Comparison

BrickNote vs Calpaper

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

Head to head
About

BrickNote

This app offers a simple and intuitive way to create and manage notes using a chat-like interface. Easily add images, set reminders, create checklists, and organize with tags. It supports iCloud sync, widgets, and Face ID protection for your important information.

Highlights
  • Chat-style note input
  • Image attachment
  • Schedule reminders
  • Checklist creation
  • Tagging for organization
  • iCloud synchronization
  • Home screen widgets
  • Face ID memo lock
Features
Read full description

Jot down a thought or what you just did, one line at a time, as if texting yourself. BrickNote stacks short memos like bricks and lets you look back on them by date. ■ QUICK MEMOS Open a notebook and start typing. Save a line to your quick memo notebook, or share text, links and photos from other apps. ■ NOTEBOOKS Group memos by topic, from daily life to books and plans, with colors and tags. ■ TIMELINE Every day you write adds a brick to your wall. See your streak and memos by date, and export them as Markdown. ■ TO-DOS AND REMINDERS Turn any memo into a to-do, check it off, and get a reminder when you need it. ■ TEXT STYLE AND HIGHLIGHTER Titles, bold, italic, strikethrough and five highlighter colors. ■ SEARCH Find memos by text, notebook or tag, and open them right from Spotlight. ■ KEEP IT SAFE - Lock notebooks with Face ID - iCloud sync across iPhone and iPad - Full backup and restore, Recently Deleted ■ WIDGETS AND SHORTCUTS See recent memos on your Home Screen, and add memos with Shortcuts and Siri. BrickNote Pro (one-time purchase, no subscription) - Unlimited notebooks (3 free, not counting the quick memo notebook) - Daily, weekly and monthly repeating reminders - Check off memos in widgets, large and Lock Screen widgets - Get text from photos - 4 app icons Notebook lock, iCloud sync, backup, export and the highlighter stay free. If you bought BrickNote before version 1.2.0, Pro is already included.

About

Calpaper

Transform your lock screen into a dynamic calendar. Display today's events, reminders, countdowns, notes, and photos. Customize colors, fonts, and layouts to stay organized at a glance.

Highlights
  • Lock screen calendar display
  • Event and reminder integration
  • Countdown timers
  • Customizable notes and photos
  • Multiple color themes
  • Design saving and switching
Features
Read full description

A Lock Screen calendar that redraws itself every morning. Calpaper turns today's schedule into your Lock Screen wallpaper: today's events, your open reminders, a note or a list, countdowns to the dates you're waiting for, this month or this week at a glance, and a photo you love. Your day is there before you unlock. WHAT YOU CAN PUT ON IT • Today's events from the calendars on your iPhone (iCloud, Google, Outlook), as a list or a timeline. Once today's are done, tomorrow's. Or keep tomorrow's beside today's all day (Calpaper Pro). • Your Reminders lists, what's due today first, as many as fit. Tick one off and it's gone at the next update. • Countdowns to the dates you're waiting for, a step closer every morning, and days since a date that matters. One of each is free; more come with Calpaper Pro. • A note to yourself or a list, one item a line, like your groceries, and a photo card. • This month with today marked, or this week in one short row with the number of events each day, on its own or over the month (Calpaper Pro). • Your name and a few emoji between the flashlight and the camera (Calpaper Pro). MAKE IT YOURS • Ten calm colors. With Calpaper Pro: gradients, your own photos (a new one every morning if you like), three more typefaces, emoji, and cards that are transparent, frosted or a color of your own. • Save the looks you make as designs and switch between them in one tap, or start from a ready-made one: an agenda, a planner, a grocery list, a to-do list. One design is free; Calpaper Pro keeps as many as you like. • Reorder or hide any block, and pick one of seven text sizes: smaller to fit more, larger to read at a glance. Try every Pro feature on the preview first. QUESTIONS PEOPLE ASK How do I put my calendar on my iPhone Lock Screen? Install Calpaper, allow access to your calendars and add the ready-made shortcut the app offers. Calpaper draws today's events into a wallpaper and Apple's Shortcuts app sets it on your Lock Screen. The guide shows every tap and takes a few minutes. Does the wallpaper update by itself every day? Yes. A daily automation in Shortcuts makes a fresh wallpaper every morning at the time you choose. Changed something? Tap Update in the app, or long-press its icon. Can I see a countdown on my Lock Screen? Yes. Add the dates you're waiting for, like a trip or a birthday, and each shows the days left on a track that moves a step closer every morning. Can I put my grocery list on my Lock Screen? Yes. Type it in the note, one item a line, or show your Reminders lists. Both grow into the room the other blocks leave. Does it work with Google Calendar or Outlook? Yes. Calpaper shows any calendar on your iPhone, Google, Outlook, iCloud and shared calendars included, and you choose which ones. Is it a widget? No. Calpaper changes the wallpaper itself, so your day fills the Lock Screen, with either Lock Screen clock and next to your widgets. Is my calendar private? Yes. Everything is read and drawn on your iPhone. Your events, notes and photos never leave it, and there's no account. Free to download, with the daily wallpaper included. Calpaper Pro is one purchase: no subscription, no ads, no account. Works with VoiceOver, Dynamic Type and Reduce Motion. Available in English, Spanish, Portuguese, German, French, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese and Turkish.

Screenshots

BrickNote4 screens
Calpaper4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: BrickNote at none against Calpaper's 1. BrickNote also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 83%). On price, update cadence, ads and device support 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. Calpaper sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. BrickNote asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly daily. The most recent releases landed on November 12, 2026 and November 13, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
BrickNote versus Calpaper: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBrickNoteCalpaper
PriceFreeFree
Rating—4.2 (5 ratings) — better
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews — better83.3% of reviews
Number of ratings—5 — better
Update frequencyDailyDaily
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPhone
Requires iOS17.4 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size8 MB23 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperYoungbae YooDaniel Garcia

Customer experience

BrickNote

Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Calpaper

All ratings5 ratings
Positive80.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative20.0%
Written reviews6 reviews
Positive83.3%
Neutral16.7%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

BrickNote

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Calpaper

One-time1
  • Calpaper Pro$6.99

Questions

Is BrickNote free?
BrickNote is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Calpaper free?
Calpaper is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do BrickNote or Calpaper have ads?
Neither BrickNote nor Calpaper shows ads.
Which is updated more often, BrickNote or Calpaper?
BrickNote ships an update daily, and Calpaper daily. Most recently, BrickNote was updated on November 12, 2026 and Calpaper on November 13, 2026.

Other comparisons