# Sketchbook® vs Simple Drawing Pad

The clearest difference is rating: Sketchbook® at 4.8 against Simple Drawing Pad's 4.1. Sketchbook® also leads on ads (none vs shown) and ratings volume (221K vs 36). Simple Drawing Pad's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 1) and review sentiment (100% vs 77%). On price, update cadence, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Sketchbook® sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Simple Drawing Pad asks for nothing beyond the download.

Sketchbook® holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Sketchbook® has 221K ratings behind it against 36, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 77% of Sketchbook®'s written reviews are positive against 100% of Simple Drawing Pad's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on November 5, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Sketchbook® | Simple Drawing Pad |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.8 (221K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sketchbook/id883738213/reviews)** | [4.1 (36 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/simple-drawing-pad/id1599866010/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **221K** | 36 |
| Positive reviews | 76.6% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Every 2 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | **Ad-supported** |
| Best chart rank | **#32** | — |
| Size | 144 MB | 16 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15** | 15.6 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Sketchbook, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1569383806) | [Ryouhei Azuma](https://appshunter.io/developer/1353297781) |

## What reviewers say

### Sketchbook®

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sketchbook/id883738213)

**Currently charting:** #32 Top Free · Graphics & Design (US App Store)

This app provides a professional-grade drawing and painting experience for artists and illustrators. It offers a natural drawing feel with customizable tools, layers, and guides for precision. Unlock advanced features like custom brushes and canvas resizing with an optional premium purchase.

**Highlights:** Full complement of brush types, Highly customizable brushes, Guides, rulers, and stroke tools, Layers with blend modes, Clean and unobtrusive interface, Custom brush creation (premium), Canvas resizing (premium)

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Premium Bundle | $2.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Amazing, free, and no ads
- 👍 Lots of brushes and customization options
- 👍 Intuitive and easy to use
- 👍 Great for beginners and professionals
- 👍 Smooth performance and no lag

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Occasional freezing and crashing issues
- 🐛 Blurry or corrupted images when saving or copying
- 🐛 Glitches with color selection and layers
- 🐛 Inability to rotate canvas or access gallery easily
- 🐛 Lack of blurring and clipping mask tools

**Reported bugs**

- Layers randomly deleted or corrupted
- Freezing when using certain tools like the eyedropper
- Saving issues leading to loss of progress
- Incompatibility with newer iPad Pro devices

**Requested features**

- Add blurring and clipping mask tools
- Improve gallery and canvas rotation functionality
- Allow custom font import
- Add effects like glow, stroke, and drop shadow
- Implement layer grouping and organization


### Simple Drawing Pad

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/simple-drawing-pad/id1599866010)

Easily create drawings, take notes, or doodle with a variety of colors and pen thicknesses. Supports multi-touch for collaborative drawing and allows you to save your creations.

**Highlights:** Draw pictures, Take handwritten notes, Doodle, 16 color options, Adjustable pen thickness, Multi-touch support, Save drawings

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Sketchbook® free?

Sketchbook® is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Simple Drawing Pad free?

Simple Drawing Pad is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Sketchbook® or Simple Drawing Pad?

Sketchbook® is rated higher. Sketchbook® averages 4.8 out of 5 from 221K ratings, while Simple Drawing Pad averages 4.1 from 36 ratings.

### Do Sketchbook® or Simple Drawing Pad have ads?

Simple Drawing Pad shows ads; Sketchbook® does not.

### Which is updated more often, Sketchbook® or Simple Drawing Pad?

Sketchbook® ships an update every 2 months, and Simple Drawing Pad every 2 months. Most recently, Sketchbook® was updated on November 5, 2026 and Simple Drawing Pad on November 3, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*