Apps Like ProCreate

Best Alternatives & Competitors to ProCreate

Over time, art has undergone significant transformations.  

Rather than working with more traditional tools such as pen and paper, contemporary artists are now turning to digital ones. 

That’s why drawing apps like Procreate give artists a way to create stunning works of art on the go. 

The app also allows you to finish a piece without having to lug around a bunch of different gears and equipment.

Procreate, on the other hand, is currently only available on the iPad. 

As a result, Android tablet and computer artists will need to resort to Procreate app alternatives.

If you’re an artist looking to slowly switch from a more traditional canvas to the modern digital one, there are a variety of other digital art apps available you can use. 

We’ve compiled a list of the best Procreate alternatives to get you started on the path to professional development and a well-rounded resume.

What is Procreate, and What Can I Do With It?

First, let’s talk about why Procreate is such a popular painting, illustrating, and drawing app within the artist community from all experience and skill levels. 

Well, the reason is simple, it’s a one-stop-shop for artists who need a wide range of tools for their designs and arts. 

This application can be used by Mac and Windows users, and it can be easily purchased through the App Store or even straight from the developer’s website.

As a bonus, using Apple Pencil with Procreate makes it feel like you’re drawing on paper, making the experience even more immersive. 

And there are no less than 200 preset brushes included in the app, all of which can be customized to your liking.

It’s also possible to easily move around the digital canvas with your fingers or with the Apple Pencil.

Fun fact: Tasmanian tech startup Savage Interactive is behind the creation of the world-famous drawing application—Procreate.

 Unfortunately, only iPads running iOS 13.2 and later can use the current version of Procreate

. In this case, you may have to use a previous version of the app for your iPad or iPhone. Finally, here are some of the best drawing and design apps that you should use today.

Is Procreate a Free App?

Illustrators, designers, and even newbies can take advantage of Procreate’s app versatility, thanks to the app’s optimized design. 

And we can all agree that Procreate’s extensive and user-friendly tools and functions are fantastic. 

However, despite all its perks, there is a price to pay to be able to enjoy them. 

Truth be told, to get the optimal features out of this app, you’ll need to fork over a premium fee. 

The cost varies greatly from one region to the next. Get ready to pay $9.99 if you live in the United States.

If you’re just looking to sketch and paint on your iPhone, Procreate Pocket is $4.99.

Here’s the 12 Best Alternatives & Competitors to Procreate:

Clip Studio Paint EX

Price: Monthly – $2.49 or One-Time Payment for Unlimited – $219

Clip Studio Paint EX is a must-have for iPad users who are an artist, graphic designers or just enjoy drawing.

EX is different from Paint Pro because it can be used to draw manga and comics.

With Clip Studio Paint EX, you can create the illustrations you’ve always dreamed of.

You can also use as many animation frames as you want with Paint EX.

Since the EX version allows for more layers than the Pro version, all of this is possible.

In addition, compared to the EX version, only single-page illustrations are permitted in Pro.

Each of the Clip Studio Paint Pro and EX editions comes with a free trial and can be purchased for $2.49 per month or $219 for a single payment.

But for the time being, Clip Studio Paint Pro and EX can only be used on Apple’s iOS-based mobile devices.

Additionally, both Windows and Mac OS are supported by the computer version.

Vectornator

Price: Totally free

For iPad, Mac, and Windows PCs, Vectornator is a free vector-based app that lets you make beautiful graphics.

Creating digital vector illustrations is a breeze with this suite’s feature set. With the recent release of Vectornator Pro, we can expect to see a lot more integration with the Apple ecosystem.

As a result, the app can now be used on iPad, iPhones, and Mac without any issues.

There are many illustration tools in Vectornator and Vectornator Pro that give an artist the ability to create designs under one powerful tool that includes Artboards, Auto Trace, and more.

Furthermore, Vectornator is a superior tool that combines some of the best digital art creating software and advanced toolsets to create various designs, websites, logos, apps, typography, icons, and more.

Pixelmator

Price: $4.99

A comprehensive set of image editing and digital painting tools is available in Pixelmator.

This app, too, is exclusive to the iOS platform, just like Procreate.

It allows you to work with images as large as 100 megapixels.

It has a wide variety of tools and effects for manipulating and correcting color.

Presets are available for quick editing.

More than 100 brushes, paint effects, and layers are included in the app.

Using an Apple Pencil will allow you to make accurate drawings.

Other active stylus devices are also supported. It can import and export Photoshop files.

Pixelmator has a very affordable price of $4.99, which is less expensive than Procreate.

Pixelmator provides a risk-free 15-day trial.

This app also gives you a risk-free way to try out the app.

