Comparison

ComicBook! vs Photo Editor Express+

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

Head to head
About

ComicBook!

Easily transform your photos into comic book pages with a wide array of graphic effects, stickers, and text tools. Choose from numerous layouts and fonts to create share-worthy stories. Save your creations as images or editable PDFs.

Highlights
  • Graphic effects and filters
  • 105 inspiring layouts
  • 374 hand-drawn comic stickers
  • 12 caption and text tools
  • Import images from library and Flickr
  • Save as JPG or editable PDF
Features
Read full description

"The Best App for Making Comics: ComicBook!" - Mac|Life ComicBook! is YOUR Creative Superpowers! Transform the ordinary to share-worthy extraordinary easy as: B.A.M! Arm yourself with the best graphic effects, 105 inspiring layouts, 374 hand-drawn* comic Stickers, 12 caption and text tools, and auto-content from Flickr, and you have the superpowers to Rule the Universe - in Your stories! TOP-SELLING COMIC BOOK CREATION APP AWARDED iTUNES BEST PHOTO APP OF 2011 WAS APP OF THE WEEK WORLDWIDE YOUR IMAGES YOUR WAY Import images from your library and Flickr Capture a new image Scale, rotate & position imported images SUPERFX (optional) Best image to comic effects and true to image 8 auto styles, each with optional detail settings All have 4 CMYK halftone options All have 4 screen halftone options All have 4 line halftone options FX BUILDER From classic comic to Manga Each has 5 variations Each of those has 4 line options All have 4 CMYK halftone options All have 4 digital halftone options 10 LEGACY IMAGE FX FILTERS Automatic "Classic" style Adjustable Comic style Photo Adjustment filter Noir, Sinkcity, Poster, Moody, Rock & Hope Effects 374 AWESOME STICKERS INCLUDED Vast majority lovingly hand-drawn by Joanna Mulder! Paste PNG and JPG images as custom stickers Position, Mirror (flip), scale & rotate stickers Optional drop shadow and transparency 500+ additionally available 11 CAPTION TOOLS "Messy" option for drawn look; each is unique! Captions have small, medium & large fonts Customizable caption background colors Customizable caption text colors Curved pointers with hints 105 LAYOUTS INCLUDED Selectable aspect ratio (1:1, 3:2, 4:3 and 16:9) 15 Fun Photo Portrait Layouts 15 Classic Portrait Layouts 15 Classic Landscape Layouts 15 Vintage Portrait Layouts 15 Vintage Landscape Layouts 15 Modern Portrait Layouts 15 Modern Landscape Layouts BUILT-IN SHARING Twitter sharing Facebook sharing Instagram sharing Email JPG or PDF files Direct printing support 10 COMIC FONTS INCLUDED Fonts feature bold & international characters Title text tool in 6 colors and 3 sizes SAVING Save to photo library Save to editable** PDF files PDF files can be copied to your computer Open PDF files in any app that supports PDF Graphical project manager to save & restore projects EVEN MORE Set default font, font size, etc. Parental controls Tooltips Comprehensive online help and Quick Start Native Retina iPhone and iPad resolution SuperFX is available on devices with A12 and M1 and later processors as an in-app purchase with a free 2-week trial. Compared to our previous ComicBook! effects, SuperFX is a game-changer. It offers significant visual enhancements and improved resolution, and the SuperFX styles are fully automatic. They optionally have three different detail options, each with three different halftone types, including CMYK and an all-new line screen. Our SuperFX effects are high-definition and generated directly on the user's device, ensuring complete privacy and the ability to use them without an internet connection. At our core, we believe in preserving the original traits of a photo while adding cutting-edge effects. Unlike other generative AI, our models do not alter personalities or hallucinate objects. Additionally, we trained our models on ethically sourced and homemade datasets. *The one and only Joanna Mulder lovingly drew the vast majority of our 374 included stickers **PDF files are only editable in external applications such as Adobe Illustrator and Inkscape. We commit to continuously improving ComicBook! 2, and we encourage everyone to suggest ideas for future updates free of charge! Connect with us @3DTOPO on Twitter and Instagram! Rascal the cat images compliments of @rascal_wild Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Photo Editor Express+

Edit your photos with a wide range of tools including cropping, rotation, and adjustments for brightness, contrast, and color. Apply preset filters and draw directly on your images with zoom functionality. Save and share your enhanced pictures easily.

