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Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
Better options than

Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw alternatives

Drawing Desk users often seek alternatives due to extensive paywalls and limited free content. Many features, including most drawings and categories, require a premium subscription, leading to frustration for those expecting a free experience. Alternatives offer varying approaches, from free drawing tools to animation-focused platforms.

Why users look for alternatives to Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw

The alternatives

Simply Draw
4.7★ · 718,969 ratings · Free

Simply Draw is highlighted as a free alternative where users do not have to pay to draw.

Better for: Simply Draw is better for users who are looking for a completely free drawing experience without paywalls or subscriptions R19.

Head-to-head: Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw vs Simply Draw
FlipaClip
4.6★ · 254,554 ratings · Free

FlipaClip is an animation app that allows users to create animations, though it has faced criticism for increased ads and paywalls for features like adding sound.

Better for: FlipaClip is better for users interested in animation, as it is described as an animation app that can be helpful for animating from the start . However, users should be aware of potential issues with ads and features locked behind paywalls R53R54R55.

Head-to-head: Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw vs FlipaClip
Sketchbook®
4.8★ · 220,244 ratings · Free

Sketchbook® is praised for being a free drawing app with many brushes and tools available without payment or ads. It is considered user-friendly and organized, suitable for various skill levels.

Better for: Sketchbook® is better for artists of all skill levels looking for a reliable, free app with a diverse toolkit and many free brushes, without needing to watch ads or pay for basic drawing functions R66R72R75. It is also suitable for converting traditional art to digital for coloring .

Head-to-head: Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw vs Sketchbook®
ArtWorkout
4.6★ · 209,361 ratings · Free

ArtWorkout is described as a fun app with lovely, well-made activities that can help with hand steadiness on a screen. However, it requires 'energy points' to continue lessons, which can be obtained by watching ads or paying for a subscription, and some essential tools like the eraser are paywalled.

Better for: ArtWorkout is better for users who enjoy guided drawing activities and coloring-page-a-day style engagement, and who are willing to deal with energy systems, ads, or subscriptions R81. It may not be ideal for those seeking to learn core drawing concepts or composition rules R87.

Head-to-head: Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw vs ArtWorkout
Drawing Pad -
4.3★ · 98,817 ratings · Free

There are not enough user reviews to provide a detailed pitch for Drawing Pad -.

Better for: There are not enough user reviews to determine who Drawing Pad - suits better.

Head-to-head: Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw vs Drawing Pad -
Stick with Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw if

You should stick with Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw if you are willing to pay for a premium subscription to access all features and content, or if you find the limited free daily lessons sufficient for your needs . Some users who pay find the features helpful for drawing skills .

Evidence note: Drawing Pad - has too few reviews to provide a meaningful recommendation.

Frequently asked

Is Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw truly free?
No, Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw is not truly free; while it may appear free initially, most content, including pictures and categories, requires a premium subscription or payment to access R1R2R3R4. Users report being prompted to pay or subscribe for a free trial almost immediately upon trying to use the app R4R6.
What are the main issues with FlipaClip?
The main issues with FlipaClip include an increase in ads, even after purchasing a one-time fee in the past, and many helpful features like adding sound or certain brushes being locked behind a paywall or premium subscription R51R53R54R55. Some users also report lag and bugs, such as ads not loading .
Is Sketchbook® a good option for beginners?
Sketchbook® is generally considered user-friendly and suitable for artists of all skill levels due to its clean interface and diverse toolkit R72R75. However, some complete novices have found it not beginner-friendly due to a lack of tutorials upon opening the app and difficulty finding basic tools like an eraser R73.
Does ArtWorkout actually teach drawing skills?
ArtWorkout is described as having lovely and well-made activities that can help users develop a steadier hand on a screen, making it good for coloring-page-a-day activities R87. However, some users feel it doesn't effectively teach core drawing concepts, composition rules, or theory R87.

What reviewers actually said

Built only from these 92 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.

