Inkflow vs Penbook
We give Inkflow and Penbook the same GPA: 2.8 out of 4.0. They get the same grade on all five counts.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Inkflow
Handwriting notebook for iPad and iPhone with movable vector ink
Penbook
Handwriting notebooks and live planners for iPad and iPhone
How we grade them
| 2.8GPAInkflowGood | 2.8GPAPenbookGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AInkflow Plus is $12.99 once on the US App Store, with nothing to renew. Paid plans in this category typically start at $5.99 a month, so that's about two months of somebody else's subscription. | APremium for life is $49.99 once on the US App Store, less than a year of the $5.99 a month this category typically charges. The yearly subscription is murkier: the store lists Premium at amounts from $4.99 to $39.99 without saying what period each covers. |
| Free plan and trial | BFree with no time limit, and you can make as many books as you like. But each book stops at 20 pages, the ink is black only and you get 5 fonts. The App Store listing also says the free app carries advertising. | BEvery paper type and writing feature is free in one notebook, with no time limit. That's a fair way to try it. But it is one notebook, and exports need Premium. The yearly plan starts with a 7-day trial. |
| Features | BVector ink that stays sharp when you zoom, a lasso to move and resize anything, text, photos and PDF export. Plus adds Inkport, which turns paper notes into editable ink with the camera. But the guide mentions no sync, only manual backup. | BIt does handwriting and planners fully: over 400 kinds of paper, planners that show the live date and your calendars, shape recognition, searchable handwriting and PDF import. It stops there, though, and the newest Live Paper engine needs iOS 27 or iPadOS 27 and a newly created book. |
| Ease of use | B4.55 from about 1,900 App Store ratings, just under our line for an A. You write with a finger or a stylus, and with an Apple Pencil it ignores your palm. | B4.55 from about 45,000 App Store ratings, just under our line for an A. You pick a paper and write, with a Pencil, a stylus or a finger. |
| Platforms and integrations | DiPad and iPhone only, which we grade the same as an app that's Android only. The vendor lists no Android, Windows or web version, and Apple Pencil is the one thing it works with. | DiPhone and iPad only, which we grade the same as an app that's Android only. No Android, Windows or web version, and the App Store marks the Mac build as not verified for macOS. It does tie into iCloud, Reminders and Siri. |
| Best for | handwritten notes you can rearrange later | paper-style planners and notebooks on an iPad |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Inkflow and Penbook. How we grade
Where they differ
- Inkflow starts at $12.99 one-time in-app upgrade. Penbook starts at $4.99 - $39.99 per in-app item (basis not shown); $49.99 lifetime.
- Penbook also covers daily notes and templates.
At a glance
| Inkflow | Penbook | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $12.99 one-time in-app upgrade | $4.99 - $39.99 per in-app item (basis not shown); $49.99 lifetime |
| Free plan | Basic edition: unlimited books of up to 20 pages each, with the fountain pen in black ink, select and resize, text in 5 fonts, photos, paper backgrounds, and PDF and JPEG export. | All of Penbook's stationery and writing features in a single notebook, free for as long as you like. More notebooks and exports need Penbook Premium. |
| Free trial | None listed | 7-day free trial when upgrading with the yearly Penbook Premium subscription. |
| iOS | ||
| Made by | Qrayon, LLC | Pencil Research (User Camp Inc.) |
| Price read from | apps.apple.com | apps.apple.com |
| Checked | Oct 9, 2026 | Oct 9, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Inkflow
- Brainstorming and planning by hand on an iPad
- Sketching layouts and wireframes that need rearranging
- Classrooms, where the vendor offers volume pricing
Penbook
- People who keep planners, journals or bullet journals on an iPad
- Students who want subject paper such as Cornell, graph or chemistry
- Annotating PDF planners and worksheets with Apple Pencil
Worth knowing
Inkflow
- It is available for iPad and iPhone only; the vendor lists no Android, Windows or web version.
- The free edition has black ink only, 5 fonts and a 20-page limit per book; color, extra tools and unlimited pages need Inkflow Plus.
