Soap Ledger vs Soapmaking Friend
Soapmaking Friend is a soap calculator with native iPhone and Android apps, a public recipe library, inventory, batches and costing. Soap Ledger is a web app (it works in a phone's browser) with a free calculator that needs no account and a Free plan that saves 10 recipes, where Soapmaking Friend's free tier saves only a couple. Soapmaking Friend is the better fit if you want an app from the app store or a community recipe library.
Side by side
| Feature | Soap Ledger | Soapmaking Friend |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free plan; Maker $5.99/month ($49 a year); Shop $19/month ($190 a year). 14-day trial of Shop, no card. | Free with ads; paid plan reported at $5.99/month or $39.99/year on its website, and $9.99/month or $59.99/year in the App Store listing |
| Account needed to calculate | No (website calculator) | Account needed to save recipes |
| Phone apps | Web app that works in a phone browser; no app-store app | Native iOS and Android apps, plus the web |
| Saving recipes | 10 on Free; unlimited on paid plans | Free tier reported at 1–2 saved recipes |
| Public recipe library | No | Yes |
| Batches, inventory, costing | Batches free (5 active); inventory and costing on Maker | Paid plan: batches, inventory, costing including labor and packaging, per-portion pricing |
| Where SAP values come from | A cited published source for each oil | Its own oil data |
| Labels, curing reminders, sales | Yes (curing free; sales on Shop) | Not listed in the sources we checked |
Soapmaking Friend information is from its public website, app-store listings and the other sources below, checked October 2026. It may have changed; please check Soapmaking Friend's site for current details. Soap Ledger's plans are on the pricing page.
Where Soapmaking Friend is better
- Native phone apps for iPhone and Android, from the app stores.
- A public recipe library to browse and start from.
- Shared roots with Brewer's Friend, a long-running app for home brewers, if you already use it.
Where Soap Ledger is different
- Calculate with no account at all, so nothing is lost before you sign up.
- The Free plan saves 10 recipes instead of a couple.
- Curing reminders, batch labels with QR codes, and (on Shop) sales import and recall tracing.
Which to choose
Choose Soapmaking Friend if a native phone app or a public recipe library matters most to you.
Choose Soap Ledger if you want more free saved recipes, sourced SAP values, or seller tools.
What we couldn't confirm
- Sources disagreed on Soapmaking Friend's price: its website sign-up page showed $5.99/month or $39.99/year, while the App Store listing showed $9.99/month or $59.99/year as in-app purchases. Both were seen in October 2026; check their site for today's price.
- The free saved-recipe limit is reported by users (it has changed over time), not stated on a page we could read.
Try Soap Ledger. The lye calculator is free with no account; the app's Free plan needs only an email.
Sources
- Soapmaking Friend (soapmakingfriend.com)
- Soapmaking Friend sign-up page
- Soapmaking Friend on the App Store
- Soapmaking Friend on Google Play
- Soap Making Forum thread on the free recipe limit
Written by Soap Ledger, so we're not neutral; we've tried to be fair and factual. Product names belong to their owners. If something here is wrong, tell us at feedback and we'll fix it.