# Lux Draw vs Sketchbook®

The clearest difference is ratings volume: Sketchbook® at 221K against Lux Draw's 939. Sketchbook® also leads on chart position (#36 vs unranked). Lux Draw's advantage is iOS requirement (12.0 vs 15). On price, rating, review sentiment and update cadence there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Lux Draw sells 6 one-off in-app purchases and Sketchbook® sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Lux Draw against 4.8 for Sketchbook®. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Sketchbook® has 221K ratings behind it against 939, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 82% of Lux Draw's written reviews are positive against 77% of Sketchbook®'s.

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and November 1, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Lux Draw | Sketchbook® |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.7 (939 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/lux-draw/id492501837/reviews) | **[4.8 (221K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sketchbook/id883738213/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | 939 | **221K** |
| Positive reviews | **81.5% of reviews** | 76.6% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Every 2 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | — | **#36** |
| Size | 24 MB | 144 MB |
| Requires iOS | **12.0** | 15 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac** | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Norbyte](https://appshunter.io/developer/331310753) | [Sketchbook, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1569383806) |

## What reviewers say

### Lux Draw

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/lux-draw/id492501837)

Create unique art with light-inspired tools and gritty textures. Draw from scratch or enhance photos with glow pens and special effects. Offers advanced features like HDR brushes and Apple Pencil support for a professional artistic experience.

**Highlights:** Live-calculated HDR brushes, Glow Pen, Hot Pen, Light Spheres, Gritty paper/canvas textures, Smear tool for flame art, Apple Pencil support, Multiple layers, Photo tracing mode (Pro)

**Features:** Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (6)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Tip Jar: Smallest Tip | $1.00 | one-time |
| Tip Jar: Small Tip | $2.00 | one-time |
| Pro Upgrade | $5.00 | one-time |
| Tip Jar: Medium Tip | $5.00 | one-time |
| Tip Jar: Big Tip | $10.00 | one-time |
| Tip Jar: Biggest Tip | $25.00 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Excellent entertainment value
- 👍 Creative drawing tools
- 👍 No ads, totally free
- 👍 Easy to use
- 👍 Variety of brushes and colors

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional glitches and freezing issues
- 🐛 Compatibility issues with certain devices/platforms
- 🔧 Limited functionality compared to other drawing apps
- 🔧 Lack of advanced features like fill tool, shapes, and text
- 🔧 Difficulty using with mouse/trackpad on laptops

**Reported bugs**

- Freezing and unresponsiveness when switching tools
- Leaving unwanted color dots when erasing
- Compatibility issues with certain devices

**Requested features**

- Add fill tool, shapes, and text capabilities
- Improve compatibility with tablets and styluses
- Provide more customization options for brushes and colors
- Implement undo/redo functionality
- Add ability to export/share drawings easily


### Sketchbook®

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sketchbook/id883738213)

**Currently charting:** #36 Top Free · Graphics & Design (US App Store)

This app provides a professional-grade drawing and painting experience for artists and illustrators. It offers a natural drawing feel with customizable tools, layers, and guides for precision. Unlock advanced features like custom brushes and canvas resizing with an optional premium purchase.

**Highlights:** Full complement of brush types, Highly customizable brushes, Guides, rulers, and stroke tools, Layers with blend modes, Clean and unobtrusive interface, Custom brush creation (premium), Canvas resizing (premium)

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Premium Bundle | $2.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Amazing, free, and no ads
- 👍 Lots of brushes and customization options
- 👍 Intuitive and easy to use
- 👍 Great for beginners and professionals
- 👍 Smooth performance and no lag

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional freezing and crashing issues
- 🐛 Blurry or corrupted images when saving or copying
- 🐛 Glitches with color selection and layers
- 🐛 Inability to rotate canvas or access gallery easily
- 🐛 Lack of blurring and clipping mask tools

**Reported bugs**

- Layers randomly deleted or corrupted
- Freezing when using certain tools like the eyedropper
- Saving issues leading to loss of progress
- Incompatibility with newer iPad Pro devices

**Requested features**

- Add blurring and clipping mask tools
- Improve gallery and canvas rotation functionality
- Allow custom font import
- Add effects like glow, stroke, and drop shadow
- Implement layer grouping and organization


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Lux Draw free?

Lux Draw is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Sketchbook® free?

Sketchbook® is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Lux Draw or Sketchbook®?

Sketchbook® is rated higher. Lux Draw averages 4.7 out of 5 from 939 ratings, while Sketchbook® averages 4.8 from 221K ratings.

### Do Lux Draw or Sketchbook® have ads?

Neither Lux Draw nor Sketchbook® shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Lux Draw or Sketchbook®?

Lux Draw ships an update every 2 months, and Sketchbook® every 2 months. Most recently, Lux Draw was updated on October 24, 2026 and Sketchbook® on November 1, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*