Guides · From the stitching basket
The 8 best needlepoint apps in 2026
Published October 22, 2026 · By the Bargello team
Short answer: for tracking canvases, threads and stitching time, Bargello (coming soon to iPhone and Android), Needlepoint Studio and Stitchpoint are the strongest starting points. For community and shop discovery, try Stitchpoint or needlebook. For thread stash and shopping, Skeins and needlebook stand out; for counted chart work, Pattern Keeper and Stitch Fiddle remain the classics.
Needlepointers usually arrive at apps for the same reason: a basket of canvases in various states of doneness, a thread stash with no dye-lot record, and progress photos scattered across a camera roll. A paper system works — our guide to tracking a needlepoint project shows how — but the right app keeps the record in your pocket. We built Bargello, so we are up front about where it fits and where other apps are the better choice today.
At a glance: 8 apps compared
| App | Best for | Price | Platforms | Key difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bargello | Tracking canvases, sessions, supplies | Free tier; optional Premium subscription | iPhone & Android (coming soon) | Built only for needlepoint; offline sync |
| Needlepoint Studio | Private tracking + fiber stash | Free; one-time Pro upgrade, no subscription | iPhone, iPad | No account; label scanner; iCloud backup |
| Stitchpoint | Community feed & shop directory | Free (in-app purchases) | iPhone, Android | Local needlepoint shop directory & Passport |
| needlebook | Canvases wishlist → finished | Free | iPhone, iPad, Android | Thread inventory with shopping list |
| theNDLPTapp | Project bag & stitch identification | Free (in-app purchases) | iPhone | StitchID: identify stitches |
| Skeins | Estimating thread needs | Subscription (7-day trial) | iPhone, iPad, Android | Photo-based thread estimates by mesh |
| Pattern Keeper | Tracking PDF cross stitch charts | 1-month trial, then ~US$9 one-time | Android | Mark off symbol charts as you stitch |
| Stitch Fiddle | Designing charts | Free; Premium $5.50/mo or $33/yr | Web browser | Multi-craft chart designer, not a tracker |
What a good needlepoint app does
Before the reviews, the yardstick. A needlepoint app earns its place in your project bag by doing what the paper system in our tracking guide does, but faster:
- A record per canvas — designer, mesh, size, threads and status, so you can answer “what is in the basket?” in seconds (why one record per canvas matters).
- Progress photos and notes — the honest way needlepoint progress is tracked, since no mainstream app counts stitches on a painted canvas.
- Stitching time and sessions — a timer or log that shows how much you actually stitched, which is what our session routine is about.
- A supply plan — threads you own versus threads you still need, per canvas, ideally with a shopping list (how to build one).
One thing to expect from every app on this list: none of them counts your stitches automatically. If you are coming from cross stitch, where apps like Pattern Keeper mark off a counted grid, read needlepoint vs cross stitch to see why painted canvases work differently.
1. Bargello — the cozy canvas tracker
Platforms: iPhone and Android, coming soon — join the waitlist. Price: Free for up to 3 active projects and 20 progress photos per project; Premium lifts both limits, monthly or yearly through the App Store or Google Play (see the tiers).
Bargello is the app we are building, and it is deliberately narrow: needlepoint only. Every canvas gets a project record with progress photos and notes, a supply plan for its threads, a stitch timer with session history, a canvas catalog, Q&A, and offline sync so the basket is up to date even at the lake house. It follows the same routine as our paper tracking guide: record, plan, log, leave yourself a note.
Honest trade-offs: Bargello is pre-launch, so you cannot download it today — the waitlist at getbargello.com/#notify gets one email when it ships. You update your own progress; it does not count stitches, and it will not help you design a chart. If you need an app right now, Needlepoint Studio or Stitchpoint below are real today.
2. Needlepoint Studio — private tracker & stash
Platforms: iPhone and iPad (App Store). Price: free to download, with a one-time Studio Pro upgrade and no subscription, per its official page.
