Loose Leaf vs Zavala
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Loose Leaf
Capture your thoughts, sketches, and ideas with an intuitive digital notebook. Offers unlimited pages, customizable templates, and easy import/export options. Its simple interface mimics the feel of pen and paper for effortless creativity.
- Unlimited pages
- Customizable templates
- Image and PDF import
- Moveable scraps with scissors tool
- Ruler and protractor tool
- Sidebar scrap drawer
- Export and share options
Read full descriptionHide full description
Loose Leaf is great for notes, sketches, ideas, and more! Watch the video and find out more: https://getlooseleaf.com FEATURES • Unlimited pages • Templates! Blank, lined, grid, and more! • Easy image and PDF import • As easy as pen and paper • Scissors create moveable scraps • Ruler / protractor tool for simple shapes • Sidebar scrap drawer • Export and share ideas via major social networks • Send pages quickly to other apps • Share pages to your contacts in Loose Leaf • Simple two-finger gesture page navigation EASY TO USE 1 finger to draw, erase, or cut 2 fingers to move and navigate NO HIDDEN COSTS • No in app purchases • No subscriptions • No settings TRANSLATE Want Loose Leaf in your language? Help us translate it at http://bit.ly/translate-looseleaf ! If you have any questions or suggestions, you can always send us an email at hello@getlooseleaf.com or reach out to @getlooseleaf.
Zavala
This app offers a modern approach to outlining, providing a full suite of features. It supports gestures, keyboard shortcuts, and multiple windows for efficient organization and content creation. Easily import and export in various formats, sync across devices, and customize your outlining experience.
- OPML Import & Export
- Markdown Export
- iCloud Syncing & Sharing
- Nested Tags
- Image Embedding
- Keyboard Shortcuts
- Drag and Drop
Read full descriptionHide full description
Zavala is a modern take on a traditional outliner. It is a full featured app. It takes full advantage of your device by leveraging gestures, keyboard shortcuts, and multiple windows. Other features: * OPML import & export * Markdown import & export * HTML import & export * iCloud syncing * iCloud sharing with other iCloud users * Encrypted outlines and encrypted iCloud sync * Nested Tags for organizing Outlines * Support for embedding images * Print support * Drag and drop * Text formatting * Links * Completed items * Notes * Customizable fonts and sizes * Backlinks * Shortcuts support * Web clipper share extension * Typewriter scrolling * Automatic row numbering including Decimal and Legal numbering
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: Zavala at 4.8 against Loose Leaf's 4.1. Zavala also leads on review sentiment (88% vs 68%) and update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 2 months). Loose Leaf's advantage is iOS requirement (10.0 vs 26.0). On price, ratings volume, 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
Zavala holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 58 and 70 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 68% of Loose Leaf's written reviews are positive against 88% of Zavala's.
Loose Leaf ships an update every 2 months, Zavala every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Loose Leaf | Zavala |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.1 (58 ratings) | 4.8 (70 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 67.9% of reviews | 87.7% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 58 | 70 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Every 2 weeks — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPad | iPhone, iPad, Mac — better |
| Requires iOS | 10.0 — better | 26.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 60 MB | 19 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Milestone Made, LLC | Vincode, Inc |
Customer experience
Loose Leaf
Zavala
Bugs and requests
Loose Leaf
Reported bugs
16 issues- Does not rotate to landscape view
- Sidebar makes writing difficult on the left
- Cannot insert text box
- Cannot crop pictures
- No way to delete projects
Show 11 moreShow fewer
- No way out of current project
- Biased against left-handed users
- Issues importing photos from library
- PDFs not imported directly from app
- Low resolution import for photos
- Appends advertisements even after purchase
- Freezes up for long periods
- Control buttons unresponsive or delayed
- Crashes during startup
- Cannot change pen size
- Slow execution on older devices
Requested features
14 requests- Adjustable eraser size
- RGB color selector for pencil
- PDF as paper template
- Text box insertion
- Crop pictures in square/rectangle
Show 9 moreShow fewer
- Day timer sheet offerings
- Zooming for writing/drawing
- Export selected pages
- Landscape mode
- More colors
- EPUB import
- Implement text input
- iPhone version
- Albums feature
Zavala
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Loose Leaf
No in-app purchases
Zavala
No in-app purchases
