best software to create animated presentations

12 Best Animation Software for Beginners (Premium, Free, and Online)

Share on Facebook
Share on Twitter

By Iveta Pavlova

in Insights

5 years ago

Reading time: 5 min

Viewed 1,301,763 times

Spread the word about this article:

12 Best Animation Software for Beginners (Premium, Free, and Online)

Updated: May 13, 2022

Investigating which is the best animation software for beginners? Check out this selection of animation software including some of the most popular and preferred products on the market , as well as less-known but still very good animation tools available today.

In this post about the best animation software for beginners, you will find premium, free and open-source products, as well as online tools for animating. No matter if you are just making your first steps in animating , search for an alternative to the software you are using right now or want to experiment with a completely different type of animation (e.g. traditional frame-by-frame, Flash-style animations, stop motions, 2D and 3D animations, etc.), this post will help you sort out your options. Let’s begin!

Article overview: – Premium animation software for beginners – Open-source & Free animation software – Easy online video animation tools

Premium animation software for beginners… Who aim big!

A selection of the best animation software available on the market right now and preferred by all levels of users. These products are armed with rich arrays of functions and tools that will allow you to create powerful animation projects. Each of these software products come with subscription plans or as one-time purchases with free trials or free versions included. If you are a complete beginner, don’t worry – all of these programs come with tons of tutorials to start with!

1. Adobe Character Animator

Animate in real-time. really..

automatic lipsyncing and animation of facial features like mouth, eyes, and eyebrows;
support of real-time animation and live streaming;
in-app template puppets;
streamline recording and editing;
scene snapshots which act like onion-skinning;
walk cycles, behaviors, breathing, blinking, and other animation options;
replays, magnets, and more functions.
Perfect for online education, game streaming, live chat and more.

Pricing plans:

Free trial – 7 days
Creative Cloud All Apps – $52.99/month billed annually
Students and teachers – $19.99/month billed annually
Business – from $33.99/month billed annually

If you are interested in the software, check out these 16 Tutorials to Learn Adobe Character Animator . And if you are ready to go with the software – grab these free Character Animator Puppets .

2. Cartoon Animator 4 (formerly CrazyTalk Animator 3)

Professional 2d creativity and animation design.

Cartoon Animator 4 is software for all levels of users – suitable for beginners as well as professionals who want to create engaging high-quality animations.

The software allows you to create custom 2D characters, choose characters from the huge database, and import PSD character templates. You can easily make any static image move by applying different motion templates provided in the library, even 3D motions.

The software also comes with a bone rigging tool, and supports audio lip-syncing, facial detection, and many more simple and advanced features, depending on the edition you are using. Pretty much, Cartoon Animator 4 allows you to have full control over your 2D characters and create professional animation.

4K video support;
library of pre-made character templates and motion templates;
tools for creating 2D characters including rigging and bone tools;
tools for animating characters including elastic and bouncy curve editing, facial free form deformation, audio lip-syncing;
tools for creating talking heads and employing them on any character;
easy to import PSD files as character templates, and export them to PSD for graphic editing;
live facial motion capture – from any angle;
head driven body movements;
up to 360 degrees head-turning;
supports many popular images and video formats;
plus many more advanced animation features.
Pro Edition – $99 (+80 motions), discount available
Pipeline Edition – $248 (+80 motions), discount available
Special bundle discounts
Free trial – 30 days

3. Stop Motion Studio

Stop-motion animation software for beginners.

An app perfect for beginners in video making. Stop Motion Studio will help you create amazing 4K stop-motion animations that can easily be mixed with 2D style drawings painted directly onto the image.

With the frame-by-frame editor enriched with super handy features, you have a powerful and affordable app for your device. Stop Motion Studio can be installed on iPhone, iPad, macOS, Android, and Windows , and you can easily open the same project on different devices.

4K ultra HD videos;
runs on iPhone, iPad, macOS, Android, and Windows;
manual or automatic control of the focus, exposure, ISO, white balance
DSLR camera support;
green screen option and background library;
import of images, audio, video files;
frame-by-frame view and easy editing;
grid and onion skinning options;
connect a remote camera as a second device;
paint tools, sound effects, magic eraser, and more handy tools.
for iOS – $4.99
for Mac – $9.99
for Android – $4.99
for Windows – $9.99

4. DigiCel FlipBook

Easy to use and powerful enough to create great 2d animations.

Considered as one of the easiest 2D animation software on the market , DigiCel FlipBook allows you to create traditional frame-by-frame animation. You can draw directly onto the software or scan your paper drawings – it’s completely up to your personal preferences! The software also allows you to create stop motion animations if that’s the type of animation you are looking for. Boosted with very useful features, DigiCel FlipBook is a powerful and easy-to-understand tool for traditional 2D animation.

shoot and scan your drawings or draw right into the software;
lipsync support;
work on one or multiple frames at a time;
pan, zoom, rotate, blur, dissolve;
import/export functions, and more;
runs on macOS and Windows.
Free version with a watermark
FlipBook Lite: $19.99*
FlipBook Studio: $49.99*
FlipBook ProHD: $99.99*

*promotional offer

5. Moho (Anime Studio) Debut & Moho (Anime Studio) Pro

Complete 2d animation software.

While Moho (Anime Studio) Debut is aimed at beginners, even for kids , it includes powerful features that allow you to realize your vision into an animation. The revolutionary tools are combined with an easy-to-understand interface. Once you get the hang of it, you can try the Pro version which is quite more pricy, in fact, but it comes with powerful features that will help you create professional animations.

Features for the Debut version:

available for Windows and macOS with online or offline activation;
multilingual support: English, Spanish, French, German, Chinese (Simplified), and Japanese;
advanced freehand tools;
advanced bone rigging, plus pin bones;
tablet support with pen pressure support;
animated effects for layers and shapes;
easy to edit and animate brushes;
support for images and layered PSD;
keyframe options: additive cycle, stagger, bounce, elastic;
advanced masking options, auto freeze tool, and more.
Free trial: 30 days.

Features for the Pro version:

all features included in the Debut version;
advanced bone rigging system, plus a Physics engine, Dynamic bones, and Smart bones to control complex movements;
smart wrap for images and vectors;
frame by frame capabilities;
vector tools with bezier handles, plus accurate SVG, AI, and EPS import;
4k video export, vector export;
realistic motion blur;
easy control of multiple layers and channels, and even more.

