Comparison

Spool Buddy vs FilaSpool

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

FilaSpool

Manage your 3D printing filament inventory and track print jobs. Easily identify and update spools using NFC tags. Features AI-powered analysis of slicer screenshots for efficient logging.

Highlights
  • Filament and spool inventory management
  • Track weight remaining and cost per spool
  • Log print jobs and deduct filament usage
  • AI-powered slicer screenshot analysis
  • NFC tag support for spool identification
  • Data backup and restore
Features
Read full description

FilaSpool is the essential inventory manager for 3D printing enthusiasts. Keep track of every filament and spool you own, log your print jobs, and use NFC tags to instantly identify and update spools right at your printer. INVENTORY MANAGEMENT • Add filaments with brand, material, color, temperature profiles, and cost • Track multiple spools per filament with weight remaining • Archive empty spools without losing history • Group and browse inventory by brand PRINT JOBS • Create print jobs manually or import from a slicer screenshot using AI • Log print runs to automatically deduct filament usage from inventory • Track cost per print and view run history • Attach photos of your finished prints NFC TAG SUPPORT • Read and write OpenSpool and OpenPrintTag NFC tags • Read OpenTag3D NFC tags • Scan a tag to instantly match it to your inventory • Set your preferred tag format in settings SMART FEATURES • AI-powered slicer screenshot analysis (Claude, OpenAI, or Gemini) • Full data backup and restore FilaSpool requires an iPhone with NFC capability (iPhone 7 or later).

Screenshots

Spool Buddy4 screens
FilaSpool4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: FilaSpool at 5.0 against Spool Buddy's 4.3. FilaSpool also leads on iOS requirement (15.1 vs 18.2). Spool Buddy's advantage is ratings volume (9 vs 1). On price, update cadence, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Spool Buddy sells 3 one-off in-app purchases and FilaSpool sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

FilaSpool 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, FilaSpool fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Spool Buddy versus FilaSpool: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSpool BuddyFilaSpool
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (9 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews—
Number of ratings9 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks — betterFortnightly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS18.215.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size8 MB34 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMartian Code OyJon Clark

Customer experience

Spool Buddy

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

FilaSpool

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
1 purchases

FilaSpool

One-time1
  • FilaSpool Plus$4.99

Questions

Is Spool Buddy free?
Spool Buddy is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is FilaSpool free?
FilaSpool is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Spool Buddy or FilaSpool?
FilaSpool is rated higher. Spool Buddy averages 4.3 out of 5 from 9 ratings, while FilaSpool averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Spool Buddy or FilaSpool have ads?
Neither Spool Buddy nor FilaSpool shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Spool Buddy or FilaSpool?
Spool Buddy ships an update every 2 weeks, and FilaSpool fortnightly. Most recently, Spool Buddy was updated on September 24, 2026 and FilaSpool on October 15, 2026.

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