Comparison

Spool Buddy vs Spool Master

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

Head to head
About

Spool Buddy

Effortlessly manage your 3D printing filament inventory. Track brands, colors, and usage with a simple, fast interface. Syncs seamlessly across Apple devices without requiring logins or network calls.

Highlights
  • iCloud syncing
  • No logins or network calls
  • Track brands, colors, and modifiers
  • Search and filter by properties
  • Usage and inventory tracking
  • Optimized for iOS and macOS
Features
Read full description

Filament tracking for 3D printing, without the fuss. Spool Buddy is a simple, fast filament inventory app made for hobbyists who want to know what filament they have, where it is, and how much is left — without accounts, subscriptions, tracking, or complicated setup. Add your filaments, organize them by brand, material, color, location, modifiers, and more. Track usage across one or multiple spools, keep drying logs, attach photos, archive old filament, and export or print your inventory when you need it. Spool Buddy syncs with iCloud, so your filament library stays up to date across iPhone, iPad, and Mac without creating an account. Features include: - Track filament inventory, usage, and remaining amounts - Multi-spool support for filaments - NFC reading and writing - iCloud sync with no logins - Photos for filament entries - Drying logs - Custom brands and materials - Detailed filament information, including colors, polymers, modifiers, fillers, and visual properties - Automatic color names and color family filtering - Support for gradients and complex filament colors - Filter by storage location, brand, color family, modifiers, and polymer - Sort by price, date added, color, brand, and name - Group by brand or material - Usage indicators at a glance - Archive filaments you no longer actively use - Export your inventory to CSV - Print your filament inventory - Optimized for iOS and macOS 26 - Small, fast, and designed to stay out of your way Spool Buddy is completely free to use. There are no subscriptions, no locked features, and no required purchases. In-app purchases are optional tips only, for people who want to support the app’s development. Made by an indie solo developer for people who just want a clean, useful way to manage their filament.

About

Spool Master

Manage your 3D printing filament stock with NFC tag reading/writing, inventory tracking, and smart shopping lists. Optimize expenses and reduce waste for hobbyists and professionals.

Highlights
  • NFC reading and writing for spool tags
  • Complete inventory management
  • Detailed statistics and value tracking
  • Automatic low stock alerts
  • Smart shopping list generation
  • Print settings configuration
  • Multi-device synchronization
Features
Read full description

Spool Master - The complete app to manage your 3D printing filament stock MAIN FEATURES NFC Reading and Writing • Read NFC chips from Anycubic and Prusa (OpenPrintTag) spools • Write your own custom NFC tags • Automatic tag detection Complete Inventory Management • Add spools by NFC scan or manually • Track remaining weight of each spool • Manage prices and calculate total value • Organize by brand, material and color • Automatic low stock alerts Detailed Statistics • Overview of your inventory • Total value of your stock • Number of materials, colors and brands • Automatic shopping list Smart Shopping List • Automatic addition of low stock spools • Mark ordered filaments • Add manually or by NFC scan Advanced Color Picker • Full palette with RGB sliders • Opacity support • Real-time preview Print Settings • Extruder temperatures (min/max) • Bed temperatures (min/max) • Filament diameter • Spool length COMPATIBILITY • Anycubic: Full reading and writing • Prusa: OpenPrintTag reading and writing (NFC-V) • Generic NFC tags: Custom writing • All other brands, including Bambu Lab and Creality: manual entry with full inventory management • Support for 22 filament brands • Support for 25 material types (PLA, PETG, ABS, TPU, etc.) MULTILINGUAL App available in 40 languages SYNCHRONIZATION • Multi-device synchronization • Offline mode available UNITS AND CURRENCIES • Multiple currency support • Metric or imperial units • Automatic conversion MODERN INTERFACE • Dark and light mode • Sleek design • Intuitive navigation • Visual statistics SECURITY AND PRIVACY • Your data remains private • Secure local storage PREMIUM VERSION AVAILABLE • Cloud synchronization • Ad-free • Priority support Whether you're a hobby maker or a professional 3D printer, Spool Master helps you optimize your filament management, reduce waste and control your expenses. Download now and take control of your filament inventory! https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Spool Buddy4 screens
Spool Master4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Spool Master at 5.0 against Spool Buddy's 4.3. Spool Master also leads on update cadence (every 3 days vs every 2 weeks) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 18.2). Spool Buddy's advantage is ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (9 vs 1). On price, in-app purchases, monetization model 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. Spool Buddy sells 3 one-off in-app purchases and Spool Master sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Spool Master holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Spool Buddy has 9 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Spool Buddy ships an update every 2 weeks, Spool Master every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and October 17, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Spool Buddy versus Spool Master: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSpool BuddySpool Master
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (9 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings9 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksEvery 3 days — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS18.215.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size8 MB41 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMartian Code OySebastien Girod

Customer experience

Spool Buddy

All ratings9 ratings
Positive88.9%
Neutral0.0%
Negative11.1%
Written reviews5 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Spool Master

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Spool Buddy

One-time3
  • Small Tip$0.99
  • Medium Tip$2.99
  • Large Tip$4.99
2 purchases

Spool Master

Subscriptions2
  • Spool Master Monthly$1.991 Month
  • Spool Master Yearly$9.991 Year

Questions

Is Spool Buddy free?
Spool Buddy is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Spool Master free?
Spool Master is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Spool Buddy or Spool Master?
Spool Master is rated higher. Spool Buddy averages 4.3 out of 5 from 9 ratings, while Spool Master averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Spool Buddy or Spool Master have ads?
Spool Master shows ads; Spool Buddy does not.
Which is updated more often, Spool Buddy or Spool Master?
Spool Buddy ships an update every 2 weeks, and Spool Master every 3 days. Most recently, Spool Buddy was updated on September 24, 2026 and Spool Master on October 17, 2026.

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