The Inkflow Insider’s Guide
Everything we know about Inkflow in one document: what it costs, its grades, getting a refund, getting help and what else to look at. Read it here, or keep a copy.
Inkflow
The Insider’s Guide
Handwriting notebook for iPad and iPhone with movable vector ink
Every plan, grade, refund rule and rival among note-taking apps, read from Inkflow’s own pages.
Made by Qrayon, LLC · checked Oct 9, 2026 · toolgpa.com
Contents
- 01WelcomeWhat it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
- 02What it costsEvery plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
- 03What it doesIts main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
- 04Where it standsIts grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
- 05The alternativesThe tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
- 06Quick answersThe questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
- 07About ToolGPAWho made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
ToolGPA put this guide together from Inkflow’s own pages, its app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on Inkflow’s page too, where it is kept up to date. Checked Oct 9, 2026.
Part 01 · Overview
Welcome
What it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
2.4
GPA, above 22 of the 147 other note-taking apps we grade
Inkflow is a handwriting and sketching notebook for iPad and iPhone from Qrayon. Strokes are stored as vector ink that stays sharp when zoomed, and anything on a page can be lassoed, moved and resized, which the vendor likens to a word processor for visual thinking. The Basic edition is free with books of up to 20 pages; a one-time Inkflow Plus upgrade adds color, more tools, unlimited pages and Inkport, which turns notes on paper into editable ink through the camera.
To get you started, here are 9 things to know about Inkflow, taken from its own pages and our grades.
You write with a finger or a stylus, and with an Apple Pencil connected it ignores your palm.
- 1
Best for handwritten notes you can rearrange later
Inkflow is a handwriting notebook for iPad and iPhone where you can circle anything you wrote, then drag it somewhere else or resize it.
- 2
What it costs
Paid plans start at $12.99 one-time in-app upgrade.
- 3
There is a 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.
- 4
It runs on iOS
iOS.
- 5
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.
- 6
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.
- 7
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.
- 8
A 2.4 GPA, above 22 of 147
That is against the other note-taking apps we grade, on value, the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
- 9
Your call
A notes app at its plainest is text in folders with a search box.
Inkflow at a glance
- Pricing
- Free plan, from $12.99 one-time in-app upgrade
- Free plan
- Yes
- Free trial
- None stated
- Runs on
- iOS
- Made by
- Qrayon, LLC
- Category
- Note-Taking Apps
- Our grade
- 2.4 GPA, fair
- Store rating
- 4.6 on the App Store, 1,867 ratings
The report card
Best for handwritten notes you can rearrange later
Inkflow is a handwriting notebook for iPad and iPhone where you can circle anything you wrote, then drag it somewhere else or resize it. The free edition is black ink only, 5 fonts, 20 pages a book and ads, and $12.99 once adds color and unlimited pages. Its guide only describes backing up by hand through iTunes and never mentions sync, so plan on one device, and look elsewhere if you use Android or Windows.
| Subject | Grade | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | A | Inkflow Plus is $12.99 once on the US App Store, with nothing to renew. Notes apps here sit at about $6 a month in the middle, so one payment worth two months of that, and nowhere near a year of it, is the top mark on price. |
| Free plan and trial | C | Free with no time limit and as many books as you like, but the caps turn up fast: 20 pages a book, black ink only and 5 fonts. The App Store listing says the free app carries advertising too. |
| Features | C | Vector ink that stays sharp when you zoom, a lasso to move and resize anything, text, photos and PDF export, and Inkport on Plus turning paper notes into editable ink. It does handwriting fully, and that's a smaller job: the guide describes manual backup through iTunes and never mentions sync. |
| Ease of use | B | 4.55 from about 1,900 App Store ratings, a clear B but under the 4.7 an A asks for. You write with a finger or a stylus, and with an Apple Pencil connected it ignores your palm. |
| Platforms and integrations | D | iPad and iPhone and nothing else: one operating system, with no Android, Windows or web version listed. Apple Pencil is the only thing it works with, and no sync between devices is on record. |
An A is worth 4 points, a B 3, a C 2, a D 1 and an F nothing. The GPA is the average of the five.
Who Inkflow is for
- Fits if you think on paper and then want to move things around on the page
- Works for sketching page layouts or wireframes that keep changing
Who it is not for
- Skip it if you want the same notebook on two devices, as the guide describes manual iTunes backup and no sync
- Not for you if you use Android, Windows or the web, because it's iPad and iPhone only
- Tight if you're staying free, with black ink only, 5 fonts and 20 pages a book
- Watch out: the free app shows ads, and Inkport, color, the pencil and brush tools all need the $12.99 Plus upgrade
Good to know
Good for
- Brainstorming and planning by hand on an iPad
- Sketching layouts and wireframes that need rearranging
- Classrooms, where the vendor offers volume pricing
Worth knowing
- 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.
