Comparison

StitchSketchEx mobile vs Patternly by Luca

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

Head to head
About

StitchSketchEx mobile

Create custom charts for various crafts like cross-stitch, bead weaving, and knitting patterns. Design pixel art, convert photos to charts, and export designs for printing or sharing. Supports multiple color palettes and advanced drawing tools.

Highlights
  • Design charts for cross-stitch, bead weaving, knitting, and pixel art
  • Vector drawing with backstitch and fractional stitch support
  • Supports multiple generic and branded color palettes
  • Convert photos into craft charts
  • Generate PDF charts for printing or emailing
  • Load legacy KG-Chart and StitchSketch files
Features
Read full description

StitchSketchEx is the successor to the popular StitchSketch and KG-Chart cross-stitch design software. Design your own chart for craft works such as: Cross Stitch, Bead Weaving, Iron Beads, Knitting pattern, Color Knitting, Pixel Art, and more! This is also suited for drawing "dotted" pictures (Pixel Art), such as icons in low resolution. StitchSketchEx is developed by a creator of the popular software program "KG-Chart for Cross Stitch" and "StitchSketch". This new upgraded version has more functionality and cross-platform support. Features includes: - Draw chart with a symbol in a cell - Maximum chart size is 500 x 500 - Vector Drawing (Backstitch, Fractional Stitch, Hardanger) - Generic color palette and Color Charts (palette) for: DMC(R), DFT, Anchor, Olympus, COSMO, Delica, Toho Best, Perler(R) Beads - Knitting Symbols (Amizu Kigou (JIS)) for designing knitting pattern - Rectangular cell size - Peyote, Brick cell - Drawing tools: Pencil, Rectangle, Ellipse, Flood Fill, Text - Selecting Tool: Selection and Cut/Copy/Paste/Rotate/Flip/Stamp - Edit colors and symbols - Convert your photo into a chart - Generate a chart in PDF for emailing or printing. - Organize charts with thumbnails - Can load legacy files including KG-Chart (sth/sthbw) and StitchSKetch (sthmb).

About

Patternly by Luca

Features
Read full description

Patternly by Luca-S is a complete cross stitch studio in your pocket โ€” design patterns from scratch, convert photos into stitchable charts, and track your stitching progress on real kit charts. DESIGN A full pattern editor with layers, selections, shapes, text-to-stitch, backstitch, French knots and more. Unlimited undo. Match colours across Luca-S, DMC, Anchor, Cosmo and Madeira threads. CONVERT Turn any photo into a ready-to-stitch chart. Every pixel is matched to a real thread colour, with fine-tuning, masking and confetti cleanup for a chart that's a joy to stitch. TRACK Load your Luca-S kit chart and stitch off your screen. Tap each stitch as you go, work one colour at a time, pinch to zoom, and never lose your place. Your progress syncs to your account across devices. Bought a kit? Scan the QR code on the insert card and your pattern opens instantly. THREAD TOOLS Match any colour to real threads, pull a palette from a photo, and browse full brand conversion charts. Plus fabric, thread and time calculators for planning any project. PATTERNLY PLUS The editor, converter, thread tools and calculators are free. The Stitch Tracker is part of Patternly Plus, an auto-renewable subscription (monthly or yearly) with a 14-day free trial. Payment is charged to your Apple ID account at confirmation of purchase. The subscription automatically renews unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage or cancel your subscription in your App Store account settings. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://luca-s.com/pages/patternly-privacy

Screenshots

StitchSketchEx mobile4 screens
Patternly by Luca4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Patternly by Luca at Free against StitchSketchEx mobile's $7.99. StitchSketchEx mobile's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and chart position (#144 vs unranked). On update cadence, ads, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price ยท Rating ยท Positive reviews ยท Number of ratings ยท Update frequency ยท Ads ยท In-app purchases ยท Monetization ยท Best chart rank ยท Devices ยท Requires iOS

CostPrice ยท In-app purchases ยท Ads ยท Monetization

Patternly by Luca is free to download; StitchSketchEx mobile costs $7.99 up front. Patternly by Luca sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. StitchSketchEx mobile asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

StitchSketchEx mobile ships an update every 2 months, Patternly by Luca monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 27, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences ยท 6 level
StitchSketchEx mobile versus Patternly by Luca: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterStitchSketchEx mobilePatternly by Luca
Price$7.99Free โ€” better
Positive reviews15.8% of reviewsโ€”
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsMonthly โ€” better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo โ€” betterYes
MonetizationPaidโ€”
Best chart rank#144 โ€” betterโ€”
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.615.0 โ€” better
Further details โ€” not scored
Size54 MB11 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMozusystems, LLCUK Luca-S LTD

In-app purchases

None

StitchSketchEx mobile

No in-app purchases

2 purchases

Patternly by Luca

Subscriptions2
  • Patternly Plus14 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Patternly Plus14 Days trial$31.951 Year

Questions

Is StitchSketchEx mobile free?
StitchSketchEx mobile costs $7.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Patternly by Luca free?
Patternly by Luca is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do StitchSketchEx mobile or Patternly by Luca have ads?
Neither StitchSketchEx mobile nor Patternly by Luca shows ads.
Which is updated more often, StitchSketchEx mobile or Patternly by Luca?
StitchSketchEx mobile ships an update every 2 months, and Patternly by Luca monthly. Most recently, StitchSketchEx mobile was updated on October 27, 2026 and Patternly by Luca on October 25, 2026.

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