Five comparisons, each one saying where the other app wins — on one of them the other app beats drawsta at tracing, which is the thing this site is named for.
Every claim about another app comes from its current App Store listing or its official site, and each page links its sources. Checked 29 September 2026. Anything we could not verify from one of those is left out.
drawsta is free, traces, and is built for people who are still learning. Procreate is a one-time purchase, iPad only, and the better tool if you already know what you want to draw. What each app is actually for, checked against both App Store listings.
drawsta traces a picture; Fresco does not. Fresco is free, and the live watercolour and oil brushes are genuinely special. Both claims checked against Adobe's own pages.
drawsta needs iOS 17. Sketchbook is free, runs on the oldest iPhones and iPads of any app here, and keeps its interface out of your way. What the Premium Bundle unlocks, and what neither app's listing claims.
drawsta brings the picture. Infinite Painter brings a real Trace mode and multiple reference images — the one app here that does. Where it beats drawsta at its own feature, and what the free tier actually gets you.
drawsta is free with no ads and nothing to cancel. ibis Paint has the largest brush and material library of anything here by a wide margin, and also ads, a subscription and a separate paid app. All three prices, from ibis's own page.