Best Pixel Art Software in 2026
Updated
In short: Pixelorama is ranked #1 of 69 as of 4 October 2026, ahead of Pixelc and Pixilart. The best-ranked option with a free plan is Pixelc. The lowest first paid tier on this page is Pixilart at $4.99/mo.
Pixel art work can range from individual sprites to animated sequences and tilemaps, so the tools you need depend on what you make. Compared on animation timelines, onion skinning, indexed color tools, tilemap tools and sprite-sheet export, these editors offer practical points of comparison across a workflow. Export formats and supported platforms help you assess fit, while free plans and paid-from prices add cost context. Pixelorama, Pixelc and Pixel Studio are among the options, alongside PixelWall and Pro Motion NG. Consider whether you work frame by frame, build tile-based assets, or need sprite sheets, then compare the listed tools and export support with your plans.
69 pixel art software ranked on what their makers publish — plans and prices, free tiers, platforms and the facts on their own pages.
69ranked
9free plans on this page
$4.99/molowest paid tier
4 Oct 2026last checked
Input list Pixel Art Software 25 channels on this page · 138 of 200 spec lines stated by the makers
Ch Tool Free planPaid fromAnimation timelineIndexed color toolsSprite-sheet exportOnion skinningTilemap toolsSupported platforms Spec sheet Score
01 Pixelorama Free planYesPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsYesSprite-sheet exportYesOnion skinningYesTilemap toolsYesSupported platformsWindows, Linux, macOS, Android, Web 7/8spec lines stated 7.8
02 Pixelc Free planYesPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsYesSprite-sheet exportYesOnion skinningYesTilemap toolsYesSupported platformsweb, android, desktop 7/8spec lines stated 7.7
03 Pixilart Free planYesPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsYesSprite-sheet exportYesOnion skinningYesTilemap toolsnot statedSupported platformsweb, iOS, Android 6/8spec lines stated 7.6
04 Pixel Studio Free planYesPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsYesSprite-sheet exportYesOnion skinningYesTilemap toolsnot statedSupported platformsWindows, macOS, iOS, Android 6/8spec lines stated 7.5
05 PixelWall Free planYesPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsYesSprite-sheet exportYesOnion skinningYesTilemap toolsYesSupported platformsweb, macOS, Windows, Linux 7/8spec lines stated 7.5
06 Pro Motion NG Free planYesPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsYesSprite-sheet exportYesOnion skinningYesTilemap toolsYesSupported platformsWindows, macOS via Wine, Linux via Wine 7/8spec lines stated 7.5
07 LibreSprite Free planYesPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsYesSprite-sheet exportYesOnion skinningYesTilemap toolsnot statedSupported platformsWindows, macOS, Linux, Android 6/8spec lines stated 7.4
08 Manabit Free planYesPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsYesSprite-sheet exportYesOnion skinningnot statedTilemap toolsYesSupported platformsweb, windows, ios, android 6/8spec lines stated 7.4
09 PixelPen Free planYesPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelinenot statedIndexed color toolsnot statedSprite-sheet exportnot statedOnion skinningnot statedTilemap toolsnot statedSupported platformsWindows, macOS, Linux, Web, Android 2/8spec lines stated 7.4
10 Aseprite Free planNoPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsYesSprite-sheet exportYesOnion skinningYesTilemap toolsYesSupported platformsWindows, macOS, Ubuntu Linux 7/8spec lines stated 7.1
11 Pix2D Free planYesPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsnot statedSprite-sheet exportYesOnion skinningYesTilemap toolsnot statedSupported platformsweb, Windows, macOS, Linux, Android 5/8spec lines stated 6.6
12 void◆sprite Free planYesPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsYesSprite-sheet exportnot statedOnion skinningnot statedTilemap toolsYesSupported platformsHTML5, Windows, macOS, Linux, Android 5/8spec lines stated 6.6
13 PixSplat Free planYesPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsYesSprite-sheet exportYesOnion skinningYesTilemap toolsnot statedSupported platformsweb, Windows, macOS, Linux 6/8spec lines stated 6.5
14 Resprite Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsNoSprite-sheet exportYesOnion skinningYesTilemap toolsYesSupported platformsiOS/iPadOS, Android, Windows, macOS 6/8spec lines stated 6.5
15 Tesserra Free planYesPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsYesSprite-sheet exportYesOnion skinningYesTilemap toolsnot statedSupported platformsWindows, macOS, Linux, Android 6/8spec lines stated 6.5
16 Fizzy Free planYesPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelinenot statedIndexed color toolsYesSprite-sheet exportYesOnion skinningnot statedTilemap toolsNoSupported platformsweb, Windows, macOS, Linux 5/8spec lines stated 6.4
