Comparison

GradeStack vs Elephant Folio

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

Head to head
About

GradeStack

This academic planner helps university and college students organize their terms, subjects, classes, and assessments. It offers real-time grade tracking, smart scheduling, and productivity tools to manage academic life. Premium features include advanced grade views, notifications, and calendar integration.

Highlights
  • Academic life planning (terms, subjects, assessments, classes)
  • Real-time grade tracking (WAM, GPA)
  • Customizable grading scales and modes
  • Smart scheduling with calendar view
  • Productivity gauges and progress graphs
  • iCloud sync across devices
  • Premium features: notifications, calendar integration, data export
Read full description

GradeStack is the all-in-one academic planner designed to empower university and college students to master their academic journey with ease and precision. Organize your terms, subjects, assessments, classes, and more while staying on top of your grades and productivity. Key Features: - Plan Your Academic Life: Input term details (start/end dates), subjects (with credit points), assessments (weights, due dates, results), and classes (single or recurring) - Customize class types (lectures, tutorials, etc.), assign teachers, and set holidays that can automatically shift intersecting classes. - Real-Time Grade Tracking: Automatically calculate grades per subject, term, and overall, with support for Weighted Average Mark (WAM) and Grade Point Average (GPA). - Define custom grading scales, GPA systems, and exclude subjects or override grades as needed. - Stay Productive: View upcoming classes and assessments at a glance. Custom gauges display completed vs. remaining tasks, while graphs track your subject marks over time as assessments are completed. - Flexible Grading Modes: Toggle between ascending (start at 0%, build up) and descending (start at 100%, deduct) grading modes to see instant recalculations tailored to your preference. - Smart Scheduling: Configure single or repeating classes with custom recurrence rules. Assign class types and teachers (manually or from system contacts). Visualize your schedule in a Calendar view, with day or week timelines showing classes and assessments. - iCloud Sync: Seamlessly back up and sync your data between iOS and macOS devices for a unified experience. Premium Features: - Unlock WAM and GPA views, complete with dedicated widgets for quick access. - Import/export data to JSON files for easy backups or transfers. - Receive customizable notifications for classes and assessments, set globally or individually. - Integrate with your system calendar to export classes and their recurrences as events. GradeStack is the ultimate academic companion, helping you plan, track, and succeed with confidence. Download now and take control of your university journey!

About

Elephant Folio

Organize your PDF library automatically with intelligent tagging and rule-based filing. Capture documents from any app, search content, and sync across devices. Your files stay private and offline-first.

Highlights
  • Automatic PDF organization by content
  • Rule-based automatic tagging
  • Capture from any app via Share extension
  • Full-text search within documents
  • Offline-first operation
  • iCloud sync across devices
  • Siri Shortcuts integration
Features
Read full description

Elephant Folio is a PDF organizer built for people who read a lot of PDFs. Bring a paper in from Safari, Mail, or anywhere on your device, and Elephant Folio files it for you; based on what's inside of it, not just the filename. The folders get made. The tags get applied. You keep reading. Rules that organize for you Set a rule once and every matching document gets tagged automatically. Match on filename, file contents, author, and more. Rules run the moment a file arrives, and you can re-run them on any file in your whole library anytime. No more tagging one file at a time. Smart organizing, on by default When Apple Intelligence is available on one of your devices, Elephant Folio can also read and tag documents on its own. Your documents stay yours Everything stays on your devices. Nothing is uploaded anywhere. Capture from anywhere The Share extension works across Safari, Mail, Files, and anything else that can hand off a PDF. Scan a physical page and it's filed before you put your phone down and your rules apply instantly. Search that actually reaches Not just filenames. Not just folders. Text, tags, and document content, so the thing you're looking for turns up even when you don't remember what you called it. One library across all your devices iCloud keeps Mac, iPad, and iPhone in sync — down to the exact page you left off on. Files live in your Documents folder and open in any app that reads PDFs. Siri Shortcuts let Elephant Folio fit inside whatever system you've already built for yourself. Import from anywhere (even from the browser on a Windows): As long as you can access your iCloud folder, you can drag your PDF documents to Elephant Folio and they will be imported next time you open the app. No internet? No problem Elephant Folio is a privacy-centric, offline-first app. Capture, read, tag, and search anywhere. The only network requests this app makes are ones to Apple's servers for iCloud syncing or those to fetch metadata from CrossRef/ArXiv/Pubmed. The elephant never forgets. Now neither do you. By using this app you agree to Apple's standard EULA: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula

Screenshots

GradeStack4 screens
Elephant Folio4 screens

Verdict

The call

GradeStack and Elephant Folio both sit at 5.0 stars, but that hides the real split: 100% of GradeStack's written reviews are positive against 50% of Elephant Folio's. GradeStack also leads on iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.0). Elephant Folio's advantage is update cadence (every 3 days vs every 2 weeks). On price, rating, ratings volume 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. GradeStack sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Elephant Folio sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.00 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for GradeStack against 5.0 for Elephant Folio. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2 and 3 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 100% of GradeStack's written reviews are positive against 50% of Elephant Folio's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

GradeStack ships an update every 2 weeks, Elephant Folio every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 31, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
GradeStack versus Elephant Folio: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterGradeStackElephant Folio
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (2 ratings)5.0 (3 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews — better50.0% of reviews
Number of ratings23 — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksEvery 3 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPad, MaciPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS17.0 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size19 MB95 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperPaul TavitianBeroea Tech L.L.C

Customer experience

GradeStack

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Elephant Folio

All ratings3 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

In-app purchases

1 purchases

GradeStack

One-time1
  • GradeStack Premium$2.99
3 purchases

Elephant Folio

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly Subscription$4.001 Month
  • Yearly Subscription$25.001 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime License$55.00

Questions

Is GradeStack free?
GradeStack is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Elephant Folio free?
Elephant Folio is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, GradeStack or Elephant Folio?
GradeStack and Elephant Folio are both rated 5.0 out of 5 on the App Store, from 2 and 3 ratings respectively.
Do GradeStack or Elephant Folio have ads?
Neither GradeStack nor Elephant Folio shows ads.
Which is updated more often, GradeStack or Elephant Folio?
GradeStack ships an update every 2 weeks, and Elephant Folio every 3 days. Most recently, GradeStack was updated on October 30, 2026 and Elephant Folio on October 31, 2026.

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