Artkive vs Scribble: Which Makes the Best Kids Art Book?
- Sep 16, 2025
- 5 min read
You finally sit down to sort through the art your child brought home this year, and the pile is twice what you expected. There's the tissue-paper butterfly from February, a watercolor family portrait, a handful of painted rocks, and at least a dozen drawings you can't bring yourself to part with. Sound familiar?
Services like Artkive and Scribble exist for exactly this moment. Both companies specialize in turning kids art into a beautiful artwork book that lets you hold onto the memories without holding onto every physical piece. Scribble offers a DIY, hands-on approach, while Artkive provides a concierge, white-glove service with their Artkive Box.
In this Artkive vs. Scribble comparison, we'll walk through each company's services, pricing, and what parents are actually saying in their reviews. By the end, you'll have what you need to decide which one fits your family's needs, style, and budget.
Scribble: A Creative, DIY Approach to Kids Art Books
If you enjoy a hands-on project and want more control over how your child's artwork is preserved, Scribble might be for you. Scribble is a DIY platform where you can upload, design, and customize art books filled with your little one's creations.
With Scribble, there's no waiting for a shipping kit or relying on someone else to arrange your book. You scan or photograph the kids artwork yourself, upload it onto their platform, and start building your own layouts. For creative parents or families watching their budget, it's a solid choice.
Key Features of Scribble:
Creative Control from Start to Finish: With Scribble art books, you capture and upload on your own timetable. Their editor removes the background, and you select your preferred colored background for each piece.
Custom Gift Wrap: Beyond photo books, Scribble lets you turn your kid's art into custom wrapping paper. A unique way to personalize gifts for family or special occasions.
Digital Books: Scribble doesn't offer photo storage, but it does include a free digital copy of the art book you create. Access to the digital book can be private or public.
Personalized Pages: Parents can choose backgrounds, adjust image orientation, and tweak image color and brightness. You can also add text to photo pages or include text-only pages.
Some Considerations Using Scribble DIY
Inconsistent Image Quality: Because you photograph the art yourself, the final image quality depends on your lighting, angles, and setup. Scribble's editor can remove backgrounds, but it can't correct issues with the original photo.
Time and Labor Intensive: DIY means you do the heavy lifting. This may not suit busy parents, anyone less comfortable with technology, or families looking for consistent, professional results.
US Orders Only: At this time, Scribble does not ship internationally.
Pricing for A Scribble Art Book
8.5" x 8.5" book - $49.99 | 8.5" x 11" book - $59.99 |
Each book starts with 24 pages, and additional pages are $0.40 each (up to 200 pages).
What Parents Say About Scribble
Parents who have reviewed Scribble generally find the platform intuitive and user-friendly. The background-removal automation simplifies the process, so you don't need to be a professional to make your kid's art stand out. Reviewers praise the overall print quality and vibrant pages. Thanks to its flexible design tools, parents appreciate that they can craft a custom children's art book that mirrors their child's creative story.
Some users note inconsistent image quality and mild disappointment that the site mainly targets younger kids' art books. If you enjoy the process and want a personal touch, Scribble gives you the tools to create a unique keepsake your way.
Artkive: The Concierge Kids' Art Box
If you're short on time or just want someone else to handle the work, Artkive is built for you. Unlike DIY options, Artkive takes care of everything that comes with transforming your piles of kids art into a professional memory book.
Artkive mails you a prepaid kit to pack up your child's artwork with no fuss. Their team then photographs, edits, and designs a beautifully bound book or custom mosaic. You review the layout, approve it for print, and Artkive handles everything else with expert care.
Key Features of the Artkive Process:
Art Books and Framed Mosaics: Artkive offers both kids art books and framed mosaic prints. Mosaics come in two sizes (26"x26" and 14"x14") with white frames and matting. A beautiful artwork display to liven up your home or workspace.
Free Cloud Storage: Along with your book, Artkive provides 90 days of free cloud access to your digitized kids artwork. Use this digital access to download images, reorder your book, or create personalized gifts for loved ones.
Personalize Your Book: Artkive's book-builder lets you add titles, make minor image edits, choose your cover image, adjust orientation, and add image labels.
For Art of All Ages: While Artkive specializes in art books for kids, their books aren't limited to young children's artwork. Want to celebrate your teen's first gallery show or showcase your adult child's architecture-school designs? Artkive can handle that too.
International Shipping: Unlike many competitors, Artkive offers its services internationally.
Some Things To Keep In Mind With Artkive
Longer Turnaround Time: The average processing time is 6–9 weeks from the time you order your Artkive Box to the time you receive your book. This may not be ideal if quick turnaround is a priority.
A Premium Investment: Because Artkive's professional team handles photography, editing, and design, the service costs more than DIY. What you're paying for is expertise, convenience, and quality. It's an investment that saves you time and gives you back space while returning a polished, lasting product.
Clean, White Backgrounds: Artkive books use a clean, white background so your kid's art is the star of every page. You can request colored backgrounds for a small extra fee.
Pricing for an Artkive Book
8" x 8" book - $75 | 8.5" x 11" book - $75 |
Each book starts with a minimum of 25 pieces and can hold up to 350 pieces. Additional pieces are $2–$3 per piece (the per-page cost decreases after 50 pieces).
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What Parents Say About Artkive
Artkive reviews consistently highlight the premium quality of the finished product. One repeat customer put it this way: "I have ordered 20 books, and I am working on my 21st now… Every time I engage with Artkive, the team is swift, precise, and seamless." Parents also appreciate how simple the process is, especially when time is short.
The most common considerations are the price and the wait time, since each book is custom-made and takes several weeks. But parents frequently say the product's finish and the memories it preserves make it worth the investment. As one mom shared: "The books are worth every penny. The photos of these child drawings are just so clear… like looking at the real thing."
For a deeper look at what families are saying, check out the full Artkive reviews roundup.
Two Great Options, One Meaningful Goal
Both Artkive and Scribble offer thoughtful, creative solutions for preserving kids artwork, and that's great news for parents.
If you love rolling up your sleeves and being hands-on, Scribble is an excellent option. For a premium experience that takes the work off your plate, Artkive's concierge service is the stronger fit.
No matter which route you take, you're doing something meaningful: turning your child's creativity into a lasting treasure. And if you have greeting cards, wedding cards, or printed photos piling up alongside the artwork, Artkive's sister brands Cardkive and Photokive offer the same white-glove treatment for those keepsakes, too.
If today feels like the day to let someone handle that growing collection of kids arts and crafts, get your Artkive Box below.
