Comparison

iDesign vs Graphic for iPhone

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

Head to head
About

iDesign

Create professional 2D vector drawings, illustrations, and technical designs on your iPad or iPhone. Offers precise touch-based editing with unique offset controls and a full suite of advanced tools for graphics and technical design.

Highlights
  • 2D vector drawing and design
  • Precise touch-based editing
  • Advanced path editing
  • Technical drawing tools
  • Shape libraries
  • Layer management
  • iCloud sync with XDesign
Features
Read full description

Precision 2D vector drawing and design on the iPad & iPhone. Make professional quality designs, illustrations and technical drawings on the move using your fingers at last! iDesign has unique features and offset controls which allows you to draw accurately with your finger not getting in the way or blocking your view. Full feature compatibility and automatic sync of designs via iCloud with XDesign (Mac version). User Guide (PDF) available at www.touchaware.com/apps/idesign/userguide FEATURES - A universal app for both iPad and iPhone which adapts to the native screen size of the device. - An unobtrusive icon based visual and context driven user interface with a full screen board view - Toolbars and panels with easy access to frequently used functions for a fast work flow Standard Tools & Functions - Line, polyline, square, rectangle, circle, arc, ellipse, polygons, stars & path tools - Copy and paste selected shapes and groups - Group and ungroup shapes hierarchically to create complex designs - Edit points, convert shapes to path, close shapes, add and remove points, break, weld, explode and join - Precise rotation with ability to rotate at user defined center - Object alignment tools - Fill color and pen color swatches with opacity controls, custom RGB mixer - Stroke width, line style, line caps and corner join styles, arrow ends and dash patters - Text insertion with fonts, styles, sizes, paragraph alignments, multilingual, rotate/resize - Set a background image for tracing/marking over it - Insert images, copy, paste, move, resize and position them accordingly - Multilevel Undo/Redo for all edit operations - Create multiple layers to organize & separate design components - Connector tools for drawing charts and flow diagrams Unique Features for Touch Based Editing - Offset handles for moving and positioning without your finger blocking the view - Nudge controls, allows precise movement of selected shapes or selected points - Delta transformations to apply incremental values by keyboard Advanced Tools for Graphics Design - Advanced path editing options for corner, smooth and symmetric control points, straighten and curve segments - Text to path conversion - Boolean operations on shapes, unite, intersect, subtract, exclude - Freehand drawing, auto smoothened paths - Gradients / color blends Advanced Tools for Technical Drawing - Circle and Arc tool based on center, start/end point, radius and angle of arc - Dimensioning tools, length as well as angular with customisable settings - Support for Feet+Inches+Fractions (U.S & older unit system)
- Architectural formatting option for Dimensions
- Dynamic grid supporting feet, inches and inch fractions at different zoom levels Units & Board Setup - Support for standard and custom board sizes. - Set a drawing scale - Full set of standard unit systems. - Unit aware Grid with customisable settings - Snap to grid, snap to object and points - Unit aware rulers Shape libraries to organise and reuse shapes - Add, remove and organise shapes in your own libraries - A set of standard shapes for creating floor plans included Export/Import & Print - Export designs to JPEG, PNG, PDF & SVG formats - Import SVG files - Share your designs with other iDesign users via Email - Dropbox support for Export, Import - AirPrint Support iDesign is available as a monthly or yearly subscription and includes a free trial period that begins once your purchase has been confirmed with your Apple ID account. At the end of the trial your subscription will start and renew automatically. Your Apple ID account will be charged for the upcoming period unless you disable auto-renew or cancel your subscription in your Account Settings at least 24-hours prior to the end of the current period. Terms of Use: http://www.touchaware.com/apps/termsofuse Privacy policy: http://www.touchaware.com/apps/privacy

About

Graphic for iPhone

Create detailed vector illustrations and designs on your mobile device. Offers a comprehensive suite of professional drawing tools, layer styles, and import/export options for various file formats, including PSD. Seamlessly integrate your work with other applications or continue on desktop.

