The Darkroom Lab vs Spooli
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
The Darkroom Lab
View your developed film photos as soon as they are scanned. This app connects you to a professional film developing service with decades of experience.
- View scanned film photos
- Professional film developing
- Experienced lab professionals
- Access photos as soon as scanned
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Since 1976 The Darkroom has developed literally millions of rolls of film with experienced lab professionals and film enthusiasts This free app enables you to view your photos as soon as they've been scanned in the lab.
Spooli
This app helps you declutter your camera roll by resurfacing photos from past years on the current date. Swipe to keep or delete, and enjoy features like live photo playback and smart duplicate detection. It operates entirely on-device for enhanced privacy.
- Memory resurfacing by date
- Swipe to keep or delete
- Live Photo playback
- Smart similar-photo detection
- On-device processing
- Calendar progress view
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Spooli turns cleaning out your camera roll into something you'll actually want to do. Instead of scrolling through your entire photo library, Spooli shows you "memories" - photos matching today's date from years past. Swipe right to keep a photo, left to mark it for deletion. Keeping is always unlimited. • Daily streaks to keep you coming back • A full-year calendar showing your progress at a glance • Live Photo playback - hold to relive the motion • Smart similar-photo detection to quickly clear out near-duplicates • Share your favorite memories straight to Messages or Mail Nothing ever leaves your phone. Spooli works entirely on-device - no accounts, no uploads, no analytics. Spooli Pro unlocks unlimited daily deletions, date browsing beyond today, and more. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Spooli at 5.0 against The Darkroom Lab's 3.7. The Darkroom Lab's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and ratings volume (90 vs 2). On price, update cadence and ads 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. Spooli sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. The Darkroom Lab asks for nothing beyond the download.
Spooli holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: The Darkroom Lab has 90 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.
The Darkroom Lab ships an update every 3 weeks, Spooli every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 7, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | The Darkroom Lab | Spooli |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.7 (90 ratings) | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 44.7% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 90 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free — better | Freemium |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 15.1 — better | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 52 MB | 1 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | The Darkroom | Ariella Baum |
Customer experience
The Darkroom Lab
Spooli
In-app purchases
The Darkroom Lab
No in-app purchases
Spooli
- Monthly$4.991 Month
- Annual$49.991 Year
