10 Best Animation Software (Reviewed and Compared)

I’m going to drop a little truth bomb now!

You didn’t have an awesome childhood if you didn’t watch cartoons. Yup, I said that, and I know you all agree with it too.

Especially in the 90s, that WAS AN ERAAAA! Time we do a little throwback, shall we?

When Cartoon Network was at its PEAK and produced the best cartoons ever, my favorites were Dexter’s Laboratory, Powerpuff Girls, and Ed, Edd, and Eddy! I still remember those animations so vividly, even after all these years.

Cartoons like these really shape your childhood and what you grow into, whether it’s learning to hustle from Dexter or empathizing, which I learned from the Powerpuff Girls! These shows have had an impact on most of us, and it’s great to see more and more improvement in the software used by animators.

With so many of the best animation software out there, it can be hard to pinpoint the one you need! So whether you’re a professional animator or just a beginner,this list is specifically curated for you. And if you read into the depths of this listicle, you’ll even find software that was used to animate “Rick and Morty,” “Family Guy,” and “SpongeBob SquarePants.”

Let the quest for the best animation software begin.

The top 10  best animation software are:

1. Powtoon
2. Adobe Character Animator
3. Toon Boom Harmony
4. Pencil 2D
5. Autodesk Maya
6. Toonly
7. Cartoon Animator 4
8. Moho
9. Blender
10. Synfig

A breakdown of the best animation software and what they’re good for:

Name	Why is it the best?
Powtoon	Powtoon is for creators who are comfortable with animation and know how to use it. Marketers, entrepreneurs, and small- and medium-sized business owners will benefit from it. Because it allows you to create explainer films in five different styles, it is suitable for every business.
Adobe Character Animator	Adobe Character Animator is some of the best animation software for novices, even those with no prior expertise with animation. This is because, in this program, creating and animating a character requires relatively little animation knowledge.
Toon Boom Harmony	The excellent capabilities of Toon Boom Harmony provide it with a significant advantage, especially if you want to work in the animation sector. However, Harmony’s learning curve may not be the most ideal option for beginners and enthusiasts as it requires some getting used to.
Pencil 2D	Advanced animators may not find the features of Pencil 2D to be sufficient for their needs. However, it’s great for beginners who are just starting out on their 2D animation journey and want to understand the nitty-gritty of how it goes.
Autodesk Maya	Any graphic designer can benefit from the ability to produce beautiful designs with 3D modeling tools like Autodesk Maya. It allows you to create eye-catching picture illustrations and prototypes. The 3D animation software from its powerful animation program can be used to create practically anything you can think of.
Toonly	Toonly is a great place to start if you’re new to video design. It offers simple-to-use software for generating animated explanation videos with a drag-and-drop feature. Unfortunately, they don’t provide a free trial, so you’ll have to pay for the basic subscription if you want to get started.
Cartoon Animator 4	Cartoon Animator 4 is designed for users of all skill levels, including novices and professionals who wish to produce entertaining, high-quality animations. Create custom 2D characters, select characters from a large database, and import PSD character templates with the software.
Moho	While Moho Debut is designed for beginners, including children, it has powerful tools that allow you to turn your ideas into animated films. Its cutting-edge features are paired with a user-friendly UI. Once you’ve gotten the hang of it, you can upgrade to the Pro version, which is a little more expensive but has a lot more options to help you make professional animations.
Blender	Blender is a free cross-platform 3D creation suite with a robust set of tools. Blender may be used to make animations, video games, renderings, models, and other 3D applications. The software is free and open-source, with many contributions from all around the world. Beginners and advanced users will both benefit from the feature-rich 3D suite program.
Synfig	Synfig is a free 2D computer animation application with up-to-date functionality and a user interface that is easy to use. Layers, bones, and sound support are among its capabilities, and the software is available in both stable and testing versions for individuals who want to try out newer features. It’s the greatest Adobe Animate alternative.

Powtoon

Users of the Powtoonanimation video software have access to a wide media collection, allowing them to rapidly generate engaging video material. 

The editing tool includes whiteboard animation, cartoon characters, video infographics, and other animation and video styles.