17 Pix8 Free plannot statedPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsYesSprite-sheet exportYesOnion skinningYesTilemap toolsnot statedSupported platformsweb, Windows, macOS, Linux 5/8spec lines stated 6.4
18 Picotap Free planYesPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelinenot statedIndexed color toolsYesSprite-sheet exportnot statedOnion skinningnot statedTilemap toolsnot statedSupported platformsiOS, Android, macOS, Web 3/8spec lines stated 6.3
19 ZIDE Free planYesPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsYesSprite-sheet exportYesOnion skinningnot statedTilemap toolsnot statedSupported platformsWindows, macOS, Linux 5/8spec lines stated 6.2
20 Besprited Free planYesPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsnot statedSprite-sheet exportnot statedOnion skinningYesTilemap toolsnot statedSupported platformsLinux, macOS, Windows 4/8spec lines stated 6.1
21 Hexcalibur Free planYesPaid from$5/moAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsYesSprite-sheet exportYesOnion skinningYesTilemap toolsYesSupported platformsWeb browser on Windows, macOS, Linux, and Chromebook 8/8spec lines stated 6.1
22 Piskel Free planYesPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelinenot statedIndexed color toolsnot statedSprite-sheet exportnot statedOnion skinningnot statedTilemap toolsnot statedSupported platformsnot stated 1/8spec lines stated 6.1
23 Pixel Composer Free planNoPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsYesSprite-sheet exportYesOnion skinningYesTilemap toolsnot statedSupported platformsWindows, macOS, Linux 6/8spec lines stated 6.1
24 Pixen Free planYesPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsYesSprite-sheet exportYesOnion skinningYesTilemap toolsnot statedSupported platformsmacOS, iOS 6/8spec lines stated 6.1
25 Stipple Effect Free planNoPaid fromnot statedAnimation timelineYesIndexed color toolsYesSprite-sheet exportYesOnion skinningYesTilemap toolsnot statedSupported platformsWindows, macOS, Linux 6/8spec lines stated 6.1
Compare all 25 in a table
| # | Tool | Score | Free plan | From | Free plan | Paid from | Animation timeline | Indexed color tools |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pixelorama | 7.8 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Yes | Yes |
| 2 | Pixelc | 7.7 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Yes | Yes |
| 3 | Pixilart | 7.6 | Free plan | $4.99/mo | Yes | — | Yes | Yes |
| 4 | Pixel Studio | 7.5 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Yes | Yes |
| 5 | PixelWall | 7.5 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Yes | Yes |
| 6 | Pro Motion NG | 7.5 | Free plan | $10/mo | Yes | — | Yes | Yes |
| 7 | LibreSprite | 7.4 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Yes | Yes |
| 8 | Manabit | 7.4 | No | $5.99/mo | Yes | — | Yes | Yes |
| 9 | PixelPen | 7.4 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | — | — |
| 10 | Aseprite | 7.1 | No | $19.99/mo | No | — | Yes | Yes |
| 11 | Pix2D | 6.6 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | Yes | — |
| 12 | void◆sprite | 6.6 | No | — | Yes | — | Yes | Yes |
| 13 | PixSplat | 6.5 | No | — | Yes | — | Yes | Yes |
| 14 | Resprite | 6.5 | No | — | — | — | Yes | No |
| 15 | Tesserra | 6.5 | No | — | Yes | — | Yes | Yes |
| 16 | Fizzy | 6.4 | No | — | Yes | — | — | Yes |
| 17 | Pix8 | 6.4 | No | — | — | — | Yes | Yes |
| 18 | Picotap | 6.3 | No | — | Yes | — | — | Yes |
| 19 | ZIDE | 6.2 | No | — | Yes | — | Yes | Yes |
| 20 | Besprited | 6.1 | No | — | Yes | — | Yes | — |
| 21 | Hexcalibur | 6.1 | No | — | Yes | 5 /mo | Yes | Yes |
| 22 | Piskel | 6.1 | No | — | Yes | — | — | — |
| 23 | Pixel Composer | 6.1 | No | — | No | — | Yes | Yes |
| 24 | Pixen | 6.1 | No | — | Yes | — | Yes | Yes |
| 25 | Stipple Effect | 6.1 | No | — | No | — | Yes | Yes |
Is your tool on this list?
Numbered spots on this list can be sponsored. They are labelled, and the editorial order and scores never change for payment.
Questions about this list
Which pixel art software is ranked first on Specifiction?
Pixelorama is ranked #1 of 69 with a score of 7.8. Pixelc is second and Pixilart third.
How many of these have a free plan?
9 of the 25 on this page publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
Which is the cheapest paid option?
On this page, Pixilart has the lowest first paid tier we found: $4.99/mo.
How is this list ranked?
Ranked on what each maker publishes, the fullest spec sheet first: how deeply the product is documented, the platforms it runs on, a free tier or trial to test it, and its standing. Paid placements never change a rank.
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