# Realistic Paint Studio vs PicRef

The clearest difference is price: PicRef at $0.99 against Realistic Paint Studio's $11.99. PicRef also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 12) and update cadence (weekly vs every 5 weeks). Realistic Paint Studio's advantage is ratings volume (735 vs 26) and iOS requirement (11.0 vs 14.0). On rating and ads there is nothing between them.

Realistic Paint Studio costs $11.99 and PicRef $0.99 up front. Realistic Paint Studio sells 12 one-off in-app purchases. PicRef asks for nothing beyond the download.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Realistic Paint Studio against 4.7 for PicRef. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Realistic Paint Studio has 735 ratings behind it against 26, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 67% of Realistic Paint Studio's written reviews are positive against 84% of PicRef's.

Realistic Paint Studio ships an update every 5 weeks, PicRef weekly. The most recent releases landed on September 20, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Realistic Paint Studio | PicRef |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $11.99 | **$0.99** |
| Rating | [4.7 (735 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/realistic-paint-studio/id1529593385/reviews) | [4.7 (26 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/picref-for-reference-picture/id1641905969/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **735** | 26 |
| Positive reviews | 67.3% of reviews | **84.4% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 5 weeks | **Weekly** |
| Monetization | **Free with in-app purchases** | Paid |
| Best chart rank | — | **#115** |
| Size | 1005 MB | 24 MB |
| Requires iOS | **11.0** | 14.0 |
| Devices | iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Aleksandr Komarov](https://appshunter.io/developer/1529593777) | [祥 汤](https://appshunter.io/developer/1623075074) |

## What reviewers say

### Realistic Paint Studio

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/realistic-paint-studio/id1529593385)

This digital art software offers a familiar art station experience with realistic brushes, pencils, and markers. It allows users to create art in drawing, watercolor, and oil painting styles with a unique color engine and diverse canvas textures. Step-by-step tutorials and live demonstrations guide users through the creative process.

**Highlights:** Realistic color engine, Drawing, Watercolor, Oil Painting styles, Realistic brushes and tools, Realistic canvases with diverse textures, Live demonstration of drawing methods, Step-by-step tutorials

**In-app purchases (12)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Artistic brush | Free | one-time |
| Mechanical pen | Free | one-time |
| Glitz pen | Free | one-time |
| Glass pen | Free | one-time |
| Fountain pen | Free | one-time |
| Calligraphy brush | Free | one-time |
| Hieroglyph brush | Free | one-time |
| Diamond brush | Free | one-time |
| Album with six color sheets | Free | one-time |
| All brushes from the VIP box | Free | one-time |
| Dragon brush | $0.99 | one-time |
| Crystal brush | $0.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🎨 Realistic and immersive painting experience
- 👍 Intuitive and user-friendly interface
- 🎨 Excellent brush dynamics and color blending
- 🎨 Wide variety of traditional media tools
- 🎨 Aesthetically pleasing presentation

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent crashes and stability issues
- 🔋 High battery consumption
- 🔒 Limited export options (no PSD, no transparent background)
- 🔒 Restricted canvas size and resolution
- 🔒 Lack of customization for brushes and tools

**Reported bugs**

- Crashes when using the camera feature
- Inconsistent behavior with the undo/redo function
- Issues with the color mixing in the palette
- Delayed response and lag when using Apple Pencil

**Requested features**

- Add support for PSD export with layers
- Implement canvas rotation and resizing options
- Allow for more brush customization and pressure sensitivity
- Improve color picker and palette functionality
- Introduce a simple, distraction-free canvas mode


### PicRef

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/picref-for-reference-picture/id1641905969)

**Currently charting:** #115 Top Paid · Graphics & Design (US App Store)

This app allows users to view and manipulate reference images with no loss of quality. It offers tools for cropping, resizing, and batch editing, with an optional drawing feature for iPad users. The interface is designed for efficiency, supporting split-screen use with other graphics software.

**Highlights:** No loss of image quality, Image dragging, cropping, resizing, Batch editing (drag, delete, mirror, sort), Desaturate and mirror images, Free rotation at any angle, Split screen support, Handwriting notes (iPad only)

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Realistic Paint Studio free?

Realistic Paint Studio costs $11.99, and also offers in-app purchases.

### Is PicRef free?

PicRef costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Realistic Paint Studio or PicRef?

Realistic Paint Studio and PicRef are both rated 4.7 out of 5 on the App Store, from 735 and 26 ratings respectively.

### Do Realistic Paint Studio or PicRef have ads?

Neither Realistic Paint Studio nor PicRef shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Realistic Paint Studio or PicRef?

Realistic Paint Studio ships an update every 5 weeks, and PicRef weekly. Most recently, Realistic Paint Studio was updated on September 20, 2026 and PicRef on September 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.*