Highlights:

• Styles: There are several styles to choose from, including Modern Edge, Whiteboard, Cartoon, Infographic, and Real. 
• Switching: You can easily change the base from one template to another and adjust the aspect ratio to fit the platform you’re using.
• Elements: Editing and adding new video components and music is simple, with a ton of effects to pick from. Powtoon also features a sizable music library, both free and paid. 
• Professional edit: Powtoon offers templates designed by professionals to enable easier creation of captivating animations and visual material.
• Characters: The team is working on adding more characters to the figurines, as well as a variety of body types and builds to choose from.

Pricing:

Powtoon’s three plans range in price from $19 to $99 per month. 

Both the Pro+ and Agency Plans feature unlimited premium exports and access to all available material. 

The standard Pro Plan is a decent solution for smaller firms that just generate explanation videos on occasion.

Registration is absolutely free and does not need the use of a credit card.

My take: 

Powtoon is for creators who are comfortable with animation and know how to use animation software. Marketers, entrepreneurs, and small- and medium-sized business owners will benefit from it.

Because it allows you to create explainer films in five different styles, it is suitable for every business.

Adobe Character Animator

Adobe Character Animator CC is a character animation program that lets you use your own artwork to create expressive figures.

Animate your facial emotions and movements while recording your voice with realistic lip-sync and eye-tracking. With your webcam and microphone, you’ll quickly bring 2D characters to life with your own performances.

This makes it simple for beginners to make facial animations. However, because it has limited functionality for creating action and body movement, it’s best suited for primarily conversation-based animations.

Highlights:

• Characterizer: By merging a webcam-captured image of the user and any piece of reference art, Characterizer, powered by Adobe Sensei, creates a stylized Character Animator puppet in seconds. It’s now much easier to make a one-of-a-kind puppet right away.
• Replays: Replays allow you to pick your favorite takes, like that one perfect eye roll or fist bump, and turn them into a trigger that you can use live or during your next recording. If you do livestreams, you can improve the quality of your live performances by quickly accessing your most often utilized takes.
• Flexibility and movement: Make your puppets and objects more adaptable. Squishiness can be introduced to make the motion of a ball bouncing on the ground less rigid. Many traditional-animated cartoons use Squash and Stretch to give their figures more life.
• History and bookmarks: History bookmarks allow you to retrieve your past work so that you can try out new ideas without worrying about losing your original or current work. Use history bookmarks to keep track of a specific version of your project so you can try out new ideas at any time. 

Pricing:

There’s just one plan for all, which is priced at $21 a month if you sign up for an annual package and $31.50 a month if it’s on a monthly basis. 

This includes 100GB of cloud storage, Adobe Portfolio, Adobe Fonts, and Adobe Spark, as well as early access to new features and updates.

My take:

Generally speaking, Adobe Character Animator is ideal for novices. You don’t need any previous experience or expertise in animation to get started.

Toon Boom Harmony

Toon Boom Harmony is cutting-edge 2D animation software. It can be used for both frame-by-frame and rig animation. If you’re used to hand-drawing your animations, this software also provides unique and powerful scanning and cleaning tools.

Major studios have utilized Toon Boom Harmony to create series including “Rick and Morty,” “Family Guy,” and “SpongeBob SquarePants.”

Highlights: 

• Drawing tools: Bitmap drawing and painting tools are available in Harmony. These are only accessible in the more expensive editions, but they’re well worth it if you’re a digital painter who wants your animation to seem richer and more handcrafted.
• Traditional drawing: Harmony provides amazing tools for scanning and cleaning up paper drawings if you’re a conventional animator who draws on paper.
• Additional features: Harmony has tools for rigging characters with bones so that they can be easily animated. It’s more advanced with higher price tiers, and if you pay the extra money for Harmony Premium, you get more advanced deformers in addition to regular rigid bones.
• Composting tools: Harmony has numerous effects included, and the Premium version adds even more powerful effects, as well as a sophisticated nodal compositing technique for applying them. Harmony also includes a 3D stage that allows you to create multi-plane environments for complex camera movements using the virtual camera.
• Color management: From original illustration to final export, advanced color management environments and effects provide artists and studios with complete control over the correctness of their project’s colors. Nodes for color effects have been added: Color curves, color levels, gamma, and color fade are all ways to manage how colors are shown.

