# Penbook vs PottLoood

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Penbook at 58% against PottLoood's 36%. Penbook also leads on chart position (#166 vs unranked). PottLoood's advantage is iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.1). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Penbook sells 11 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and PottLoood sells 5 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Penbook ships an update every 5 days, PottLoood every 8 days. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 22, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Penbook | PottLoood |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.5 (46K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/penbook-paper-planner-and-notes/id1473064295/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **46K** | — |
| Positive reviews | **57.8% of reviews** | 36.4% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 5 days** | Every 8 days |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | **#166** | — |
| Size | 143 MB | 79 MB |
| Requires iOS | 18.1 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Vision Pro | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Pencil Research](https://appshunter.io/developer/1473063859) | [AEVIC CO., LTD.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1534970224) |

## What reviewers say

### Penbook

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

**Currently charting:** #166 Top Free · Productivity (US App Store)

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, iPhone Duo support

**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


### PottLoood

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pottloood-notebook/id6472431839)

This app offers a digital notebook experience with extensive drawing tools, including pens, markers, and erasers with customizable colors and thickness. It allows users to add images, convert handwriting to text, and choose from various paper types. Notes can be shared and backed up.

**Highlights:** Pen, marker, and eraser tools, 190 color options and 100 thickness levels, Image insertion into notes, Handwritten text to text conversion (paid), Multiple paper types and colors, Cloud sync and backup (paid), Note sharing functionality

**In-app purchases (5)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| OCR / Text | $1.99 | one-time |
| Backup | $1.99 | one-time |
| Release Celebration Pack | $1.99 | one-time |
| Unlimited Notes | $1.99 | one-time |
| Complete Pack | $4.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Penbook free?

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

### Is PottLoood free?

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

### Do Penbook or PottLoood have ads?

Neither Penbook nor PottLoood shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Penbook or PottLoood?

Penbook ships an update every 5 days, and PottLoood every 8 days. Most recently, Penbook was updated on October 29, 2026 and PottLoood 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.*