Comparison

Drawing Pad vs Doodle

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

Head to head
About

Drawing Pad

Unleash your creativity with a mobile art studio for all ages. This app offers a wide array of realistic art tools, from crayons and markers to paint brushes and colored pencils. Easily import photos as backgrounds or stickers, blend colors, and share your masterpieces.

Highlights
  • Photo-realistic art tools
  • Crayons, markers, paint brushes, colored pencils
  • Stickers and roller pens
  • Photo background import
  • Color blending tool
  • Export and sharing options
Features
Read full description

Get the app that was mentioned on TV ABC 7 CHICAGO as a top school app! Watch http://abc7chicago.com/education/back-to-school-tech-shopping-tips/952242/ short link: abc7.ws/1h5RDj9 Previously iPad App of the Week in 12 countries! (http://drawingpadapp.com/apple-features-drawing-pad-as-ipad-app-of-the-week) Drawing Pad is a mobile art studio for all ages! Create your own art using photo-realistic crayons, markers, paint brushes, colored pencils, stickers, roller pens and more! ■ ACCOLADES Winner of a Parents’ Choice Gold Award (bit.ly/parents-choice) Featured on nytimes.com (bit.ly/nytimes-drawingpad) Featured on usatoday.com (usat.ly/2x5xrKx) Featured on the iLounge 2011 Buyer's Guide 100 Essential Apps of 2010! Featured by iLounge as First runner up to kids' iPad App of the Year! Featured on Gizmodo's 2010 Gift Guide (bit.ly/gizmodo-drawingpad) Featured in November 2010 MacWorld Magazine in the UK 4 out of 5 stars Awarded Editor's Choice Award from Children's Technology Review ■ IN BOOKS Featured in the book “iPad Apps for Kids for Dummies” - by Jinny Gudmundsen Featured in the O’Reilly book “Best iPad Apps” - by Peter Meyers ■ IN MUSEUMS As seen in the Star Studio Exhibit at the Indianapolis Museum of Art! (bit.ly/ima-museum) ■ QUOTES "Drawing Pad is a fantastic drawing app!" 9to5mac.com “Wonderful chalk tools! You can almost taste the dust!” Mickey Paraskevas, Illustrator and Creator of the Maggie and the Ferocious Beast TV show. "Drawing Pad is a fun and easy to use iPad art app for kids and adults alike. It has very visual menus giving you instant access to a broad range of useful art tools. There are amazing features for kids including downloadable colouring books and additional advanced features for more ambitious artists." Kyle Lambert - Artist - www.kylelambert.com ■ HOW TO USE DRAWING PAD Watch the video inside the App! (or drawingpadapp.com/tutorial) Tap a tool, choose a color, and start drawing. It’s really that simple. Your artwork is automatically saved in the Drawing Pad album. For brush options like size and spacing, tap the brush thumbnail at the bottom of the drawer. Import photo backgrounds by first tapping the stationary icon in the drawer, then the filmstrip. Import photo stickers by first tapping the sticker icon, then the stack of photos. Use one finger to move your photo and two fingers to rotate and resize. Blender tool allows you to soften and blend colors! ■ SHARING OPTIONS Export to the Device Camera Roll, print via AirPrint, share via Email, and other favorite apps like Instagram & Facebook. Even assign your artwork to a contact in your address book! ■ ALL THESE TOOLS ARE INCLUDED! Crayons Markers Paint Brushes Colored Pencils Sketch Pencils Roller Stamp Pens Erasures Stickers Construction Paper Blenders Text Sticker Tool Photo Background Import Photo Stickers Gradient Brushes & Crayons Advanced Brush Control Color wheel and Gradient Panel Pinch Zoom Autosave Two Coloring Books ■ EXTRA FUN Download extra coloring books via in app purchase! Restore prior "Coloring Book in app purchases" by tapping the "Redeem prior purchase" button on the Coloring Book store details page. See drawingpadapp.com/restore ■ DEMONSTRATION Video at http://drawingpadapp.com ■ CONTACT Email us at "support" -at- "drawingpadapp.com" BUY NOW! Don't have an iPad yet? Don't let it stop you! Great price today! Buy now and tell your friends. CREDITS: "Birds," "Panda Bear," and "Turtle" by Igor Cheban instagram.com/icheban "Dinosaur," and "Kitten" by Kyle Lambert www.kylelambert.com

About

Doodle

Unleash your creativity with a simple yet powerful drawing application. Sketch, paint, and color on a blank canvas, perfect for quick ideas or detailed artwork. Save your creations with an optional subscription for enhanced features.

Highlights
  • Blank canvas for drawing
  • Variety of drawing tools and colors
  • Undo functionality
  • Image sharing
  • Apple Pencil support
  • Cross-device compatibility
  • Optional Pro subscription for advanced features
Features
Read full description

