Verithiathe honest score on any app
Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
Head-to-head

Paper vs Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw

Paper 4.6★ · Free + IAP 65
Winner Paper
Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw 4.4★ · Free + IAP 40

Paper is the better choice for those seeking a more traditional digital journaling and sketching experience, despite its high subscription cost, while Drawing Desk is primarily a drawing lesson app that is heavily paywalled.

Full reviews: Paper · Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw

Paper offers a simple, intuitive interface for sketching and journaling, but recent price hikes and glitches have frustrated long-time users. Drawing Desk focuses on guided drawing lessons, which are almost entirely locked behind a subscription, leading to widespread user dissatisfaction.

Head to head

Features and Tools edge: PaperR3R5R8R12
Paper Paper is praised for its simple design, awesome colors, and flawless tools, with users appreciating its balance between options and limits for sketching and journaling R8. However, many basic features like adding multiple photos, advanced art tools, and even text input are locked behind a Pro subscription R3R5R12. Users also desire features like copy and paste, and more tool options .
Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw Drawing Desk offers guided drawing lessons and features that help users learn and improve their drawing skills . However, the vast majority of these features and drawing options, including specific categories like anime, require a premium subscription R61R63. Some users also report glitches where the app deletes parts of their drawings .
Ease of Use edge: PaperR8R21R28R33
Paper Paper is generally considered easy to use and friendly, especially for quick sketching and capturing ideas R8R33R36R39. Its interface is described as lovely and great for making photo collages . However, some users find the tutorial too long R21, and icons can get in the way without being movable R28.
Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw Drawing Desk is noted for its step-by-step guidance, making it easy for users to learn how to draw . Some users find it fun and relaxing . However, the constant prompts for free trials and subscriptions interfere with the user experience .
Reliability and Performance tieR2R18R33R36
Paper Paper has experienced significant issues with glitches and crashes, with users reporting loss of work due to the app not autosaving R2R33R39. Syncing is also a major concern, with journals constantly needing to re-download and issues with iCloud storage leading to lost journals R18R33R36R53.
Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw Drawing Desk users report glitches, particularly with the check button being super glitchy . Some users also mention the app deleting parts of their drawings during lessons . There are also general complaints about the app having too many glitches .
Price and Value tieR1R3R4R7
Paper Paper has seen a drastic increase in its yearly subscription price, from around $11 in 2021 to $100 per year, or even $10 a week, which many users find insane and greedy R1R4R7R10. The free version is now very limited, with most essential tools and features requiring a subscription R3R28. Users who paid a one-time fee years ago are now being forced into subscriptions R4.
Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw Drawing Desk is heavily criticized for its aggressive paywall, with almost all drawing lessons and features requiring a subscription or a free trial that leads to payment R61R63R64. Many users feel misled, expecting a free app based on ads or app store listings R64.
Support and Maintenance tieR13R33R36R39
Paper Users express concern that Paper is not being maintained, with claims that there are zero engineers or designers on the team since it was sold to Evernote R13. This lack of maintenance is linked to the increase in glitches and syncing issues R33R36R39.
Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw Reviews do not provide specific details about Drawing Desk's support or maintenance, but users frequently plead with developers to make the app free or fix issues, suggesting a perceived lack of responsiveness .
Pick Paper if

You want a digital journaling and sketching app with a simple, intuitive interface and a good selection of basic tools R8R36. You are willing to pay a premium for advanced features and appreciate a more traditional notebook feel .

Pick Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw if

You are looking for a guided drawing lesson app and are prepared to pay for a subscription to access the content .

Evidence note: Both apps suffer from significant negative sentiment regarding their pricing models and paywalls, which heavily skews recent reviews. Many positive reviews for both apps are very short and lack detail, or are from users who seem unaware of the full extent of the paywall until later. The free-vs-paid asymmetry is particularly strong for Drawing Desk, where almost all content is paywalled, leading to many 1-star reviews from users expecting a free app.

Frequently asked

How much does Paper cost?
Paper's subscription costs have significantly increased, with users reporting prices of $100 per year or $10 per week, which is a substantial jump from its previous yearly cost of around $11 R1R7R10R19.
Can I use Drawing Desk for free?
While Drawing Desk is listed as free, most users report that nearly all drawing lessons and features are locked behind a paywall, requiring a subscription or a free trial that leads to payment R61R63R64R67. Some limited free content, like daily lessons, may be available .
Do these apps have syncing issues?
Paper users frequently report significant syncing issues, with journals needing to re-download, problems with iCloud storage, and lost work R18R33R36R53. Reviews for Drawing Desk do not specifically mention syncing issues, but some users report glitches where parts of their drawings are deleted .

