Comparison

SketchUp vs Adobe Illustrator

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

Head to head
About

SketchUp

This platform offers intuitive 3D modeling tools for design enthusiasts and professionals. Visualize concepts, create photorealistic visuals, and even use AI to generate design ideas. Scan real-world spaces and view your creations in augmented reality.

Highlights
  • 3D modeling tools
  • Generative AI designs
  • Room planner & space design
  • Photorealistic visuals
  • Scan-to-design
  • Augmented reality (AR) visualization
  • DWG compatibility
Features
Read full description

Experience the world's leading 3D design platform with a free 7-day Go trial! Without a subscription, you can still view 3D projects for free. Go offers essential 3D design tools, including SketchUp for iPad and SketchUp for Web. Created for design enthusiasts, architects, interior designers, contractors, home remodelers, construction professionals, and set designers, our intuitive tools streamline the creative process, allowing you to effortlessly craft 3D models and visualize concepts. Whether you're planning a home renovation, designing interiors, or creating a detailed architectural model, SketchUp helps bring your visions to life through 3D design. Go Features: - Work seamlessly across devices: Create 3D models on your iPad and computer using SketchUp.com. - Generative AI Designs: Harness the power of AI to create stunning visuals for architectural and home designs. Generate images that inspire your creative process and support your design narrative. - Room Planner & Space Design: Experiment with different layouts and design options to find the perfect fit for your space. Model your space with designer fixtures and furniture. - Real-time, realistic visuals: Create stunning photorealistic visuals by integrating environments and customizable real-world materials. - Scan-to-Design: Use our 3D scanning feature to capture real-world spaces, which AI intelligently transforms and organizes into editable 3D models. - Augmented Reality (AR): Visualize your designs in the real world with our AR capabilities. - DWG Compatibility: Import and export DWG files seamlessly, ensuring compatibility with other CAD software. - Import real-world information: Import images to textures, satellite imagery, 3D terrain, 3D buildings, and location information to power your designs with real-world context. Why Go? - Architects & Contractors: Transform your architectural visions into reality with intuitive 3D modeling tools. Quickly visualize and iterate design concepts and present ideas to clients and stakeholders. - Interior Designers & Home Remodelers: Visualize your ideas in 3D and AR, ensuring your designs meet expectations. Use AI image generation to inspire additional finishes and layouts. - Landscape Designer: Plan and visualize outdoor spaces, from planters to parks, with our 3D landscape tools, like real-time shadow studies, geo-locating satellite imagery, and 3D terrain. - DIYer: Whether you're planning a small remodel or a complete home renovation, SketchUp provides the tools you need to design and execute your projects with confidence. Without a subscription: - Switch between perspective and orthographic camera views. - Control the visibility of parts of your model. - Adjust the look and feel of your model by controlling Edge and Face styles, Shadows, Hidden Geometry, Section Planes, and Section Cuts. - Take measurements and get information about edge lengths, the area of faces, the volume of solids, and component and group definitions. - View models in augmented reality. IMPORT/EXPORT -Import: SKP, SKE, SKM, HDR, EXR, PNG, JPG, PDF, DWG, DXF, STL -Export: Images (PNG), Animations (MP4), SKP, USDz, PDF, DWG, DXF, OBJ, STL, MP4 REQUIREMENTS Requires iOS 17 or higher with a minimum of 1024Mb of RAM. For additional info, please visit help.sketchup.com. The AR model viewing feature uses ARKit and is compatible with iPhone 6s and newer, iPad Pro, or any 2017 iPad or newer. SUBSCRIPTION DETAILS Create 3D designs with a free 7-day Go trial. Payment will be charged to your Apple Account on confirmation of purchase. Your subscription will automatically renew unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24 hours before your subscription expiration date. Your account will be charged for renewal within 24 hours before your subscription expiration date. After completing your initial purchase, you can manage your subscription and/or turn off auto-renew by visiting your Apple Account Settings.

About

Adobe Illustrator

Create logos, illustrations, and graphics on your iPad with intuitive Apple Pencil support. Design vector art, manipulate type, and create patterns on the go, even offline. Seamlessly sync your work across devices and other Adobe apps.