6. Toon Boom Harmony

The most powerful software for animation production..

runs on Windows and macOS;
advanced vector/bitmap drawing technology;
advanced palettes and painting tools providing effective control over texture and color;
a toolset for traditional frame-by-frame animation;
integrating 3D elements with 2D characters;
special effects including volume and lighting effects to characters with auto toning;
different camera angles and control over the composition;
cut-out animation with master controllers;
integration with other software: multilayer PSD and PSB files, Illustrator, PDF, bitmaps, audio;
easy export to game engines.
Harmony Essentials: $25.50 per month or $209 annual subscription
Harmony Advanced: $64.50 per month or $500 annual subscription
Harmony Premium: $117.50 per month or $954 annual subscription
Free trial: 21 days.

Open-source & Free animation software… To test the waters!

A selection of free animation software for beginners and not only! These completely free software products allow coding gurus from around the globe to contribute and enrich them with even more powerful features. The listed software options are some of the best ones to start learning animating. The suggestions include software for 3D animation, software for traditional 2D frame-by-frame animation, as well as software for Flash-style animations.

8. Pencil2D

Light and easy to use tool for 2d hand-drawn animations.

If you are into traditional hand-drawn animation , then maybe Pencil 2D is a great software to start your animation project. This free software lets you use both raster and vector graphics and you can switch easily between the two types of artwork. Pencil 2D is a cross-platform tool and lets you focus on animating even when you are on the go. Since the software is completely free and open-source, users can have access to the source code and add features.

runs on Windows, Mac OSX, Linux & Free BSD
supports raster and vector images;
includes various handy tools;
includes distortion and light effects;
import/export as a GIF is available;

9. Synfig Studio

Open-source 2d animation software.

Very easy for those of you who have worked with Flash and are looking for a similar animation software instead of frame-by-frame animation software. Synfig is based on vectors and allows you full control of editing the vector artwork in the animation. You also have advanced control over your characters, as well as the option to create character puppets.

Luckily, Synfig is 100% free and you can use it on Windows, Linux, and Mac. Since the software is open-source, you also have the option to access the source code.

full-control vector editing which allows automatic calculation of frames;
a variety of over 50 layer types including geometric, gradients, filters, distortions, transformations, etc.;
control over your character by using a bone system and complex deformations;
advanced controls for creating character puppets and other dynamic structures.

Online video animation tools… To create videos in seconds!

Maybe becoming a professional animator isn’t a part of your plan and you just want to create quick animations, let’s say, for your brand. There are many great tools available on the web that will help you realize your ideas.

10. Animaker

World’s largest animated library.

Animaker is an online tool for animation that offers plans for all kinds of users – from beginners to enterprises. Each version comes loaded with features and assets to help users create amazing animated videos in a diversity of styles. With Animaker, you can create 2D and 2.5D videos, animated infographic videos, handcraft videos, whiteboard videos, typography animations, and more.

6 styles of videos: 2D, 2.5D, infographics, handcraft, whiteboard, typography;
horizontal and vertical video layouts;
full HD video support;
animated infographic maker with over 100 charts, 1000 icons, and 3000 maps;
advanced features for animation such as record, multimove, curve, camera in and out, transition effects, enter/exit effects;
a deck feature allowing you to use the animation as a video or an animated presentation;
audio features: text-to-speech, background music tracks, sound effects, voice recording, plus the option to import your custom sounds;
a library of pre-designed templates.
Basic – $10 per month billed annually
Starter – $19 per month billed annually
Pro – $45 per month billed annually
Enterprise – you have to contact Sales

The easiest way to create professional animated videos.

Vyond Studio offers an online animation-making tool suitable for people of all skill levels to make great professional animations including explainer videos, whiteboard videos, and more kinds of animated videos. Enriched with handy features, this online tool for video animation allows you to build animations based on characters, make engaging data visualizations, and more.

a convenient drag-and-drop tool;
a rich library with pre-built templates and assets;
import images and MP4s;
an array of enter and exit effects for static images;
automatic lip-syncing;
a library of characters available for full customization;
camera tool – pan zooms and camera angles;
team collaboration.
Free trial – 14 days
Essential – $299 per year
Premium – $649 per year
Professional – $999 per year
Enterprise – contact Sales

A cool online tool for creating animated videos for different purposes: social media, advertising, explainer videos, whiteboard videos, presentations, and more. The tool is perfect for users of all levels , as well as big and small businesses. Easy to work with, Moovly provides a library of templates, as well as images, video, and audio files to choose from.

user-friendly drag and drop interface;
a library of templates, images, video clips, and sound files;
upload your own media easily
download and sharing options
Pro – $24.92/month billed annually
Max – $49.92/month billed annually
Enterprise – custom pricing

Bonus software: Wideo

Online animation software for all levels of users.

A great online tool for animation that doesn’t require any previous experience in animating. With Wideo, you can create animated videos for different purposes: explainer videos, data videos, promotional videos, animated presentations, videos for e-commerce, business, real estate, and more.

To help you get started easily, the guys from Wideo have provided very useful lessons for beginners that explain the basics of working with the tool.

HD and full HD support;
a library of scene templates suitable for videos for all kinds for purposes;
a library of graphic assets;
music soundtracks;
video length and storage capacity depending on your plan;
YouTube upload, and more.
Basic – $19/month billed annually
Pro – $39/month billed annually
Enterprise – $79/month billed annually

Ready to make your first video animation?

We hope we’ve been helpful with this selection of animation software for beginners. The good thing is, that all software products offer free versions or free trials. So, you will be able to try before you buy.

Have a favorite animation software for beginners that are not listed on this page? It would be awesome if you share it with us in the comments below.

You may also be interested to continue with:

The Best YouTube Thumbnail Makers For Great Video Thumbnails
Animation Trends in 2022
How to Learn Animation At Home: Beginner’s Guide

best software to create animated presentations

Add some character to your visuals

Cartoon Characters, Design Bundles, Illustrations, Backgrounds and more...

Like us on Facebook

Subscribe to our newsletter

Be the first to know what’s new in the world of graphic design and illustrations.

