Crayon Maestro vs Canvas Software
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Crayon Maestro
This app simulates wax crayon drawing with realistic stroke variations based on fingertip pressure. It offers a dynamic color palette, adjustable drawing parameters, and full Apple Pencil support for creating detailed art and sketches. Pro features like photo tracing are available via a one-time purchase.
- Fingertip-based stroke size adjustment
- Live parameter changes (color, size, force)
- Full Apple Pencil support
- Customizable color palette
- Multiple layers
- Photo tracing mode (Pro feature)
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This full-fledged wax crayon simulator lets you create art, whether a complete drawing or just a sketch, with a striking resemblance to its real life counterpart. • FINGERTIP = STROKE SIZE • When you draw, the app measures how much of your finger is touching the screen and changes the stroke size accordingly. Apply just the corner of your fingertip for a thin line, or the whole fingerprint area for a broad stroke. A 2nd tool assigned to your finger will still use this feature, so don’t ignore it just because you have an Apple Pencil! • PARAMETERS CAN BE CHANGED LIVE • Use any buttons or controls to change/adjust color, size, force, simultaneously while drawing. • APPLE PENCIL • Full support for Apple Pencil and Apple Pencil 2. In addition, you can assign a second drawing tool, such as Eraser, to the finger. • EASY AND QUICK TO USE COLOR PALETTE • Changing the color is only a tap away. The colors in the palette can be rearranged, adjusted, added and removed. • UNIVERSAL PURCHASE • If you choose to buy the Pro upgrade, this one-time in-app purchase will unlock all Pro features in the app on all available platforms (iPad-iPhone-Mac)! • METAL • The engine is based on Metal, with 128-bit color and floating-point arithmetic. • SWIFT • The app was developed entirely using Swift (earlier versions used C++). • FULL SCREEN DRAWING • SEAMLESS PATTERN EDITING MODE • • DARK MODE • LANDSCAPE • PORTRAIT • WIDE COLOR • • MULTIPLE LAYERS • PHOTO TRACING MODE (Pro feature) •
Canvas Software
A powerful yet user-friendly drawing application for iPad and Mac, powered by a custom engine for smooth 60fps rendering. Offers features like adjustment layers, timelapse recording, and filters for creative expression.
- Canvas7 drawing engine
- 60fps rendering
- Adjustment Layers
- Timelapse recording
- Filters
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Painter is a feature-rich, easy to use drawing app for the iPad and Mac. It uses the custom built Canvas7 drawing engine for rendering at 60fps. Some of the features include Adjustment Layers, Timelapse, Filters, and more. Make sure to leave a review and let me know how Painter can be improved!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Crayon Maestro at 4.6 against Canvas Software's 4.0. Crayon Maestro also leads on review sentiment (76% vs 40%) and ratings volume (225 vs 1). Canvas Software's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 6). On price 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
Both are free to download. Crayon Maestro sells 6 one-off in-app purchases. Canvas Software asks for nothing beyond the download.
Crayon Maestro holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Crayon Maestro has 225 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 76% of Crayon Maestro's written reviews are positive against 40% of Canvas Software's.
| Parameter | Crayon Maestro | Canvas Software |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (225 ratings) — better | 4.0 (1 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 76.0% of reviews — better | 40.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 225 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Monthly | — |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac — better | iPad, Mac |
| Requires iOS | 12.0 — better | 14.4 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 22 MB | 27 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Norbyte | Canvas Software LLC |
Customer experience
Crayon Maestro
Canvas Software
In-app purchases
Crayon Maestro
- Tip Jar: Smallest Tip$1.00
- Tip Jar: Small Tip$2.00
- Pro Upgrade$3.00
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- Tip Jar: Medium Tip$5.00
- Tip Jar: Big Tip$10.00
- Tip Jar: Biggest Tip$25.00
Canvas Software
No in-app purchases









