Moleskine Planner vs Pencil Planner
We give Moleskine Planner a 2.8 GPA and Pencil Planner a 3.0, out of 4.0. Moleskine Planner grades higher on platforms. Pencil Planner grades higher on value for money and ease of use. They get the same grade on the free plan and features.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Moleskine Planner
Calendar and task planner for Apple devices from Moleskine
Pencil Planner
Handwritten planner for iPad and iPhone layered over your calendar
How we grade them
| 2.8GPAMoleskine PlannerGood | 3.0GPAPencil PlannerVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | BPlanner membership is $3.99 a month or $29.99 a year on the US App Store, which is cheap for a planner. But neither the App Store nor Moleskine's site says what the membership unlocks, so we can't call it a bargain. | APro is $19.99 a year on the US App Store, or $4.99 a month. A typical planner asks about $7.99 every month, so the yearly plan is a fraction of that. One wrinkle: the vendor's own upgrade page quotes $24.99 a year. There's no lifetime purchase. |
| Free plan and trial | BIt's a free download and you can start without paying. But Moleskine doesn't publish which features are free and which need a membership, so you find the limits as you go. | BA limited version is free to use, but the vendor doesn't publish which features or how many entries it includes. Pro is described as unlimited entries, storage and devices with cloud backup and sync, so expect caps on those. |
| Features | BCalendar events and tasks on a daily timeline or in blocks, a weekly overview, subtasks, notes, icons, colors and themed lists. Solid basics. The listing shows nothing it connects to beyond the calendars already on your device. | BIt does one thing and does it properly: handwriting over your calendar in day, week, month and year layouts, with pens, highlighters, partial erasing and notes linked to dates. But Apple Reminders lists are only shown here, not edited, and backup is to the vendor's own cloud alone. |
| Ease of use | B4.5 from about 500 App Store ratings. A time slider moves a task or changes how long it takes, and a long press sends it to another day. | A4.6 from about 12,500 App Store ratings. If you can use a paper planner you can use this: pick up the Pencil and write. Your events are already there from the calendars on your device. |
| Platforms and integrations | CiPhone, iPad, Mac and Vision Pro, on iOS 17, iPadOS 17 or macOS 14 and later. All Apple. Moleskine links no Android or web version. | DiPhone and iPad only, which we grade the same as an app that's Android only. A Mac app is on the vendor's roadmap as upcoming. It shows iCloud, Google, Outlook and Yahoo calendars once they're added in the device's Calendar settings, plus Apple Reminders lists. |
| Best for | a Moleskine-style timeline on Apple devices | handwriting your plans 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: Moleskine Planner and Pencil Planner. How we grade
Where they differ
- Moleskine Planner starts at $3.99 per month, or $29.99 per year (US App Store). Pencil Planner starts at $4.99 per month, or $19.99 per year.
- Only Moleskine Planner lists a macOS app.
- Moleskine Planner also covers time blocking.
- Pencil Planner also covers notes.
At a glance
| Moleskine Planner | Pencil Planner | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $3.99 per month, or $29.99 per year (US App Store) | $4.99 per month, or $19.99 per year |
| Free plan | Free to download with optional in-app purchases. Neither the App Store listing nor the vendor's site says which features need a paid membership. | A limited version of the app is free to use. The vendor's pages do not list the limits; Pro Access is described as unlimited entries, storage and devices with cloud backup and sync. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| macOS | ||
| iOS | ||
| Made by | Moleskine Srl (developed by edo.io srl) | Wasdesign, LLC |
| Price read from | apps.apple.com | apps.apple.com |
| Checked | Oct 6, 2026 | Oct 9, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Moleskine Planner
- People who want a paper-planner look on iPhone, iPad and Mac
- Seeing calendar events and timed tasks on one daily timeline
- Sorting tasks into themed lists with icons and colors
Pencil Planner
- iPad users who want to handwrite a planner with Apple Pencil
- People who want handwriting layered over a digital calendar
- Paper-planner users moving to a tablet
Worth knowing
Moleskine Planner
- Apple platforms only: the App Store listing covers iPhone, iPad, Mac and Vision Pro, and the vendor links no Android or web version.
- Neither the App Store listing nor the vendor's site says which features are free and which need a paid membership.
- The vendor's site publishes no prices; the figures here are in-app purchase amounts from the US App Store.
- The app requires iOS 17, iPadOS 17 or macOS 14 or later.
