Ktlyst is a web-based reference canvas for concept artists, illustrators, and visual creators. You gather references on one canvas — drag in images, GIFs, or video frames, or import a whole Pinterest board in one click — and Ktlyst explores new concept directions guided only by the references you chose (a feature called Catalyze). It runs in any modern browser on desktop and tablet, with cloud sync and a free plan.

What is the best PureRef alternative for iPad and tablet?

Ktlyst is a web-based reference board that runs in any browser — including Safari on iPad — with cloud sync so your boards follow you between desktop and tablet automatically. Unlike PureRef, which has no iOS or iPad app, Ktlyst is designed for cross-device creative workflows from the ground up. No installation needed.

Is there a PureRef that works on iPad?

PureRef does not have an official iOS or iPad app. Ktlyst fills that gap: it runs in any browser, syncs your reference boards to the cloud, and works on iPad, tablet, and desktop with the same canvas — so your references are always with you wherever you create.

How does Ktlyst compare to PureRef?

PureRef is a desktop-only overlay tool for keeping reference images visible while you paint or model in other apps. Ktlyst is a cloud-synced, browser-based alternative that adds: iPad and tablet support, Pinterest board import in one click, smart organisation with tagging and collections, freehand sketching overlaid on references, the ability to grab specific frames from videos and GIFs, and a concept-exploration layer (Catalyze) that explores new directions guided by your own references. No installation required — it works in any modern browser.

Do I need to learn prompts or any special tools?

No. You work the way you already do — gather references, sketch, note what you're after. Ktlyst handles the rest behind the scenes, so you stay focused on the vision, not on tooling.

Is this just an image generator?

No. Ktlyst is a reference-driven canvas for clarifying YOUR direction — built around how you already work, collecting references and browsing Pinterest. What it surfaces is an exploration of your own references, for you to take forward.

Can I bring in my Pinterest boards?

Yes. Connect Pinterest and pull an entire board onto a canvas in one move — every pin laid out and ready, instead of saving and re-uploading each one. (Free: 1 board · Pro: unlimited.)

Can I use videos or GIFs as references?

Yes. Drop an MP4, WebM, MOV, M4V, or OGV video — or a GIF — and a frame picker opens so you can scrub through and grab the exact frames you want. Only the frames you pick are saved as reference images; the source video or GIF never leaves your device. (Frame-by-frame GIF picking needs a recent browser; older ones add the first frame instead.)

Can I reuse the same character or element across projects?

Yes. Distil a group of references into one clean, typed element (a character, a costume, a prop), then save it to your Elements library. Drag it onto any canvas to reuse it, merge it with other elements, or paint it into a composition sketch — build it once, use it everywhere.

Can I correct a generated image?

Yes, with Redline (a Pro feature): draw your corrections in red straight on the image — arrows, circles, and handwritten notes — and Ktlyst applies them beside the original, non-destructively, so your original stays put.

Who owns what I create?

Ktlyst claims no ownership over your canvases or the directions you explore — they're yours to take forward into your own work. You're responsible for clearing any rights you need before using output commercially. (How copyright applies to generated images varies by country, so we don't make legal guarantees about that.)

Do you use my images or art to train AI?

No. Ktlyst never uses your uploads, canvases, or prompts to train AI models, and never sells them. Your references and prompts are sent to our AI providers only to generate or analyse images at your request. OpenAI does not use data submitted through its API to train its models; fal.ai processes your content under its own terms to run the generation.

Does it work on tablet?

Yes. Your canvas is cloud-synced, so you can collect on desktop and refine on tablet — or anywhere you work.

What devices and browsers does Ktlyst support?

Editing works on tablets and desktops (iPad, Windows, Mac) in recent versions of Chrome, Edge, Safari and Firefox. Phones get a view-only experience. Ktlyst runs in the browser and needs an internet connection.

Is there a free plan?

Yes — the free plan gives you 5 canvases (each with as many references as you like) and 15 Catalyze runs a month. No credit card required.

July 30, 2026

Best PureRef Alternative for iPad in 2026: A Reference Board Built for Tablet Artists

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If you work on an iPad, you've probably already run into the same wall every concept artist hits eventually: PureRef doesn't run on iPad. There's no official app, no browser workaround that feels right, and no real fix beyond the same handful of patched-together solutions — AirDropping screenshots into Photos, keeping a second reference document in Procreate, or just squinting at a phone propped against your monitor.

None of that is really a workflow. It's a workaround for a workflow that was never designed to leave the desktop.

This isn't a knock on PureRef — it's a free, focused tool that a huge number of artists rely on for exactly what it does well: pinning images to a canvas so you can glance at them while you paint. But "glancing at a canvas" gets a lot harder to pull off when your painting app is the iPad, and your reference tool lives somewhere else entirely.

