Altenew vs Essential Stencil
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Altenew
Discover and shop for a wide range of paper crafting supplies directly from your mobile device. Browse exclusive deals, new product notifications, and enjoy a streamlined checkout experience for all your crafting needs.
- Shop paper crafting products
- Enhanced mobile shopping experience
- Express checkout
- Special offers and flash sales
- New product notifications
- Exclusive discounts
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Find your favorite paper crafting products quickly and effortlessly with the Altenew App! The Altenew App delivers the best of altenew.com to your mobile device. Download our app to start shopping with a simple click, and make sure you never miss a deal. Features: Shop at altenew.com and take us anywhere you go with an enhanced shopping experience and express checkout. Take advantage of special offers including flash sales and exclusive discounts, and receive notifications about exciting new products!
Essential Stencil
Discover and shop for premium, reusable sign stencils made from flexible mylar. These durable stencils are designed for repeated use, saving you time, effort, and reducing waste while ensuring beautiful results for your projects.
- Premium reusable sign stencils
- Durable mylar material
- Flexible and rugged design
- Save time and effort
- Reduce waste
- Achieve gorgeous results
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Shop our premium Reusable Sign Stencils: Made of flexible mylar, these amazingly durable stencils are rugged enough to reuse over & over. You'll save time, effort & waste... and get gorgeous results every time.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: Essential Stencil at none against Altenew's shown. Essential Stencil also leads on review sentiment (97% vs 78%). On price, rating, ratings volume and update cadence 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.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Altenew against 4.9 for Essential Stencil. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 865 and 751 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 78% of Altenew's written reviews are positive against 97% of Essential Stencil's.
Altenew ships an update every 2 weeks, Essential Stencil every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Altenew | Essential Stencil |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (865 ratings) | 4.9 (751 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 78.2% of reviews | 97.2% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 865 — better | 751 |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks — better | Every 3 weeks |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 — better | 16.4 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 60 MB | 75 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Altenew, LLC | Essential Stencil |
Customer experience
Altenew
Essential Stencil
User reviews
Altenew
From 865 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Easy to navigate
- 🚀 Quick and smooth checkout
- 💡 Helpful push notifications
- 👍 User-friendly interface
- 🚀 Fast and accurate
Room to improve
- 🐛 Scrolling issues with new UI
- 🐛 Difficulty finding search function
- 🐛 Inconsistent account syncing
- 🐛 Frequent crashes
- 🐛 Slow loading of product pages
Essential Stencil
From 751 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 High-quality products
- 🎨 Excellent crafting supplies
- 💕 Great customer service
- 🤩 Inspiring ambassadors
- 🔍 Wide selection of designs
Room to improve
- 🐛 Login issues
Bugs and requests
Altenew
Reported bugs
3 issues- Persistent red notification icon
- Incomplete product loading in categories
- Inability to add credit card automatically
Requested features
5 requests- Ability to view full website on app
- Improved search functionality
- Seamless integration between app and website
- Option to disable push notifications
- Better organization of past orders and wish lists
Essential Stencil
Reported bugs
1 issue- Login screen not working for some users
Requested features
2 requests- More children/nursery themed designs
- Expanded product lines
In-app purchases
Altenew
No in-app purchases
Essential Stencil
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Altenew free?
Is Essential Stencil free?
Which has better reviews, Altenew or Essential Stencil?
Do Altenew or Essential Stencil have ads?
Which is updated more often, Altenew or Essential Stencil?
Other comparisons
