The iPad has a creativity app problem: there are too many good ones. Procreate dominates illustration at $12.99, a one-time purchase that has displaced Adobe for thousands of professional artists. LumaFusion runs video editing at $29.99 and matches features that once required a desktop. Notion, GoodNotes 5, and Affinity Publisher 2 round out a suite that makes the case for the iPad as a legitimate production device, not a consumption one.
The more interesting story is not the apps themselves but the pricing shift. Most of the best options are paid, one-time purchases. The era of subscription-everything has not fully captured this category, and that gap is closing. Developers are watching Adobe's move to subscriptions on iPad and deciding whether to follow or hold the line on perpetual licenses.
Read the full TechCrunch piece for the complete list and specific use-case breakdowns per app. The ranking methodology and the editors' notes on which apps work best for professionals versus hobbyists are worth the time.
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