Comparison

Doodle.ly vs Kindly Ink

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

Head to head
About

Doodle.ly

Create and share drawings with friends using a variety of realistic art tools. This free app offers an intuitive interface suitable for all ages, from toddlers to artists. Save your creations or publish them directly to social media.

Highlights
  • Realistic drawing tools
  • Easy sharing to social media
  • Unlimited undos/redos
  • Friend interaction (likes/following)
  • Save multiple canvases
Features
Read full description

Doodle.ly is a fun, free and easy way to share drawings with friends. Draw a picture, then publish it or save it - it's that easy. Our custom-designed drawing engine accurately simulates real pencil, pen, crayons and markers. The UI is highly intuitive, creating a joyful drawing experience simple enough for a toddler, and yet powerful enough for a serious artist. "the closest thing I had to real pen and paper" Lance Ulanoff, Editor-in-Chief, Mashable Features: • 100% free custom designed drawing tools: Crayon, Ballpoint, Highlighter, Pencil, Resizable Eraser, Chisel Tip Marker and Fine Point Marker in an array of colors. • Sharing to Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Text, Email and AirDrop • Unlimited undos and redos • Interact with friends by sharing likes and following one another • Keep up to 180 canvases in progress at one time (iPad)

About

Kindly Ink

Create and send personalized handwritten letters via email. Choose from various stationery and envelopes to craft unique messages. Save digital copies of your creations.

Highlights
  • Handwritten letter creation
  • Email delivery
  • Customizable stationery and envelopes
  • Digital letter saving
  • iPad exclusive experience
  • Easy sign-up
Features
Read full description

Handwrite heartfelt messages to your friends and loved ones on your iPad and send them as beautifully crafted letters via email. Whether it's a quick hello or a thoughtful note, Kindly Ink brings the art of letter-writing into the digital age; and makes every message personal, creative, and memorable. Key Features Easy Sign-Up: Get started quickly with Google sign-in. Beautiful Handwritten Letters: Use your finger or Apple Pencil to write on various stationery styles and pair them with elegant envelopes. Seamless Email Delivery: Send your letters directly to your friends' email inboxes. Download and Keep: Save your letters to your personal device as digital keepsakes. Universal Viewing: Recipients can view your letters anywhere, ensuring your message always gets across. iPad Exclusive: Write, send, and reply to letters using the iPad app, designed for the ultimate handwritten experience. Experience the joy of thoughtful communication with Kindly Ink. Download the app today and start sending letters that truly matter. Developer's Thoughts In today's world of technology and digital communication, we have many apps to connect with others. Most of the time, these are fragmented pieces of information, and they rarely carry the depth of emotion that we want to express to each other. That’s why I came up with the idea to create this app—so everyone can rediscover the joy of handwritten letters and share them with family and close friends. During the development process, countless ideas kept coming, but I chose to exercise restraint and focus on perfecting the core functions and user experience first. So if there's a feature you really want, please leave a comment or give me feedback within the app. I read every suggestion and opinion! Automatic Subscription Service Description Subscription Services: Annual Subscription Monthly Subscription Subscription Prices: Annual Subscription: $24.99/year. Monthly Subscription: $3.99/month. Automatic Renewal Your Apple iTunes account will be charged 24 hours before the subscription expires. Once the payment is successful, the subscription will be extended for another subscription period. Cancel Subscription To manage the subscription, go to your iPhone - Settings - Tap on "iTunes & App Store" - Click on Apple ID - Select "View Apple ID" to access the "Account Settings" page. Tap on "Subscriptions" to manage your automatic subscription service. To cancel, simply turn off the subscription 24 hours before the end of each billing cycle. No charge will be made if canceled within 24 hours before the renewal date. User Agreement https://kindlyink.com/user_agreement.html Privay Agreement https://kindlyink.com/privacy_agreement.html Renew Rules https://kindlyink.com/auto-renewal-rules.html

Screenshots

Doodle.ly4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Doodle.ly at none against Kindly Ink's 3. Doodle.ly also leads on review sentiment (50% vs 25%) and ratings volume (228 vs 13). Kindly Ink's advantage is update cadence (every 2 days vs every 6 weeks). On price, rating 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Kindly Ink sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Doodle.ly asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 3.9 for Doodle.ly against 3.8 for Kindly Ink. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Doodle.ly has 228 ratings behind it against 13, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 50% of Doodle.ly's written reviews are positive against 25% of Kindly Ink's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Doodle.ly ships an update every 6 weeks, Kindly Ink every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Doodle.ly versus Kindly Ink: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterDoodle.lyKindly Ink
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.9 (228 ratings) — better3.8 (13 ratings)
Positive reviews50.4% of reviews — better25.0% of reviews
Number of ratings228 — better13
Update frequencyEvery 6 weeksEvery 2 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterSubscription
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPad
Requires iOS7.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size9 MB24 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDoodle.ly, Inc.guoyong dong

Customer experience

Doodle.ly

All ratings228 ratings
Positive68.4%
Neutral14.0%
Negative17.5%
Written reviews121 reviews
Positive50.4%
Neutral16.5%
Negative33.1%

Kindly Ink

All ratings7 ratings
Positive57.1%
Neutral14.3%
Negative28.6%
Written reviews4 reviews
Positive25.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative75.0%

Bugs and requests

Doodle.ly

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Drawings disappearing after exiting app
  • Undo button causing crashes
  • Login issues with Twitter/Facebook
  • App freezing and force closing

Requested features

5 requests
  • More color options
  • Adjustable brush/tool sizes
  • Ability to save/resume drawings
  • In-app account creation
  • Commenting/feedback system

Kindly Ink

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Doodle.ly

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

Kindly Ink

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly Subscription$2.991 Month
  • Yearly Subscription$19.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime$69.99

Questions

Is Doodle.ly free?
Doodle.ly is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Kindly Ink free?
Kindly Ink is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Doodle.ly or Kindly Ink?
Doodle.ly is rated higher. Doodle.ly averages 3.9 out of 5 from 228 ratings, while Kindly Ink averages 3.8 from 13 ratings.
Do Doodle.ly or Kindly Ink have ads?
Neither Doodle.ly nor Kindly Ink shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Doodle.ly or Kindly Ink?
Doodle.ly ships an update every 6 weeks, and Kindly Ink every 2 days. Most recently, Doodle.ly was updated on October 22, 2026 and Kindly Ink on October 25, 2026.

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