# ToonSquid vs PicoChat for iMessage

The clearest difference is price: PicoChat for iMessage at Free against ToonSquid's $9.99. PicoChat for iMessage also leads on update cadence (daily vs every 2 weeks). ToonSquid's advantage is ratings volume (1.3K vs 98) and review sentiment (89% vs 79%). On rating, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

PicoChat for iMessage is free to download; ToonSquid costs $9.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for ToonSquid against 4.5 for PicoChat for iMessage. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ToonSquid has 1.3K ratings behind it against 98, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 89% of ToonSquid's written reviews are positive against 79% of PicoChat for iMessage's.

ToonSquid ships an update every 2 weeks, PicoChat for iMessage daily. The most recent releases landed on November 8, 2026 and October 30, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | ToonSquid | PicoChat for iMessage |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $9.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | **[4.6 (1.3K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/toonsquid/id1573778812/reviews)** | [4.5 (98 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/picochat-for-imessage/id6741395468/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **1.3K** | 98 |
| Positive reviews | **88.7% of reviews** | 79.2% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 weeks | **Daily** |
| Monetization | Paid | **Free** |
| Size | 48 MB | 3 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 16.6 |
| Devices | iPad | **iPhone, iPad** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Keiwan Donyagard](https://appshunter.io/developer/1166607047) | [Idrees Hassan](https://appshunter.io/developer/1374644873) |

## What reviewers say

### ToonSquid

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/toonsquid/id1573778812)

This powerful 2D art and animation studio for iPad combines traditional frame-by-frame animation with keyframe animation for layer properties. It offers a robust layer system, customizable brushes, vector shapes, animatable effects, and symbols to bring your creative visions to life.

**Highlights:** Frame-by-frame traditional animation, Keyframe animation for layer properties, Flexible layer system with blend modes, Customizable brushes with Apple Pencil support, Vector shapes and path tools, Animatable effects and inverse kinematics, Symbol workflow for reusable clips

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 AMAZING APP!!!
- 🚀 This is an absolute LIFESAVER
- 👍 Super solid animation App!
- 👍 Great app just one suggestion
- 👍 Absolutely Amazing App

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 AMAZING APP!!! One recommendation tho.
- 🐛 Snapping
- 🐛 Crashes
- 🐛 Keyframing doesn't work
- 🐛 Randomly ill get a warning that i have low memory

**Reported bugs**

- Keyframing doesn't work
- Randomly ill get a warning that i have low memory
- The lasso tool thing isnt working for me
- Bug
- Whenever I use the fill bucket tool my app will randomly crash sometimes

**Requested features**

- Custom graphs
- Bevel Shading
- Drawing to drawing transform
- Record Audio
- Extract audio from video


### PicoChat for iMessage

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/picochat-for-imessage/id6741395468)

Relive the nostalgia of early 2000s handheld messaging with this retro drawing app for iMessage. Create tiny pixel art, use unique emoji, and share your creations with friends, even if they don't have the app installed. Features include undo, saving favorites, and customization options.

**Highlights:** Create tiny drawings in iMessage, Dozens of pixel emoji, Undo mistakes, Save favorite drawings, Customize name and color

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Perfection
- 👍 Super Cute!!
- 👍 Oh my lord
- 👍 YES!
- 👍 So much fun!

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Needs multiple size formats
- 🐛 No icon app cannot be found
- 🐛 A few bugs!
- 🐛 almost perfect
- 🐛 Why is there no icon for it on the homescreen or any way to delete? 🧐

**Reported bugs**

- Settings don't save
- Cursor turns into scribbles when writing too fast
- Rainbow pen lags the app and force closes messages
- Doesn't accommodate all screen sizes

**Requested features**

- Bigger keyboard size
- Dark Mode support
- Scaling fix for iPad
- Ability to transform photos into drawings


## Frequently asked questions

### Is ToonSquid free?

ToonSquid costs $9.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is PicoChat for iMessage free?

PicoChat for iMessage is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, ToonSquid or PicoChat for iMessage?

ToonSquid is rated higher. ToonSquid averages 4.6 out of 5 from 1.3K ratings, while PicoChat for iMessage averages 4.5 from 98 ratings.

### Do ToonSquid or PicoChat for iMessage have ads?

Neither ToonSquid nor PicoChat for iMessage shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, ToonSquid or PicoChat for iMessage?

ToonSquid ships an update every 2 weeks, and PicoChat for iMessage daily. Most recently, ToonSquid was updated on November 8, 2026 and PicoChat for iMessage on October 30, 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.*