[email protected]

Browse High Quality Vector Graphics

E.g.: businessman, lion, girl…

The best websites to hire freelance designers, the best brochure makers to create amazing brochures fast and easy, 20 beautiful minimalist website design examples for your inspiration, how to find good infographic topics that will get you the right audience, the best image formats to use in 2021, you may be interested in these adobe character animator puppets:, enjoyed this article.

Don’t forget to share!

Comments (4)

Iveta Pavlova

Iveta is a passionate writer at GraphicMama who has been writing for the brand ever since the blog was launched. She keeps her focus on inspiring people and giving insight on topics like graphic design, illustrations, education, business, marketing, and more.

Thousands of vector graphics for your projects.

Hey! You made it all the way to the bottom!

Here are some other articles we think you may like:

How-To Tutorials

Adobe character animator: everything you need to know + free puppets.

by Lyudmil Enchev

Web Design Trends 2020: High Tech & Visually Mind-Blowing

Everything About Zoom Backgrounds + Special Free Backgrounds to Use

Looking for design bundles or cartoon characters.

A source of high-quality vector graphics offering a huge variety of premade character designs, graphic design bundles, Adobe Character Animator puppets, and more.

The best presentation software in 2024

These powerpoint alternatives go beyond the basics..

Hero image with logos of the best presentation software

The latest presentation apps have made it easier than ever to format slides and create professional-looking slideshows without giving off a "this is a template" vibe. Even standard PowerPoint alternatives have updated key features to make it easier than ever to collaborate and create presentations quickly, so you can spend more time prepping for your actual presentation.

If, like me, you've used Google Slides unquestioningly for years, it's a whole new world out there. The newest crop of online presentation tools go way beyond the classic slideshow experience, with new features to keep your audience's attention, streamline the creation process with AI, and turn slide decks into videos and interactive conversations.

I've been testing these apps for the past few years, and this time, I spent several days tinkering with 25 of the top presentation software solutions out there to bring you the best of the best.

The best presentation software

What makes the best presentation app, how we evaluate and test apps.

When looking for the best presentation apps, I wanted utility players. After all, slideshows are used for just about everything, from pitch decks and product launches to class lectures and church sermons. With that in mind, here's what I was looking for:

Pre-built templates. The best presentation tools should have attractive, professional-looking templates to build presentations in a hurry.

Sharing and collaboration options. Whether you plan to share your webinar slides later, or you just want to collaborate with a coworker on a presentation, it should be easy to share files and collaborate in real-time.

Flexibility and customization options. Templates are great, but top presentation apps should enable you to customize just about everything—giving you the flexibility to build exactly what you need.

Affordability. Creating compelling presentations is important, but you shouldn't have to bust your budget to make it happen. With capable free tools on the market, affordability is a top consideration.

Standalone functionality. There's no reason to use multiple tools when one can do it all, so I didn't test any apps that require and work on top of another presentation app like PowerPoint or Google Slides.

Familiar, deck-based interface. For our purposes here, I only tested software that uses slides, with the familiar deck-based editor you expect from a "presentation" tool (versus, for example, a video creation app).

Beyond that, I also looked for presentation apps that brought something unique to the table—features above and beyond what you can get for free from a legacy solution like PowerPoint or Google Slides.

Here's what my testing workflow looked like:

I went through any onboarding or guided tutorials.

I created a new deck, scanning through all available templates, noting how well-designed they were (and which were free versus paid).

I added new slides, deleted slides, edited text and images, and played around with other content types.

I changed presentation design settings, like color schemes and background images.

I reviewed and tested the sharing and collaboration options.

I tested out presenter view (when available).

After my first round of testing, I went back into the top performers to test any unique or niche features, like AI, brand settings, and interactive content. With that, these are the best presentation apps I found—each one really brings something different or radically easy to the table.

The best presentation software at a glance


	A free option	Free plan available; paid plans from $10
	AI-powered design	From $12/month
	Non-linear presentations	Free plan available; paid plans from $7/month
	Video presentations	Limited free plan available; paid plans from $15/month
	Collaboration	Free plan available; from $22/month for 2 users
	Conversational AI features	Free plan available; paid plans from $8/user/month
	Audience engagement	Free plan available; paid plans from $11.99/user/month
	Generative AI features	Limited free plan available; paid plans from $16/user/month

The best free presentation software

.css-12hxxzz-link{all:unset;box-sizing:border-box;-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;cursor:pointer;-webkit-transition:all 300ms ease-in-out;transition:all 300ms ease-in-out;outline-offset:1px;-webkit-text-fill-color:currentcolor;outline:1px solid transparent;}.css-12hxxzz-link[data-color='ocean']{color:var(--zds-text-link, #3d4592);}.css-12hxxzz-link[data-color='ocean']:hover{outline-color:var(--zds-text-link-hover, #2b2358);}.css-12hxxzz-link[data-color='ocean']:focus{color:var(--zds-text-link-hover, #3d4592);outline-color:var(--zds-text-link-hover, #3d4592);}.css-12hxxzz-link[data-color='white']{color:var(--zds-gray-warm-1, #fffdf9);}.css-12hxxzz-link[data-color='white']:hover{color:var(--zds-gray-warm-5, #a8a5a0);}.css-12hxxzz-link[data-color='white']:focus{color:var(--zds-gray-warm-1, #fffdf9);outline-color:var(--zds-gray-warm-1, #fffdf9);}.css-12hxxzz-link[data-color='primary']{color:var(--zds-text-link, #3d4592);}.css-12hxxzz-link[data-color='primary']:hover{color:var(--zds-text-link, #2b2358);}.css-12hxxzz-link[data-color='primary']:focus{color:var(--zds-text-link-hover, #3d4592);outline-color:var(--zds-text-link-hover, #3d4592);}.css-12hxxzz-link[data-color='secondary']{color:var(--zds-gray-warm-1, #fffdf9);}.css-12hxxzz-link[data-color='secondary']:hover{color:var(--zds-gray-warm-5, #a8a5a0);}.css-12hxxzz-link[data-color='secondary']:focus{color:var(--zds-gray-warm-1, #fffdf9);outline-color:var(--zds-gray-warm-1, #fffdf9);}.css-12hxxzz-link[data-weight='inherit']{font-weight:inherit;}.css-12hxxzz-link[data-weight='normal']{font-weight:400;}.css-12hxxzz-link[data-weight='bold']{font-weight:700;} canva (web, windows, mac, android, ios).

