Drawpile vs Limner
Drawpile
drawpile.net
Limner
limnerart.comSide by side
| Figure | Drawpile | Limner |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | Yes |
| Open source | Yes | — |
| Web | Yes | — |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | — |
| iOS | Yes | Yes |
| Android | Yes | — |
| API | Yes | — |
| Self-hosted | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 2 | 6 |
| Spec score · Digital Painting Software | 8.9 (#5) | 8.4 (#9) |
| Animation | Animation tools include a timeline and onion skins, and users can animate collaboratively on a shared canvas. | Animation mode supports cel timelines, onion skinning, keyframed cameras, motion curves, parenting, audio, and GIF, APNG, MP4, PSD, and PNG-sequence output. |
| Brushes | Drawpile includes over 200 built-in brushes, multiple brush engines, a brush editor and a stroke stabilizer. | Brush Studio lets users create brushes and exchange Photoshop ABR files and Limner LBRUSH presets. |
| Layers | Layer groups, blend modes, alpha preservation, clipping groups, masks and alpha lock are supported. | It includes layers, masks, and live adjustments. |
| Self-hosting | Anyone can run a Drawpile server; downloadable server binaries and an all-in-one Docker setup are provided. | The product pages describe desktop and iPad applications and do not provide a self-hosted deployment option. |
| Support | Support is available through Discord, IRC web chat, Matrix, GitHub issues and the documentation. | Support is provided by email for bugs, feature requests, keys, billing, and questions, and the studio says every message is read by the developer. |
| Timelapse | Desktop and mobile builds can turn recorded drawing commands into timelapse video, with optional canvas cropping. | Limner records drawing sessions inside the document and exports timelapse video with crops and presets up to 4K. |
| What it does | Drawpile lets multiple people draw, paint, sketch or animate together on one shared canvas in real time. | Limner is a creative application combining raster illustration, vector design, animation, and comic or manga workspaces. |
| Windows requirements | The download page lists support for Windows 7, 8, 8.1, 10 and 11, with separate ARM and 32-bit packages. | Windows support requires Windows 10 or 11 64-bit, a dual-core CPU, 4 GB RAM, and a GPU with Direct3D 12 or Vulkan support. |
Plans
Limner
- Free tierFree
- iPad betaFree
- iPad betaFree
- Limner FreeFree
- Limner PlusFree
- Limner PlusPriced on request
In their own words
Drawpile
Drawpile is a drawing, painting, sketching and animation app for people working together on one canvas, with offline use also available. It runs on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and the web; on iPhone and iPad, the browser version works, but there is no native iOS app. Its toolkit includes more than 200 built-in brushes, several brush engines, a brush editor and stroke stabilization. Layers and layer groups support blend modes, alpha preserve, clipping groups, masking and alpha lock. Animation tools include a timeline and onion skins. Canvases can be saved as OpenRaster or PSD, and images can be pasted from files or other programs. Users can join official community servers without arranging their own infrastructure, or operate a server themselves. External authentication can let users access potentially untrusted third-party servers without sharing their password with those servers. Drawpile says it does not transfer information to other networked systems unless a user or operator specifically requests it. The free plan costs nothing.
Limner
Limner is an app for painting, illustration, vector work, animation, and comics, with desktop versions for Windows and macOS and support for iPadOS. Drawing tools include pressure and tilt input, stroke stabilization, custom brushes, and Photoshop ABR brush importing. Layers, masks, and live adjustments support image editing. Animation mode provides frame-by-frame work with onion skin and exports to GIF, MP4, or numbered PNG sequences. The app can record drawing sessions and export timelapse videos up to 4K; the manual also lists PSD import and SVG export. The download page specifies Windows 10 or 11 64-bit, macOS 13 Ventura or later, and iPadOS 16 or later. Windows minimum requirements include a dual-core CPU, 4 GB RAM, and a GPU with a working Direct3D 12 or Vulkan driver. The desktop free tier needs no account or key, while vector, animation, and book projects on desktop are Limner Plus features. All features are unlocked during the iPad beta. Limner says artwork, documents, and settings stay on the device, and that the app has no analytics, telemetry, or crash reporting. The license permits personal and commercial creative work.