# Penloop vs Focalist

The clearest difference is price: Focalist at Free against Penloop's $6.99. Focalist also leads on rating (5.0 vs 3.7). Penloop's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3). On review sentiment, ratings volume, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Focalist is free to download; Penloop costs $6.99 up front. Focalist sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.49 per month. Penloop asks for nothing beyond the download.

Focalist holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 3.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3 and 2 respectively. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.

Penloop ships an update fortnightly, Focalist every 4 weeks. Both last shipped on November 4, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Penloop | Focalist |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $6.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | [3.7 (3 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/penloop/id6479236344/reviews) | **[5.0 (2 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/focalist/id6736589064/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **3** | 2 |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | **No** | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Fortnightly** | Every 4 weeks |
| Monetization | Paid | **Freemium** |
| Size | 17 MB | 15 MB |
| Requires iOS | **16.0** | 17.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Mac** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [DynaPlastic Ltd.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1344665647) | [David Rickard](https://appshunter.io/developer/1772551895) |

## What reviewers say

### Penloop

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/penloop/id6479236344)

This app helps you organize your life by capturing events, todos, notes, and more. It offers a flexible system with calendars, folders, and tags to manage your information privately on your device.

**Highlights:** Capture events, todos, notes, journals, Organize with calendars, folders, tags, Private, on-device data storage, Automatic backups, Create multiple spaces, Sync via iCloud Drive

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


### Focalist

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/focalist/id6736589064)

This task manager allows for quick editing of to-do items and prioritizes tasks based on context, such as location. It offers instant synchronization and offline access to your lists.

**Highlights:** Instant task editing, Location-based tasks, Cross-platform sync, Offline-first support, Prioritized 'Now' view

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Focalist Premium (Monthly) | $1.49 | per month |
| Focalist Premium (Annual) | $12.00 | per year |
| Lifetime Premium | $46.00 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Penloop free?

Penloop costs $6.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Focalist free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Penloop or Focalist?

Focalist is rated higher. Penloop averages 3.7 out of 5 from 3 ratings, while Focalist averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.

### Do Penloop or Focalist have ads?

Neither Penloop nor Focalist shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Penloop or Focalist?

Penloop ships an update fortnightly, and Focalist every 4 weeks. Most recently, Penloop was updated on November 4, 2026 and Focalist on November 4, 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.*