Canva, our pick for the best free presentation app

Canva pros:

Excellent free plan

Tons of amazing templates for all use cases

Feature-rich

Canva cons:

The AI tools aren't groundbreakingly useful

Canva offers one of the most robust free plans of all the presentation apps I tested. The app delays account creation until after you've created your first design, so you can get started building your presentation in seconds. Choose from an almost overwhelming number of beautiful templates (nearly all available for free), including those designed specifically for education or business use cases.

Anyone who's accidentally scrolled too far and been bumped to the next slide will appreciate Canva's editor interface, which eliminates that problem altogether with a smooth scroll that doesn't jump around. Choose from a handful of preset animations to add life to your presentations, or browse the library of audio and video files available to add. And Canva also has a number of options for sharing your presentation, including adding collaborators to your team, sharing directly to social media, and even via QR code.

Present directly from Canva, and let audience members submit their questions via Canva Live. Once you share a link to invite audience members to your presentation, they can send questions for you to answer. As the presenter, you'll see them pop up in your presenter view window, so you can keep the audience engaged and your presentation clear. Alternatively, record a presentation with a talking head bubble—you can even use an AI presenter here—to share remotely.

Canva pricing: Free plan available; paid plans start at $120/year for 1 user and include additional features like Brand Kit, premium templates and stock assets, and additional AI-powered design tools.

The best presentation app for AI-powered design

Beautiful.ai pros:

True AI design

No fussing around with alignment

Still allows for customization

Beautiful.ai cons:

No free plan

If you're like me, editing granular spacing issues is the absolute worst part of building a presentation. Beautiful.ai uses artificial intelligence to take a lot of the hassle and granular design requirements out of the presentation process, so you can focus on the content of a presentation without sacrificing professional design. If I needed to make presentations on a regular basis, this is the app I'd use.

Many apps have recently added AI design features, but Beautiful.ai has been doing it for years—and they've perfected the experience of AI design, ensuring the tool's reign as the most streamlined and user-friendly option for AI design.

The editor is a little different from most presentation apps, but it's still intuitive—and you'll start off with a quick two-minute tutorial. When creating a new slide, scroll through "inspiration slides" to find a layout you like; once you choose, the app will pull the layout and automatically adapt it to match the design of the rest of your presentation.

With 10 themes, several templated slides, over 40 fully-designed templates, and more than 20 different color palettes to choose from, Beautiful.ai strikes a perfect balance between automation and customization.

While Beautiful.ai doesn't offer a free plan, paid plans are reasonably priced and offer sharing and collaboration options that rival collab-focused apps like Google Slides. And speaking of Google, you can connect Beautiful.ai with Google Drive to save all your presentations there.

Note: I re-tested the generative AI feature (called DesignerBot) this year. It's great for adding individual slides to an existing presentation—automatically choosing the best layout and matching the design to the rest of the deck—but as with most other apps, it struggled to pull in relevant images.

Beautiful.ai pricing: Plans start at $12/month for unlimited slides, AI content generation, viewer analytics, and more. Upgrade to a Team plan for $40/user/month to get extra collaboration and workspace features and custom brand controls.

The best presentation app for conversational presentations

Prezi pros:

Doesn't restrict you to standard presentation structure

Lots of customization options

Prezi Video lets you display a presentation right over your webcam video

Prezi cons:

Steep learning curve

Struggling to squeeze information into a basic, linear presentation? Give Prezi a try. Unlike nearly all other presentation apps on the market, Prezi Present doesn't restrict the structure of your presentation to a straight line. The editor focuses on topics and subtopics and allows you to arrange them any way you want, so you can create a more conversational flow of information.

With the structural flexibility, you still get all the same customization features you expect from top presentation software, including fully-editable templates. There's a learning curve if you're unfamiliar with non-linear presentations, but templates offer a great jumping-off point, and Prezi's editor does a good job of making the process more approachable.

Plus, Prezi comes with two other apps: Prezi Design and Prezi Video. Prezi Video helps you take remote presentations to a new level. You can record a video where the presentation elements are displayed right over your webcam feed. Record and save the video to share later, or connect with your video conferencing tool of choice (including Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Google Meet) to present live.

Prezi's generative AI feature works ok, but it's more useful as a wireframe. When I asked it to create a presentation about the Stanley Cup Playoffs, for example, the resulting content read a lot like a student writing a term paper in the broadest strokes possible to avoid doing any actual research.

The best presentation app for video presentations

Powtoon pros:

Timing automatically changes based on the content on the slide

Can toggle between slideshow and video

Can orient presentation as horizontal, vertical, or square

Powtoon cons:

Limited free plan

Powtoon makes it easy to create engaging videos by orienting the editor around a slide deck. Editing a Powtoon feels just like editing a presentation, but by the time you finish, you have a professional video.

You can edit your slides at any time, and when you hit play, a video plays through your deck—the feel is almost like an animated explainer video. Each slide includes the animations you choose and takes up as much time as is needed based on the content on the slide. Powtoon figures the timing automatically, and you can see in the bottom-right of the editor how much time is used on your current slide versus the total presentation. If you ever want to present as a slide deck, just toggle between Slideshow and Movie.

You'll likely need to subscribe to a paid plan to get the most out of Powtoon—like creating videos longer than three minutes, downloading them as MP4 files, and white-labeling your presentations—but doing so won't break the bank. Plus, you'll unlock tons of templates complete with animations and soundtracks.

One of my favorite Powtoon features is the ability to orient your video: you can choose horizontal orientation (like a normal presentation) or opt for vertical (for mobile) or square (for social media). When your presentation is ready, you can publish straight to YouTube, Wistia, Facebook Ads, and any number of other locations.

The best presentation app for collaborating with your team

Pitch, our pick for the best presentation software for collaborating with your team

Pitch pros:

Google levels of collaboration

Assign slides to specific team members

Excellent generative AI feature

Pitch cons:

User interface is a little different than you're used to

Need to collaborate on presentations with your team? Pitch is a Google Slides alternative that gets the job done. As far as decks go, Pitch includes all the beautifully-designed templates, customizability, and ease of use you expect from a top-notch presentation tool. But the app really shines when you add your team.

