Pattern Keeper and Markup R-XP compared, and where Ruta fits

At a glance

Pattern Keeper

Pattern Keeper is made by Datadromeda AB in Sweden and has been on Google Play since 2019. Its own pages describe it as a PDF reader for cross-stitch patterns: the chart reads as one continuous pattern across page breaks, and you see the thread number of a symbol without flipping back to the key.

• Devices. Android phones and tablets. Its website says an iOS version is in early development, with no date given.
• Patterns. PDF charts made in pattern software; its website lists the designers whose charts it supports. Scans and photos of paper charts open with fewer features, without symbol search or thread numbers.
• Marking. Tap or drag in any direction, or mark a whole 10 by 10 square. Finished stitches take the thread colour.
• Special stitches. Its FAQ says backstitch is not supported yet. Its Google Play notes of October 2025 mention tentative support for fractional stitches.
• Tools. Symbol search, parking with the corner of the stitch, diagonal guide lines, and the number of stitches left for each colour.
• Between devices. No automatic sync. You export your progress as a PDF and import it on the other device.
• Price. Free for one month with every feature, then a one-time purchase of about $9.
• Language. English.

Markup R-XP

Markup R-XP is made by Kewin Lawson Smith Limited. Version 2, a rebuild of the app, came out in 2026. It turns a PDF, an image or a photo of a paper chart into a chart you mark square by square.

• Devices. iPhone and iPad with iOS 16 or later, and Android phones and tablets. A purchase covers one platform; using both needs a separate purchase.
• Patterns. PDF charts from any designer, images, and photos of paper charts. A setup guide finds the grid. PDFs made in pattern software get their symbols and colours on their own; for scans and photos you set up the symbols yourself.
• Marking. Tap or drag across grid squares, with undo and redo, a lock against clearing marks by accident, and marking of a whole page or symbol at once.
• Special stitches. You draw backstitch, part stitches and French knots on up to five drawing layers. They do not count in the stitch totals.
• Tools. Symbol highlight, parking, rulers, centre lines and guide bars, a ring on your last stitch, statistics with your pace and a finish-date forecast, a calendar, daily targets, notes and a photo diary.
• Stitch-alongs. Replace a page when the next part comes out, and your marks stay.
• Between devices. No automatic sync. You export a backup file and restore it on the other device.
• Price. Free for 14 days from your first project, then Yearly Access at $19.99 a year on the US App Store. The App Store also lists a $9.99 purchase called Markup R-XP Full.
• Languages. English and 23 more on the App Store.

What Ruta does like both

• A pattern printed over several pages opens as one chart, with the thread key beside it.
• Tap or swipe to mark stitches, and undo if you slip.
• Highlight the thread in your needle and fade the rest; Find next jumps to its next spot.
• Parking, a working area with rulers and centre lines, and progress numbers for each thread and for the whole chart.
• Like Markup R-XP, Ruta works on iPhone, iPad and Android, and keeps a calendar of your stitching days, daily goals, notes and progress photos for every project.

What Ruta adds

• Backstitch in the chart. Backstitch is drawn on the chart in its own thread colour, and you mark each line as you finish it, just like your crosses. Half, quarter, three-quarter and petite stitches, French knots, beads and blended threads sit in the same chart.
• Chart files. XSD, OXS and PAT files, Ruta files and patterns packed in a ZIP open as well as PDFs.
• Progress that follows you. Sign in with Apple, Google or email, and your charts and progress stay up to date between your phone and tablet on their own. There is nothing to export or restore.
• A chart editor. Change colours, fix stitches, and move, turn or mirror parts of the chart. When the next part of a SAL comes out, add it to the chart you already stitch.
• Threads to buy. Set your fabric and the thread list shows skeins and length for every colour, with the spare you choose. Thread match finds matching colours in another brand.
• Your Pattern Keeper progress. Export your progress from Pattern Keeper as a PDF and import it in Ruta: the stitches you finished are marked in Ruta too.

Where Ruta works differently: a PDF that is only a picture or a scan opens in Ruta as pages you mark with a highlighter, a line tool and an eraser, not as a chart you mark square by square. Markup R-XP builds a chart from scans and photos once you set up the symbols.

Ruta’s five designer charts are free in full, and you can import up to three of your own patterns to see how Ruta reads them. Ruta Pro is $2.99 a month or $19.99 a year, each with a 14-day free trial, or $49.99 once.

Which one suits you

• Pattern Keeper suits you if you stitch on Android, your PDFs come from designers it supports, and a one-time price matters to you.
• Markup R-XP suits you if you want the same app on iPhone, iPad and Android, often start from scans or photos of paper charts, and like detailed statistics.
• Ruta suits you if you want backstitch and part stitches marked in the chart, progress that follows you between devices on its own, chart files such as XSD, or an editor to change the chart.

Download Ruta on the App Store for iPhone and iPad, or get it on Google Play for Android.

Questions

Is Pattern Keeper available for iPhone or iPad?

As of November 2026, Pattern Keeper is made for Android phones and tablets, and its website says an iOS version is in early development. Markup R-XP and Ruta both work on iPhone, iPad and Android.

Which of these apps lets me mark backstitch?

Pattern Keeper’s FAQ says backstitch is not supported yet. In Markup R-XP you draw backstitch yourself on a drawing layer, and it is not counted in the statistics. In Ruta, backstitch is part of the chart in its own thread colour, and you mark each line as you finish it.

Do these apps keep my progress in step between devices?

Pattern Keeper and Markup R-XP move a project by exporting a file on one device and importing or restoring it on the other. Ruta keeps your charts and progress up to date between your devices on its own while you are signed in.

Can I move a half-finished project from Pattern Keeper to Ruta?

Yes. Export your progress from Pattern Keeper as a PDF and import that PDF in Ruta. The stitches you finished are marked in Ruta too, and you carry on from where you stopped.

What do they cost?

As of November 2026, Pattern Keeper is free for a month, then a one-time purchase of about $9. Markup R-XP is free for 14 days, then $19.99 a year on the US App Store, which also lists a $9.99 purchase called Markup R-XP Full. Ruta’s five designer charts are free in full; Ruta Pro is $2.99 a month or $19.99 a year with a 14-day free trial, or $49.99 once.

Something here is out of date. What now?

Write to support@rutastitch.com and we will correct it. More about Ruta is on the home page and in A Pattern Keeper alternative for iPhone and iPad.