Highlights
  • Full-featured Bezier Pen tool
  • Brush and Pencil tools
  • Layer styles with multiple strokes and effects
  • Import/export SVG, PDF, and PSD
  • Text on Path and Multi-style Text
  • Smart Alignment Guides
  • OpenGL-optimized drawing
Features
Currently charting
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Graphic is a powerful full-featured vector drawing and illustration application right in your pocket. Graphic has all of the tools you need to create everything from detailed technical illustrations to beautiful works of art. Create intricate designs quickly and easily, and continue working on the desktop with Graphic for Mac, or on the go with Graphic for iPad. Create resolution-independent illustrations that can be pasted into Pages documents, included in Keynote presentations, or exported to other applications. Import/Export - Import SVG, PDF, and Photoshop PSD files. - Export designs as SVG, PDF, PNG, PSD, JPEG, GIF, and TIFF files. Photoshop PSD Import/Export - Import layered PSD files with vector paths and effects. - Shape layers are imported as editable vector paths. - Layer effects are imported as fully editable drop shadows, inner shadows, glows, etc. - Export designs as layered PSD files. Professional Drawing Tools - Full-featured Bezier Pen tool for creating custom shapes. - Brush and Pencil tools for fluid drawing and sketching. - Essential set of shape creation tools. - Boolean path combinations. - Path multi-point selection and editing. - Join, connect, and disconnect paths. - Rotate, Scale, and Shear transform tools. - Compound Paths. - Convert Anchors tool. - Eraser tool. - Scissor tool. - Dimensioning tool. Layer Styles - Apply multiple strokes, fills, and effects to any object. - Apply inner shadows, drop shadows, and glow effects to objects. - Arrange the order of fills, strokes, and effects using drag and drop. - 24 vibrant blend modes, including Multiply, Overlay, Linear Burn, Vivid Light, etc. - Set blend modes for layers, shapes, fills, strokes, shadows, and glow effects. Many other powerful features, including: - Shape Libraries. - Appearance Styles. - Text on Path. - Multi-style Text. - Layers and Groups. - Smart Alignment Guides. - Labels and Dimensioning. - Canvas Scale, Rulers, and Units (mm, cm, inches) - Canvas Styles. - Snap to Grid / Snap to Point. - Align and Distribute objects. - Duplicate and Transform. - Linear, Radial, and Angle gradients. - Image masking. - Convert Text to Paths. - Inner and Outer Strokes. - Outline Stroke. - RGB, HSB, and Hex Color Pickers. - Import PDF files and annotations. - Export as vector-based PDF and SVG files. OpenGL-optimized Drawing - Fast rendering of very complex projects. - Multi-threaded drawing ensures lag-free scrolling and zooming.

Screenshots

iDesign4 screens
Graphic for iPhone4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: iDesign at Free against Graphic for iPhone's $2.99. Graphic for iPhone's advantage is rating (3.7 vs 2.6) and in-app purchases (none vs 3). On review sentiment, ratings volume, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

iDesign is free to download; Graphic for iPhone costs $2.99 up front. iDesign sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per month. Graphic for iPhone asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Graphic for iPhone holds the better App Store score, 3.7 against 2.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 84 and 95 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 50% of iDesign's written reviews are positive against 57% of Graphic for iPhone's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 5 months. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 17, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
iDesign versus Graphic for iPhone: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameteriDesignGraphic for iPhone
PriceFree — better$2.99
Rating2.6 (84 ratings)3.7 (95 ratings) — better
Positive reviews50.4% of reviews57.4% of reviews — better
Number of ratings8495 — better
Update frequencyEvery 5 monthsEvery 5 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterPaid
Best chart rank—#55 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS15.59.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size87 MB38 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTouchAware LimitedPicta, Inc

Customer experience

iDesign

All ratings84 ratings
Positive38.1%
Neutral7.1%
Negative54.8%
Written reviews472 reviews
Positive50.4%
Neutral11.2%
Negative38.3%

Graphic for iPhone

All ratings95 ratings
Positive63.2%
Neutral10.5%
Negative26.3%
Written reviews115 reviews
Positive57.4%
Neutral11.3%
Negative31.3%

In-app purchases

3 purchases

iDesign

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly Subscription14 Days trial$6.991 Month
  • Yearly Subscription14 Days trial$39.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime$79.99
None

Graphic for iPhone

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is iDesign free?
iDesign is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Graphic for iPhone free?
Graphic for iPhone costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, iDesign or Graphic for iPhone?
Graphic for iPhone is rated higher. iDesign averages 2.6 out of 5 from 84 ratings, while Graphic for iPhone averages 3.7 from 95 ratings.
Do iDesign or Graphic for iPhone have ads?
Neither iDesign nor Graphic for iPhone shows ads.
Which is updated more often, iDesign or Graphic for iPhone?
iDesign ships an update every 5 months, and Graphic for iPhone every 5 months. Most recently, iDesign was updated on October 14, 2026 and Graphic for iPhone on October 17, 2026.

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