Pencil Planner
- iPhone and iPad only. The vendor's roadmap lists a Mac app as an upcoming feature.
- The free version is limited and the vendor does not say where the limits fall. There is no lifetime purchase, only monthly and yearly plans.
- Planner data is stored on the vendor's own Pencil Planner Cloud. There is no iCloud, Dropbox or Google Drive backup option.
- The vendor's upgrade page quotes $24.99 a year for Pro, while the US App Store lists Pro Yearly at $19.99.
Key features
Moleskine Planner
- Day view timeline
- Each day's schedule and tasks are laid out visually, with a choice of Block View or Timeline View. A time slider moves a task or changes its duration.
- Weekly overview
- A week view shows all appointments and tasks for the week, and a long press on a day opens the task editor with that date already set.
- Calendar integration
- Calendars are chosen with checkboxes in the settings menu, and their events are displayed in the planner beside your tasks.
- Customizable tasks
- Tasks take icons, colors, subtasks and notes and can be marked complete. Subtasks can be shown and ticked off without opening the task.
- Lists
- Related tasks are grouped by topic into lists, which show how many days remain until future tasks are due and a completed count.
- Rescheduling and duplicating
- A long press moves a task to another date, and an activity can be copied and duplicated onto a different date and time.
Pencil Planner
- Handwriting on the calendar
- Plans are written directly over and around calendar events with Apple Pencil, Logitech Crayon or a finger, including priorities, time blocks and sketches.
- Day, week, month and year layouts
- With the Version 2 layouts, schedule handwriting is shared between the Day and Week views, and a day's highlights also appear in the Week and Month views.
- Calendar events from the device
- Events come from the accounts connected in the iPad or iPhone Calendar settings, so iCloud, Google, Outlook and Yahoo calendars appear once added there.
- Apple Reminders lists
- The Version 2 Day tab shows lists from Apple Reminders next to the schedule. Lists are still added and edited in the Reminders app.
- Linked notes
- Handwritten or typed notes can be linked to a date or a calendar event, organized in folders and pinned. Handwritten notes take blank, lined or dot-grid pages.
- Drawing tools
- Pens, pencils and highlighters have adjustable colors and thickness. Handwriting can be moved, erased by whole stroke or in part, and zoomed for precise writing.
Plans
Moleskine Planner
Free$0
Free download from the App Store. The vendor does not publish which features the free version includes.
Planner Premium Monthly$3.99
per month
Monthly premium membership for the Planner app, as listed among the in-app purchases on the US App Store.
Bundle - Monthly Plan$4.99
per month
A monthly bundle subscription. The listing does not say which Moleskine apps the bundle covers.
Planner Premium Annual Add-On$19.99
labelled Annual; what it is added to is not shown
An annual add-on listed among the in-app purchases, with no description of what it requires or unlocks.
Planner Annual Membership$29.99
per year
Annual membership for the Planner app alone, as listed on the US App Store.
Bundle - Annual Plan$39.99
per year
The bundle billed yearly. A Bundle - Annual Welcome Plan is also listed at $29.99, without stated terms.
Pencil Planner
Free$0
A limited version of the planner. The vendor does not publish exactly which features or how many entries it includes.
Pro Monthly$4.99
per month
Pro Access to all planner features, with unlimited entries, storage and devices plus cloud backup and sync.
Pro Yearly$19.99
per year
The same Pro Access billed once a year, as listed among the in-app purchases on the US App Store.
Ways to pay less
Moleskine Planner
- Annual discount
About 37% less on the annual membership
The US App Store lists Planner Premium Monthly at $3.99 and Planner Annual Membership at $29.99. Twelve monthly payments come to $47.88, so the annual membership costs about 37% less.
- Other savings
Bundle annual welcome price of $29.99
The US App Store lists a Bundle - Annual Welcome Plan at $29.99 beside the $39.99 Bundle - Annual Plan. The listing does not say who qualifies or for how long.
Pencil Planner
- Annual discount
About 67% less on the yearly plan
The US App Store lists Pro Monthly at $4.99 and Pro Yearly at $19.99. Twelve monthly payments come to $59.88, so the yearly plan costs about 67% less.
- Other savings
$10 off the first year for buyers of the original app
People who bought the earlier Pencil Planner & Draw Calendar app can email support for a promo code worth $10 off their first year of Pro.
