other comparisons