Highlights
  • Photo cropping with different shapes
  • Rotation and mirror flip
  • Brightness, contrast, and saturation adjustment
  • Color temperature control
  • Preset filters with adjustment
  • Drawing on zoomable photos
Features
Read full description

Bring out the best in your photos with precise color and lighting controls, portrait retouching, background editing, and creative reshaping tools. COLOR AND LIGHT • Enhance local contrast with adjustable Auto Enhance. • Fine-tune exposure, brightness, contrast, and gamma. • Balance highlights, shadows, whites, and blacks. • Adjust saturation, vibrance, temperature, tint, and hue. • Control individual color ranges with HSL. • Adjust overall brightness and individual color channels with RGB Curves. • Color-grade shadows, midtones, and highlights separately. PORTRAIT RETOUCHING • Reduce small blemishes with the healing brush. • Smooth skin while preserving texture. • Explore Skin Tone presets with adjustable shade, intensity, and redness reduction. • Zoom in for detailed brush work. BACKGROUND EDITING • Automatically separate a person from the background. • Create a transparent background. • Replace the background with a solid color. • Blur the background to draw attention to your subject. RESHAPING AND GEOMETRY • Liquify — push, expand, pinch, and twirl selected areas with an adjustable brush. • Portrait Liquify — reshape a person while protecting the surrounding background, with an editable person mask. • Mesh Warp — reshape your photo by dragging grid control points. • Distort — adjust width and height independently. • Perspective — correct horizontal and vertical perspective. • Lens Correction — adjust barrel and pincushion distortion. DETAIL AND EFFECTS • Refine sharpness and structure. • Reduce luminance and color noise. • Adjust haze with Dehaze. • Add glow, fade, vignette, and film grain. • Create selective blur with Tilt Shift. • Apply preset photo filters with adjustable intensity. CROP, DRAW, AND ADD TEXT • Crop using different shapes and aspect ratios. • Rotate, straighten, and flip your photos. • Draw directly on a zoomable photo. • Add text with customizable fonts, bold styling, size, color, and placement. CAPTURE AND SHARE • Take photos with the built-in camera or import them from your library. • Compare your edits with the original. • Save and share your finished photos. Basic adjustment tools and the first five photo filters are free. Cropping, drawing, text, portrait retouching, Skin Tone, background editing, HSL, RGB Curves, reshaping tools, and additional filters require Premium access through an in-app purchase. - Terms of service: https://appsupport.store/terms/ - Privacy policy: https://appsupport.store/privacy/

Screenshots

ComicBook!4 screens
Photo Editor Express+4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Photo Editor Express+ at Free against ComicBook!'s $2.99. Photo Editor Express+ also leads on iOS requirement (15.4 vs 17.6). ComicBook!'s advantage is review sentiment (87% vs 52%) and chart position (#133 vs unranked). On rating, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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

Photo Editor Express+ is free to download; ComicBook! costs $2.99 up front. ComicBook! sells 11 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month and Photo Editor Express+ sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for ComicBook! against 4.6 for Photo Editor Express+. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ComicBook! has 1.4K ratings behind it against 217, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 87% of ComicBook!'s written reviews are positive against 52% of Photo Editor Express+'s.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ComicBook! ships an update every 2 weeks, Photo Editor Express+ every 10 days. Both last shipped on October 23, 2026.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
ComicBook! versus Photo Editor Express+: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterComicBook!Photo Editor Express+
Price$2.99Free — better
Rating4.8 (1.4K ratings) — better4.6 (217 ratings)
Positive reviews86.8% of reviews — better51.9% of reviews
Number of ratings1.4K — better217
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksEvery 10 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#133 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.615.4 — better
Further details — not scored
Size203 MB43 MB
Age rating9+4+
Developer3DTOPO Inc.SERGEI BEZDENEZHNYKH

Customer experience

ComicBook!