Needlepoint Studio, by Panda Taps, is the closest thing to a full needlepoint cockpit shipping today. It tracks every canvas with designer, mesh count, size and percent complete, keeps a stitching timer with streaks that survives closing the app, and catalogs a fiber stash by brand, color and number — including a label scanner that photographs a thread band and prefills the entry on-device. It also includes a library of 26 stitches with diagrams, a stretcher-bar inventory, and CSV/PDF export of your collection's value for insurance.
Trade-offs: no account and iCloud-only backup is a privacy win, but it means no Android version, no community, and sharing between households is limited. The stitch library is a starter set, not a stitch encyclopedia.
3. Stitchpoint — community & shop directory
Platforms: iPhone and Android (stitchpoint.app). Price: the site says “Free forever. No account needed to start”; the App Store lists optional in-app purchases.
Stitchpoint is the social corner of needlepoint: a feed of other stitchers' canvases in progress, project tracking of your own, and a searchable notions index. Its signature feature is the LNS Directory — local needlepoint shops with a “Passport” that stamps your visits, which turns shop hops into a game. If your favorite part of a festival is the shop crawl, this is your app.
Trade-offs: community-first means your tracking is built around sharing; stitchers who want a quiet, private log may prefer Needlepoint Studio. Deep supply planning and session timing are not the focus.
4. needlebook — canvases, threads & community
Platforms: iPhone, iPad and Android — its official site confirms both the App Store and Google Play. Price: free download.
needlebook organizes your needlepoint life across three states — canvases you want, canvases you're stitching, and canvases you've finished — and pairs that with thread tracking: what you own, what an upcoming canvas still needs, and a shopping list for your next LNS run. A community feed and discover tab add inspiration; the app was built by a stitcher's partner after one too many duplicate-skein purchases, which shows in the thread-first design.
Trade-offs: it is a young app, so expect the polish and depth of features to grow; there is no timer or session tracking, and no chart tools at all.
5. theNDLPTapp — project bag & stitch ID
Platforms: iPhone only (App Store). Price: free with in-app purchases.
theNDLPTapp describes itself as your “digital needlepoint project bag”: sort and track needlepoint projects, manage a thread stash, and — its standout — StitchID, which helps you identify a stitch you are looking at. If you have ever inherited a half-finished canvas and could not name the stitch on it, that feature alone justifies the download.
Trade-offs: iPhone-only, young, and lighter on analytics — no stitching timer or supply-plan thinking. Best as a second app rather than your only one.
6. Skeins — the thread-need estimator
Platforms: iPhone, iPad and Android (official page). Price: 7-day free trial, then a monthly or annual subscription; prices are shown in the App Store and Google Play.
Skeins, from Grant Point Designs, answers the question every stitcher asks mid-project: “how much thread do I actually need?” Photograph a painted canvas, set the thread brand and mesh count, and Skeins estimates the yardage each color requires. It rounds itself out with a stitch library, a canvas log, shopping lists and cross-device sync.
Trade-offs: a photo-based estimate is a planning aid, not a guarantee — stitch choice changes coverage (our supply-plan routine still suggests a buffer). And a subscription for thread math only pays off if you buy a lot of painted canvases.
7. Pattern Keeper — for counted chart work
Platforms: Android (patternkeeper.app; iOS “planned,” not shipping). Price: a month-long free trial, then a one-time charge of around US$9, per its developer's own pricing page.
Pattern Keeper is the standard answer for tracking a counted chart: it imports a PDF cross stitch chart, detects the symbol grid, and lets you mark off stitches as you go, with tracking by page and row. Stitchers who also do cross stitch — and per our needlepoint vs cross stitch guide, many do both — keep it on an Android tablet for exactly that.
Trade-offs: it is built for symbol charts, not painted canvases; there is nothing for it to read on a hand-painted needlepoint canvas. The developer notes it is still in beta — backstitch and fractional stitches are unsupported, and some charts import better than others.
8. Stitch Fiddle — design your own charts
Platforms: any web browser (stitchfiddle.com). Price: free with limits; Premium is $5.50 for a month or $33 for a year, non-renewing, per its official pricing page.