  1. [R1] Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw 1/5 · US U HAVE TO GET PRO: I try to pick a picture but every single picture has to have pro…WHAT HAPPENED TO THE OLD DRAWING DESK
  2. [R2] Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw 5/5 · US I don’t like this game: I don’t like this game bc you have to pay to draw worst game ever 1 star but there is another game that is called art workout ind art work out is better than this trash but I put five stars so it could show so don’t buy this game please don’t play this game play art work out it is sooooo fun 🤩 but this game is trash one star I hate this game
  3. [R3] Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw 3/5 · US Little drawings: There are too little drawings and for the others you need to buy premium which some people don’t want to buy. Furthermore many categories which include how to draw anime for example needs premium, so you aren’t learning anything.
  4. [R4] Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw 1/5 · US 1 stars you know why?: So here’s the thing I’ve seen a lot of drawing apps and they have been fake! Fake I tell u and I feel like finally something that is normal so I look and I say “here it comes just one sec” and zero dollars then I click the button and it says for me to subscribe to them I’m like well here I hope you guys can understand me
  5. [R6] Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw 3/5 · US Fun, but immediately there is a FREE TRIAL THEN YOU HAVE TO PAY…: So I saw this app and I was like oh yeah this is an app that’s free and I can draw for free and have fun really of course I understand that people are trying to make money for the ad thingamajigy but I really hoped they wouldn’t bother me with a free trial thing every literal time that I try to click on a drawing. I think this app i
  6. [R38] Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw 4/5 · US Love and hate this app: I like it, but it won’t let me draw another drawing until tomorrow just like the other person said why the freak won’t let me cause I’m **** trying to find it and why cause when I or I had to go on a free trial and I hate **** when it makes me try to have a free trial and I hate watching that cause it made me watch an ad before I could drop my picture
  7. [R42] Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw 3/5 · GB It's very good but too many adds: I really like drawing desk, its really fun but you need to watch an add for almost everything.I think that you can subscribe to not yet adds but it's quite a lot. Some things make sense to have adds but I I want do use A certain brush then I have to watch a video EVERY TIME I CLOSE THE APP to get it again which is just very annoying. And its a bit glitchy too ands
  8. [R16] Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw 1/5 · US BAD GAME🤬😡🤬😡🤬😡🤬😡🤬😡🤬🤬🤬🤬 funde: This game has to many gliches and I’m mad
  9. [R18] Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw 3/5 · US 🐾: 3 stars it doesn’t let me pick cat dog 🤬🐺🦮🐩🐕🐕‍🦺🐶🐱🐈‍⬛🐈🐆🐅
  10. [R33] Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw 3/5 · GB Please fix the app!: I absolutely loved this app, I always thought that I couldn’t draw but have learnt a lot just from using the app but since the update, it keeps deleting parts that I’ve already finished and moves on to the next step and I’m left stuck. This means I now part do drawings and end up quitting part way/most of the way through as it keeps deleting things and I get fed up. I now use
  11. [R19] Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw 1/5 · US WHYYY 😡😡😡😡😡😡😡😡: This app is NOTHING like the ad for this app i downloaded it thing you could free draw like in the ad but then I realized that the ad was AI GENERATED and all of the drawings you make are really chopped and weird and you have to pay like $20 to make freaking chopped drawing. If you want a better drawing app just use simply draw because you don’t have to pay as much for a drawing l
  12. [R51] FlipaClip 1/5 · US What’s happened..: It was 2019. I was happily animating with this app for the first time. It felt so free. I could use anything any time. After a while, I got tired of ads. I purchased a one time fee promising me that I would never have to watch ads again. It was a simple price- $8.00. I kept on animating a ton. It went on for years. Then 2023 came. I got on the app after installing one update- an
  13. [R53] FlipaClip 3/5 · US Not fair: Why do you make all the helpful and nice things cost money? I’m 9 going on 10 and i cant even add the sound i want without the app trying to force me to pay for premium and also the adds arev very disruptive. I am disappointed that i thought it would be diffrent
  14. [R54] FlipaClip 2/5 · US Ads, greedy.: If you want a simple animation it does the job but it’s exetremely annoying because you have to pay money just to add sound. You could buy the whatever it is and you’ll just get what you’d expect to be free. They really don’t need that much money, they’re just greedy asf and want more. And the every time I want to play my animation it shoves an ad that I’ll never buy a product from i
  15. [R55] FlipaClip 4/5 · US To many adds: 4/5 to many adds
  16. [R66] Sketchbook® 5/5 · US Best app ever: If you're looking for a good app for drawing and writing i would recommend this app, it doesn't need you to watch an ad or anything like that to draw and if you want you can create an album and there are so many other stuffs that are so good! I can't recommend this app enough!
  17. [R67] Sketchbook® 3/5 · US Idk: I like this app but I can’t use shapes to help and shapes are VITAL for me as a person who cant draw😭
  18. [R68] Sketchbook® 1/5 · US deleting half my drawing: can u actually make it stop deleting half of my work ? fix it. pls n thank u
  19. [R69] Sketchbook® 4/5 · US Needs more options: The app is a pretty good app but there arnt all the tools that I need for the my art
  20. [R79] ArtWorkout 1/5 · US This app sucks: Sucks really bad I tired to cancel a free trial and it didn’t let me and now I can’t a get refund
  21. [R80] ArtWorkout 5/5 · US Good but: The goal needs to be set higher for people who have passed 14
  22. [R81] ArtWorkout 3/5 · US Disappointed: I am really disappointed. The game is a wonderful game I must say and the creator must have wonderful talent to do something as wonderful as this. The problem is that when I open the app and did one lesson ,I loved it so much that I wanted to do another one but then I realized to do it I had get something called an energy point . So I found out how to get one I had to watch 3 adds no
  23. [R72] Sketchbook® 5/5 · US Amazing: I have been using Sketchbook since about 2016-ish, and it has never failed me! As a lifelong illustrator, I could not recommend a better app for artists of all skill levels. It is clean, organized, user-friendly, and comes with a diverse toolkit that will surely satisfy any creative soul lucky enough to come across it. All in all, a very reliable, affordable app with the artist’s experien
  24. [R73] Sketchbook® 3/5 · US Not beginner friendly: I’ve never used a digital drawing app. I am a complete novice. I downloaded Sketchbook because of the reviews and felt optimistic, however, that led to frustration when upon opening the app, there was no tutorial. I had no idea what to do. I started experimenting with using the various tools, but when I needed to erase, there was NO ERASER! Why? It’s such a basic tool. How
  25. [R75] Sketchbook® 5/5 · US I love this: It’s cool because I can make my things and my baby sister can also play on it and it’s awesome it has a lot of tools for u to use and I love it a lot and u guys will to!
  26. [R87] ArtWorkout 3/5 · US Solid!: As someone who takes art commissions for money, I wouldn't say this app teaches you to draw. It may help you have a steadier hand on a screen, but it doesn't seem to actually teach you any concepts or composition rules or theory. With that said, this makes for a fantastic coloring-page-a-day activity! The activities are all very lovely and well made! I have only two complaints. 1) The incr

Synthesized from 92 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store