# Penbook vs Drawing Apps

The clearest difference is update cadence: Penbook at every 5 days against Drawing Apps's monthly. Penbook also leads on ratings volume (46K vs 5.2K). Drawing Apps's advantage is iOS requirement (14.0 vs 18.1). On price, rating, review sentiment and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Penbook sells 11 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Drawing Apps sells 15 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Penbook holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Penbook has 46K ratings behind it against 5.2K, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 58% of Penbook's written reviews are positive against 63% of Drawing Apps's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Penbook ships an update every 5 days, Drawing Apps monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 20, 2026 and October 19, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Penbook | Drawing Apps |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.6 (46K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/penbook-paper-planner-and-notes/id1473064295/reviews)** | [4.4 (5.2K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/drawing-apps/id1541145049/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **46K** | 5.2K |
| Positive reviews | 58.0% of reviews | **62.5% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 5 days** | Monthly |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 142 MB | 163 MB |
| Requires iOS | 18.1 | **14.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Vision Pro | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Pencil Research](https://appshunter.io/developer/1473063859) | [Gang Ji](https://appshunter.io/developer/1541145051) |

## What reviewers say

### Penbook

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/penbook-paper-planner-and-notes/id1473064295)

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.

**Highlights:** Live Paper dynamic stationery, Over 400 stationery types, Import and annotate PDFs, Natural handwriting with stylus, Searchable handwritten notes, Shape recognition, Customizable notebook covers

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Family Sharing

**In-app purchases (11)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Penbook Premium | $4.99 | per month |
| Penbook Premium | $7.99 | per month |
| Penbook Premium | $14.99 | per year |
| Penbook Premium | $19.99 | per year |
| Penbook Premium | $29.99 | per year |
| Penbook Premium | $29.99 | per year |
| Penbook Premium | $39.99 | per year |
| Premium Lifetime (Loyalty) | $29.99 | one-time |
| Penbook Premium Lifetime | $49.99 | one-time |
| Penbook Premium Lifetime | $59.99 | one-time |
| Penbook Premium Lifetime | $69.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 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

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 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

**Reported bugs**

- 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**

- 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 Apps

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/drawing-apps/id1541145049)

Create digital art with a powerful painting engine and advanced tools. This app offers realistic brushes, layers, blend modes, and various editing capabilities for sketching, painting, and transforming images. Import and export your creations in multiple formats.

**Highlights:** Advanced painting engine with 40+ natural brush presets, Realistic brush interaction with paper textures, Layers and Photoshop blend modes, Selection and clipping masks, Transform multiple layers and use transform tool, Import and export drawings in JPEG and PNG formats

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

**In-app purchases (15)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| DrawingApps Premium - Weekly | $2.99 | per 7 days |
| DrawingApps Gold - Weekly | $3.99 | per 7 days |
| Drawing App Black Friday Offer | $5.99 | per month |
| DrawingAppsPremium Trial Month | $7.99 | per month |
| DrawingApps Premium - Monthly | $7.99 | per month |
| DrawingApps Gold Trial Monthly | $9.99 | per month |
| DrawingApps Gold - Monthly | $9.99 | per month |
| DrawingApps Premium - Yearly | $39.99 | per year |
| DrawingApps Gold - Yearly | $59.99 | per year |
| 300 Coins | $5.99 | one-time |
| 900 Coins | $14.99 | one-time |
| 1200 Coins | $19.99 | one-time |
| Lifetime Lite Drawing Pass | $49.99 | one-time |
| 5000 Coins | $59.99 | one-time |
| Lifetime PRO Drawing Pass | $69.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Allows users to draw anything they want
- 💡 Provides a creative outlet for young artists
- 👍 Easy to use and intuitive interface
- 👍 Good for quick creative ideas
- 👍 Satisfying drawing experience

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💰 Requires payment for many features and tools
- 🤖 Excessive pop-ups and ads
- 🐛 Bugs and glitches (e.g., random layer deletion, screen freezing)
- 🔍 Limited free brushes and tools
- 🤔 Confusing or unintuitive controls

**Reported bugs**

- Frequent crashes and app closures
- Layers not working as expected
- Drawing tools not responsive or accurate
- Difficulty navigating the app

**Requested features**

- More free brushes and tools
- Ability to save and export drawings
- Undo/redo functionality improvements
- Color customization options
- Tracing feature for photos


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Penbook free?

Penbook is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Drawing Apps free?

Drawing Apps is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Penbook or Drawing Apps?

Penbook is rated higher. Penbook averages 4.6 out of 5 from 46K ratings, while Drawing Apps averages 4.4 from 5.2K ratings.

### Do Penbook or Drawing Apps have ads?

Neither Penbook nor Drawing Apps shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Penbook or Drawing Apps?

Penbook ships an update every 5 days, and Drawing Apps monthly. Most recently, Penbook was updated on October 20, 2026 and Drawing Apps on October 19, 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.*