iBrainstorm vs Number Frames, by MLC
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
iBrainstorm
This app allows users to capture and organize creative ideas on a digital canvas. Easily add notes, drawings, and arrange them visually. Share your brainstormed content seamlessly across devices.
- Multi-device collaboration
- Add and drag-and-drop notes
- Assign colors to notes
- Digital drawing board
- Zoom functionality
- Capture and share ideas
Read full descriptionHide full description
Capturing and sharing your inner most creative genius has never been easier. Introducing the first multi-device collaboration tool from Universal Mind. From iPad to iPad with just a flick of the finger, iBrainstorm has set the bar and has redefined the very nature of collaboration. Add a note, then drag and drop it anywhere on the iPad's screen to create any desired order or pattern. Assign colors to give additional meaning or priority. Provide clarity to your students or classmates through simple organization. The iPad canvas also serves as a drawing board. Draw, erase or zoom in for tighter control. Everything is then captured for later. Show relationships between ideas or just capture your best stickman - it's easy. Think it. Share it. Love it!
Number Frames, by MLC
This app provides virtual number frames to help elementary students visualize and manipulate numbers up to one hundred. It supports counting, comparing, and computing, aiding the transition from one-by-one counting to more efficient strategies. Custom frames can be created for advanced visualization of factors and fractions.
- Standard and custom number frames
- Variety of counters and colors
- 5s grid for grouping emphasis
- Resizable covers for problem modeling
- Drawing and annotation tools
- Math text and writing tools
- Shareable work via image or code
Read full descriptionHide full description
Number Frames help students structure numbers to five, ten, twenty, and one hundred. Students use the frames to count, represent, compare, and compute with numbers in a particular range. The frames allow students see quantities as equal groups of other quantities and in relation to benchmark quantities. This helps primary students move away from one-by-one counting toward more efficient ways of counting and computing. As students advance, custom frames can be constructed to help visualize factors, products, fractional parts and more. These virtual versions of number frames are open-ended educational tools, ideal for elementary classrooms and other learning environments that use iPads. Number frames are a key model used in Bridges in Mathematics, second edition. Online preview available at: www.mathlearningcenter.org/bridges FEATURES: • Use standard 5-, 10-, 20-, and 100-frames, or create custom frames up to 12 x 12. • Choose from a variety of counters and colors. Drag single counters — or stacks of 5 and 10 — into frames or on to the workspace. • Apply a 5s grid to frames to emphasize every 5th line and reinforce grouping by five. • Hide and reveal counters with resizable covers to create your own problems and model strategies. • Use the drawing tools to annotate work and show understanding. • Add equations, expressions, and descriptions with the math text and writing tools. • Share your work by saving an image or providing a share code to others. MORE APPS For more Number Line resources and other apps, visit: www.mathlearningcenter.org/apps LEARN MORE To learn about Bridges in Mathematics, an elementary curriculum that employs visual models like number line, visit: www.mathlearningcenter.org/bridges/overview ABOUT US This resource is brought to you by The Math Learning Center, a nonprofit organization dedicated to K-12 education since 1976. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This app was crafted by Clarity Innovations. We help improve teaching and learning by creating solutions that match promising technologies with the needs of education. Visit us: www.clarity-innovations.com
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Number Frames, by MLC at 89% against iBrainstorm's 46%. Number Frames, by MLC also leads on rating (4.0 vs 3.7). iBrainstorm's advantage is update cadence (every 4 months vs every 13 months) and ratings volume (25 vs 7). On price, 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Number Frames, by MLC holds the better App Store score, 4.0 against 3.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 25 and 7 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 46% of iBrainstorm's written reviews are positive against 89% of Number Frames, by MLC's.
iBrainstorm ships an update every 4 months, Number Frames, by MLC every 13 months. The most recent releases landed on August 16, 2026 and September 16, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | iBrainstorm | Number Frames, by MLC |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.7 (25 ratings) | 4.0 (7 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 45.6% of reviews | 88.9% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 25 — better | 7 |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months — better | Every 13 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPad | iPad |
| Requires iOS | 7.1 — better | 15.4 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 11 MB | 12 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Erik Loehfelm | The Math Learning Center |
Customer experience
iBrainstorm
Number Frames, by MLC
Bugs and requests
iBrainstorm
Reported bugs
3 issues- Sticky notes sometimes disappear after reopening the app
- Drawing tools can be laggy or unresponsive
- Difficulty connecting devices for collaboration
Requested features
6 requests- Add undo/redo functionality
- Allow resizing and formatting of sticky notes
- Implement multi-page or infinite workspace
- Enable collaboration between multiple devices
- Add support for inserting images and documents
Show 1 moreShow fewer
- Improve eraser and drawing tools
Number Frames, by MLC
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
iBrainstorm
No in-app purchases
Number Frames, by MLC
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is iBrainstorm free?
Is Number Frames, by MLC free?
Which has better reviews, iBrainstorm or Number Frames, by MLC?
Do iBrainstorm or Number Frames, by MLC have ads?
Which is updated more often, iBrainstorm or Number Frames, by MLC?
Other comparisons















