Penbook: Paper Planner & Notes

Name: Penbook: Paper Planner & Notes
Rating: 4.6 (44823 reviews)
Author: Pencil Research

By: Pencil Research App

Journal, Notebook & Study

Overview

Version:

7.5

Last updated: 2026-08-04

Features & Capabilities

Penbook turns your iPad into a powerful notebook with Live Paper and 400+ stationery styles. Write naturally with Apple Pencil, import PDFs for quick annotation, and customize covers so every notebook looks and feels unique.

Stay organized with smart planners and handwriting search. The app includes a monthly planner calendar, a live day timeline, and shape recognition to snap strokes into perfect shapes, all in one place.

User Growth & Download Statistics

App Education Writing Task Management

By:

Pencil Research

Rating:

4.60

(44,823) 69 new ratings

Version:

7.5 Last updated: 2026-08-04

Version code:

888976691

Creation date:

2019-09-24

Compatible devices:

Size:

126.86MB

URLs:

Website ,Privacy policy

Full description:

Source:

Apple Apps Store

Data ingested on:

2026-08-08

Compare stats and ranking:

Ranking

# 6,808 ▼ 3

Other rankings

#10 in Neat Notetakers

#17 in Paths to Productivity

#19 in Level Up Your Life

#11 in author keyword 13 ▲

#15 in eyedropper keyword 50 ▲

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For Developers

Monetize with App Pass Boost with Extension Booster

Contact the developer

Chrome-Stats does not own this Apple app. Please use these information below to contact the Apple app developer.

Developed by:

Pencil Research

Apple Apps Store

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/penbook-paper-planner-notes/id1473064295

Website:

https://penbook.app

User Reviews

Users praise Penbook for a natural Apple Pencil writing experience, a wide range of templates, and organizing multiple notebooks. However, recurring issues include iCloud sync failures and data loss, crashes after updates, limited page management, and weak PDF handling. Some users love the pens and design, but stability and data risk significantly dampen overall value.

Pros

Smooth writing experience with Apple Pencil and a natural feel
Wide range of templates and easy creation of multiple notebooks
Feels like writing on paper and serves as a strong replacement for traditional notebooks
Excellent pens and color options with an intuitive overall design

Cons

iCloud sync failures across devices (red cloud icon) and risk of data loss
Crashes and stability issues after updates (e.g., long-pressing tools can crash the app)
Poor page management (inability to delete pages/notebooks or rename books)
Weak PDF handling (crashes when adding large PDFs; no OCR or easy text copying)

Recent reviews

It solved the main issue that has stopped me from journaling forever: lack of sync with dynamic Google Calendar

by Ha*****, 2026-08-04

I stopped using for a while and now features that had worked don’t seem to work consistently any longer. I did update to the latest version and am on the latest iOS. I will say issues may be related to latest version of iOS, but not sure either way, just very frustrated with the app hence my current rating.