- The user guide describes manual backup through iTunes File Sharing and does not mention syncing books between devices.
- The App Store listing notes that the free app contains advertising.
Penbook
- The free version is limited to a single notebook; unlimited notebooks and exports need Penbook Premium.
- The US App Store lists Penbook Premium at several amounts from $4.99 to $39.99 without stating the billing period for each.
- Penbook is built for iPhone and iPad. There is no Android, Windows or web version, and the App Store marks the Mac build as not verified for macOS.
- The Penbook 8 Live Paper engine appears only on iOS 27 or iPadOS 27, and only in newly created books.
Key features
Inkflow
- Fountain-pen vector ink
- Strokes are stored as vector ink modeled on a fountain pen, so writing stays sharp at any zoom level. It works with a finger or a stylus.
- Select, move and resize
- Anything on the page can be lassoed, dragged somewhere else or scaled up and down, so lists and sketches can be rearranged after they are written.
- Text, photos and paper backgrounds
- Text boxes and photos can be placed anywhere and resized along with the ink. Paper options are plain, grid, ruled lines and a music score.
- Inkport
- Part of Inkflow Plus: the device camera converts handwriting and sketches on paper into vector ink that can be moved and edited like anything drawn in the app.
- Apple Pencil mode and palm rejection
- With an Apple Pencil connected, a Pencil-only mode ignores marks from the palm and fingers while fingers still zoom and pan. Settings also offer palm rejection and a wrist guard.
- Export and sharing
- A book exports as a PDF and a page as a high-resolution JPEG, for email, printing or another app. Plus adds PNG export with a transparent background.
Penbook
- Live Paper planners
- Stationery that updates itself: a day planner with a live timeline, a weekly planner that shows connected calendars, and monthly and yearly planners that track the current date.
- Over 400 stationery types
- Ruled, graph, dot, Cornell, music staff, chemistry, storyboard and engineering paper among others, with adjustable density, margins and layout. Each page of a notebook can differ.
- Apple Pencil inking
- Writing with Apple Pencil, a stylus or a finger, with shape recognition and a lasso that resizes, recolors, reflows and straightens ink or copies handwriting out as text.
- PDF import and export
- PDFs import as notebooks or as custom stationery, selected pages can be dropped into notes, and a notebook or the whole library exports as vector PDF.
- Handwriting search and Siri
- Handwritten notes can be searched for words or phrases. Siri can find something in a notebook or take a note that lands in the Inbox notebook.
- On-device AI and page history
- With Apple Intelligence, to-dos written on a page become Reminders without notes leaving the device, and each page keeps a local history that can be rewound.
Plans
Inkflow
Inkflow$0
The Basic edition: fountain pen in black ink, select, move and resize, full-resolution zoom, text, photos and paper backgrounds. Unlimited books, up to 20 pages each.
Inkflow Plus$12.99
one-time in-app purchase (US App Store)
Adds Inkport, a full color palette, pencil and paint brush tools, cut, copy and paste for ink, page management, unlimited pages, all device fonts and custom paper.
Penbook
Free$0
Every stationery type and writing feature in one notebook, with no time limit.
Penbook Premium$4.99 - $39.99
per item on the US App Store; billing basis not shown
Unlimited notebooks and exports plus new stationery and covers. Described as a yearly subscription, but the listing shows several amounts without periods.
Penbook Premium Lifetime$49.99
one-time in-app purchase on the US App Store
The same Premium features as a single purchase with no renewal.
Ways to pay less
Inkflow
- Education
50% off Inkflow Plus in packs of 20 or more
Schools and businesses can buy Inkflow Plus at half price in packs of 20 or more through Apple's volume purchase program, using the standalone $12.99 Inkflow Plus app.
Penbook
- Lifetime license
Penbook Premium as a lifetime purchase
Penbook Premium can be bought as a one-time in-app purchase in place of the yearly subscription. The US App Store lists Penbook Premium Lifetime at $49.99.
