Comparison

Sew Assistant vs Penlog

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

Head to head
About

Sew Assistant

Manage sewing orders, clients, measurements, and inventory with this comprehensive business management tool. Organize your workflow, schedule fittings, and track finances. Offers a free tier with premium upgrade options.

Highlights
  • Order and project tracking
  • Client database management
  • Customizable measurement templates
  • Pattern and material inventory
  • Supplier directory
  • Visual calendar for fittings and deadlines
  • Cloud data synchronization
Features
Read full description

Sew Assistant is the ultimate companion app for tailors, seamstresses, and sewing professionals. Manage every aspect of your sewing business from one beautifully designed app. ORDERS & PROJECTS • Create and track sewing orders with detailed status management (New, In Progress, Ready, Delivered) • Support for sewing, alterations, and repair order types • Track work pricing, material costs, and client payments • Add photos, notes, and deadlines to each order • Schedule and manage fittings with your clients CLIENT MANAGEMENT • Maintain a professional client database • Store client contact information and order history • Link measurements directly to client profiles MEASUREMENTS • Create custom measurement templates • Store detailed body measurements with images • Easily reuse measurements across multiple orders PATTERNS & MATERIALS • Organize your pattern library with photos and attached files • Track your fabric and material inventory • Link materials to suppliers for easy reordering • Log material quantities and pricing per order SUPPLIERS • Keep a directory of your fabric and supply vendors • Link suppliers to materials for quick reference CALENDAR & SCHEDULING • View all your fittings and deadlines in a visual calendar • Stay on top of your workflow and never miss a deadline PREMIUM FEATURES • Free tier includes limited orders, clients, and more to get you started • Upgrade to Premium for unlimited access to all features • No ads, ever Available in 14 languages with dark mode support. Your data syncs automatically to the cloud — always safe, always accessible. Whether you're a solo tailor or running a small atelier, Sew Assistant helps you stay organized and professional. Legal: Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula Privacy Policy: https://sites.google.com/view/sewassistantapp/privacy-policy

About

Penlog

This app allows you to write handwritten notes and tasks on your iPad with Apple Pencil. It automatically syncs these entries with your Notion workspace, converting your handwriting into actionable tasks and organized notes. The app also offers features like task carry-forward and a morning briefing with integrated AI.

Highlights
  • Handwritten note-taking with Apple Pencil
  • Two-way task synchronization with Notion
  • Automatic notation reading (tasks, notes, headings)
  • Carry-forward of unfinished tasks
  • Morning briefing with AI integration
  • REST API and MCP server for developers
Features
Read full description