In contrast, there is no free version or trial of Procreate. Before you can use the app, you’ll have to pay for it.

ArtStudio Pro

Price: $11.99

You can also use ArtStudio to paint and draw on an iPad or other similar devices.

As a beginner, you’ll be able to create stunning works of art with this kit.

There are only 25 brushes to choose from in ArtStudio, compared to the 60 in Procreate.

You can also resize brushes, and pressure can be simulated.

It is possible to create even until 5 layers, each of which can be deleted, reordered, merged, and controlled in transparency.

Filters like sharpening, shading, blurring, and sepia are all available, and the ability to detect edge boundaries.

Also, ArtStudio is less expensive than Procreate. It costs US$11.99 to upgrade to the Pro version.

If you’re wary of paying out cash at the outset and just trying a sample, for now, you can actually get it for free.

There are no custom brushes, no layering, and no export options in this free version.

Concepts

Price: Free with optional in-app purchases

In the past, Concepts has been used by a wide range of well-known corporations, including Walt Disney, PlayStation, and Apple; Using Concepts, Android users can now create stunning works of art and simple doodles to show off their artistic talents.

Drawing on this app is a ton of fun, and the variety of tools available to artists is impressive.

Various pens and pencils are available, as is an infinite canvas for you to work with as your toolkit.

In order to plan out projects of any size, you will need concepts.

To make your project truly unique, you can add as many layers as you want to it.

Concepts are also available at no cost to the user.

Simply go to the Google Play Store and click the install button to get this app.

Pro Pack and Subscription versions are also available for additional features.

You can prefer a monthly subscription, or maybe even sign up for an annual subscription as this offers more savings. 

Assembly

Price: Free; In-App Purchases Available.

Using Assembly, you’ll be able to create high-quality designs in a matter of minutes.

Apple’s iOS devices, such as the iPhone and iPad as well as Macs, can use this app as well.

Artists who enjoy working with lines, shapes, and curves will find this app useful. You can sketch and draw like a pro with its feature-rich design suites.

With a touch-optimized editing tool for bezier curves, you can quickly and easily complete your project.

Assembly’s impressive typography tools provide a full vector SVG output that is compatible with your workflow.

Whether it’s for the web or printing, the resolution of your work won’t be affected by exporting SVGs.

Assembly is a great app for newbies. For those who are new to vector design, the app provides a collection of shapes and objects that are easy to put together.

Assembly, like Procreate, offers tutorials to help you learn how to use the app.

Tayasui Sketches

Price: Free or US$5.99 for the Professional version.

One of the best things about Tayasui Sketches is that it can be used on both iOS and Android smartphones and tablet computers.

So why is it so important to have apps that only work on a specific platform? 

Let’s now discuss Tayasui’s physical characteristics.

Tayasui Sketches has a total of 20 realistic tools for you to use when you’re using the app.

Additionally, rulers, brush editors, and color-eye droppers will be at your disposal for your use.

Using this, you can replicate real-life acrylic and watercolor paintings.

These are just some of the supplemental characteristics of Sketch that you can use in addition to the initial ones.

Making and storing intricate works of art is made easier with this.

A stylus can be used with Tayasui Sketches to make the experience even more vivid.

Tayasui Sketches is available for download from the App Store.

There is a Pro version that costs US$5.99, as well.

One of the best Procreate alternatives at this price point.

Adobe Fresco

Price: Free; Offers In-App Purchases (Optional)

For a good reason, Adobe Fresco (previously know as Adobe Photoshop Sketch) is a popular drawing app.

Since January 10, 2023, Adobe has finally halted supporting Adobe Photoshop Sketch.

However, it claims that when previous users log in with their active Adobe ID, their digital art creations will be automatically migrated to Fresco.

A variety of artistic drawing gears, such as brushes that act like an actual ink pen, a regular pencil, or a preset professional marker, are available to users of the app.

If you have an Adobe Ink or Pencil stylus (or any other Bluetooth stylus), you can use it with this.

With the app, it’s easier than ever to import Photoshop brushes and save your work for use in other Adobe applications like Photoshop, Lightroom, or other current Adobe art programs.

As a vector-based program, Adobe Photoshop Sketch makes it less complicated to advertise your work because the sizes of the files are significantly smaller.

This app, on the other hand, only offers a total of 14 brush presets. Compared to Procreate’s, this is a significant drop.

In spite of this, Adobe Fresco can be a great alternative to Procreate in many ways.

With a well-thought-out UI (user interface) and an intuitive user experience (UX), and precise tools, the process runs more smoothly.

For iOS devices and desktop computers, Adobe Fresco is available for free download.