The right-hand sidebar is all about project management and collaboration: you can set and update the status of your deck, assign entire presentations or individual slides to team members, plus comment or add notes. Save custom templates to make future presentations even easier and faster.

You can also invite collaborators from outside your company to work with you on individual decks. And if you opt for a paid plan, Pitch introduces workspace roles, shared private folders, and version history.

Pitch also offers one of the most impressive generative AI features on this list. It still struggles to pull in relevant images, but I found the AI-generated written content and design to be top-notch.

The best presentation app for conversational AI

Gamma pros:

Creates fully fleshed-out presentations from a prompt

Conversational chatbot-like experience

Can still manually edit the presentation

Gamma cons:

Not as much granular customization

I tested a lot of apps claiming to use AI to up your presentation game, and Gamma's conversational AI features were head and shoulders above the crowd.

Simply give the app a topic—or upload an outline, notes, or any other document or article—approve the outline, and pick a theme. The app will take it from there and create a fully fleshed-out presentation. It's far from perfect, but Gamma produces a very useful jumping-off point. (Last year, it was by far the best, but this year, other apps are catching up.)

Here's the key: Gamma is much more geared toward the iterative, chatbot experience familiar to ChatGPT users. Click on the Edit with AI button at the top of the right-hand menu to open the chat, and you'll see suggested prompts—or you can type in your own requests for how Gamma should alter the presentation.

Once you've done all you can with prompts, simply close the chat box to manually add the finishing touches. While you do sacrifice some granular customizability in exchange for the AI features, you can still choose your visual theme, change slide layouts, format text, and add any images, videos, or even app and web content.

The best presentation app for audience engagement

Mentimeter, our pick for the best presentation software for audience engagement

Mentimeter pros:

Tons of audience engagement features

Simple for participants to interact

Mentimeter cons:

Less granular customizability

Bit of a learning curve

If you need to engage with an audience during your presentation, Mentimeter makes that easy. The app is designed around interactive elements like quizzes, surveys, Q&As, sliders, and more (even a Miro whiteboard!).

Each of these is included in a number of different, professional-looking templates, so you can build a fully interactive presentation super quickly.

When it's time to present, your audience members can scan the QR code with their phone cameras or type in the URL and access code to participate. There's one code per presentation (so they won't have to do this on every slide), which gives access to each slide as you move through the presentation.

There are two main drawbacks to this one, though. First, there's a bit of a learning curve and less familiar editing interface (but I found it pretty easy to learn with some practice). The other drawback is that you can't get as granular with the visual customization as you can with many other presentation tools.

The best presentation app for generative AI

Tome, our pick for the best presentation software for generative AI

Top-tier generative AI features

Simple, customizable templates

Intuitive doc-style editor

There's definitely a learning curve

Tome is one of the new additions to this list that I'm most excited about. If you're looking for generative AI that just genuinely works , it's definitely worth a look. The editor is a bit more stripped down than most presentation apps but intuitive nonetheless—it's almost a cross between your standard deck editor and a Notion-style doc.

To generate an AI deck, click Generate with AI in the top right, and either write your own prompt or choose from the example prompts that cover a handful of common use cases, like sales enablement and company pitches. Edit or approve the suggested outline, then generate the full presentation.

From there, you can edit each slide as a doc via the right-hand menu—without limits on how much information you can include. During the presentation, you simply size down any slides that take up more than the standard amount of space. It's super simple but somehow feels revolutionary in a presentation app.

What about the old standbys?

You might notice a few major presentation players aren't on this list, including OGs Microsoft PowerPoint, Apple Keynote, and Google Slides. These apps are perfectly adequate for creating basic presentations, and they're free if you have a Windows or Mac device or a Google account.

I didn't include them on the list because the presentation space has really developed in the last several years, and after testing them out, I found these behemoths haven't kept pace. If they weren't made by Microsoft/Apple/Google, I might not even be mentioning them. They're pretty basic tools, they're behind the curve when it comes to templates (both quantity and design), and they don't offer any uniquely valuable features like robust team collaboration, branding controls, video, and so on.

In any case, if you're reading this, you're probably looking for an alternative that allows you to move away from one of the big 3, and as the presentation platforms featured above show, there's a ton to gain—in terms of features, usability, and more—when you do.

What about PowerPoint and Google Slides add-ons?

While I focused my testing on tools with full feature-sets—those that can serve as your sole presentation tool—there are a ton of add-on tools you can use atop big name tools like PowerPoint and Google Slides.

Improve your productivity automatically. Use Zapier to get your apps working together.

A Zap with the trigger 'When I get a new lead from Facebook,' and the action 'Notify my team in Slack'

Case Studies
Contact Us
FAQ
Help Document
Knowledge Base
Help Document
Knowledge Base

7 Best Free Animated Presentation Software to Make Amazing Presentations

Animated Presentation software empowers you to display your content in an engaging way. From PowerPoint to Prezi, presentation tools are on the rise. It can be a struggle for you to choose from these tools. We have here 7 best free animated presentation software . Whether you need the software for business proposals or for teaching a class, these 7 tools will probably help you win over and wow a crowd. > Part 1: 7 Best Free Animated Presentation Software > Part 2: Animated Presentation Made by Focusky

Part 1: 7 Best Free Animated Presentation Software

1. focusky (strongly recommended).

When it comes to the feature-rich presentation tool with powerful function, Focuksy is undoubtedly one of the leader. You can find almost all basic features and functions of a standard presentation tool, including transitions and animations to create amazing visuals, an import function to add various contents like multi-media elements, and a preview mode that present the content in a nice formatted way. Additionally, Focusky features the multi-user account option that gives a chance for online collaboration, by allowing multiple users to access the created presentation.

Start Creating Animated Presentation with Focusky

2. Fishbole

Fishbole is beginner-friendly animated presentation software. You are not expected to have much experience or a bunch of money to work with this tool. Simply upload slides in the format of Google Slides, PowerPoints or images. presenting. The finished project can be shared via built-in social sharing options.

It is very easy to create a 3D animated presentation using Cinetor. You are five a wide range of beautiful themes and preset objects to help tell your story. In addition to these pre-designed elements, you are also able to use your own images and videos in the project, adding a personal touch to your presentation.

