RefTake vs LayerCam
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
RefTake
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Play your voice recording and film yourself acting it out — all on one iPhone. RefTake is made for animators who act out their shots — record your reference, auto-split it into takes, review, and export. You know how shooting reference usually goes: your computer plays the voice recording while your phone films you, so you're stuck juggling two devices. Then comes the hunt for the take you actually want — back and forth through that one long recording, or endless digging through millions of short ones. And before it's any use, you're bouncing through another app just to get a format your 3D software will accept. RefTake pulls all of it into one workflow — just shoot, review, and export, all on the same device. CAPTURE - Drop your storyboard on screen while you film, and drag it wherever it's easiest to work from as a guide. - Play your audio through the speaker or your headphones so you can hit your timing, blocking, and movement. ORGANIZE - Lay things out like a real production: project, sequence, shot. - Tag and note your takes so you actually remember which was which. - Keep your reference footage out of your camera roll — it lives in RefTake, separate from your family photos and videos. - Select exactly the takes you want, then export, delete, or compare them in one go. REVIEW & RATE - Auto-split one long recording into separate takes so you can flip through and find the keeper faster. - Give each take 1 to 5 stars, and swipe or tap through them as you review — star the good ones and filter out the rest. - Compare two takes of a shot on one screen, frame-locked on a single transport. Pinch to zoom in on both at once, or on each pane alone. EXPORT & SHARE - Export takes as MOV video or JPEG image sequences — any shot, any project, as often as you like, at full quality with no watermark. - Name your exports however you work: project, sequence, shot, take, tag, and note — no more "IMG_####.mov" clips. - Send them out through the share sheet, or save them straight to Files. PRO — SPEED UP YOUR REFERENCE WORKFLOW EVEN MORE - Remove the background and export PNG image sequences with an alpha channel — keep your reference simple and clear. - Save your export settings as presets — set your format, delivery, and options once, and every export after that is one tap. - Save to Project Folder: skip the share sheet and land every export in your production folder with one tap, correctly named. PRIVACY & SECURITY - Background removal happens right on your device — your footage never leaves your phone. - Your projects and footage stay on your device. We don't track you or collect your personal data. RefTake is free to download, and the free plan is the whole creative app, not a demo. Record, auto-split, rate, tag, organize, compare, and review without limits — and export MOV or JPEG sequences from any shot in any project, as often as you like. RefTake Pro speeds up your workflow: PNG sequences with alpha, saved export presets, and delivery straight into your project folder. Monthly, annual, or a one-time buy. Built for animators — and anyone who works from reference. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
LayerCam
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A transparent camera that lets you easily recreate the same composition. LayerCam is a camera app that overlays past photos and videos as semi-transparent guides while shooting. Previously taken photos and videos can be displayed as guides, allowing you to easily match the same angle and composition. It supports both photo and video overlay shooting. ●Use cases Growth records: pets, children, and plants using fixed-point photography Before & after: fitness, DIY, gardening comparisons Cosplay & toy photography: recreate poses and scenes Memory recreation: family and travel photos in the same composition ●Features ・Overlay photos and videos while shooting ・Semi-transparent guide display ・Fixed-point shooting support ・Photo capture ・Video capture ・Simple and intuitive interface ・Create videos from photos Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: RefTake at none against LayerCam's shown. On price, update cadence, in-app purchases 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
Both are free to download. RefTake sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and LayerCam sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $0.49 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
RefTake ships an update every 3 weeks, LayerCam every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on November 15, 2026 and November 10, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | RefTake | LayerCam |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks — better | Every 5 weeks |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 — better | 18 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 129 MB | 19 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | SYUAN-RU WU | Akane Choji |
In-app purchases
RefTake
- RefTake Pro Monthly1 Month trial$4.991 Month
- RefTake Pro Yearly1 Month trial$39.991 Year
- RefTake Pro One Time Purchase$149.99
LayerCam
- LayerCam Pro - Weekly$0.497 Days
- LayerCam Pro - Monthly$1.991 Month
- LayerCam Pro - Lifetime$11.99