Highlights
  • Vector drawing with Apple Pencil
  • Advanced typography tools
  • Pattern creation
  • Image vectorization
  • Cross-device syncing
  • Gradient and color tools
Read full description

Create logos, illustrations, graphics and more. Illustrator on the iPad works intuitively with your Apple Pencil so you can design on the go from anywhere, even offline - it’s never been easier to take your creativity to new places. Design with precision, as naturally as you would with pen and paper. Create vector lines, shapes, type, gradients, and effects. Merge or cut graphics with quick, intuitive Pencil gestures to remove unwanted areas. Make your graphics pop with effects, and access over 18,000 fonts, 20+ color palettes, up-to-the-minute live streams from famous creatives, and guided tutorials. Work on a project across Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, and Fresco. Plus, your Illustrator work is automatically synced to the cloud, so you and your team can always access the latest version from your desktop or iPad. This app is part of Adobe Creative Cloud. It’s free for Creative Cloud members who have a plan that includes Illustrator. INTUITIVE AND PRECISE DRAWING WITH APPLE PENCIL • Natural ways to draw — Make lines and curves using the Pen, Pencil, and Brush tools • Art and Calligraphic Brushes — Create and apply brush strokes to add artistic elements to your artwork. • Pinpoint editing — Create perfect graphics without quality loss with Smart Delete, Simplify Path, and more • Point precision — Edit graphics down to the point, radius, or angle level NEW WAYS TO MAKE STUNNING PATTERNS AND SHAPES • Vectorize — Convert raster images or paper sketches into vector images. • Radial, grid, and mirror repeat — Turn graphics into sophisticated patterns • Polygon shape creation — Make objects out of circles, triangles, squares, and stars • Transform as Shape — Transform paths and curves without manual manipulation of anchor points. • Blend Tool — Smoothly blend one shape into another across a specified number of steps. THE MOST COMPREHENSIVE TYPE TOOLKIT FOR IPAD • 18,000+ fonts — Use one of the thousands of high-quality fonts included in the Adobe Fonts library • Fonts of your own — Upload and design with any of your own licensed fonts and use them on both desktop and iPad • Type on a path — Bend and flow text onto the surface of lines and shapes • Outlined text — Turn text into an editable format that can be modified without limits • Variable fonts — They’re infinitely customizable • Color fonts — Explore gorgeous color variations and gradients that are built into the font BRILLIANT COLORS AND GRADIENTS • Point gradients — Drag and drop colors to create dynamic blends of diffused colors • 20+ color books — Use industry-standard color swatches or incorporate your own SEAMLESS MOVEMENT BETWEEN DEVICES AND APPS • File syncing between Illustrator on the desktop and on the iPad — Projects are automatically synced and accessible across devices • Photoshop import — Easily place a Photoshop image into your Illustrator design • Standard file format export — Create, save, and open Illustrator (AI) files with no loss of quality, and export in the most common formats, including SVG, PDF, PNG, and PSD. KEEPING TABS ON THE LATEST CREATIVE TRENDS • Livestreaming — Watch and learn from top design-industry creatives daily, right within the app • Trends to discover — Explore projects by other creatives Terms & Conditions: Your use of this application is governed by the Adobe General Terms of Use http://www.adobe.com/go/terms_linkfree_en and the Adobe Privacy Policy http://www.adobe.com/go/privacy_policy_linkfree_en Do Not Sell My Personal Information: www.adobe.com/go/ca-rights-linkfree

Screenshots

SketchUp4 screens

Verdict

The call

SketchUp and Adobe Illustrator both sit at 4.5 stars, but that hides the real split: 37% of SketchUp's written reviews are positive against 13% of Adobe Illustrator's. SketchUp also leads on chart position (#139 vs unranked) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months). Adobe Illustrator's advantage is iOS requirement (14.0 vs 18.6). On price, rating, ratings volume and ads 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. SketchUp sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $11.99 per month and Adobe Illustrator sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.5 for SketchUp against 4.5 for Adobe Illustrator. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 18K and 38K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 37% of SketchUp's written reviews are positive against 13% of Adobe Illustrator's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

