Comparison

CMSHT vs Reference Board

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

Head to head
About

CMSHT

Transform your photos into stunning design compositions. This tool empowers users to create unique visual art from their existing images.

Highlights
  • Create design compositions from photos
  • User-friendly interface
  • Photo editing tools
  • Unique visual art creation
Features
Read full description

CMSHT is your pocket playground for photo experiments Mix effects crafted by a designer and fine-tune each one to make something only you would make. No rules. No perfect edits. Just you, your photos, and a little creative chaos.

About

Reference Board

This app offers an infinite canvas for visually organizing thoughts and inspiration. Users can drop in various media types, arrange them freely, and zoom in or out to explore connections. Instant search functionality helps locate specific items across all boards.

Highlights
  • Infinite canvas
  • Visual idea organization
  • Supports images, videos, quotes
  • Freeform arrangement
  • Instant search
  • Zoom in/out functionality
Features
Read full description

Reference Board is a private visual workspace for collecting inspiration, developing ideas, and keeping creative research close at hand on Mac, iPhone, and iPad. BUILD VISUAL BOARDS • Collect images, videos, links, text, colors, and PDFs in one place. • Arrange references freely on an infinite canvas or switch to an organized grid. • Move, resize, group, stack, crop, flip, and annotate without changing your original media. • Use the loupe to inspect fine details in images and videos. FIND WHAT YOU NEED • Search across boards and references. • Use on-device analysis, OCR, colors, metadata, and visual similarity to rediscover material quickly. • Keep notes and details attached to the work they describe. SYNC, COLLABORATE, AND SHARE • Keep your library in sync across Mac, iPhone, and iPad with iCloud. • Invite others to collaborate on shared boards. • Publish a separate public, view-only webpage when you want to present your work more widely. • Update or unpublish a published board whenever you like. WORK YOUR WAY • Import from Photos, Files, Safari, drag and drop, or the Share Sheet. • Export boards as images, PDFs, or Reference Board archives. • Use widgets, Shortcuts, the screen saver, and optional MCP automation to connect Reference Board to your workflow. ONE PURCHASE. NO SUBSCRIPTION. New customers receive Reference Pro with their App Store purchase, including unlimited private boards and items, Publish to Web, AI metadata and visual discovery, new collaborations, PDF export, and MCP automation. People who acquired Reference while it was free keep their existing Free plan with one private board and up to 20 items. They can unlock lifetime Reference Pro with a one-time in-app purchase. Reaching a Free limit never deletes or hides existing work. Original paid-app customers and people who already purchased lifetime Reference Pro keep permanent Pro access automatically.

Screenshots

CMSHT4 screens
Reference Board4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: CMSHT at Free against Reference Board's $5.99. CMSHT also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 70%) and rating (5.0 vs 4.6). Reference Board's advantage is update cadence (every 4 days vs every 6 months) and chart position (#57 vs unranked). On ratings volume, 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

CMSHT is free to download; Reference Board costs $5.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

CMSHT holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2 and 5 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 100% of CMSHT's written reviews are positive against 70% of Reference Board's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

CMSHT ships an update every 6 months, Reference Board every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 15, 2026 and October 7, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 3 level
CMSHT versus Reference Board: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCMSHTReference Board
PriceFree — better$5.99
Rating5.0 (2 ratings) — better4.6 (5 ratings)
Positive reviews100.0% of reviews — better70.0% of reviews
Number of ratings25 — better
Update frequencyEvery 6 monthsEvery 4 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterPaid
Best chart rank—#57 — better
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad, Mac — better
Requires iOS17.5 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size3 MB23 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperDenis KrupinJordan Ruchtie

Customer experience

CMSHT

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews9 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Reference Board

All ratings5 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews10 reviews
Positive70.0%
Neutral10.0%
Negative20.0%

In-app purchases

None

CMSHT

No in-app purchases

None

Reference Board

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is CMSHT free?
CMSHT is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Reference Board free?
Reference Board costs $5.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, CMSHT or Reference Board?
CMSHT is rated higher. CMSHT averages 5.0 out of 5 from 2 ratings, while Reference Board averages 4.6 from 5 ratings.
Do CMSHT or Reference Board have ads?
Neither CMSHT nor Reference Board shows ads.
Which is updated more often, CMSHT or Reference Board?
CMSHT ships an update every 6 months, and Reference Board every 4 days. Most recently, CMSHT was updated on October 15, 2026 and Reference Board on October 7, 2026.

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