Comparison

Spool Buddy vs PaxxMaker

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

PaxxMaker

Monitor and control your 3D printer remotely. View live print progress, temperatures, and camera feeds. Receive notifications for print status and filament changes. Manage spools and track power consumption.

Highlights
  • Live print progress and ETA
  • Real-time temperature monitoring
  • Camera stream viewing
  • Print status notifications
  • Smart plug integration for auto shutdown
  • Filament spool tracking
  • Apple Watch app and widgets
Features
Read full description

PaxxMaker – your 3D prints, always under control. The ultimate control app for your Snapmaker U1 with paxx12 custom firmware and Klipper-based single-nozzle printers. Everything in view – from iPhone, iPad and Apple Watch. By default everything runs locally on your network – cloud features only if you want them. CONTROL & MONITOR • Live print progress with percentage and ETA • Real-time temperatures: extruder, heated bed, motors, chamber • Pause, resume, stop & emergency stop • Browse files and start prints directly • Live camera stream NOTIFICATIONS • Push on print finished, cancelled, paused and empty filament – on the U1 with the affected nozzle • Server push works even with the app closed; local mode stays entirely on your own network • Live Activity on the Lock Screen and Dynamic Island SMART PLUG • Switch Tuya and Shelly plugs and see live wattage • Auto Shutdown: the plug switches off automatically after a print – with an adjustable delay, optionally after a cancel too • Cost per print: power consumption plus filament used, priced via your Spoolman spool or the slicer profile – with history and per-head details SPOOLMAN – FILAMENT TRACKED AUTOMATICALLY • Keep track of how full each spool is • Change spools right from the app • Per-nozzle tracking – assign a spool to each nozzle, and in multi-colour prints Spoolman deducts from the right spool the moment the nozzle changes • SpoolLink: the assignment follows the spool's RFID tag – even when moved to another nozzle MULTIPLE PRINTERS • Swipe between your printers • Own colour theme per printer • Automatic printer discovery on the network • Remote access via OctoEverywhere WIDGETS & APPLE WATCH • Home Screen widgets with live progress • Apple Watch app with real-time data and complications NFC SPOOLS • Read and write filament spools via NFC – colour, material and temperature range right on the tag MAKE IT YOURS • Arrange and hide tiles freely • Custom G-code macros with icons and colours • Firmware configuration and calibration right from the app • 7 languages: German, English, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Chinese (Simplified) Note: This app requires the paxx12 custom firmware for the U1 or a Klipper-based printer. Auto Shutdown and cost tracking require a smart plug. Use at your own risk. PaxxMaker is a passion project I develop in my spare time. If you like the app and want to support its development, a donation is very much appreciated – thank you! Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Spool Buddy4 screens
PaxxMaker4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: PaxxMaker at 5.0 against Spool Buddy's 4.3. Spool Buddy's advantage is ratings volume (9 vs 1). On price, review sentiment, update cadence 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. Spool Buddy sells 3 one-off in-app purchases and PaxxMaker sells 4 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

PaxxMaker 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. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Spool Buddy ships an update every 2 weeks, PaxxMaker every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and October 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences · 8 level
Spool Buddy versus PaxxMaker: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSpool BuddyPaxxMaker
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (9 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews
Number of ratings9 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeksEvery 9 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, MaciPhone, iPad, Apple Watch
Requires iOS18.2 — better18.4
Further details — not scored
Size8 MB21 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMartian Code OyDaniel Richter

Customer experience

Spool Buddy

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

PaxxMaker

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
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
4 purchases

PaxxMaker

Subscriptions2
  • Monthly Supporter$1.991 Month
  • annual Support$9.991 Year
One-time2
  • Support 1.99$1.99
  • Support 4.99$4.99

Questions

Is Spool Buddy free?
Spool Buddy is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is PaxxMaker free?
PaxxMaker is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Spool Buddy or PaxxMaker?
PaxxMaker is rated higher. Spool Buddy averages 4.3 out of 5 from 9 ratings, while PaxxMaker averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Spool Buddy or PaxxMaker have ads?
Neither Spool Buddy nor PaxxMaker shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Spool Buddy or PaxxMaker?
Spool Buddy ships an update every 2 weeks, and PaxxMaker every 9 days. Most recently, Spool Buddy was updated on September 24, 2026 and PaxxMaker on October 3, 2026.

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