Markup R vs Threadster
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Markup R
This app allows users to mark up any stitch chart from any designer. It can automatically detect grids, symbols, and colors from PDFs or photos, and even stitch together multi-page charts. Users can track progress, identify stitch counts, and utilize built-in shade cards for thread colors.
- Load any chart from any designer
- Automatic grid, symbol, and color detection
- Stitch multi-page charts together
- Automatic symbol and thread color detection
- Built-in shade cards (DMC, Anchor, Madeira)
- Track progress and statistics
- Customizable markup tools
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• Powerful markup made simple Spend less time managing your chart and more time stitching, with a clear interactive view that makes every symbol and remaining stitch easy to find. • Free two-week trial Try every feature free for two weeks and experience how Markup R-XP can make your stitching simpler and more enjoyable. • Easy chart importing and setup Start stitching sooner, even when your chart is a PDF, scan, image or photo, with tools that straighten the chart and help detect its grid and symbols - even one that’s angled or curled in a book! • Automatic thread setup Save setup time and avoid colour-matching mistakes by identifying threads from the chart key, creating blended symbols and choosing from a wide range of built-in manufacturer shade cards. • Multi-page and Stitch-Along support Enjoy multi-page charts as one seamless, correctly counted design without troublesome page boundaries and expand Stitch-Along (SAL) projects as new sections are released. • Comprehensive stitch and annotation tools Keep every detail of your work in one place by marking full and fractional stitches, adding backstitch, and recording instructions or reminders with text and freehand annotations. • Organised projects and detailed progress Always know where you are and what remains, with keys, reference pictures, finished samples, notes and detailed progress information kept together and easy to find. • Customisable to suit you Create a clearer, more comfortable stitching experience by personalising the app theme, grids, guides, colours, sizes and other display options. • Help, community and regular improvements Find answers when you need them, connect with a friendly community of stitchers and enjoy ongoing improvements inspired by user feedback.
Threadster
Manage your thread inventory, projects, and color palettes with this comprehensive tracking app. It offers features for color matching, cost logging, pattern management, and creating custom palettes. Basic features are free, with advanced options available through a subscription.
- Inventory management for 3000+ threads
- Color matching with real photos
- Project cost and status tracking
- Create reusable color palettes
- Upload and manage PDF patterns
- Custom thread and craft creation
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PLEASE NOTE: We now offer Basic and Pro subscription options to help manage your inventory, projects, and color palettes. Our Basic version is completely FREE, while our Threadster Pro subscription unlocks additional areas and features. Threadster also offers a 7-day free trial for new users. The free trial automatically converts to a 1-month Pro subscription, but this can be easily changed before the trial runs out if you decide that you’d prefer the 6 month or 12 month plan. You can find a full list of all the features below! **THREADSTER BASIC FREE FEATURES: • View & manage inventory for 3000+ DMC threads • Track inventory in whole & partial quantities • Customizable thread tracking • View similar threads for color matching • Auto add threads to Shopping List • Add custom notes for threads • Customizable inventory search & sorting • Export & print shopping lists • Light, Dark, & Monochromatic display • Data backup/restore options • Thread CSV Import (DMC only) **THREADSTER PRO SUBSCRIPTION FEATURES: • Create custom threads, crafts, & fabric • Create projects & reusable color palettes • Manage project status, priority, costs, & dimensions • Customizable project & palette search • Project start/stop timer & hourly rate calculator • Allocate inventory items to projects • View which projects items are assigned to • Create palettes from images with color picker • Find closest matching threads using hex codes • Assign matching threads to color palettes • Label threads & crafts for areas used in palettes • Create searchable tag library • Upload, view, mark, & print PDF patterns • Mass maintenance for inventory & shopping list • Thread CSV Import (Other brands, custom, & discontinued) After collaborating with the community, we're proud to offer a simple interface with the solutions you need to help manage thread inventories and projects of all kinds. Tired of not being able to easily track inventory, or need to color match with real photos of thread? Want to log costs for a project, save patterns, or create reusable color palettes? ..Threadster has you covered! Don't see a feature you need? We're always open to suggestions to help make Threadster the best it can be. If you have an idea you'd like to see implemented, simply contact us and we'll see if we can make it happen! Terms of Use: https://www.zeebam.com/threadstertermsofuse
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ratings volume: Markup R at 3K against Threadster's 18. Threadster's advantage is review sentiment (89% vs 68%). On price, rating, 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. Markup R sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $19.99 per year and Threadster sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Markup R against 4.6 for Threadster. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Markup R has 3K ratings behind it against 18, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 68% of Markup R's written reviews are positive against 89% of Threadster's.
Markup R ships an update monthly, Threadster every 4 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 15, 2026 and October 3, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Markup R | Threadster |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.7 (3K ratings) — better | 4.6 (18 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 67.8% of reviews | 88.9% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 3K — better | 18 |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Every 4 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 — better | 16.4 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 317 MB | 96 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Kewin Lawson Smith Limited | Arden Csolkovits |
Customer experience
Markup R
Threadster
Bugs and requests
Markup R
Reported bugs
3 issues- Crashes and freezes when marking up certain patterns
- Inconsistent symbol highlighting and placement
- Difficulty loading and aligning some scanned patterns
Requested features
5 requests- Ability to track floss stash and needed supplies
- Syncing across multiple devices
- Improved support for password-protected PDFs
- Font size controls for rulers and labels
- Rotation/flipping options for patterns
Threadster
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Markup R
- Yearly Access$19.991 Year
- Markup R-XP Full$9.99
Threadster
- Threadster Pro7 Days trial$2.991 Month
- Threadster Pro$14.996 Months
- Threadster Pro$24.991 Year