This animated presentation software puts together videos, images, sounds and animations to generate an impressive video presentation. It is an easy-to-use cloud-based content creation platform, which means you are not asked to download and install it to get the presentation done.

5. Biteable

Biteable has provided a wide selection of movie, music compositions, animation, and still scene templates to customize into your own presentation, simplifying the creation process. You can also upload your own music, logos and photos. If you are lack of design skills, just apply one of pre-made editable video templates.

From desktops to iPhone, Knovio makes it possible for you to create the presentation on any devices at any time. The finished project is viewable from any browser or mobile device.If you want to post the presentation in video websites like YouTube, export the project as a HD 1080p video.

7. Videoscribe

You are able to enjoy a huge library of free images and soundtracks, when creating animated video presentation with this software. Animation times can be set to give your presentation the best look. You are also allowed to record or insert voiceover in this video presentation.

Part 2: Animated Presentation Made by Focusky

Video Tutorial

Get started, create a project, add multi media, publish and share, learn focusky in minutes.

7 Best Video Presentation Maker for Mac: Make Amazing Video Presentation on Mac Devices

What is the Best Alternative Presentation Software to PowerPoint and Prezi

6 Best Interactive Presentation Software for Mac Presenters

6 online animated presentation creator - distribute your content every where

Try Focusky free and enjoy a brand new experience of presentation

Make Animated Presentation

Captivate your audience with dynamic animated presentations!

319 reviews

Bring your presentations to life with animated presentations!

Take your PowerPoint presentations to the next level with our powerful animated presentation maker. VEED’s professional video editing software lets you create captivating presentations that engage your audience from start to finish. Our vast selection of animation options allows you to bring your ideas to life, making your message stand out and leave a lasting impression. Make video presentations for your clients, make pitches to investors, and give clear, powerful lectures. You can also use our screen recorder to upload your Microsoft PowerPoint slides and Google slides. Use our editor to add background music, text, subtitles , and more!

How to create animated presentations:

Upload slides, videos, or start recording

Upload your video to VEED or record yourself using VEED’s webcam recorder. You can also upload your slides and present them while recording.

Add music, animations, images, text, and more!

If you don’t have your own animations, you can select from our stock media library and add animated clips to your video presentation. Choose from our wide selection of royalty-free background music, video clips, and more!

Present, pitch, and share your presentation

Export your animated video presentation or send the VEED link to your clients to direct them to the video view page—letting them watch your video without having to download it.

More ideas for your animated video presentation:

Create stunning visuals, add your slides, and more!

Our animated presentation maker lets you create stunning visuals quickly and without complicated configurations. With a vast selection of video templates and animated clips from our stock library, you can choose the perfect style to match your message and brand. Customize your presentation and impress your audience with stunning visuals that bring your ideas to life. One way to liven up your presentation is by adding transitions. Just click on the Transitions tool from the left menu, select a style, and drag and drop it in between video clips.

Add text, background music, and subtitles to your moving presentation

After uploading your slides and recording yourself, you can edit your video and use our wide array of tools to make it look exciting and fun for your audience. VEED’s drag-and-drop interface lets you quickly add text, images, and animations to your slides, making it simple to create engaging and dynamic presentations. Choose from our wide selection of animated clips from our stock media library. Automatically add subtitles to your videos! You can also animate elements like text, logos, and subtitles.

Use our Brand Kit to stay on brand across all platforms

Our Brand Kit lets you upload your logo, brand colors, fonts, and more so you can stay on brand when sharing your video presentation—especially on social media. You can even animate your logo for added impact! Plus, you can save your video as a template so you can streamline your entire content creation process. Our brand kit and full stock library are available to premium subscribers. Check our pricing page for more info.

How do I make an animated video presentation?

Upload your video to VEED or use our webcam recorder. You can also upload your slides and present them while recording yourself. Edit your video, add all the animated elements you want, and download!

Which app is best for making animated presentations?

There are many video presentation software out there, but VEED stands out because of its smooth user interface and design. Plus, it works straight from your browser!

How do I animate my presentation?

You don’t need to manually animate your presentation! VEED lets you add animated elements and animated video clips from our full stock video library. Animate text, characters, logos, and more!

How do I make an animation in PowerPoint?

Microsoft PowerPoint offers basic animation features. But if you want to animate more elements, the best app to use is VEED’s online video editor!

Discover more

Demo Creator
Tutorial Video Maker
Webinar Video

Loved by creators.

Loved by the Fortune 500

VEED has been game-changing. It's allowed us to create gorgeous content for social promotion and ad units with ease.

Max Alter Director of Audience Development, NBCUniversal

I love using VEED. The subtitles are the most accurate I've seen on the market. It's helped take my content to the next level.

Laura Haleydt Brand Marketing Manager, Carlsberg Importers

I used Loom to record, Rev for captions, Google for storing and Youtube to get a share link. I can now do this all in one spot with VEED.

Cedric Gustavo Ravache Enterprise Account Executive, Cloud Software Group

VEED is my one-stop video editing shop! It's cut my editing time by around 60% , freeing me to focus on my online career coaching business.

Nadeem L Entrepreneur and Owner, TheCareerCEO.com

When it comes to amazing videos, all you need is VEED

Create animated presentation

No credit card required

More than making animated presentations!

You can do so much more than just create animated presentations with VEED! VEED is a professional, all-in-one video editing software that features all the tools you need to create stunning videos that engage your audience from start to finish. Need to make quick videos and personalize them in a snap? Start from our video templates! All these—straight from your browser.

VEED app displayed on mobile,tablet and laptop

Disclosure: MyeLearningWorld is reader-supported. We may receive a commission if you purchase through our links.

The 15 Best Animation Presentation Software (2024 Rankings)

Last Updated: 07/01/2024

By Scott Winstead

Share on Facebook
Share on LinkedIn
Share on Reddit
Share on Pinterest

Are you an instructional designer, educator, or other eLearning professional looking to create engaging animated videos?

The best animation presentation software makes it easy to create animated stories and overlays for explainer videos or presentations.

Some of the software tools are made to work with live-streaming systems. Others are better suited to use for recording and editing videos that will be viewed by users later. Some are presentation systems that can be used online. Others offer an easy way to enhance a video presentation.

