Best Animation Software

Animation software has become an essential tool for movies, games, commercials and more. Artists, developers and anyone who wants to use animation on their projects, rely on applications that add movement and life to drawings. Animation software offers users many possibilities, and it has facilitated the creation of movies that have captured the imagination of audiences around the world. It is also a practical solution for TV commercial, games and presentations. The software has enabled the creation of remarkable content and it is widely used in the film, advertising, gaming and designing industries.

Apart from making things easier and faster, animation software has helped to reduce costs in many projects. The software that you will find in this list offers solid and fast performance, as well as integrated workflows and advanced features that will help you to create compelling animations and in some cases, realistic 3D models. There are options focuses on 2D animation, while others support 3D. Here you will find applications that adapt to different needs.

CrazyTalk Animator

With CrazyTalk Animator, you will be able to create fantastic content. The software offers an innovative solution to create 2D animation, applying 3D motions. It supports features like auto lip-sync and facial puppet. CrazyTalk Animator brings life to characters and it is fun to use.

Animation Paper

Animation Paper was created by Niels Krogh Mortensen and it offers an incredibly simple and fast option to make your ideas come to life. The software features advanced functionality and it is designed to suit game developers, film makers and professional animators, but it is also ideal for students.

Toon Boom

Canadian company Toon Boom is recognized as a leading supplier of animation and storyboard software. It provides solutions for animation studios and games developers. Their high quality software is ideal for creating large scale projects and it supports an extensive selection of features.

PowToon

PowToon is a popular animation platform that is perfect for creating presentations and video tutorials. It is widely used in companies and also on YouTube, thanks to its ease of use and versatility. PowToon is free and offers an extensive selection of templates. It allows you to create animated explanations that can be shared with clients, employees or online followers.

Debut 12 (Anime Studio Debut)

Moho has created a fun, simple and engaging tool for aspiring animators. It allows you to unleash your creativity and learn the principles of animation. Debut 12 is suitable for any age group and while it is very easy to use, it supports advanced functionality. It is also very affordable, meaning that overall, it is the perfect option for getting started in the world of animation.

Synfig Studio

This free and open source animation software is compatible with Mac OSX, Linux and Windows. Synfig Studio is a practical solution for designers, architects and developers who need to create animations in a fast and efficient way. Frame by frame graphing or sketching are not required, which makes the process very simple.

Spine

Spine by Esoteric Software is a well-established application for video games and software developers. This powerful 2D skeletal animation software is set to bring life to video games and it focuses on offering an effective solution for creating impressive animation and implementing it into your game.

Spriter

Spriter is a convenient solution for game developers as it allows them to create characters and make changes whenever needed. It can be used by experienced game designing artists, or those who are learning the process of creating a game. Spriter allows you to spend less time making adjustments and enhancing your game art because it supports modular method.

Animata

This open source, real-time animation software will allow you to create animations, interactive backgrounds for concerts or plays, and much more. It is a versatile animation software that supports rich functionality and it works on Windows and Mac OS X.

CelAction 2D

CelAction 2D is used by a large number of animation studios due to its powerful performance. The software is very efficient and allows you to create remarkable 2D animation. It is highly innovative, efficient and it is ideal for tackling even the most complex projects.

Antics 2-D Animation

Antics is easy to use and also offers a lot for flexibility, letting you create a wide variety of animations, including full-scale cartoon character animation and basic animated graphics. If you are a Windows user and wish to create animations, this is a simple tool for your work and it doesn’t require technical knowledge.

Express Animator

This 2D animation tool lets you create animations and presentations with sound and music. You can save the animations in Flash format (SWF) so that they can be viewed on a website. Alternatively, you can save them on Microsoft’s Silverlight or as AVI files. With Express Animator, it is also possible to import a wide range of media types.

Blender

This open source 3D graphics and animation software is a convenient solution for a variety of purposes. It covers an extensive list of features and will help you to create games, track motion, design graphs and much more. Blender is easy to use and it is available for free.

Autodesk Animator

If you miss 1990’s animation, you can consider a classic software like Autodesk Animator, a solution that was hugely popular and innovative back then. While the program was created for DOS and Autodesk doesn’t support it anymore, those who are feeling nostalgic can still find its source code here: https://github.com/AnimatorPro/Animator-Pro

Sculptris

Sculptris lets you discover and explore your artistic side. You can give life to the characters that live in your imagination through the fascinating world of digital sculpting. It supports 3D sculpting and painting. It can be downloaded without any cost. It is perfect for creating unique video game or animation characters.

ShapeShop

If you are looking for an easy way to create 3D models, ShapeShop could be the answer. This modeling and design tool offers and easy to use interface that allows you to learn how to create sketch-based shape and it features a great selection of editing tools.

SculptGL

This incredible digital sculpting web platform will allow you to create 3D models in your browser. It is very easy to use and it lets you create unique characters within minutes. This fantastic creativity solution offers an array of features including sculpting tools that will allow you to brush, smooth or twist your sculpting project. It was developed bu Stéphane Ginier and a standalone version is also available.

DigiCel FlipBook

FlipBook by DigiCel is another program that makes things simple for those working with animation. It is user friendly, helps you to learn animation techniques and guides you through the process. It is perfect for teaching animation since it is very easy to use and allows students to focus on learning about animation, instead of worrying about the software.