Comparing Artkive vs. Doodle Nest for Kids’ Art Books
- May 12, 2025
- 8 min read
No matter where you live, parents all deal with the same challenge: keeping up with all the art their kids make. We want to save every squiggle, brush stroke, and ball of clay, but oh, how quickly it all collects. Before you know it, those precious kids' drawings and paintings become precious piles that only ever see the inside of a box. The good news? Art books for kids exist to solve exactly this problem.
In this Artkive vs. Doodle Nest post, we'll look at two standout companies that turn your child's artwork into beautiful keepsake books. We'll compare what each company offers and see how they stack up on price, digital access, customization, and more. Wherever you are in the world, you'll come away knowing which option is best for transforming your kids' artwork into a lasting heirloom.
Doodle Nest: A Bespoke Way to Archive Kids' Art
Based in the UK, Doodle Nest specializes in turning your child's artwork into tailored art books, using high-end design and print quality. Many people praise Doodle Nest as a chic, modern solution for saving kids' art.
Key Features of Doodle Nest for UK Residents
A Full-Service Experience: Doodle Nest offers concierge, hands-off service. Upon purchase, UK residents will be sent a "Doodle Nest" box that you will pack with your original kids' art pieces to send in. Their team professionally photographs and edits each piece to ensure colors pop and every detail shines. You'll get a digital proof to review and approve before going to print.
High-Quality Art Books: Doodle Nest's signature product is a premium 30x30 cm hardcover art book. Each book is custom-designed and printed on premium matte paper. Extra copies are available at a discounted rate.
Doodle Nest Makes Custom Wall Art: In addition to books, Doodle Nest can turn your child's creations into framed art collages. The collage comes in a ready-to-hang custom white box frame. Prices start at £295.00 for 12 pieces and go up to 30 pieces.
Unique Extras: Doodle Nest can also turn your kid's art into greeting cards or gift tags.
Things to Note if You Are Considering Doodle Nest:
A Premium Price Point: Books start at £195 for 25 pieces (roughly $250 USD). If you have more than 25 pieces, the price increases on a sliding scale every 10 pieces. This price does include the £39 shipping deposit, but for some, this is still a significant investment.
Art Book Customization: Doodle Nest's process is hands-on, so it doesn't allow you to directly control the book's layout. During the proof stage, you can share your preferences with the designers, and you'll be able to request up to three small changes. They do not include captions, but you can add them to the book at £1 per caption.
International Availability: Currently, the Doodle Nest prepaid box is only available to a UK customer base. If you live outside the UK, you'll need to email them to place an international order and coordinate shipping on your own.
Turnaround Time: Expect the process to take about 4–6 weeks from when Doodle Nest receives your box of art. This timeline may be longer during busy seasons (like right before Christmas) or if you need extra time to review the proof.
Digital Storage: Doodle Nest does not offer a long-term digital archive or cloud storage for your images. If having a digital backup of the images of your children's drawings is important, this may not be your best option.
Price for Doodle Nest Art Books
Prices start at £195 for up to 25 pieces of artwork (approx. $258 USD). This price includes the initial £39 deposit for the shipping kit, which covers the outbound box and return postage.
The cost increases according to how many images you include, up to 200, for example:
26–35 pieces is £235
36–45 pieces is £275
up to 200 pieces is £915
Should you want copies for other family members, duplicate books are 50% off the base price. Also, adding page captions costs £1 per caption.
Doodle Nest Reviews in Summary
Doodle Nest reviews from parents in the UK frequently highlight the gorgeous quality and emotional value the books bring. A lot of customers rave about seeing their kids' artwork beautifully photographed and turned into one treasured book.
Most critiques in Doodle Nest reviews focus on two things: the higher price and the weeks-long turnaround time for their concierge service. Even with those downsides, most people in the UK still feel the product is worth the cost and the wait. All in all, Doodle Nest is a strong solution for UK parents who want a hands-off, design-led experience. You'll pay a premium, but in return, you get a lovely art book or collage that delights parents and kids alike.
Artkive: A Trusted Partner for Kids' Art Keepsakes
Artkive started as a popular app for saving kids' artwork digitally, then expanded into a white-glove archival service. They specialize in transforming your kids' arts and crafts into a memory book or framed mosaic wall art. Artkive is a popular go-to among parents worldwide looking to turn kids' artwork into a memory book the whole family can cherish.
Key Features of The Artkive Box
White-Glove Service: Artkive's white-glove service helps parents save and organize their child's artwork. In the U.S., Artkive sends a crush-proof box, a resealable protective bag, and a prepaid return shipping label. If you live outside the U.S. (including the UK), you can ship as many pieces as you'd like in your own package. Once your artwork arrives, Artkive professionally photographs and retouches every piece to keep colors true and edges clean.
Memory Book Customization: Unlike Doodle Nest, Artkive gives you a book-building tool that puts you in the editor's seat. The Book Editing tool lets parents reorder pages, choose a custom cover, and add captions or text for each piece. You don't have to work with a designer or pay extra for layout tweaks — you make the changes yourself. Many parents appreciate this blend of professional photography and personal touch, especially when creating a children's art book as a gift.
