Comparison

Oilist vs Inkwork

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

Head to head
About

Oilist

Transform your photos into unique, genuine works of art with this app. It analyzes your images using computer vision and simulates real painting techniques with customizable styles and brush strokes. Save your creations in high-resolution for printing.

Highlights
  • AI-powered art generation
  • Unique, non-repeating results
  • 48 customizable styles
  • Real-time painting simulation
  • 4k resolution output
  • Adjustable brush strokes and moods
Features
Read full description

Oilist: the Artist in your pocket. Make Fine Art based on your pictures! "Oilist is an artist in your phone, one that you watch sketch, paint, and craft a unique version of a photo you’ve shot." - MacStories, May 2017 "App of the week: Oilist review - Hypnotic, engaging, with a longevity that escapes most filter apps, and with high-res output so you can use it to create real-world art." - Stuff Magazine, April 2017 Give Oilist an image, and it will automatically generate a genuine and unique work of art based on it. Painted for you in real time! Participate or spectate it's up to you, Oilist will delight! All saved at canvas-worthy 4k resolution. ​ Oilist comes with 48 infinitely customizable styles; from photo-realist to impressionist, to abstract. Every style except for our photo-realist style offers three different levels of abstraction. Oilist is not a photo filter. Unlike most filter apps, Oilist will never generate the same results twice, and in fact, each brush stroke is unique. Instead of applying a fixed formula to an image as photo filters typically do, Oilist analyzes the supplied image using computer vision technology, then paints simulated paint particles that are applied using various brush strokes and techniques. At any time​ during the painting process, 4k resolution images may be captured as often as desired. When Oilist is painting, styles can be infinitely customized with 17 different presets (these were called Styles in previous versions of Oilist), 13 different painting moods, 15 different brushes, setting brush options such as the size and spacing, and by splashing paint with our exciting Chaos tool. Control paint gravity by tilting your device and brush angles by yawing (rotating) the device. Obtain new and exciting results by alternating settings with new settings painted on top of the previous settings. For instance, first, paint a layer using the Warm mood followed by a layer using the Cool mood. The use of large brushes tend to create more abstract artwork, and smaller brushes work best for high definition detail. Oilist will automatically provide smaller brush strokes and greater photo-realism to detected faces. Check out #oilist and follow us @3dtopo on Instagram and Twitter!

About

Inkwork

Transform your photos into unique ink drawings with a wide array of style variations and color options. Easily share your creations on social media or order high-quality prints to be delivered to your door.

Highlights
  • Transform photos into ink drawings
  • Over 90 style variations
  • Customizable ink and paper colors
  • Fine-tune style details
  • Instant transformations
  • Share to social media
  • Order physical prints
Features
Read full description

Discover your photo's inner art with Inkwork. Inkwork instantly transforms your photos into unique and expressive ink drawings. Choose from over 90 style variations, select an ink and paper color, then share your art on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and more. Want to hang your new art on the wall? We've teamed up with CanvasPop to provide the highest quality prints available, all backed by a 100% “Love It” guarantee. You’ll have your art on your doorstep and ready to hang in no time. Features: • Instantly transform your photos into art with over 90 ink style variations • Choose from dozens of ink and paper colors, or create your own • Fine-tune styles to make them more detailed or abstract • Take snaps and watch them transform instantly • Load photos from your Camera Roll and other albums • Share your art on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and more • Have your art printed and shipped right to your doorstep Subscribe or purchase Inkwork to unlock all features. For more information, visit us at www.codeorgana.com, or follow us on Twitter and Instagram @codeorgana. Find out more about CanvasPop prints and their 100% "Love it" lifetime guarantee at www.canvaspop.com. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula

Screenshots

Oilist4 screens
Inkwork4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Inkwork at Free against Oilist's $2.99. Inkwork also leads on ads (none vs shown) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 17.6). Oilist's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 14) and update cadence (every 2 weeks vs every 5 weeks). On rating, review sentiment, ratings volume 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

Inkwork is free to download; Oilist costs $2.99 up front. Inkwork sells 9 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per 7 days. Oilist asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.8 for Oilist against 4.8 for Inkwork. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 3.8K and 3.2K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 82% of Oilist's written reviews are positive against 77% of Inkwork's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Oilist ships an update every 2 weeks, Inkwork every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 23, 2026 and September 22, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Oilist versus Inkwork: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterOilistInkwork
Price$2.99Free — better
Rating4.8 (3.8K ratings)4.8 (3.2K ratings)
Positive reviews81.9% of reviews — better77.2% of reviews
Number of ratings3.8K — better3.2K
Update frequencyEvery 2 weeks — betterEvery 5 weeks
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.612.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size152 MB67 MB
Age rating4+4+
Developer3DTOPO Inc.Code Organa

Customer experience

Oilist

All ratings3,791 ratings
Positive95.6%
Neutral2.7%
Negative1.7%
Written reviews221 reviews
Positive81.9%
Neutral5.4%
Negative12.7%

Inkwork

All ratings3,195 ratings
Positive95.8%
Neutral2.4%
Negative1.8%
Written reviews250 reviews
Positive77.2%
Neutral6.0%
Negative16.8%

User reviews

Oilist

From 3.8K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🎨 Excellent artistic results
  • 🤩 Fun and engaging to use
  • 🎨 Versatile with many style options
  • 🎨 Transforms photos into unique artworks
  • 🎨 Impressive oil painting effects

Room to improve

  • 🐛 App crashes or freezes
  • 🔋 Battery draining issues
  • 🤔 Confusing or unclear controls
  • 🤷‍♀️ Inconsistent or unpredictable results
  • 💸 Expensive for some users

Inkwork

From 3.2K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Fast and easy to use
  • 👍 Versatile and creative options
  • 💡 Useful for artists and designers
  • 🎨 Transforms photos into unique artwork

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional crashes and stability issues
  • 🔍 Limited control over output quality
  • 💰 Paywall limits free usage
  • 🖼️ Low-resolution output for some effects

Bugs and requests

Oilist

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • App crashes when trying to save finished paintings
  • Certain style options don't work as expected
  • White splotches or marks appear in final paintings

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add progress indicator or notification when painting is complete
  • Provide more guidance or information on the different style options
  • Improve performance and reduce battery drain
  • Offer a desktop version or integration with other art apps

Inkwork

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes on certain devices/iOS versions
  • Inability to save or export images properly
  • Compatibility issues with large photo libraries

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add opacity/layer controls
  • Expand range of artistic styles
  • Improve export options (SVG, higher res)
  • Implement a trial or freemium model

In-app purchases

None

Oilist

No in-app purchases

9 purchases

Inkwork

Subscriptions4
  • Inkwork2 variants$4.997 Days
  • Inkwork2 variants$9.991 Month
  • Inkwork3 Days trial2 variants$29.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • Inkwork3 Days trial2 variants$59.991 Year
One-time5
  • Unlock Full Version$5.99
  • Unlock Full Version$6.99
  • Unlock Full Version$11.99
Show 2 more
  • Unlock Full Version$13.99
  • Inkwork2 variants$79.99

Questions

Is Oilist free?
Oilist costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Inkwork free?
Inkwork is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Oilist or Inkwork?
Oilist and Inkwork are both rated 4.8 out of 5 on the App Store, from 3.8K and 3.2K ratings respectively.
Do Oilist or Inkwork have ads?
Oilist shows ads; Inkwork does not.
Which is updated more often, Oilist or Inkwork?
Oilist ships an update every 2 weeks, and Inkwork every 5 weeks. Most recently, Oilist was updated on September 23, 2026 and Inkwork on September 22, 2026.

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