Stitch Fiddle is not a tracker — it is the browser-based chart designer most people mean when they say “I want to make my own pattern.” It handles cross stitch and many other gridded crafts, imports an image to convert into a chart, and exports your work. For needlepoint, it is the tool for charting an original geometric or Bargello-stitch design before you transfer it to canvas.
Trade-offs: it thinks in squares and floss numbers, not in needlepoint mesh or decorative stitches — the same caveat the chart-software world always carries for canvas work. Free-tier limits apply to pattern count and size.
Which needlepoint app should you pick?
| If you are… | Start with… |
|---|---|
| New to needlepoint, first canvas in hand | A paper routine from our tracking guide, plus Bargello's waitlist — tracking habits matter more than the tool at first |
| An iPhone stitcher who wants privacy, no subscription | Needlepoint Studio (free, one-time upgrade) |
| Social — finishes, WIPs, shop hops | Stitchpoint (iPhone/Android) or needlebook |
| Always buying the wrong thread | needlebook for inventory, Skeins for yardage estimates |
| On Android only | Stitchpoint or needlebook today; Pattern Keeper if you also chart cross stitch |
| Stitching from counted charts, not painted canvases | Pattern Keeper (Android) or Stitch Fiddle (web) |
| Keeping many canvases warm at once | Bargello at launch — Free covers 3 active projects, Premium is unlimited |
Apps change fast in this niche — several of the needlepoint-native ones above are less than a year old — so check each app's store page for today's price before you commit. Prices and platforms above are what each developer's own page said in October 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Is there an app for needlepoint?
Yes. Needlepoint apps fall into a few groups: project trackers for canvases, progress photos and stitching time (Bargello, Needlepoint Studio, Stitchpoint, needlebook, theNDLPTapp); thread-stash and shopping tools (Skeins, needlebook); and chart apps for counted designs (Pattern Keeper, Stitch Fiddle). Most are free to download.
What is the best free needlepoint app?
For community and shop discovery, Stitchpoint is free on iPhone and Android. For private project tracking, Needlepoint Studio is a free download on iPhone and iPad with a one-time upgrade and no subscription, and needlebook is a free download on both app stores. The best one depends on whether you want community, tracking, or stash management.
Is there a needlepoint app for Android?
Yes. Stitchpoint, needlebook and Skeins all list Android support on their official pages, and Pattern Keeper is an Android app for cross stitch PDF charts. Bargello is coming soon to both iPhone and Android. A few apps, such as theNDLPTapp and Needlepoint Studio, are iPhone and iPad only.
Is there an app that counts my needlepoint stitches automatically?
No mainstream needlepoint app counts stitches automatically. Needlepoint is usually stitched from a hand-painted canvas rather than a counted grid, so apps track progress the way stitchers do: progress photos, percent complete, and stitching time you log yourself. Bargello, for example, records sessions, photos and notes but does not count stitches for you.
Can I use Pattern Keeper for needlepoint?
Not really. Pattern Keeper is built for gridded cross stitch charts in PDF form, which it turns into a searchable, mark-as-you-stitch chart. A hand-painted needlepoint canvas has no symbols or grid to read, so there is nothing for the app to parse. It suits charted or counted canvas work only, and its developer notes it is still in beta and does not support backstitch or fractional stitches.
What is the best app for tracking my thread stash?
Needlepoint Studio catalogs fibers by brand, color and number and can prefill entries by photographing a thread label. needlebook tracks threads you own against threads you still need and builds a shopping list. theNDLPTapp manages a thread stash alongside projects, and Skeins goes further by estimating how much thread each color of a canvas needs, by brand and mesh count.
Keep every canvas in one cozy place
Bargello is a needlepoint project tracker app coming soon to iPhone and Android. Give each canvas its own record, keep a supply plan for its threads, time your stitching sessions, and save progress photos and notes together, even offline. You update your own progress; Bargello doesn’t count stitches for you. It’s free to start, with an optional Premium upgrade.
Join the Bargello launch waitlist for one email when it’s ready, or read more needlepoint guides in the meantime.