Purl vs Needlepoint Studio
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Purl
Mark your PDF cross-stitch patterns directly on your device. Track your progress with stitch counts, a calendar, and photos. Plan your projects with fabric and skein calculators, and manage your thread stash.
- PDF pattern import and marking
- Thread key reading (DMC, Anchor)
- Stitch progress tracking
- Project planning tools
- Fabric and skein calculators
- Thread stash management
- Row/round counter for knitting/crochet
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Mark your cross-stitch chart right on your iPhone and never lose your place again. Purl opens your PDF pattern, reads its thread key and lets you mark stitches as you go: tap one stitch, swipe across a row or box-select a whole area. Your marks are saved to your account, so they are still there on your iPad or after you reinstall. MADE FOR PDF CHARTS • Import a PDF from Files or a link, or scan a paper pattern • Purl reads the thread key for you: DMC, Anchor and more • Find a symbol: every stitch of one colour lights up • Full stitches, backstitch, French knots and fractionals • Apple Pencil support, and the screen stays awake while you stitch SEE HOW FAR YOU HAVE COME • Stitches left for every thread, sorted the way you like • A stitch calendar, an optional timer and an estimated finish date • Projects in progress, paused, finished or planned, with start and finish dates • Progress photos with the date and percentage PLAN BEFORE YOU START • Fabric calculator: design size and cut size for any count • Skein estimate for every thread • Your DMC and Anchor stash with a barcode scanner, and a shopping list for what is missing KNITTING AND CROCHET TOO • Row counter for knitting, round counter for crochet • Pieces and parts, imported from your PDF pattern YOUR WORK IS BACKED UP Sign in with Apple or Google and your projects, marks and PDFs are backed up to your Purl account. ONE PRICE Try everything free for 14 days. Then one purchase unlocks Purl for good. No subscription. Works in English, Turkish, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Swedish, Polish, Russian and Japanese. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://qubillc.com/purl/privacy
Needlepoint Studio
Organize your needlepoint projects, track your progress with photos, and manage your thread stash. Features a stitch library and a timer for your stitching sessions. Your data is private and stored locally.
- Project tracking with progress photos
- Stitching session timer
- Thread stash cataloging
- Built-in stitch library with diagrams
- Collection value and export
- Private iCloud backup
- Customizable themes
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Learn to needlepoint, one stitch at a time. Needlepoint Studio teaches you the whole stitch library with animated, step-by-step lessons. Every stitch draws itself on the canvas, stroke by stroke, with a needle that shows exactly where the yarn goes. Play it, pause it, step through a single stitch, or slow it to half speed until it clicks. No other needlepoint app teaches this way. FOLLOW A GUIDED PATH Start with First Stitches, free for everyone. Then work through curated lessons in Beautiful Backgrounds, Texture Sampler, and Decorative Accents. Each path builds real skills in the order a teacher would give them. KEEP YOUR WHOLE CRAFT IN ONE STUDIO • Track every canvas from "kitted up" to finished, with progress photos and a before/after compare. • Time your stitching sessions and watch your streak and weekly minutes add up. A running timer stays on your Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island. • Give a canvas a finish-by date and see, in plain language, whether you're on pace to make it. • Organize your fiber stash and stretcher bars: brand, color, count, and how much you have left. • Flag what you're low on, then take the whole To Buy list to the shop as a shopping list, so you never buy the same thread twice. KNOW WHAT IT'S ALL WORTH See the value of your collection at a glance, and export an insurance-ready CSV or PDF report: proof of everything you own, ready when you need it. CELEBRATE EVERY FINISH Finished canvases join a gallery grouped by year. Share a single project's before-and-after, or a whole year of stitching, as a card made for the feed. YOURS, EVERYWHERE, FOREVER Everything backs up privately through your own iCloud account. Get a new iPhone and your studio is already there. Add Home Screen and Lock Screen widgets, including a new stitch to learn every day. Log a session with one tap or by asking Siri, and jump to any project or stitch from Spotlight search. GO PRO YOUR WAY: SUBSCRIBE, OR PAY ONCE AND OWN IT FOREVER Studio Pro unlocks the full stitch library, all learning paths, unlimited projects, finish-by pacing, collection and shopping-list export, the Year-in-Review card, and nine extra studio themes. Choose a monthly or yearly subscription (yearly starts with a 3-day free trial), or make a single lifetime purchase that's yours forever. Every plan works on all your devices and shares with your household through Family Sharing. Your data is never locked behind Pro: everything you've made stays visible, editable, and synced even if a subscription ends. Terms of Use: https://pandataps.com/terms/needlepoint Privacy Policy: https://pandataps.com/privacy/needlepoint Made for needlepointers.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: Needlepoint Studio at 100% against Purl's 0%. Purl's advantage is iOS requirement (16.0 vs 18.6). On price, update cadence, 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
Both are free to download. Purl sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Needlepoint Studio sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Purl ships an update every 5 days, Needlepoint Studio weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 5, 2026 and November 1, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Purl | Needlepoint Studio |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | — | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 0.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | — | 2 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 5 days — better | Weekly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 — better | 18.6 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 121 MB | 4 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | KADIR KARAKAS | Panda Taps LLC |
Customer experience
Purl
Needlepoint Studio
In-app purchases
Purl
- Purl Lifetime$9.99
Needlepoint Studio
- Studio Pro Monthly3 Days trial$6.991 Month
- Studio Pro Yearly7 Days trial$14.991 Year
- Studio Pro$39.99