SketchUp ships an update every 3 weeks, Adobe Illustrator every 2 months. Both last shipped on November 1, 2026.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
SketchUp versus Adobe Illustrator: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSketchUpAdobe Illustrator
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (18K ratings)4.5 (38K ratings) — better
Positive reviews37.0% of reviews — better13.3% of reviews
Number of ratings18K38K — better
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#139 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPad
Requires iOS18.614.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size695 MB856 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTrimble Inc.Adobe Inc.

Customer experience

SketchUp

All ratings17,929 ratings
Positive86.5%
Neutral3.1%
Negative10.4%
Written reviews1,678 reviews
Positive37.0%
Neutral6.4%
Negative56.6%

Adobe Illustrator

All ratings36,153 ratings
Positive87.7%
Neutral3.9%
Negative8.4%
Written reviews547 reviews
Positive13.3%
Neutral14.4%
Negative72.2%

User reviews

SketchUp

From 18K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great potential
  • 👍 Intuitive and easy to use
  • 🚀 Powerful and capable
  • 👍 Excellent for designers, engineers, and contractors
  • 👍 Smooth performance and rendering

Room to improve

  • 🔒 Requires paid subscription
  • 🐛 Crashes and stability issues
  • 🔒 Limited functionality in free version
  • 🔒 Expensive for casual users
  • 🔒 Complicated navigation and UI

Adobe Illustrator

From 38K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Smooth and intuitive
  • 👍 Great for on-the-go vector work
  • 🚀 Seamless sync with desktop Illustrator
  • 👍 Useful for quick sketches and illustrations

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and freezes
  • 🔍 Missing key desktop features
  • 🔍 Buggy layer and selection handling
  • 🔍 Limited export options and quality
  • 🔍 Unintuitive interface in some areas

Bugs and requests

SketchUp

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Login and account creation problems
  • Crashes and freezes when opening large models
  • Inability to hide/unhide components
  • Inconsistent behavior with Apple Pencil
  • Outdated model not updating properly

Requested features

5 requests
  • 2D drawing and 3D model integration
  • More intuitive navigation and controls
  • Improved file management and syncing
  • Offline mode and reduced dependency on internet
  • Affordable pricing options for casual users

Adobe Illustrator

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Layers disappearing or not updating properly
  • Eraser tool behaving inconsistently
  • Pasting content causing unexpected issues
  • Frequent crashes when working on complex files

Requested features

5 requests
  • Ability to rotate canvas
  • More brush and stroke customization options
  • Implement Gaussian blur and other effects
  • Add support for keyboard shortcuts
  • Improve file management and cloud sync

In-app purchases

3 purchases

SketchUp

Subscriptions3
  • SketchUp AI Monthly$11.991 Month
  • SketchUp Go Monthly7 Days trial$19.991 Month
  • SketchUp Go Yearly7 Days trial$129.001 Year
4 purchases

Adobe Illustrator

Subscriptions4
  • Illustrator on iPad : Monthly1 Month trial$9.991 Month
  • Adobe Design Mobile: Monthly1 Month trial$14.991 Month
  • Illustrator on iPad : Yearly1 Month trial$79.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • Adobe Design Mobile: Yearly1 Month trial$149.991 Year

Questions

Is SketchUp free?
SketchUp is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Adobe Illustrator free?
Adobe Illustrator is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, SketchUp or Adobe Illustrator?
Adobe Illustrator is rated higher. SketchUp averages 4.5 out of 5 from 18K ratings, while Adobe Illustrator averages 4.5 from 38K ratings.
Do SketchUp or Adobe Illustrator have ads?
Neither SketchUp nor Adobe Illustrator shows ads.
Which is updated more often, SketchUp or Adobe Illustrator?
SketchUp ships an update every 3 weeks, and Adobe Illustrator every 2 months. Most recently, SketchUp was updated on November 1, 2026 and Adobe Illustrator on November 1, 2026.

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