Part 02 · Pricing
What it costs
Every plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
$12.99 one-time
To start. There is a free plan too
Inkflow has a free plan. Paid plans start at $12.99 one-time in-app upgrade.
The App Store listing says the free app carries advertising too.
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.
The 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.
Read from apps.apple.com on Oct 9, 2026.
Ways to pay less
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.
Stated on qrayon.com
What the app costs elsewhere
Each country’s App Store price for “Inkflow Plus”, against $12.99 in the United States, in dollars at the day’s rate. The four cheapest and the four dearest of 11.
| Country | Price there | In dollars | Against the US |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canada | $17.99 | $12.65 | about the same |
| Philippines | ₱ 799.00 | $12.72 | about the same |
| India | ₹ 1,299 | $13.43 | about the same |
| Indonesia | Rp 249ribu | $13.93 | 7% more |
| Brazil | R$ 79,90 | $15.96 | 23% more |
| Mexico | $299.00 | $16.43 | 26% more |
| Germany | 14,99 € | $16.80 | 29% more |
| United Kingdom | £12.99 | $17.17 | 32% more |
Part 03 · Features
What it does
Its main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
1
Place it runs: iOS
Handwriting notebook for iPad and iPhone with movable vector ink. Here is what it does, as its own site describes it, and what it covers: one-time purchase, notes.
It does handwriting fully, and that's a smaller job: the guide describes manual backup through iTunes and never mentions sync.
- 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.
Where it runs
- iOS
What it works with
- Apple Pencil
Inkflow is made by Qrayon, LLC.
Part 04 · Standing
Where it stands
Its grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
22/147
Other note-taking apps it is graded above
Inkflow's GPA of 2.4 is higher than 22 of the 147 other note-taking apps we grade, and level with 27.
It stands best on value for money (A, above 62 of 147) and worst on platforms and integrations (D, above 0).
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 148 note-taking apps we grade, cut by the letter each got. Inkflow’s own letter is outlined.
- AValue for moneyAbove 62 of 147
- CFree plan and trialAbove 7 of 147
- CFeaturesAbove 2 of 147
- BEase of useAbove 47 of 147
- DPlatforms and integrationsAbove 0 of 147
Keep it, or make your own?
Whether this is something you could build for yourself with an AI app builder, and what you would give up.
Your call
A notes app at its plainest is text in folders with a search box.
You could make the core of Inkflow for yourself: notes. What you would give up is listed below. Whether that is worth the price is your call. At $12.99, paid once, it costs less than the weekend it would take to replace, which is the argument for keeping it.
What you could make
- Notes: an app builder makes this well.
What you could not
- A real app for iOS. Something home-made would be a web page.
- Hooks into the device itself: Apple Pencil and handwriting.
What this rests on. Inkflow’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
Part 05 · Alternatives
The alternatives
The tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
Goodnotes, Notability, Noteshelf, ZoomNotes and Penbook
The 5 tools Inkflow is most often weighed against, with where each one differs from it.
- 3.6GPA
Goodnotes
Free plan · from $11.99/yr
Handwritten notes, PDF markup and whiteboards with an AI assistant.
- Only Goodnotes lists a web app.
- Only Goodnotes lists macOS, Android and Windows apps.
- Goodnotes also covers transcription and whiteboard.
- 3.4GPA
Notability
Free plan · from $14.99/yr
Handwritten notes with synced audio, transcripts and AI study tools.
- Only Notability lists a web app.
- Only Notability lists macOS, Windows and Android apps.
- Notability also covers transcription and templates.
- 2.8GPA
Noteshelf
Free plan · from $7.99 one-time
Handwritten note-taking and PDF annotation for stylus devices.
- Only Noteshelf lists macOS, Android and Windows apps.
- Noteshelf also covers templates.
- 2.6GPA
ZoomNotes
Free plan · from $7.99 one-time
Handwriting, sketching and PDF notes with a near-unlimited zoom range.
- Only ZoomNotes lists a macOS app.
- ZoomNotes also covers whiteboard and templates.
- 2.4GPA
Penbook
Free plan · from $4.99
Handwriting notebooks and live planners for iPad and iPhone.
- Penbook also covers daily notes and templates.
Part 06 · Questions
Quick answers
The questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
14
Questions, each answered in a line or two
The short version of everything above, for when you only need the answer. Each one is told in full in its part of the guide.
Is Inkflow free?
Inkflow has a 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.
How much does Inkflow cost?