All ratings1,359 ratings
Positive94.4%
Neutral2.9%
Negative2.6%
Written reviews1,193 reviews
Positive86.8%
Neutral5.5%
Negative7.7%

Photo Editor Express+

All ratings217 ratings
Positive90.8%
Neutral3.7%
Negative5.5%
Written reviews27 reviews
Positive51.9%
Neutral11.1%
Negative37.0%

User reviews

ComicBook!

From 1.4K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Easy to use
  • 🎨 Great for creating comics
  • 💡 Lots of creative options
  • 🤩 Fun and entertaining
  • 👏 Awesome results

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes and stability issues
  • 🔒 Lacks save/resume functionality
  • 🔍 Limited text/bubble customization
  • 💰 Expensive in-app purchases
  • 🤔 Confusing navigation/workflow

Photo Editor Express+

From 217 App Store ratings

What we love

  • ✨ Great photo editing results
  • 👍 Easy to use and recommend
  • 🌟 Highly praised app
  • 💯 Versatile and comprehensive tool
  • 🚀 Intuitive design and real-time editing

Room to improve

  • 💸 Fake free offer, prompts for subscription
  • 💰 Requires money to use
  • 👎 Subscription model for camera filters questioned
  • 🎛️ Intrusive controls with lag
  • ❓ Needs instructions

Bugs and requests

ComicBook!

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Captions get cut off when exporting
  • Freezing and crashing on certain devices
  • Purchased sticker packs not downloading
  • Inconsistent behavior when editing pages

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add multi-page/book creation
  • Improve text/bubble resizing and positioning
  • Provide more font and color options
  • Implement undo/redo functionality
  • Add ability to rotate/flip stickers

Photo Editor Express+

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Unable to restore purchases
  • Not able to save changes
  • Crop feature not working properly
  • App selects a different photo than selected
  • Sending photos not working on iPad (resolved in July 2024 update)

Requested features

4 requests
  • Provide instructions or a help section
  • Add landscape mode for iPad
  • Improve crop functionality
  • Allow users to turn off crop feature

In-app purchases

11 purchases

ComicBook!

Subscriptions1
  • SuperFX Monthly14 Days trial$0.991 Month
One-time10
  • Crash Pack$0.99
  • Kaboom Pack$0.99
  • Boom Pack$0.99
Show 7 more
  • Bam Pack$0.99
  • Zlosh Pack$0.99
  • Splash Pack$0.99
  • Zzip Pack$0.99
  • Splat Pack$0.99
  • Cloud & Smoke$0.99
  • Puff Pack$0.99
4 purchases

Photo Editor Express+

Subscriptions3
  • Premium Week3 Days trial$0.997 Days
  • Premium Month3 Days trial$1.991 Month
  • Premium Annual3 Days trial$5.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime$9.99

Questions

Is ComicBook! free?
ComicBook! costs $2.99, and also offers in-app purchases.
Is Photo Editor Express+ free?
Photo Editor Express+ is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, ComicBook! or Photo Editor Express+?
ComicBook! is rated higher. ComicBook! averages 4.8 out of 5 from 1.4K ratings, while Photo Editor Express+ averages 4.6 from 217 ratings.
Do ComicBook! or Photo Editor Express+ have ads?
Neither ComicBook! nor Photo Editor Express+ shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ComicBook! or Photo Editor Express+?
ComicBook! ships an update every 2 weeks, and Photo Editor Express+ every 10 days. Most recently, ComicBook! was updated on October 23, 2026 and Photo Editor Express+ on October 23, 2026.

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