Full disclosure: I built Scribbly. This comparison tries to be fair anyway.
I searched “save kids artwork app” before I built anything, the way you probably just did. The results were mostly Artkive, a couple of dead links, and blog posts from 2019 recommending apps that no longer exist. The market for kids’ art preservation is small, weirdly fragmented, and mostly American.
Here’s what’s actually available in 2026, what each option costs, and where each one falls short.
Why not just use your camera roll
You can. Many parents do. Take a photo of each drawing, maybe put it in an album called “Art,” and move on.
The problem shows up around month six. Your camera roll has 4,000 photos. The art is mixed in with grocery lists, screenshots, and 47 nearly identical shots of your kid on a swing. You can’t find the drawing from November. You don’t remember which child made it.
A dedicated app solves three things: background removal (so the kitchen table disappears), organization by child and date, and a path to print products like photo books. A camera roll solves none of those.
That said, if you’re disciplined about folders and don’t care about background removal, Google Photos or iCloud works fine. No shame in it.
The comparison at a glance
| Scribbly | Artkive | Keepy | Cloud Storage | Photo Book Services | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price (app) | Free | Free app; services from $45 | Free (basic) | Free | Free (pay per book) |
| Print products | Books, prints, cards | Books from $75 (25 images) | Limited | None | Full catalog |
| iOS | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Android | No (coming) | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Web | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Background removal | AI, automatic | Manual (concierge) | No | No | No |
| Organize by child | Yes | Yes | Yes | Manual folders | No |
| Mail-in service | No | Yes | No | No | No |
| Languages | 5 (EN, DE, FR, IT, ES) | English only | English only | Many | Varies |
| Data storage | Switzerland/EU | USA | USA | Varies | Varies |
| GDPR compliant | Yes | No | No | Varies | Varies |
Scribbly
Platform: iOS, Web. Price: Free. You pay only for print products.
This is mine, so take what follows with appropriate skepticism. Scribbly does one thing: you photograph a drawing, the AI removes the background, and it goes into a gallery organized by child. No subscription. No upload limits. No premium tier you need to unlock.
The app is available in five languages and stores data in Switzerland, which matters if you care about European data protection.
Where Scribbly is weaker: no Android app yet, no mail-in service, and the print product catalog is still growing. If you have 300 drawings in a box and zero desire to photograph them yourself, this is not your solution.
Artkive
Platform: iOS. Price: Box kits from $39, digitization from $45, books from $75 (25 images).
Artkive’s concierge service is genuinely convenient if you hate digitizing. You buy a box, fill it with artwork, ship it to them, and they photograph everything professionally and send back a finished book. It’s the “I’d rather pay someone” option, and for some parents, that’s exactly right.
The self-serve iOS app exists too, but it’s secondary to the mail-in business. No background removal in the app. No web version. English only. Data stored in the US.
Where Artkive falls short: price. A book with 100 images runs roughly $265. Shipping from outside the US adds cost and complexity. And if you’re particular about which art goes where in the book, you have limited control over the layout in the concierge flow.
Keepy
Platform: iOS, Android. Price: Free (basic), paid premium.
Keepy takes a wider view. It’s not just art. It stores school reports, first writing attempts, certificates, craft photos. If you want one app for all your kid’s memorabilia, Keepy covers the most ground.
It also has social sharing features, so grandparents can see new additions without you texting photos individually.
Where Keepy is weaker: no AI background removal, limited print options, English only, US data storage. The app hasn’t been updated as actively as some alternatives. And the premium pricing model is not entirely transparent from the start.
Google Photos, iCloud, or any cloud storage
Platform: Everything. Price: Free (with storage limits).
The honest truth: if you create an album called “Kids Art” and drop photos in there after each painting session, you have a workable system. It costs nothing. It runs on every device you own. Your photos are backed up.
The limitations are real, though. No background removal, so every image has your table or floor in it. No per-child organization unless you create separate albums manually. No print pipeline. And when you try to make a photo book later, you’ll spend hours editing out backgrounds by hand, or you’ll accept that every page features your kitchen.
If you only have one child and 30 drawings a year, this works. If you have two kids and 200 drawings between them, it gets messy fast.
Canva, Shutterfly, Blurb, and other print services
Platform: Varies. Price: Pay per product.
These aren’t art-preservation apps. They’re print services. But they come up in every search, so here’s the deal: you can upload images and design a photo book, poster, or card with any of them. The design tools are good. The print quality is fine.
What they don’t do: capture, organize, or remove backgrounds. You need to do all that yourself first. They’re the last step, not the first one.
For a comparison of digital vs. physical preservation approaches, I wrote a separate piece on that.
What actually matters when choosing
How much art do you have? A small pile works with any solution, including your camera roll. A large backlog points toward Artkive’s mail-in service or a dedicated weekend with a good sorting system.
Do you need Android? Your options narrow to Keepy or the DIY route. Scribbly and Artkive are iOS only right now.
Do you care about privacy? If your children’s drawings being stored on US servers bothers you, your options are Scribbly (Switzerland) or self-managed cloud storage (your choice of provider).
What’s your budget? Scribbly and basic cloud storage are free. Keepy has a freemium model. Artkive starts at $45 per batch and goes up quickly. A DIY photo book from a local provider runs $20 to $50 depending on size.
How much effort do you want to spend? Artkive is the least effort. Scribbly and Keepy sit in the middle. DIY with cloud storage and a print service is the most work but gives you total control.
The honest verdict
There is no single best app. There’s the best app for your situation.
If you want free with good AI features and you have an iPhone, try Scribbly. If you want someone else to handle everything and don’t mind paying, Artkive. If you need Android or want to track school stuff too, Keepy. If you’re organized and patient, a cloud folder and a print service will get you there.
The one wrong answer is doing nothing. Paper degrades. Paint flakes. Glitter migrates to places you didn’t know existed. Whatever system you pick, the point is to pick one before the stack behind the couch becomes the stack in the recycling bin. I learned this the hard way with a box of tempera paintings and a damp Keller.
FAQ
Can I use more than one of these together? Yes. Some parents use Scribbly for daily capture and background removal, then export images to a print service like Blurb for a custom-designed book. Use whatever combination works.
What about apps like Doodle Nest or Plum Print? They exist, mostly in the US market, at premium price points ($89 to $250+). Good products if budget isn’t a concern. For most families, overkill.
Is it worth digitizing old artwork from years ago? Yes, especially if the paper is already degrading. Tempera paint and construction paper have a shelf life. A rainy Sunday with a stack of old drawings and any of these apps will get you caught up.
How many drawings should I actually keep? I wrote a whole post about the sorting system. Short version: keep 10% as originals, digitize 30%, let go of 60%.
Last updated April 2026. Prices and features change. If something here is wrong or an app is missing, email info@scribbly.art.
