Comparison

Bead Master vs Planbead

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

Head to head
About

Bead Master

Transform photos into custom templates for crafting projects like melty beads. Scale, crop, and choose colors to create personalized designs. Save, print, or export your templates for easy crafting.

Highlights
  • Photo to template conversion
  • Customizable scaling and cropping
  • Multiple color palettes (Hama, Artkal, Nabbi, Perler)
  • Save, print, and export templates
  • Transparent pegboard overlay
  • Dithering effect
Features
Read full description

Bead Master is an app that will allow you to create templates for melty beads. You can select any photo from your photo roll, scale and crop it to match your desire and choose from various sizes, color and border options in order to make the perfect template for your project. Afterwards you may save the template, print it or even place a transparent pegboard directly on top of your device. Features: - Dithering (Floyd-Steinberg based) - Palettes for Hama, Artkal, Nabbi & Perler - Save color chart with colors used - Export to pdf with color chart - Print with color chart - Pegboard sizes: 14x14, 28x28 and 56x56 Instructions: 1) Tap main area to choose an image to transform 2) Use pinch genstures to zoom and position your image 3) Tap the "gear"-icon in order to se the various options 4) Press the white button to create your template 5) (optionally) Tap the undo button on the lower left hand side if you are not completely happy with your template 6) Tap and hold the template to save, print or export your template The app is still primarily aimed towards melty beads, but have several other uses. Internally it has become a lot easier to add new palettes and board sizes, so please let me know if you think the app would benefit from new palettes (LEGO, Post-it, yarn etc) or board sizes (or other features for that matter). Please mail bugs, requests and suggestions etc to info@codeninja.dk. Credits for bead RGB colors to lordthanda Happy creativity :)

About

Planbead

Design and create intricate beaded jewelry with a comprehensive set of free drawing tools. Manage your bead inventory, explore various beading stitches, and utilize a revolutionary weaving mode that guides you on-screen. Access weekly inspiration and an optional premium subscription for advanced features like 3D previews and cloud sync.

Highlights
  • Free drawing features
  • Miyuki color palette
  • Bead inventory management
  • Multiple beading stitches
  • On-screen weaving mode
  • Weekly inspiration patterns
  • 3D previews (premium)
Read full description

Welcome to PlanBead, the ultimate design studio for every beading artist! Design, weave, and create stunning beaded jewelry for free. All Drawing Features are FREE! We believe creativity shouldn't have a price tag. In PlanBead, all essential drawing features are available to everyone, completely free: Unlimited Designs: Create as many patterns as you want in your personal workspace for free. Full Miyuki Color Palette: Design with the industry-standard Miyuki Delica color library. Bead Inventory: Manage your stash of beads within the app, keep track of all your beads Loom, Pyeote & Brick: Easily switch between the most popular beading stitches to perfect your patterns. currently supporting: - Loom Bracelet - Folded Leaf Earring - R-Leaf Earring - Fringe Earring - Triangle Earring - Herringobne Earring, Bracelet - Peyote Earring, Bracelet, Ring - Brick Earring, Bracelet, Ring - more beaded jewelry Revolutionary Weaving Mode: Never print a pattern again! Our dynamic weaving mode is a game-changer. Follow Along On-Screen The app highlights your current row and beads, making it easy to keep your place. Word Chart Included Generate an instant word chart for any design, perfect for complex patterns. Eco-Friendly Beading Keep the environment healthy, one sheet of paper at a time. Ditch the printer and weave directly from your device. Inspiration Delivered Weekly Stay inspired with a constant stream of new ideas! Every week, we release beautiful, professional patterns for both free and premium users. Discover new techniques and challenge your skills. Go Premium for More! Unlock powerful features with a PlanBead subscription (auto-renewing): - Unlimited 3D previews: 1-click to convert your 2D pattern to a 3D realistic preview of you beaded jewelry - Cloud Sync: Never lose your patterns again, automatically back up and sync your entire design library across all your devices - Ad-Free Experience: Enjoy a focused, uninterrupted creative workflow - Premium Patterns: Made by professional beading artists - Image Tracing: Convert an image to a beading pattern - PDF Export: Export your patterns as a printable PDF with step by step tutorial Privacy Policy: https://www.planbead.com/privacy-policy Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula Download PlanBead now and bring your beading ideas to life!

Screenshots

Bead Master4 screens
Planbead4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Planbead at 92% against Bead Master's 40%. Planbead also leads on rating (4.7 vs 3.5) and update cadence (every 4 days vs every 9 months). Bead Master's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 5) and iOS requirement (9.0 vs 16.0). On price, ads 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. Planbead sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Bead Master asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Planbead holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 3.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 4 and 14 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 40% of Bead Master's written reviews are positive against 92% of Planbead's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Bead Master ships an update every 9 months, Planbead every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on June 10, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard7 real differences · 3 level
Bead Master versus Planbead: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBead MasterPlanbead
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.5 (4 ratings)4.7 (14 ratings) — better
Positive reviews40.0% of reviews92.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings414 — better
Update frequencyEvery 9 monthsEvery 4 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree — betterFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac
Requires iOS9.0 — better16.0
Further details — not scored
Size1 MB90 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperJonatan YdeAlexander Monneret

Customer experience

Bead Master

All ratings4 ratings
Positive50.0%
Neutral25.0%
Negative25.0%
Written reviews5 reviews
Positive40.0%
Neutral20.0%
Negative40.0%

Planbead

All ratings14 ratings
Positive92.9%
Neutral0.0%
Negative7.1%
Written reviews25 reviews
Positive92.0%
Neutral4.0%
Negative4.0%

In-app purchases

None

Bead Master

No in-app purchases

5 purchases

Planbead

Subscriptions2
  • Gold Membership – 1 Month3 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • Platinum Membership – 1 Year$49.991 Year
One-time3
  • Planbead 5 Gems$0.99
  • Planbead 10 Gems$1.99
  • Planbead 50 Gems$7.99

Questions

Is Bead Master free?
Bead Master is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Planbead free?
Planbead is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Bead Master or Planbead?
Planbead is rated higher. Bead Master averages 3.5 out of 5 from 4 ratings, while Planbead averages 4.7 from 14 ratings.
Do Bead Master or Planbead have ads?
Neither Bead Master nor Planbead shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Bead Master or Planbead?
Bead Master ships an update every 9 months, and Planbead every 4 days. Most recently, Bead Master was updated on June 10, 2026 and Planbead on September 22, 2026.

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