As a longtime instructional designer and eLearning professional, I’ve tried dozens of different animated presentation tools and rated my favorites below based on a variety of factors like cost, ease of use, features, and more ( click here to learn about our entire Editorial Process & Methodology for these reviews ).

What are the Best Animation Presentation Software Tools?

Check out my reviews to see which of these animation creation software tools will improve your presentations.

Loom is a powerful screen recording app that lets you create videos of whatever is on your screen or webcam. Easily record, add voiceovers, share, and interact with your videos.

Loom is an incredibly versatile tool for creating engaging presentations and recording animations. It’s possibly the easiest way to capture and share your presentations in an easy-to-view format.

Loom allows you to screen record animations from PowerPoint, Keynote, or any other presentation software. It also offers editing features you can use to polish your videos.

With Loom, you can create video messages or add a speaker bubble to your animated videos to communicate your ideas more effectively, adding a personal touch to your presentations.

Easy screen recording: Capture your screen, voice, and face to create engaging presentations.
Integration with presentation software: Record animations directly from PowerPoint, Keynote, Google Slides, or any other software.
Simple sharing: Share your recorded videos with a link, embed them in your website, or download them for offline use.
Video editing tools: Trim, cut, and add call-to-action buttons to your videos for a professional finish.
Viewer insights: Track who watched your video and for how long, providing valuable feedback on engagement.

System Requirements: Loom is a cloud-based service accessible from any device with an Internet connection. It offers a browser extension and desktop application for both Windows and Mac.

2. Microsoft PowerPoint

Microsoft PowerPoint is a well-known software solution for making presentations such as an investment deck or a project slide presentation. This software is offered as part of a bundle of Microsoft products that includes PowerPoint, Word, Excel, Outlook, OneNote, OneDrive, and Skype.

This bundle is offered as a subscription service on the Microsoft 365 cloud. You can try it free for a month, and then the monthly subscription fee for a single user is $6.99 per month with a discount offered for making an annual subscription payment.

Create and edit PowerPoint and other files from any mobile device that has an Internet connection.
A Microsoft 365 Family subscription (two to six people) unlocks a Family safety app. This is a mobile locator and driving safety system.
OneDrive is included with 1 TB of online storage.
OneDrive ransomware recovery allows recovery of automatically backed up files for up to 30 days prior to the date of a ransomware attack.
Using a PC or Mac with Money in Excel allows financial management and budgeting.
Automatic backup across all devices.
Easy file sharing for collaborating on PowerPoint presentations with others. Many free templates are available.

System Requirements: Microsoft 365 can be used on any device including a PC, Mac, laptop, tablet, or smartphone. It works on Windows, iOS, macOS, and Android systems.

User Feedback “I love having access to all of my files anywhere I go and know they are securely stored. I can work from anywhere and update my PowerPoint presentations. I was amazed at how nicely I could make my presentations using animation.” Joe S.

This video is a tutorial that teaches how to animate a presentation using PowerPoint. It starts with a simple line drawing as a guide for the subsequent overlays of various shapes to create the parts of the drawing. The artist shows how to make a humanlike character from various shapes using the copy, merge, and subtract functions. Then, the artists narrating the video adds colors and motion. The result is a charming drawing of a student with things rotating around him.

For those seeking in-depth training, this two-hour video shows how to start as a beginner and quickly become an expert in making PowerPoint presentations using MS 365.

The Prezi system includes three software tools: Prezi design, Prezi Present, and Prezi Video. These tools are used to create data visualizations, animated presentations, and animated overlays that float on top of a video presentation. The video can either be recorded or streamed live. Animation overlay makes the video have more clarity and reinforces the message being given by the video host.

Prezi offers a 14-day free trial, and thereafter the software is billed on an annual subscription basis with plans ranging from $7 to $29 a month.

Prezi offers reusable templates that can be customized for any purpose. This makes it very easy to get started using these tools.
Object animation adds visual excitement and attracts attention to key concepts.
Prezi maintains a royalty-free image library that can be used to make presentations by subscription members.
Prezi Plus memberships allow files to be downloaded to be used offline and the use of interactive maps.
Offers a PowerPoint converter to import PowerPoint presentations into the Prezi system.

System Requirements: The Prezi system is a software as a service (SaaS) cloud offering that can be used by any device connected to the Internet. Prezi Plus users can download the files. Prezi video works with the popular video streaming apps, including Cisco WebEx, Facebook Live, GoToMeeting, GoToWebinar, Google Meet, LinkedIn, Microsoft Team, OBS, Slack, Twitter, YouTube, and Zoom.

User Feedback “I thought the software looked interesting and was surprised at how easy it was to create a more exciting presentation using this system. I am not a graphics guy at all. I have to give accounting reports. My co-workers complained that my presentations were boring before I used these tools, so this helped me make them look more interesting.” Andy A.

This video tutorial shows how to use stock images from the Prezi library and work with a grouping of objects to make animations for your presentations more easily. It shows how to make objects fade in, appear when you click on them and work with layers with an example of how to make an animation of trees growing.

Vyond is an animation production system that can create presentations in three animation styles, which are contemporary, business-friendly, and whiteboard animation . Vyond offers a comprehensive video creation guide that shows a step-by-step way to make an animated video.

Vyond offers a 14-day free trial that does not require a credit card. Thereafter, the service is available on an annual subscription basis for three levels, billed for each user. The plans range from $25 to $92 a month.

The Essential level allows a user to export the Vyond video in MP4 format at 720p resolution.
The Premium (or higher) level allows a user to export the Vyond video in MP4 format at 1080p resolution and allows exports as animated gifs in an eight-second loop.
The Professional or Enterprise level allows collaboration when creating a video with others, shared libraries, an admin user panel, and video sharing feature to allow managed, private video sharing.
ISO27001 Compliance
GDPR/CCPA Compliance
Privacy Shield Compliance
Live Chat for Support

System Requirements: This is a cloud-based system that can be accessed by any device connected to the Internet. Paid subscription members can download a completed video in MP4 format.

User Feedback “I feel like I can go anywhere that I can imagine with Vyond. It opened up new horizons for all of us. When I found Vyond, it was exactly what I was looking for. I did the trial to be sure and then was sold on the system.” Gina Y.

