Comparison

Clip Studio Paint for iPhone vs StitchSketchEx mobile

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Clip Studio Paint for iPhone

Create professional-quality digital art, comics, and animations with a vast array of brushes, materials, and editing tools. Offers features for beginners and pros, including 3D models for reference and advanced layer management.

Highlights
  • Unlimited brushes with realistic textures
  • Vast library of artist-made materials
  • Advanced coloring tools with Shading Assist
  • 3D models for anatomy and perspective reference
  • Comprehensive comic creation tools
  • Professional animation features
  • Non-destructive editing and layer management
Read full description

Draw with unlimited features for free for 30 hours monthly with no ads! Now with new, powerful features! Clip Studio Paint makes drawing a piece of cake, in any style! Whether you are a beginner or a pro, Clip Studio Paint will improve every aspect of your art experience, while helping you grow as an artist. Unlimited amount of brushes at your fingertips to recreate any style - Use brushes with the same textures as real art materials - Adjust details such as brush shape and paper quality to your liking - Make unique colors with realistic color mixing, like traditional paints - Draw with transparency to erase, so no need to switch brushes Countless artist-made materials - Level up your art with free materials, for backgrounds and more - Discover community-made brushes from creators worldwide - Add details with materials like frills and more Coloring made easy - Easily color even with line gaps using the magnetic lasso tool - Lock transparency to paint over layers without affecting other areas - Set light source and shadow position with Shading Assist - Instantly reference and apply colors from an image to your art using Color Match - Enhance your art with filters like Chromatic Aberration, Retro Film, Pencil, and more Learn alongside other creators - Loads of official tutorials and creator tips available - Watch tutorials on the Clip Studio Paint YouTube channel, for step-by-step advice - Ask questions on the Clip Studio Ask community Create the perfect reference with 3D models - Use 3D drawing figures to help out your anatomy - Customize character face and body models with beginner-friendly tools - Attach 3D objects like hats and shoes to characters for more specific references - Use 3D shapes to draw perspective Adjust after you draw - Liquify to make adjustments to the balance of your illustrations - Mesh Transformation allows you to transform to different shapes - Change up the poses of your character drawings with Puppet warp - Non-destructive color adjustment layers to get your art just right - Gradient maps give color to your grayscale illustrations Stress-free layer features - Assign colors and make multiple columns of layers to browse them at a glance - Enjoy the freedom of masking and clipping on multiple layers to edit and move your work - Add various effects to apply to the layer in a non-destructive way The ultimate comic creation app - All the tools you need for comic creation, from sketches to finishing touches - Panel frames, speech balloons, text, effect lines, and screen tones in an instant - Make high-resolution print data (6 GB+ memory recommended) - Manage multi-page projects Professional animation, on any device - Use all the same tools as animation studios - Unique features allow you to draw your frames as you like - Expand your drawings to 4K resolution without losing quality by saving it as vector data ●Grade features ・FREE: 30 hours/month ・PRO: All the tools you need to create stunning illustrations & short animations ・EX: All the above + multi-page functionality for comic/manga artists and unlimited animation frames *Clip Studio account needed to buy a plan. ● Target Devices and Specifications ・Minimum free storage space: 3GB, 4GB recommended ・Recommended display size: 5.5"+ Please see the following for supported devices. https://support.clip-studio.com/en-us/faq/articles/20200154 You can use the app fully for free for up to 30 hours each month. After this free period has ended, please purchase a plan to: - Save your canvas - Export your data in various file formats on iPhone and more Smartphone plan: PRO: US$0.99 per month, get an annual plan for up to 5 months' worth of savings! EX: US$2.49 per month, get an annual plan for up to 5 months' worth of savings! Clip Studio Paint End User License Agreement https://www.celsys.com/en/information/csp/ https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

StitchSketchEx mobile

Create custom charts for various crafts like cross-stitch, bead weaving, and knitting patterns. Design pixel art, convert photos to charts, and export designs for printing or sharing. Supports multiple color palettes and advanced drawing tools.

Highlights
  • Design charts for cross-stitch, bead weaving, knitting, and pixel art
  • Vector drawing with backstitch and fractional stitch support
  • Supports multiple generic and branded color palettes
  • Convert photos into craft charts
  • Generate PDF charts for printing or emailing
  • Load legacy KG-Chart and StitchSketch files
Features
Read full description