Inkflow lists 2 plans. Inkflow: $0.
What platforms does Inkflow work on?
Inkflow is available on iOS.
Does Inkflow offer any discounts?
Inkflow publicly lists the following: 50% off Inkflow Plus in packs of 20 or more.
How is Inkflow rated?
Inkflow's iPhone and iPad app averages 4.6 out of 5 from 1,867 ratings on the App Store in the United States, as read on Oct 9, 2026.
Does Inkflow have an Android app?
No Android app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 9, 2026. Inkflow is listed for iOS.
Does Inkflow have a Windows app?
No Windows app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 9, 2026. Inkflow is listed for iOS.
Is Inkflow open source?
Inkflow is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Oct 9, 2026.
What does Inkflow integrate with?
Inkflow's listing names Apple Pencil. A listing names up to eight integrations, so it may connect to more.
Does Inkflow have a student discount?
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.
Who makes Inkflow?
Inkflow is made by Qrayon, LLC.
What are the alternatives to Inkflow?
The closest alternatives to Inkflow in our directory are Goodnotes, Notability, Noteshelf, ZoomNotes and Penbook.
How does Inkflow compare with other note-taking apps?
Inkflow's GPA of 2.4 is higher than 22 of the 147 other note-taking apps we grade, and level with 27.
Could I make my own version of Inkflow?
A notes app at its plainest is text in folders with a search box. You could make the core of Inkflow for yourself: notes.
Where this guide comes from
The prices, plans, platforms and features were read from Inkflow’s own pages on Oct 9, 2026, and the grades were given on Oct 10, 2026. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Qrayon's own pages on 9 October 2026, and its App Store rating. Also tested with a demo account on 2026-04-19.
Every tool we list gets five grades, A to F, each with its reason, and a GPA that averages them. How each is decided is at toolgpa.com/grades. This guide is ToolGPA’s own work; it is not made, paid for or approved by Qrayon, LLC. Prices change, so check qrayon.com before you buy.
Part 07 · About
About ToolGPA
Who made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
3,189
Tools graded, in 94 categories
ToolGPA grades software the way a school report grades a pupil: five subjects, a letter for each with the reason written beside it, and a GPA that averages them. Prices, plans and platforms are read from each maker’s own pages and dated, so you always know how fresh a figure is.
Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Every tool on the site has a guide like this one, free to download and pass on. It all lives at toolgpa.com.
3,189
tools graded
94
categories
426
price changes on record
579
apps priced in 12 countries
What else is on toolgpa.com
- Inkflow, kept up to dateEverything in this guide, with prices and grades as they are todaytoolgpa.com/tools/inkflow
- How grades are givenThe rules behind every letter and every GPAtoolgpa.com/grades
- Value chartsWhat each tool costs against what it scores, for every categorytoolgpa.com/charts
- CompareAny two tools side by side, plan by plantoolgpa.com/compare
- Price changesEvery price rise and cut on record, each with its sourcetoolgpa.com/price-changes
- Prices by countryWhat apps cost on the App Store in 12 countriestoolgpa.com/prices-by-country
- Pay lessEvery public discount: yearly billing, students, nonprofitstoolgpa.com/save
- Keep or makeWhich tools are worth paying for, and which you could build yourselftoolgpa.com/keep-or-make
Scan for the live page
Prices and grades as they are today
Quoting this guide?
Please name ToolGPA and link to the live page, so readers can check the figures for themselves:
ToolGPA, "Inkflow: The Insider's Guide", checked Oct 9, 2026. https://toolgpa.com/tools/inkflow
Know someone choosing between note-taking apps?
Send them this guide: toolgpa.com/tools/inkflow/guide
ToolGPA elsewhere: youtube.com/@toolgpa
See our other guides
The best-graded note-taking apps after Inkflow, each with an Insider's Guide of its own.
- Note-Taking Apps Insider's GuideEvery one of the 148 note-taking apps we grade, compared
- Microsoft OneNote Insider's GuideMicrosoft's free digital notebook for typed, inked and audio notes3.8 GPA
- Goodnotes Insider's GuideHandwritten notes, PDF markup and whiteboards with an AI assistant3.6 GPA
- Joplin Insider's GuideOpen source Markdown notes with sync through a service you choose3.6 GPA
Choosing software? Every tool graded, every price dated.
Compare tools at toolgpa.com ›Everything in this guide is ToolGPA’s own summary of what Inkflow’s pages, its app-store listings and public reviews said on the dates shown. Grades are our judgement under the rules at toolgpa.com/grades. Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Inkflow is a trademark of its owner, and this guide is not made, paid for or approved by Qrayon, LLC. Prices and plans change: check qrayon.com before you buy.