Why PureRef Still Doesn't Work on iPad

PureRef is built on desktop frameworks that don't have an iPadOS build, and its developer has been clear that a native tablet version isn't a near-term priority. That's left a gap that a handful of newer apps — VizRef, DarkRef, Kosmik, and others — have tried to fill, each with a different angle: some focus on Procreate-adjacent workflows, some add cloud sync, some add tagging and search on top of a PureRef-style canvas.

If you're evaluating a PureRef alternative for iPad, it's worth being specific about what you actually need, because "runs on iPad" isn't the whole story.

What to look for in a PureRef alternative for iPad

A few things matter more than they might seem at first:

True cross-device sync, not just an export/import step. You want the same board whether you open it on iPad, on your laptop at your desk, or from a browser tab on someone else's machine.
A canvas that works with touch, not a desktop layout squeezed onto a smaller screen. Dragging, grouping, and arranging references needs to feel native to a tablet, not adapted to one.
Somewhere your references can go, beyond just sitting there. PureRef's canvas is the finish line — you collect, you look, you paint. An increasing number of artists want a next step: some way to react to what they've gathered before committing to a direction.

That third point is where Ktlyst approaches things differently, and it's worth being upfront about what that means and doesn't mean.

How Ktlyst Works as a Reference Board on iPad

Ktlyst is a cloud-synced reference board for concept artists, and it runs the same canvas on iPad, tablet, and any modern browser — no separate app to install, no export step to keep boards in sync. You start collecting on your desktop, pick up the same board on your iPad on the train, and everything is exactly where you left it.

Gather from anywhere, including Pinterest. Drag in images, GIFs, or grab frames from a video, and if you already curate boards on Pinterest, you can pull an entire board into Ktlyst in one move — every pin laid out on the canvas, ready to work with. No re-uploading, no losing the thread of a board you've been building for months.

Sections keep a sprawling board readable. Instead of one infinite canvas that turns into a scroll marathon (a common complaint artists have about PureRef once a board gets past a few hundred images), Ktlyst lets you group references into sections — one mood, one idea, one location — so a big board stays navigable instead of becoming a wall of thumbnails.

Auto essence extraction surfaces what a section is actually about. Drop a handful of references into a section and Ktlyst automatically reads the common thread running through them — the palette, the mood, the recurring shapes — without you having to tag or caption anything by hand.

Catalyze gives you something to react to. This is the part that goes beyond what a pure reference board does, so it's worth being precise: Catalyze takes the references you've gathered and, in one click, explores a new concept direction from them. It's not generating a finished piece and it's not replacing the decisions that make something yours — it's a fast way to see one possible direction so you have something concrete to react to, adjust, or discard. The free plan includes 15 Catalyze runs a month, which is plenty to try without committing to anything.

A floating reference window for when you're actually painting. Pop your board (or just the parts you need) into an always-on-top window that sits over Procreate, your 3D viewport, or whatever else you're working in — the same "reference stays visible while I paint" habit PureRef users already have, just synced across devices.

Ktlyst vs. PureRef vs. Eagle, Specifically for Tablet Work

	Ktlyst	PureRef	Eagle
Runs on iPad / tablet	Yes	No	Limited
Cloud sync across devices	Yes	No	Yes
Freeform canvas	Yes	Yes	No (library view)
Reads reference "essence" automatically	Yes	No	No
Pinterest import	Yes	No	No
Explores a concept direction from references	Yes	No	No

PureRef and Eagle both do real jobs well — PureRef for fast canvas collage, Eagle for file management and tagging at scale. Ktlyst isn't trying to out-file-manage Eagle or out-canvas PureRef; it's trying to be the version of a reference board that assumes you'll be switching between a laptop, a tablet, and a browser in the same afternoon, and that you might want to do more with a board than just look at it.

Getting Started on iPad

There's nothing to install. Open Ktlyst in Safari (or any browser) on your iPad, sign in, and your canvas is there — the free plan includes five canvases, 15 Catalyze runs a month, and one Pinterest board import, which is enough to test whether the workflow fits before you commit to anything.

You Stay the Artist

It's worth repeating, because it's easy for anything with "AI" attached to it to get read as more automated than it is: Ktlyst doesn't decide what your work should look like, and it isn't trying to replace the part of the process where you look at a board of references and figure out what you're actually after. It gathers what you've already collected, helps you see it more clearly, and — if you want it — gives you one direction to react to. The references are yours, the read on them is yours, and the final call on where a piece goes is always yours. Ktlyst just helps you see where it's headed a little sooner, whether you're at your desk or working from an iPad on the couch.

Ready to see it for yourself? Try Ktlyst free → — five canvases, 15 Catalyze runs a month, and one Pinterest board import, no credit card and no prompts to write.