StitchSketchEx is the successor to the popular StitchSketch and KG-Chart cross-stitch design software. Design your own chart for craft works such as: Cross Stitch, Bead Weaving, Iron Beads, Knitting pattern, Color Knitting, Pixel Art, and more! This is also suited for drawing "dotted" pictures (Pixel Art), such as icons in low resolution. StitchSketchEx is developed by a creator of the popular software program "KG-Chart for Cross Stitch" and "StitchSketch". This new upgraded version has more functionality and cross-platform support. Features includes: - Draw chart with a symbol in a cell - Maximum chart size is 500 x 500 - Vector Drawing (Backstitch, Fractional Stitch, Hardanger) - Generic color palette and Color Charts (palette) for: DMC(R), DFT, Anchor, Olympus, COSMO, Delica, Toho Best, Perler(R) Beads - Knitting Symbols (Amizu Kigou (JIS)) for designing knitting pattern - Rectangular cell size - Peyote, Brick cell - Drawing tools: Pencil, Rectangle, Ellipse, Flood Fill, Text - Selecting Tool: Selection and Cut/Copy/Paste/Rotate/Flip/Stamp - Edit colors and symbols - Convert your photo into a chart - Generate a chart in PDF for emailing or printing. - Organize charts with thumbnails - Can load legacy files including KG-Chart (sth/sthbw) and StitchSKetch (sthmb).

Screenshots

Clip Studio Paint for iPhone4 screens
StitchSketchEx mobile4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Clip Studio Paint for iPhone at Free against StitchSketchEx mobile's $7.99. Clip Studio Paint for iPhone also leads on review sentiment (35% vs 16%) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months). StitchSketchEx mobile's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 11) and device support (3 vs 1). On ads and chart position 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Clip Studio Paint for iPhone is free to download; StitchSketchEx mobile costs $7.99 up front. Clip Studio Paint for iPhone sells 11 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. StitchSketchEx mobile asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Clip Studio Paint for iPhone ships an update every 3 weeks, StitchSketchEx mobile every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and September 9, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 4 level
Clip Studio Paint for iPhone versus StitchSketchEx mobile: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterClip Studio Paint for iPhoneStitchSketchEx mobile
PriceFree — better$7.99
Rating4.4 (1.7K ratings) — better
Positive reviews34.9% of reviews — better15.8% of reviews
Number of ratings1.7K — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterPaid
Best chart rank#125 — better#130
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS18.015.6 — better
Further details — not scored
Size560 MB54 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperCELSYS,Inc.Mozusystems, LLC

Customer experience

Clip Studio Paint for iPhone

All ratings1,737 ratings
Positive84.3%
Neutral4.4%
Negative11.3%
Written reviews372 reviews
Positive34.9%
Neutral17.2%
Negative47.8%

StitchSketchEx mobile

Written reviews19 reviews
Positive15.8%
Neutral5.3%
Negative78.9%

Bugs and requests

Clip Studio Paint for iPhone

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Login and account issues
  • Unresponsive brushes and tools
  • Inability to access purchased content
  • Drawings not saving properly

Requested features

4 requests
  • Ability to save and continue drawings across sessions
  • More free brushes and tools
  • Improved mobile optimization
  • Perpetual license option for mobile

StitchSketchEx mobile

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

11 purchases

Clip Studio Paint for iPhone

Subscriptions11
  • PRO Monthly Smartphone Plan$0.991 Month
  • EX Monthly Smartphone Plan$2.491 Month
  • PRO Monthly Single-Device Plan3 Days trial$4.891 Month
Show 8 more
  • PRO Monthly Single-Device Plan3 Months trial$4.891 Month
  • PRO Monthly Dual-Device Plan3 Days trial$7.991 Month
  • PRO Monthly Dual-Device Plan3 Months trial$7.991 Month
  • PRO Monthly Premium Plan3 Months trial$9.491 Month
  • EX Monthly Single-Device Plan3 Days trial$9.691 Month
  • EX Monthly Single-Device Plan3 Months trial$9.691 Month
  • EX Monthly Dual-Device Plan3 Days trial$13.491 Month
  • EX Monthly Dual-Device Plan3 Months trial$13.491 Month
None

StitchSketchEx mobile

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Clip Studio Paint for iPhone free?
Clip Studio Paint for iPhone is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is StitchSketchEx mobile free?
StitchSketchEx mobile costs $7.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do Clip Studio Paint for iPhone or StitchSketchEx mobile have ads?
Neither Clip Studio Paint for iPhone nor StitchSketchEx mobile shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Clip Studio Paint for iPhone or StitchSketchEx mobile?
Clip Studio Paint for iPhone ships an update every 3 weeks, and StitchSketchEx mobile every 2 months. Most recently, Clip Studio Paint for iPhone was updated on September 23, 2026 and StitchSketchEx mobile on September 9, 2026.
Which is more popular, Clip Studio Paint for iPhone or StitchSketchEx mobile?
Clip Studio Paint for iPhone currently peaks at #125 in the App Store charts, and StitchSketchEx mobile at #130. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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