DialKit
Focus: ui tuning, developer tools and design engineering. Shares animation with Piskel. A template, not a web app. Rated 4.4 (Piskel: 4.6).
TemplateFreeWeb
4.4Visit
Web App
Piskel
A free, open-source editor for pixel art and animated sprites.
Rating
4.6 / 5
Pricing
Free
Difficulty
Beginner
Works on
Web, Windows, macOS
Built with love by Shushant Lakhyani. Building bestproductivityresources.com
What is Piskel?
Piskel is a free online editor for pixel art and animated sprites. A live preview shows your animation in real time as you draw, and you can change the frame delay on the fly. Finished work can be exported as animated GIFs for sharing, PNG files or spritesheet PNG and ZIP files for bigger projects. It runs in a desktop web browser, and free desktop and offline apps are offered for Windows, macOS and Linux. All of the code is open source.
Pros: what Piskel does well
- Live animation preview while you draw
- Exports GIFs and spritesheets
- Works in the browser or as a desktop app
Cons: where it falls short
- Best used on a desktop in landscape
- Built for pixel art, not general illustration
Who Piskel is for
Game makers and hobbyists creating pixel art and sprite animations.
Who can skip it
Designers working on high-resolution illustrations.
Piskel alternatives
Not sold on Piskel? These do a similar job, and each card says what it has in common.
Coolors
Focus: colour palettes, design tools and branding. Also in Brainstorming and Workflows, like Piskel. Freemium (Piskel: Free). Adds iOS and Android. Rated 4.7 (Piskel: 4.6).
Web AppFree planWeb, iOS
4.7Visit
draw.io
Focus: diagrams, flowcharts and uml. Also in Brainstorming and Workflows, like Piskel. Rated 4.7 (Piskel: 4.6).
Web AppFreeWeb, Windows
4.7Visit
Animista
Focus: css animations, web design and front-end. Also in Brainstorming and Workflows, like Piskel. Same 4.6 rating.
Web AppFreeWeb
4.6Visit
Haikei
Focus: svg generator, backgrounds and shapes. Also in Workflows and Brainstorming, like Piskel. Same 4.6 rating.
Web AppFreeWeb
4.6Visit
Leonardo
Focus: colour palettes, accessibility and contrast. Also in Brainstorming and Workflows, like Piskel. Same 4.6 rating.
Web AppFreeWeb
4.6Visit
Free alternatives to Piskel
Want to spend nothing? These free picks cover similar ground.
Realtime Colors
Focus: colour palettes, typography and web design. Also in Brainstorming and Workflows, like Piskel. Same 4.6 rating.
Web AppFreeWeb
4.6Visit
Paletton
Focus: colour palettes, colour wheel and colour schemes. Also in Brainstorming and Workflows, like Piskel. Rated 4.5 (Piskel: 4.6).
Web AppFreeWeb
4.5Visit
ASCII Magic
Focus: ascii art, image effects and video effects. Also in Workflows and Brainstorming, like Piskel. Rated 4.4 (Piskel: 4.6).
Web AppFreeWeb
4.4Visit
ASCIInator
Focus: ascii art, generator and images. Also in Workflows and Brainstorming, like Piskel. Rated 4.4 (Piskel: 4.6).
Web AppFreeWeb
4.4Visit
Gradientool
Focus: gradients, design and generator. Also in Workflows and Brainstorming, like Piskel. Rated 4.4 (Piskel: 4.6).
Web AppFreeWeb
4.4Visit
IRA Design
Focus: illustrations, svg and gradients. Also in Brainstorming and Workflows, like Piskel. Rated 4.4 (Piskel: 4.6).
Web AppFreeWeb
4.4Visit
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