A little color. A whole new world. Doodle is a drawing app for everyday imagination. Pick a tool, choose a color, and make a mark. A blank canvas can become a small world, a useful idea, or a few minutes of play. MAKE SOMETHING YOURS Draw a colorful scene. Sketch a chart to explain a thought. Draw a tic-tac-toe board and take turns making marks. Map a request and its reply. Practice a letter until it feels like your own. These are things you can draw, with room for your own ideas in between. KEEP IT SIMPLE Choose drawing tools and colors, undo a mark, and share an image of your work. On compatible iPad models, draw with touch or Apple Pencil. No account is required to start drawing. A CANVAS FOR YOUR DEVICE Draw on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Vision Pro. Each brings its own controls to the same simple idea: a place to draw. On Apple Vision Pro, Doodle is a two-dimensional canvas in an app window. A LITTLE MORE WITH DOODLE PRO An optional Doodle Pro subscription lets you save and reopen editable drawings, ask for confirmation before clearing, hide the tool picker, and choose your preferred light or dark appearance. App icon choices are also available on supported devices. Drawing and image sharing do not require a Pro subscription. Pro is available as a monthly or yearly auto-renewing subscription. The price and any eligible offer are shown before you subscribe. Subscriptions renew automatically unless you cancel. Manage or cancel your subscription in your App Store account settings. One mark is a good place to start. Privacy Policy: https://doodle.app/privacy Terms of Use: https://doodle.app/terms

Screenshots

Doodle4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Doodle at Free against Drawing Pad's $5.99. Doodle also leads on ratings volume (46K vs 126) and rating (4.5 vs 4.2). Drawing Pad's advantage is review sentiment (83% vs 67%) and chart position (#145 vs unranked). On ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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

Doodle is free to download; Drawing Pad costs $5.99 up front. Drawing Pad sells 10 one-off in-app purchases and Doodle sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Doodle holds the better App Store score, 4.5 against 4.2. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Doodle has 46K ratings behind it against 126, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 83% of Drawing Pad's written reviews are positive against 67% of Doodle's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Drawing Pad ships an update monthly, Doodle every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 6, 2026 and November 9, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 3 level
Drawing Pad versus Doodle: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDrawing PadDoodle
Price$5.99Free — better
Rating4.2 (126 ratings)4.5 (46K ratings) — better
Positive reviews82.7% of reviews — better67.2% of reviews
Number of ratings12646K — better
Update frequencyMonthly — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#145 — better—
DevicesiPadiPhone, iPad, Mac, Vision Pro — better
Requires iOS11.0 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size223 MB155 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMurtha Design LLCJoe Blau

Customer experience

Drawing Pad

All ratings123 ratings
Positive80.5%
Neutral4.1%
Negative15.4%
Written reviews583 reviews
Positive82.7%
Neutral7.0%
Negative10.3%

Doodle

All ratings46,309 ratings
Positive85.9%
Neutral7.0%
Negative7.1%
Written reviews409 reviews
Positive67.2%
Neutral13.2%
Negative19.6%

User reviews

Drawing Pad

From 126 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🎨 Great for kids
  • 👍 Versatile and fun
  • 🎨 Encourages creativity
  • 🎨 Lots of drawing tools
  • 🎨 Excellent color selection

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes and deletes work
  • 🐛 Undo button issues
  • 🖌️ Limited brush/pencil options
  • 🖌️ Blending tool issues
  • 🖼️ No full screen on iPad

Doodle

From 46K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Easy to use
  • 👍 No ads
  • 👍 Allows creativity
  • 👍 Good for quick sketches
  • 👍 Works with Apple Pencil

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Accidental deletion of drawings
  • 🐛 Disappearing toolbar
  • 🐛 Lack of save/export options
  • 🐛 Crashes and loss of progress
  • 🐛 Limited drawing tools

Bugs and requests

Drawing Pad

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Crashes and deletes drawings
  • Undo button erases too much work
  • Drawings disappear from album
  • Sticker placement issues
  • Incompatible with newer iPads

Requested features

10 requests
  • Add layers feature
  • Implement zoom/pan functionality
  • Add text tool
  • Provide more advanced drawing tools
  • Include more adult-oriented coloring books
Show 5 more
  • Improve sticker/stamp UI
  • Add sound effects
  • Implement auto-save feature
  • Add ability to mix/create custom colors
  • Provide more brushes/pencils (e.g. HB-9B pencils)

Doodle

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Drawings disappear after app closes
  • Toolbar disappears during screen recording
  • Inability to zoom in/out properly

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add undo/redo functionality
  • Implement auto-save feature
  • Provide more drawing tools and customization options
  • Allow changing background color
  • Add ability to import/export drawings

In-app purchases

10 purchases

Drawing Pad

One-time10
  • More Fun Coloring BookFree
  • Fairy Tale Coloring BookFree
  • Sea Life Coloring BookFree
Show 7 more
  • Winter Holiday Coloring BookFree
  • Farm Coloring BookFree
  • Dinosaur Coloring BookFree
  • Robots Coloring BookFree
  • Space Coloring BookFree
  • Halloween Coloring BookFree
  • Adult Coloring Book 1Free
2 purchases

Doodle

Subscriptions2
  • Doodle Pro: Monthly7 Days trial$3.991 Month
  • Doodle Pro: Yearly$19.991 Year

Questions

Is Drawing Pad free?
Drawing Pad costs $5.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is Doodle free?
Doodle is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Drawing Pad or Doodle?
Doodle is rated higher. Drawing Pad averages 4.2 out of 5 from 126 ratings, while Doodle averages 4.5 from 46K ratings.
Do Drawing Pad or Doodle have ads?
Neither Drawing Pad nor Doodle shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Drawing Pad or Doodle?
Drawing Pad ships an update monthly, and Doodle every 2 months. Most recently, Drawing Pad was updated on November 6, 2026 and Doodle on November 9, 2026.

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