Pattern Keeper Alternatives for iPad, iPhone, PC and Mac (2026)

Quick answer: Pattern Keeper only runs on Android and has no automatic sync between devices. The alternative that runs on everything is StitchThis: it tracks your charts on iPad, iPhone, PC, Mac, Chromebook and Android, syncs automatically, and covers the rest of the hobby too, from fixing patterns to managing your floss.

Most people looking for a Pattern Keeper alternative have hit a wall: a new iPad, a laptop they'd rather stitch from, a chart that won't import, or progress stuck on one tablet. Below are those problems, answered from Pattern Keeper's own FAQ and help pages (checked November 2026), and how StitchThis solves each one. After that come the problems most stitchers don't notice until they've solved them.

The problems that send people looking

"Pattern Keeper isn't on my iPad or iPhone"

It isn't, and there's no date. Its FAQ answers "Is Pattern Keeper available for iOS?" with "No not yet. We are working on it!"

The fix: StitchThis runs in Safari on iPad and iPhone, with nothing to install. Add it to your Home Screen and it opens full screen like an app. Apple Pencil marks stitches while your palm rests on the screen. More: cross stitch tracker for iPad.

"I want to stitch from my laptop or Chromebook"

Pattern Keeper's help says "There is no desktop version" and suggests running it in an Android emulator. Its pages don't mention Chromebooks, and it won't install on Kindle Fire.

The fix: StitchThis runs in Chrome, Edge, Safari or Firefox on Windows, Mac and Chromebook. A big chart, a mouse, keyboard shortcuts, no emulator. More: cross stitch tracker for PC.

"My progress is stuck on one tablet, and I'm scared of losing it"

Pattern Keeper's FAQ says it "doesn't have automatic sync". Moving a project means exporting your progress on one device and importing it on the other, every time, and no cloud backup is documented, so it's worth exporting regularly before you replace or reset a tablet.

The fix: StitchThis saves every stitch to your account as you mark it. Stitch on the tablet tonight and the same stitches are marked on your phone tomorrow. A new device is just a sign-in. "Save to this device" still lets you stitch offline, and your marks sync back later.

"My PDF won't import"

Pattern Keeper still calls itself a beta that "will not work with" some charts, and its import help starts with "check if the designer is supported."

The fix: StitchThis reads symbol and color-block PDFs from many designers and charting programs, joins multi-page charts, and shows you the result on a review screen before anything is saved. If something was misread, fix it in the editor instead of starting over. OXS files import too, backstitch and fractional stitches included. It can't read scans or photos of paper charts, and a PDF it can't read is kept as a view-only copy that doesn't use up a free slot. More: which cross stitch PDFs work with tracker apps.

"My trial ended and I can't open my charts"

After the one-month trial, Pattern Keeper costs about $9 once, per its pricing page. Without a purchase you can't open your charts.

The fix: StitchThis is free for 2 imported charts at a time with no time limit, so nothing locks when a trial runs out. Stitch Tracker ($19.97 a year) makes imports unlimited, and if you stop paying you keep every chart.

"I need backstitch and fractional stitches"

Pattern Keeper's Play listing says they "are not supported".

The fix, with limits: StitchThis's PDF importer reads full stitches only, so backstitch and fractional stitches in a PDF aren't imported. OXS files bring them in, and Maker lets you draw them yourself. They show on the chart, but the tracker marks off cross stitches, not backstitch lines.

The problems you didn't know you had

A tracker that only marks stitches leaves the rest of the hobby where it was: on paper, in your head, or in a drawer. These are more problems StitchThis solves, ones you may not have noticed yet.

Your chart has mistakes in it

Plenty of patterns sold online now are generated by AI: stray single stitches, colors that don't hang together, a face that turns to confetti. With a track-only app like Pattern Keeper, the chart stays as it is and you work around the mistakes as you stitch. In StitchThis you can correct the digital chart itself, imported ones included: Change All swaps every stitch of one color for another, Fill recolors an area, and Draw fixes stitches one at a time. The same tools let you swap a color you don't own for one you do.