Pricing:

Animators can pick from three distinct levels of software, each with its own set of capabilities and pricing. The basic package is not as robust as the other two. The packages range from $25 per month to $115 per month. 

Experts should definitely opt for the advanced or premium versions to make the most out of their money.

My take

The excellent capabilities of Toon Boom Harmony provide it with a significant advantage, especially if you want to work in the animation sector.

For beginners and enthusiasts, however, Harmony’s learning curve may not be the most ideal option.

Pencil 2D

Pencil2D is a more conventional 2D animation program that lets users create hand-drawn animated scenarios.

Because Pencil2D is an open-source platform, anyone can contribute to its capabilities and features, including you. As a result, it’s one of the most usefuland best animation software available, plus it’s free.

With Pencil2D, users can smoothly move between raster (also known as bitmap) and vector workflows, as well as create layers. Overall, the software is simple and straightforward, allowing you to concentrate on your animation.

Highlights:

• User interface: The software has a very interactive and user-friendly interface. Users can create and interact with the graphics they’re working on, thanks to integrated features.
• Customization: Customizable toolbars make it easier to operate according to your preferences. The tools can be rearranged and placed wherever the animator wants them.
• Timeline view: With the use of timeline panels and keyframes, you can add, remove, or duplicate a frame. With the help of the start, pause, and play buttons, you can keep track of the transition.
• Layering: Four levels are supported: vector, bitmap, sound, and the camera layer. Multiple levels are allowed depending on the user’s needs.
• Open source: Pencil2D’s open-source code can be edited and forked by anyone and everyone. It is absolutely free to use, even for business purposes!

Pricing:

It’s FREEEE!

My take:

Advanced animators may not find the features of Pencil2D to be sufficient for their needs. However, it is great for beginners who are just starting out on their 2D animation journey and want to understand the nitty-gritty of how it goes.

Autodesk Maya

Many aspiring animators are curious about Disney’s animation software. Well, wonder no more. They use some high-end animation software, but youcan use something close to that with Autodesk Maya. It is one of the most popular alternatives to Disney’s. (However, for those wondering, “What animation software does Pixar use?” you should know that its proprietary software isn’t available to animators outside the firm.)

Autodesk Maya is the industry standard for many professional animators and animation studios. Character development, modeling, simulation, motion graphics, and more are all possible with this 3D animation software. It was used to make animation for films like “Finding Nemo,” “Monsters, Inc.,” and “Avatar.”

Highlights:

• Simulation: The software now includes a realistic fluid simulator, with a separate cloth simulation available in previous versions. “nCloth” and “nParticle” have also been incorporated into Maya Nucleus, Autodesk’s simulation framework, in recent years.
• Camera sequence: The Camera Sequencerallows users to arrange and manage several camera angles inside a single animation.
• Bit frost programming:Create physically realistic and extraordinarily complex simulationsin a single visual programming environment.
• Arnold renders:Likewise, create physically realistic and extraordinarily complex simulationsin a single visual programming environment. Use Arnold for production rendering on both the CPU and GPU.
• Modeling and sculpting: Create 3D models with vertices, edges, and faces based on geometry. In a 2D view, you can see and change the UV texture coordinates for polygon, NURBS, and subdivision surfaces.

Pricing:

You can buy Maya, which is hands-down one of the best animation software available, on a three-year basis, an annual basis, or a monthly basis. 

Pricing starts at $122 a month (for a three-year license) after a free trial, though monthly options are also available. You might also be able to get Autodesk Maya for free if you’re a current student.

My take:

Any graphic designer can benefit from the ability to produce beautiful designs with 3D modeling tools like Autodesk Maya. 

Autodesk Maya allows you to create eye-catching picture illustrations and prototypes. 3D animation software from its powerful animation program can be used to create practically anything you can think of.

Toonly

Need animatedsales videos? Toonly is on your side. 

Toonly promises to be the best tool for creating animated explanation films, even if you’re not a designer. Although this tool is quite versatile, it does have a cartoonish appearance, as it’s meant to. 

These renders are flat images for those who aren’t familiar with the fundamentals of design. Toonly is a very basic desktop application that does not rely on cloud storage.