Wall Art Mosaics: Artkive also offers collage-style wall art that can showcase 9 images (14" x 14") or 25 images (26" x 26"). The result is a clean, gallery-worthy piece that puts your kid's art front and center. It can be a great gift for grandparents or a statement piece in a child's bedroom. You can buy a mosaic on its own or add one alongside a book, and Artkive offers a discount when you choose both.
Free 90-Day Cloud Storage: Artkive recognizes that having digital copies of your children's artwork is equally important nowadays. Every order includes a digital artwork archive you can access from anywhere in the world, free for the first 90 days. Customers can extend their digital membership long-term, or add a USB drive to keep a permanent copy on hand.
International Considerations When Choosing Artkive
Send Your Own Box: Artkive does not send prepaid boxes internationally due to fluctuating shipping costs. However, Artkive International is popular with families all around the world, especially in the UK. Parents simply pack and ship the art in their own box; shipping costs will depend on size, weight, and local postage. Once Artkive receives your artwork, everything follows the same process, and your child's coffee-table-worthy memory book ships straight to you.
Longer Turnaround Time: Artkive’s typical timeline for US orders is 6–8 weeks. International orders generally take 8–12 weeks. So, if you're hoping to use Artkive for a holiday gift or a birthday present, you'll need to plan accordingly in advance.
Clean Design Aesthetic: Artkive's memory books use a clean layout that gives each piece its own page to shine. Doodle Nest, by contrast, combines some art pieces on a single page. This can produce creative groupings, but it means not every piece gets equal space. With Artkive, every drawing gets to be the star.
Artkive's Book Price
Pricing for customers shipping within the US starts at $75 for a 25-piece 11” x 8.5” hardcover book. Additional pages cost $2-$3 per piece (the per-piece cost decreases after 50 pieces).
International package options:
50-piece book - $193 (about £139)
100-piece book - $298 (about £210)
200-piece book - $488 (about £363)
You can view additional information about our international book packages here.
Artkive Reviews in Summary
In Artkive reviews, parents frequently mention feelings of relief and joy. Many feel relieved to finally have years of artwork preserved in one beautiful memory book. Others talk about the moment their child's eyes lit up flipping through a real book of their own artwork for the first time.
Here's how a few of them put it:
"The book is beautifully done and truly feels like a memory capsule of special school moments, art, and classwork. Seeing the work thoughtfully preserved and organized in one place is something really special." — Lisa B.
"As someone who struggles to keep clutter at bay, being able to send all of my child's artwork to Artkive helps us keep all the memories without all the random pieces of paper, cardboard, string, and such scattered around the house. My child loves helping me review each proof online and add captions about the included art pieces." — Caroline B.
Reviewers also consistently praise Artkive's customer service and the care their team puts into the process. Most agree the finished memory book feels both high-end and meaningful. In fact, plenty of families make an Artkive book every year, which says a lot about how much they trust the brand.
Which Option is Best for Families Outside the US and UK?
For turning kids' artwork into a keepsake book or framed collage, Artkive has a clear edge over Doodle Nest. Here's why Artkive is the more accessible choice for customers abroad.
International-Friendly Process
Artkive has processed tens of thousands of orders across the U.S., Canada, the UK, and beyond since its launch in 2012. They have become one of the most internationally known kids' art preservation services. While you supply the box, Artkive guides you step-by-step, with responsive customer support and dependable shipping.
By contrast, Doodle Nest is primarily limited to UK residents. International orders require special arrangements by email, and the site offers no transparent pricing or timelines.
Built-In Digital Archiving
Artkive includes 90-Days of free digital access to your child's artwork archive. You can view, download, and share high-resolution images from anywhere in the world. You can even opt for a USB drive or extend digital storage with a long-term subscription. Over 70% of Artkive users opt to keep a digital backup with either USB or cloud services.
Doodle Nest, however, does not offer digital backups as a standard feature. For international families who want to share artwork with relatives abroad, this can be a major drawback.
Ideal for Larger Collections
With Artkive, you can send up to 350 pieces in one memory book, and pricing scales efficiently with volume. For large collections, this is both more practical and more economical. For example, a 100-piece book with Artkive is £210 ($277 USD).
Doodle Nest charges based on tiered piece counts and becomes costly if you have more than 25–50 artworks to include. The same 100-piece children's art book would cost around $687 USD (£520) through Doodle Nest, and that price doesn't include the shipping of your finished book.
Choosing the Right Art Books for Kids
Both Doodle Nest and Artkive transform kids' artwork into treasures your family can revisit for years. Doodle Nest provides a boutique experience with gorgeous results, making it a top pick for UK parents who prefer a done-for-you approach. Artkive offers all of that plus digital archiving, self-service customization, and international shipping, making it a stronger overall choice for families looking for art books for kids that grow with their collection.
When deciding between Artkive vs. Doodle Nest, consider your desired customizations, budget, and how much artwork you have.
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