Comparison

Photo Collage Studio vs Charcoal Studio

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

Head to head
About

Photo Collage Studio

Features
Read full description

Create polished photo collages from templates, grids, 9-grid slices, long images, and color-inspired layouts in a few taps. Photo Collage Maker is a lightweight collage studio for turning everyday photos into clean social posts, travel journals, moodboards, product boards, and share-ready layouts. Start from a template or choose your own mode: Grid Collage, Freeform Collage, Long Image, 9-Grid Slice, Color Walk, Subject Sticker, Photo Calendar, Travel Ticket, Travel Stamp, Color Beads, or Palette Overlay. New in this update: more scene templates, smoother selection and editing interactions, and a rebuilt creation page that makes the next step clearer. What you can make: - Photo collages for daily posts, albums, products, and memories - Grid layouts with custom ratios, spacing, borders, and backgrounds - 9-grid cuts for profile feeds and social reveals - Long images for stories, tutorials, recaps, and visual notes - Freeform collages with layers, rotation, flipping, and flexible placement - Color Walk and palette templates that turn photo colors into designed layouts - Travel, calendar, ticket, stamp, sticker, and portfolio-style templates Why it feels fast: - Start from recommended templates instead of a blank canvas - Fine-tune layout details without heavy editing menus - Save high-quality exports directly to Photos - Keep photo processing local on your device Make a clean collage, a 9-grid post, a long image, or a template-based visual story whenever your photos need a better layout. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Charcoal Studio

Features
Read full description

Charcoal Studio brings the feel of a real charcoal sketchbook to iPhone and iPad. Pick up a stick, lay down rich, grainy tone, then blend it into smooth gradients or lift it back out, the way you would on paper. A FULL CHARCOAL KIT
 • Charcoal Pencil: fine lines and crisp detail
 • Vine Charcoal: soft, light marks for loose sketching
 • Compressed Charcoal: dense, velvety blacks
 • Charcoal Block: broad strokes for shading large areas
 • White Charcoal: highlights on toned and dark paper
 • Charcoal Powder: soft washes of tone
 • Lasso: select, move and resize your strokes BLEND AND LIFT LIKE THE REAL THING
 • Blending Stump: push charcoal into the paper’s grain, soften hard edges and build smooth tonal transitions. It moves only charcoal, never the paper, so your darks stay rich.
 • Kneaded Eraser: dab or drag to lift charcoal gently and add highlights. It follows the tooth of the paper, so lightened areas keep their natural texture.
 • Eraser: clean removal whenever you need it. MADE FOR APPLE PENCIL
 • Pressure and tilt shape every mark
 • Strokes are smoothed so blending and erasing follow your hand without jagged corners
 • Double-tap or squeeze Apple Pencil to switch tools or show tool settings
 • Draw with your finger too, or turn finger drawing off for Pencil-only work PAPER WITH TOOTH
 • Five papers: white, cream, toned gray, slate and black
 • A real paper grain shows through every stroke
 • Choose your canvas: portrait, landscape, square, or any custom size from 256 to 4096 pixels AN EXPERIENCE THAT FEELS ANALOG
 • Hear the scratch of charcoal when you hatch, while ordinary lines stay quiet
 • Pinch to zoom and pan around your page
 • Ruler for straight edges
 • Charcoal-tone palette, plus your own saved colours
 • Size, opacity and strength controls for every tool YOUR SKETCHBOOK
 • Every sketch saves automatically
• Unlimited sketches in your gallery
 • Undo and redo as many steps as you need
 • Export at full resolution and share anywhere Everything stays on your device: no account and no sign-up. Focus on your drawing. Leave the dust on the paper. Privacy policy: https://digitalhole.github.io/LilArtist.html Standard Apple Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Photo Collage Studio4 screens
Charcoal Studio4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Charcoal Studio at every 3 days against Photo Collage Studio's every 5 weeks. On price, ads, 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Photo Collage Studio sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Charcoal Studio sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Photo Collage Studio ships an update every 5 weeks, Charcoal Studio every 3 days. Both last shipped on October 26, 2026.

Scorecard1 real difference · 5 level
Photo Collage Studio versus Charcoal Studio: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPhoto Collage StudioCharcoal Studio
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeksEvery 3 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size22 MB14 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperYunLong ZhangDigital Hole Pvt. Ltd.

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Photo Collage Studio

One-time1
  • PhotoCollagePro$3.99
1 purchases

Charcoal Studio

One-time1
  • Unlock All Features$4.99

Questions

Is Photo Collage Studio free?
Photo Collage Studio is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Charcoal Studio free?
Charcoal Studio is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do Photo Collage Studio or Charcoal Studio have ads?
Neither Photo Collage Studio nor Charcoal Studio shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Photo Collage Studio or Charcoal Studio?
Photo Collage Studio ships an update every 5 weeks, and Charcoal Studio every 3 days. Most recently, Photo Collage Studio was updated on October 26, 2026 and Charcoal Studio on October 26, 2026.

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