Highlights:

• Customized: Don’t worry, they don’t utilize stock photographs; their own team of graphic artists creates these illustrations. 
• Drag & drop: Drag and drop your creations into pre-designed backdrop design templates and sceneries.
• Voice recording: With a single swipe, you can add your own voiceover to your explainer video, giving it a personal touch.
• Add music: To add those much-needed rhythms to your work, use the royalty-free music library with over 100 tracks.
• Tutorials:Learn more about this explainer video program as you go along, and start making those cute little movies.

Pricing:

If invoiced monthly, Toonly’s two options cost $39 and $69, respectively. 

Among other things, the Standard Plan includes 30 characters, 17 character animations, 10 prepared scenes, and 21 scene transitions.

The Enterprise Plan simply adds more features and gives you entry to the Toonly Club, where you can get new characters and goods every month.

My take:

Toonly is a great place to start if you’re new to video design. It’s simple-to-use software for generating animated explanation videos with a drag-and-drop feature. Unfortunately, they don’t provide a free trial, so you’ll have to pay for the basic subscription if you want to try it out.

Cartoon Animator 4

Cartoon Animator 4 (previously CrazyTalk Animator) is a 2D animation program that focuses on ease of use and productivity.

You can use a comprehensive Photoshop pipeline to quickly customize characters and create content. With this program, you can even turn images into animated characters. What’s more? You’re able to control characters with your expressions, generate lip-sync animation from audio, create 3D parallax scenes, produce 2D visual effects, and access content resources.

Highlights: 

• Character animation: Cartoon Animator is distinguished from other 2D animation tools by its simple and functional design. Character posing for animation is seamless and logical because of the intuitive IK / FK system, which auto-switches. Simply lock the character’s feet for flawless non-sliding foot contact and the character’s hands for precision prop and scene interaction.
• Head modeling: Existing 2D characters can have their head-turn angles increased, or a new one created. Define the maximum head turn angle, auto and manual masking, and layering. Automatic Perspective Layer Arrangement suggests the best setup. Face sprites are transformed for a better angle perspective.
• Photoshop integration: You can use PSDtemplates in the Cartoon Animator 4.2 pipeline to transform your 2D artworks or images into G3 characters. Thanks to hundreds of professional motion libraries, you’ll be able to easily auto-rig your new characters from PSD files for easy avatar and Photoshop animations.
• Productivity: Actors, Animations, Scenes, and Special Effects each have their own content libraries and their own editing environment. Drag and drop stage compositing, replace existing motion clips, or drop directly to the timeline destination.
• Post-production: Users can export image sequences and JSON files of scenes and characters with this capability. With the Cartoon Animator AE Script, you can also simply import animation work created in CTA into After Effects for further post-production.

Pricing:

With Cartoon Animator 4, there are three different bundles that you can opt for. They range from $229 to $359 a month.

The value bundle of $299/month includes everything and is great value for the money, while a 3-day free trial is now available too.

My take:

Cartoon Animator 4 is designed for users of all skill levels, including novices and professionals who wish to produce entertaining, high-quality animations. 

Create custom 2D characters, select characters from a large database, and import PSD character templates with the software. By using one of the motion templates in the library, you can quickly make any static image move.

Moho

Moho is a vector-based 2D animation software developed by— you guessed it — Moho.

The application comes in two different sizes. According to the company, Moho Pro is“The all-in-one animation tool for pros and digital artists,” and “A powerful 2D animation software that combines the most powerful animation technology with state-of-the-art professional animation tools.” In other words, Moho Pro is a complete professional- and consumer-grade 2D/3D animation platform.

Moho Debut, which bills itself as “the fun, quick, and affordable method to make your own cartoons and animations in minutes,” is similar to Moho Pro but has limitations in terms of export duration and image size, as well as missing out on some of Moho Pro’s sophisticated capabilities.