What reviewers actually said

Built only from these 120 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. [R3] Paper 3/5 · US Good but could be better: The app overall is good, but my only thing is that most of the tools require pro or a subscription to certain parts. Most things I can’t use, like adding multiple photos to each page, using art tools, etc. Would be so much better if it didn’t all require pro.
  2. [R5] Paper 4/5 · US Amazing but not that great: I love this app so much but it doesn’t make it very fun when you have to get something that cost money just so you can add more photos. I could make something like a journal without it being money. 4 stars
  3. [R8] Paper 5/5 · US Friendly: Easy to use, colors are awesome , tools are flawless
  4. [R12] Paper 3/5 · US That’s crazy: You have to pay money just to have more than one picture on the paper. And they should add any update where you can actually type in this so I don’t always have to write everything. it gets a little irritating.😅
  5. [R21] Paper 3/5 · US Great but a few things: Great and fun but the tutorial is to looooonnnggg and most things are for paper pro so yea great tho
  6. [R28] Paper 1/5 · US impossible to use: all the things you need cost money, and the icons get in the way and you can’t move them or anything! it’s very annoying and not worth it.
  7. [R33] Paper 3/5 · US It was good til it wasn’t: I LOVE this app for collage journals. I use the pro version on my iPad and it is so easy to use. In the past two years, the app crashes so much and often it takes multiple loads to sync all my notebooks. What happened? Please keep updating and fixing these issues. I’m happy to pay for this app, it just needs to be improved
  8. [R2] Paper 5/5 · US I love this app: I love this app been using it for years!! But it’s so glitchy!! It used to not be so glitchy and I wish it had better features and more tools!
  9. [R18] Paper 3/5 · US Cloud, Flow, Syncing Needs a Major Revision: This app is ideal to capture ideas and bring your vision to life, however, syncing is so limited and nudges the EverNote system on you. That’s not a good look. Syncing should be streamline without downloading any other app.
  10. [R36] Paper 3/5 · US Once Simple & Great: The app design is great. It is simple. And I LOVE skeuomorphic design. Since the first sellout from the original developer, though, we got things like pay-for-tools and sync, etc. But what is really killing the app is the sync feature. I am glad there is cloud backup, but journals constantly have to re-download, requiring a wait time and internet connection for what used to b
  11. [R1] Paper 1/5 · US I used to love this app and decided to try it again: Originally in 2021 it was 11ish for a whole year of pro, which was reasonable bc most people will buy physical journals of the same price yearly. I was so disappointed to find out that the app is now 100 for the year. I don’t have that kind of money it’s honestly such a slap to the face as a consumer
  12. [R4] Paper 1/5 · US Greedy: I have paid and used this app for years with a single charge and years later they decided to charge monthly… greedy. If I knew I would be able to export years of work, I would have never stored my creations here
  13. [R7] Paper 1/5 · US Cannot use without membership: Will not let me draw unless I purchase anything, requires a membership for some reason I am not sure if this is a user error or if you cannot do anything without a membership, which is insane because it is $100 a year
  14. [R13] Paper 2/5 · US No one maintains it: This was one of the greatest apps for iPad. But since it was sold to Evernote they charge $100/year and have zero engineers or designers on the Paper team. A complete hustle.
  15. [R39] Paper 3/5 · US Good but glitches lots: This app is great for quick sketching and collecting photos, etc, but it glitches often and doesn't always auto save. I have lost a lot of work over the years due to the app glitching, which has been frustrating. It’s always a risk when I use this app for important projects but I still enjoy it enough to take that risk. Would be great to get the syncing and saving a little
  16. [R10] Paper 1/5 · US Insane prices: The yearly price increase is crazy for this app. Especially in comparison to the yearly payment 3 years ago. Not much has changed in the app services to be charging this much.. I’ve been paying for this app for 5 years and I probably won’t keep paying for it anymore. I like the app but not convinced it’s worth the increased price.
  17. [R19] Paper 1/5 · US evernote corporation should die: the audacity to buy this app and make it 99 dollars per year or 9.99 dollars per week which is 40 A MONTH is insane, especially when it was originally 12 a years with the original developers. istg cant have NOTHING NICE.
  18. [R61] 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
  19. [R63] 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.
  20. [R64] 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
  21. [R67] Drawing Desk:Learn How to Draw 1/5 · US Not a fan: I don’t really like this app because I have to pay to even do anything! Not cool.
  22. [R53] Paper 5/5 · US It used to be great…: I loved this app it was my go-to for notes and drawings ever since Fifty-three created it. But ever since the io26 update, this app is pretty useless in its iCloud storage, I’ve lost a ton of my journals with no recovery in sight. Luckily I export most of my drawings, but still.

Synthesized from 120 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store