Write a task by hand. Watch it show up in Notion. Penlog is a handwritten daily journal. You write with Apple Pencil on iPad. On iPhone you see today, add and check off tasks, and read every page. Every day gets its own page, so there is nothing to name, nothing to file, and no folder to choose. You write. Your other apps update themselves. Rick Thomas, a solo founder in Indianapolis, builds Penlog for people who think in ink. TWO-WAY TASK SYNC WITH NOTION A task you write by hand becomes a real task in your Notion tasks database. Cross it off with Apple Pencil, or tap it on iPhone, and it completes in Notion. Complete it in Notion and it shows as done on your page. Task status moves in both directions automatically. There is no export step and no copying and pasting. NOTATION READING Penlog reads your notation, not only your words. A bullet is a task. A dash is a note. An X means done. An underline makes a heading. Your page arrives sorted into tasks and notes instead of a wall of transcribed text. Penlog reads a page after you stop writing, not while you write. It waits for a finished thought rather than reacting to a half-formed stroke. CARRY-FORWARD An open task stays with you. If you do not finish it today, Penlog carries it forward to tomorrow's page, and to the day after, until you cross it off. Nothing gets lost because you turned the page. THE MORNING BRIEFING Connect Notion, your calendar, Claude, or ChatGPT. Penlog places today's events and open tasks on your page before you open it. That is the Morning Briefing. You can edit or hide anything in it before you start writing. SEEDING FROM AN AI ASSISTANT Ask Claude or ChatGPT to put something on tomorrow's page and it is waiting when you sit down. Penlog calls this seeding. It works in the other direction too, because an assistant can read the page you wrote by hand. FOR AGENTS, SCRIPTS, AND DEVELOPERS Every page is available through a REST API. Penlog also runs a Model Context Protocol server, usually written MCP, so any assistant that supports MCP can read your page and write to it the same way it reads your calendar. Penlog is listed in the Notion Integration Gallery and in the official MCP Registry. WHAT IS FREE AND WHAT NEEDS PRO The journal is free. You can write every day, have your notation read into tasks and notes, carry unfinished tasks forward, and export your pages without a subscription. Penlog Pro adds the destinations, and you can try it free for 14 days. Two-way Notion sync, calendar import, the REST API, and the MCP server require Pro. Pro also removes the daily limit on handwriting reads that applies to free accounts. WHAT PENLOG IS NOT Penlog does not replace Notion and it does not ask you to move your tasks somewhere new. If you keep tasks in Notion and write by hand on iPad, you are doing both today and reconciling them yourself. Penlog is the part in between. FROM A FIVE-STAR REVIEW sleepypeach wrote: "I loved notion but really struggle to refer to it on a daily basis... Written systems worked better but didn't allow me to plan long term. Penlog has been the perfect solution to my workflow issues." PRIVACY AND SECURITY Penlog encrypts all network traffic in transit with TLS. You can delete your account in Settings, which permanently removes your data from Penlog's servers. Writing needs an iPad and Apple Pencil. SUBSCRIPTION AND PURCHASE TERMS Penlog Pro is an auto-renewable subscription, offered monthly or annually. Eligible new subscribers get a 14-day free trial. Payment is charged to your Apple Account when the trial ends, or when you confirm the purchase if there is no trial. The subscription renews automatically unless you turn off auto-renew at least 24 hours before the current period ends, and renewal is charged within 24 hours of the end of that period. You can manage or cancel your subscription in your Apple Account settings. Terms of Use (EULA): https://penlog.app/terms/ Privacy Policy: https://penlog.app/privacy/

Screenshots

Sew Assistant4 screens
Penlog4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Penlog at 100% against Sew Assistant's 0%. Penlog also leads on rating (4.8 vs 2.0) and update cadence (every 4 days vs fortnightly). Sew Assistant's advantage is iOS requirement (15.6 vs 18.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Sew Assistant sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Penlog sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $8.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Penlog holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 2.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Penlog has 6 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 0% of Sew Assistant's written reviews are positive against 100% of Penlog's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Sew Assistant ships an update fortnightly, Penlog every 4 days. Both last shipped on October 31, 2026.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Sew Assistant versus Penlog: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSew AssistantPenlog
PriceFreeFree
Rating2.0 (1 ratings)4.8 (6 ratings) — better
Positive reviews0.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings16 — better
Update frequencyFortnightlyEvery 4 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS15.6 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size85 MB9 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRoman KarankevychRT Indianapolis Holdings LLC

Customer experience

Sew Assistant

All ratings1 ratings
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%

Penlog

All ratings6 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Sew Assistant

Subscriptions2
  • Premium Access$4.991 Month
  • Premium Access$29.991 Year
2 purchases

Penlog

Subscriptions2
  • Penlog Pro Monthly14 Days trial$8.991 Month
  • Penlog Pro Annual14 Days trial$89.991 Year

Questions

Is Sew Assistant free?
Sew Assistant is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Penlog free?
Penlog is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Sew Assistant or Penlog?
Penlog is rated higher. Sew Assistant averages 2.0 out of 5 from 1 ratings, while Penlog averages 4.8 from 6 ratings.
Do Sew Assistant or Penlog have ads?
Neither Sew Assistant nor Penlog shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Sew Assistant or Penlog?
Sew Assistant ships an update fortnightly, and Penlog every 4 days. Most recently, Sew Assistant was updated on October 31, 2026 and Penlog on October 31, 2026.

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