Highlights:

• Character rigging: Moho’s rigging system is simple and quick to use. In just a few minutes, you can rig your own characters! Make skeletons for humans, animals, and any other creature or item you want to animate with ease. Use forward and inverse kinematics to your advantage.
• Drawing tools: Moho’s unique vector system is designed for animation and rigging, ensuring that the shapes remain consistent as they move. The vector tools allow you to draw directly within the software.
• Smart bones: Smart bones are a game-changing technique to have your characters react precisely how you want them to. The joints of your characters will bend without causing any distortions.
• Photoshop integration: Create your illustrations with your preferred software, such as Photoshop, Clip Studio Paint, Procreate, or any other program, then save them as PSD files and import them into Moho.
• Wind dynamics: Wind is the newest addition to Moho’s sophisticated and user-friendly Physics toolbox! Take complete control of the wind’s strength, direction, and turbulence, and bring your scenes to life in seconds.

Pricing:

The finer points of the Pro and Debut versions have already been discussed above.

The two versions retail for $399.99 and $59.99 respectively. A 30-day free trial is available for either.

My take

While Moho Debut is designed for beginners, including children, it has powerful tools that allow you to turn your ideas into real animated films. The cutting-edge tools are paired with a user-friendly UI.

Once you’ve gotten the hang of it, you can upgrade to the Pro version, which is a little more expensive but has a lot more options to help you make professional animations.

Blender

Blender is a free and open-source 3D modeling program. Modeling, rigging, animation, simulation, rendering, compositing, and motion tracking are all supported, as well as video editing and game production.

Advanced users can take advantage of Blender’s Python scripting API to tweak the application and create specialized tools, which are frequently included in subsequent Blender editions.

Individuals and small studios will profit from Blender’s unified pipeline and responsive development method.

Highlights:

• Modeling: Modifiers are non-destructive operations that are performed automatically on an item. You can use modifiers to automate numerous effects that would otherwise be too time-consuming to update manually (such as subdivision surfaces) without altering the object’s fundamental geometry.
• Sculpting: Areas may be obscured by mesh or too close to other components while sculpting. It’s helpful to isolate areas of a mesh to sculpt on to work through problems. This can be accomplished by masking portions that cannot be sculpted or totally obscuring elements of the mesh.
• Motion paths: The Motion Routes tool lets you visualize point motion as paths across multiple frames. Object origins and bone joints are examples of these sites.
• Simulation: Blender produces great-looking effects, whether you require a collapsing building, rain, fire, smoke, fluid, cloth, or full-on destruction.
• Motion tracking: Blender has a camera and object tracking that allows you to import raw footage, track it, mask sections, and rebuild camera movements in real-time in your 3D scene. This gets rid of the necessity to change programs.

Pricing:

It’s completely free to use!

My take:

Blender is a free cross-platform 3D creation suite with a robust set of tools. It can be used to make animations, video games, renderings, models, and other 3D applications. The software is free and open-source, with many contributions from all around the world. Beginners and advanced users will both benefit from the feature-rich 3D suite program.

Synfig Studio

Synfig will be a very simple learning curve for those of you who have worked with Flash and are seeking similar frame-by-frame animation software. 

This is vector-based animation software that gives you complete control over the vector artwork. You can also make character puppets for even more advanced control over your characters.

Highlights:

• Vector transformation: Any vector shape can be transformed into another! Synfig provides you with a set of strong tools for complete control over your vector artwork. Simply enter the key positions, and the in-between frames will be calculated for you.
• Layering: Synfig has more than 50 layers, allowing you to make artwork and animations of limitless complexity. Layer types include geometric, gradients, filters, distortions, transformations, fractals, and more.
• Bone system: The fully-featured bone system allows you to manipulate your vector artwork or create cutout animations using bitmap pictures. Apply complicated deformations to bitmap artwork using an extra Skeleton Distortion layer.
• Advanced control: You can use mathematical equations or direct links to connect the parameters of different layers. You can also make complex character puppets and other dynamic structures.

Pricing:

Synfig, fortunately, is completely free and works on Windows, Linux, and Mac. Because the software is open-source, you can also look at the source code.

My take:

Synfig is a free 2D computer animation application with up-to-date functionality and a user interface that is easy to learn. Layers, bones, and sound support are among its many capabilities, and the software is available in both stable and testing versions for individuals who want to try out newer features. It’s the greatest Adobe Animate alternative.

Conclusion:

I hope I’ve been of assistance with this list of the best animation software today. The good news is that most software programs come with free trials or demo versions. As a result, in most cases, you will have the opportunity to try before you buy.

This is a list curated for professionals as well as beginners! You’ll definitely find something you’ll love.