Fresco is a worthy alternative to Procreate because Adobe is a well-known brand.

Infinite Painter

Price: Free; In-App Purchase Available 

There are a lot of drawing and design apps on the market, but Infinite Painter stands out among Android users.

Now it’s also available for iPads, which is good news because it was previously only available for Android devices.

You can customize up to more than 80 natural brushes in the app.

‘Infinite Painter has fewer brushes than Procreate, but it also has limitless layering, the widest range of editing tools, pattern and gradient tools, multiple paper texture options, perspective aids, and virtually unlimited color blending, and a whole lot more design tools that you need for your artwork. 

Downloading Infinite Painter on the iOS App Store and Google Play Store is free of charge.

For the first seven days, you can try it risk-free.

In-app purchasing allow you to continue using the premium features after the free trial period has ended.

Ibis Paint X

Price: Free; Premium is $4.99.

Using Ibis Paint X as a substitute for Procreate is an excellent option.

Many tools and templates are included in Ibis Paint X, which is specifically designed for manga and anime.

Using the Screen Tone element, you can get the classical manga feel with ease.

Also, you can make your text bubbles and frame dividers mimic comic panels by customizing them.

Similar to Procreate, you are able to use multiple layers for simple line art, sketches, but also even advanced coloring, just like with Procreate.

Keep track of your sketching progress with Ibis Paint X.

Sharing the process on social media is a lot more effortless when you can observe everything all in one place.

Anyone who dreams of becoming an artist should have this collection of brushes and preset palettes on hand. 

The cherry on top?

Brushes are available free of charge!

In contrast to Procreate, where locked brushes must be purchased, Ibis Paint X only requires you to sit through an online ad to obtain them.

This is a great option for beginning artists who are on a limited budget.

Additionally, you can interact with other artists in the Ibis Paint community and learn new techniques and view one another’s work.

One of the better alternatives to Procreate can be found here.

Both Android users and iOS fans can make use of the app.

Autodesk Sketchbook

Free: $85 Annually for Businesses/Enterprise

Autodesk Sketchbook is a household name when it comes to illustration and graphic design software.

In terms of quality, Autodesk Sketchbook is a well-liked drawing app for mobile devices.

The Autodesk Sketchbook can be operated by both Android and iOS devices.

In comparison to Procreate, the app has a larger maximum canvas size.

On the other hand, Procreate has a slight advantage when it comes to the number of available brushes.

More than 190 customizable brushes are available in Sketchbook.

If you’re familiar with other drawing apps, you’ll notice that various drawing tools are available.

The exclusive Copic color library, a favorite of illustrators, is also included.

You can draw with more accuracy by using the traditional rulers and ellipses provided by Sketchbook.

Its 16-sector Radial Symmetry and Predictive stroke can also be used for magical purposes. You can use these tools to improve your drawing skills.

You can save your work as PSD, JPEG, PNG, TIFF, or BMP in Sketchbook.

The app will keep the names, groups, and blending modes of layered PSDs.

With a free seven-day trial, Sketchbook can be downloaded for free.

Providing your Autodesk ID is required within seven days of signing up for the service.

One subscription would suffice for all of your devices.

It costs US$85 a year for an Enterprise License, though.

Autodesk licensing and other benefits are also included in this deal.

Adobe Illustrator Draw

Price: Free with Optional In-App Purchases

Draw by Adobe Illustrator is the best way to get a comprehensive look at your illustrations.

Vectors, advanced digital art, and also simple graphs can be created with this app.

So why should you presume anything less from the original software, Adobe Illustrator?

Using the Adobe Creative Cloud, your works of art can be retrieved from any device once you are logged in.

On top of that, it has a modern, straightforward user interface.

Open the program, and you’ll see a collection of your most recent sketches in a gallery.

One other possibility is to consolidate all of the separate pieces and use them for a single project.

With Adobe Illustrator Draw, creating digital art has been made simple.

Even though you don’t get all of the features of the celebrated Adobe Illustrator, Procreate is still a commendable alternate.

Importing images from your computer’s library and drawing on top of them are both options available in Photoshop.

With Adobe Stock collaboration, a vast library of images is available to you.

The Adobe Stock app can be easily downloaded on devices that run Android or iOS devices from their respective digital stores.

Conclusion

In the world of drawing apps and software, Procreate is a top tier option on the market.

So, if you’re an artist looking for a way to transition to digital sketching, painting, designing, other art works, this might be good option for you to check out. 

However, many artists may be looking for Procreate alternatives for various reasons.

Because of this, no matter if you want it for fun or work, the suggested alternatives listed above are the best options for you.

Ultimately, it’s up to you whether or not you want to offer these other options a shot.