Comparison

ShaderMania vs CGProto

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

Head to head
About

ShaderMania

Create, edit, and share Metal shaders with a live coding environment and real-time preview. Explore a database of public and tutorial shaders, connect nodes to build complex effects, and export your creations. A physical keyboard is recommended for optimal use.

Highlights
  • Live coding of Metal fragment shaders
  • Real-time preview and playback
  • Node-based shader creation
  • Public shader database
  • Tutorial shaders with video links
  • Export shader output to PNG
  • Syntax checking and error display
Read full description

Create, edit, render, share, and learn Metal shaders with ShaderMania for iPad. ShaderMania is a visual Metal shader editor for iPadOS. Write fragment shaders with realtime preview and playback, organize shaders and images as nodes, connect shader inputs, expose parameters as sliders, and export rendered images. ShaderMania also includes a public shader library with examples and tutorial shaders, including links to explanation videos where available. ShaderMania is free to use. Optional tips are available if you want to support development. A physical keyboard is recommended for coding shaders on iPad. Features • Live Metal fragment shader editing with realtime preview and playback. • Visual node graph for shader and image nodes. • Connect shader nodes to build reusable shader chains. • Named shader input slots declared directly in shader source code. • Parameter annotations for sliders and live UI controls. • Realtime syntax checking, compiler errors, and warnings. • Render to custom resolutions and export PNG images. • Undo and redo for common node graph edits. Shader Library • Browse public shader examples and tutorial shaders. • Add shaders from the library to your own projects. • Upload useful, inspectable shader work to the public library.

About

CGProto

This app offers a node-based scripting editor for rapid prototyping and learning computer graphics. It provides a sandbox to easily write shaders and JavaScript for creating impressive CG effects.

Highlights
  • Node-based scripting editor
  • Rapid prototyping
  • Learn computer graphics
  • Shader writing (GLSL, HLSL, Metal, Unity ShaderLab)
  • JavaScript scripting
  • Create CG effects
Features
Read full description

CGProto is a node-based scripting editor aims to help developers rapidly prototype or learn computer graphics. It provides a sandbox that you could easily write shader(GLSL, HLSL, Metal or even Unity ShaderLab) and javascript to make impressive CG effects. Terms of Use https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

CGProto4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: CGProto at weekly against ShaderMania's every 16 months. CGProto also leads on iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.6). ShaderMania's advantage is monetization model (free vs freemium). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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

Both are free to download. ShaderMania sells 3 one-off in-app purchases and CGProto sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $1.49 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ShaderMania ships an update every 16 months, CGProto weekly. The most recent releases landed on June 5, 2026 and September 21, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
ShaderMania versus CGProto: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterShaderManiaCGProto
PriceFreeFree
Rating—5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings—2 — better
Update frequencyEvery 16 monthsWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree — betterFreemium
DevicesiPad, MaciPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.615.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size24 MB31 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMarkus Moenig雄龙 许

Customer experience

ShaderMania

Written reviews4 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

CGProto

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

3 purchases

ShaderMania

One-time3
  • Small Tip$1.99
  • Medium Tip$4.99
  • Large Tip$9.99
2 purchases

CGProto

Subscriptions2
  • Pro Monthly$1.491 Month
  • Pro Yearly14 Days trial$9.991 Year

Questions

Is ShaderMania free?
ShaderMania is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is CGProto free?
CGProto is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do ShaderMania or CGProto have ads?
Neither ShaderMania nor CGProto shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ShaderMania or CGProto?
ShaderMania ships an update every 16 months, and CGProto weekly. Most recently, ShaderMania was updated on June 5, 2026 and CGProto on September 21, 2026.

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