You're buying floss you already own

The floss stash tracker keeps your threads by brand and number, with skein counts and where each one is stored (fill it from a CSV or a photo of your skeins). Every pattern has a floss shopping list, and when you mark a project complete you can deduct the floss it used. With your stash on your phone in the shop, there's no more third skein of DMC 310.

You can't tell which WIP is closest to done

My Patterns groups every chart into In progress, Not started and Completed, with a progress bar on each, so rotating between projects is a glance, not a guess. See the project tracker.

You don't know when you'll finish

StitchThis tracks your pace and shows percent done, stitches per day, a 14-day chart and an estimated finish date. If a project is meant to be a gift, you'll know in October whether it's on track for December.

Some colors are hard to tell apart

Highlight a thread and every other thread grays out, so every square of it stands out. Next jumps to its next unmarked stitch, needle parking (with Stitch Tracker or Maker) keeps one marker per thread, and a red-green colorblind preview and high-contrast symbols help when similar shades blur together.

Your next pattern, and the people to ask

Browse the pattern shop, where bought patterns open straight in the tracker, or turn a photo into a pattern with the cross stitch pattern maker. And when a chart has you stuck, ask in the community forum.

StitchThis: the Pattern Keeper alternative for every device

StitchThis is the full cross stitch platform, and it runs in the browser on any device, with an app in development. Open the chart you already own on an iPad or a computer, fix anything that's off, and pick it up on another device with every stitch saved. Your progress, your floss, your projects and your next pattern all live in one account.

What it costs (as listed in Nov 2026): free for 2 imported charts and 2 patterns in progress at a time, with no time limit. Stitch Tracker is $19.97 a year for unlimited imported charts, unlimited patterns in progress and needle parking; cancel anytime in Settings and keep every chart. Maker ($5.99 a month or $59.99 a year) adds the design tools. See StitchThis vs Pattern Keeper.

Other options

• Markup R-XP (iPhone, iPad, Android): reads PDFs plus photos and scans of paper charts. $19.99 a year after a 14-day trial on the US App Store. No automatic sync. More in Pattern Keeper vs Markup R-XP.
• Free, no app: a highlighter on paper plus a spreadsheet. The cross stitch tracker spreadsheet has the formulas.

For a wider comparison, see the best cross stitch tracker apps.

Frequently asked questions

Is Pattern Keeper available for iOS? No. Its FAQ says "No not yet. We are working on it!" StitchThis works on iPad and iPhone in Safari.

Does Pattern Keeper work on a PC or laptop? Only through an Android emulator, according to its help pages. StitchThis runs in any browser on Windows, Mac or Chromebook.

Does Pattern Keeper work on a Chromebook or Kindle Fire? Its pages don't mention Chromebooks, and it can't be installed on Kindle Fire without the Google Play Store. StitchThis runs in the browser on both.

Does Pattern Keeper sync across devices? Not automatically. You export progress on one device and import it on the other each time. StitchThis syncs every stitch through your account.

How do I back up Pattern Keeper? Export your progress in the app and keep the file somewhere safe; no cloud backup is documented. In StitchThis, your charts and progress live in your account.

Is Pattern Keeper free? No. It has a one-month free trial, then costs about $9 once. StitchThis is free for 2 imported charts at a time, with no time limit.

What is the best Pattern Keeper alternative for iPad? StitchThis runs in Safari on iPad with Apple Pencil support and syncs with your phone and computer. Markup R-XP is an option if your charts are scans or photos.

One place for the whole hobby, on whatever's in your hand

Pattern Keeper tracks charts on Android. StitchThis is the whole hobby in one account: patterns you buy, make or import; an editor to fix them; a tracker that follows you from iPad to laptop to phone; your floss stash and shopping list; and a community of stitchers. Start free with StitchThis, import the chart you're stitching now, and pick it up on any device tonight.