In this video by Rued Riis, he shows how to make an animated video very quickly using the Vyond Studio system by using free templates and a few clever tricks. The video shows the creation of an animation video for an imagined company. The project is completed within 20 minutes.

5. Zoho Show

Zoho Show is a free online software tool that is a part of the overall comprehensive Zoho cloud offerings. Collaborative teams use Zoho Show to design slides and create visually-engaging presentations.

Presentation editor with animations, text formatting, backgrounds, transitions, charts, media files, photos, shapes, and tables.
Automatic contextual formatting in format mode.
Allows importing presentations made with PowerPoint.
Supports these formats: ppt, pps, odp, sxi, pptx, and ppsx.
Each imported presentation must be 100MB or less. There is no limit on the number of imported presentations.
Presentations can be published online or downloaded, saved, and used offline.
Zoho supports multi-languages.

System Requirements: This is cloud-based online service accessible by any device that has an Internet connection by using any major browser such as Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Internet Explorer, and Safari.

User Feedback “I have used Zoho Show for more than a decade, and I can truly say that it is a handy presentation creation tool that helps my ideas for businesses to reach a much larger audience.” Miguel A.

This one-minute video tutorial shows how to animate an object in a presentation to make the object follow a custom path of a curvy line.

6. Google Slides

Google Slides is a free cloud software that can be used to make and share presentations. All you need is a Google account or a Gmail account, and you can sign in to use the software. You can store the presentation that you create online on your Google drive. The presentation can be shared with a collaborative team to help make it and with anyone else on the Internet by giving them a link to the presentation file when it is ready for viewing.

Google offers a free template gallery.
Any object can be animated to make it move, fade in, or fade out.
Animations can play automatically, in sequence, or when they are clicked on.

System Requirements: Google Slides can be accessed from any device with an Internet connection by using a browser.

User Feedback “Google Slides are super easy to use and great for making a simple animation presentation quickly.” Roger S.

This two-minute video tutorial shows how to add animations to Google slide presentations. The narrator suggests using a few animations to make your presentation more visually interesting but not to add too many that make it look silly.

Keynote is pre-installed on every Apple device. Mac and iPad users concrete illustrations and diagrams using Apple Pencil. Then, these objects can be imported to use with Keynote to make presentations.

Apple offers 30 free themes that can be customized.
Keynote has 30 cinematic effects to create animations and transitions.
Objects can be animated to follow a custom path by using Apple Pencil or your finger on an iPhone and iPad.
Textures, color gradients, and photo overlays can be added to the text for a 3D-like effect.
The Apple object library has more than 700 shapes, mathematical equations, galleries, and charts.
Photos taken by an iPhone can be sent directly to Keynote on a Mac for further creative use.
YouTube and Vimeo videos can play within Keynote presentation slides.

System Requirements: Keynote software comes with any Mac, iPad, iPhone, and can be used with a PC, if the Keynote files are stored on the iCloud.

User Feedback “I appreciate that Keynote presentation display properly on any device no matter what its size and the display configuration. My Keynote presentations look just as good on a smartphone as they do on a desktop monitor.” Barbara T.

This 18-minute video by Grumop Media teaches how to use ten things about everything you need to know to animate in Keynote. These include building ins and outs, creating actions, motion paths, and using motion blur. You will learn how to create a basic animation, apply multiple actions, animate multiple objects, change the pivot point, animate groups, animate text, and the “magic move.”

8. Haiku Deck

Haiku is popular because of the thousands of free templates and a huge library of royalty-free images for making presentations.

Haiku has a seven-day free trial. Paid plans range from $9.99 to $29.99 a month.

Over 40 million royalty-free photos.
Thousands of professional templates.
Privacy locks for presentations.
Easily add audio narration.
Embed YouTube videos.
Save and download the project as video, ppt, or pdf formats.
Optional Haiku Deck Zuru presentations are created with the aid of artificial intelligence programming.
The Premium version includes in-depth analytics and lead tracking, view notifications, live web playback, and priority technical support.

System Requirements: Works with iPad, iPhone, and is also accessible by any device on the web. Presentations are in the cloud for ease of collaboration and sharing with viewers.

User Feedback “I think the results from using the AI help of Zuru are terrific. Zuru AI quickly selected images from the millions in the library, which fit my presentation perfectly.” Steve J.

This five-minute, beginner’s level video shows how to create an animation of a bouncing ball by manipulating items on the stage. It teaches how to use timeline-based animation with keyframes and how to smooth transitions between those keyframes.

Visme is a tool that can be used at a basic level for free to make infographics, charts, social media graphics, and presentations. It is easy to include animation that helps you improve your visual communications.

The Basic level free account allows you to create up to five projects with storage of 100 MB, with limited templates, charts, and widgets for publicly-published projects, including Visme branding. The project can be downloaded as JPG.

Paid plans give you more features like the ability to download your creations for offline use, and they start as low as $12.25 a month.

Useful to create branded content (paid level).
Creates animated and interactive content.
Thousands of free templates.
Thousands of free icons.
Millions of royalty-free photos.
50+ charts, maps, and data widgets.
Paid subscribers can add video, audio, and embed them. Save your customized digital assets in a private library.

System Requirements: This is a cloud-based service that can be used by anyone with Internet access.

User Feedback “Visme does much more than I expected. I started with a free account, did a couple of projects, and then became a paying member. I love this system.” Wayne D.

This video tutorial, produced by Visme, teaches how to use custom animations in infographics. Visme has over 300 ready-to-use animations that are very easy to add to your presentations, including isometric graphics that give an illusion of 3D animation. There are more than 50 people represented by animation characters that you can use. There are hands with arms, which make gestures. These can be used to emphasize something. There are six categories of special effects and animated icons too.

10. VideoPlasty

VideoPlasty is a source for stock animations, stock animated gifs, and stock motion graphics. There are more than 9,000 royalty-free animation assets to choose from for those who want to use them in making presentations with other software tools. Choosing an appropriate animation from the VideoPlasty library is fun, easy, and saves a huge amount of production time compared to creating your animations from scratch.

A couple dozen of the animations offered on this system are free to use, even for commercial purposes. There are paid animations that range from $5 for one to $99 for a set of up to 100.

There are dozens of categories to choose from and a handy search tool to help you find a good choice.
Buy the animations individually or in discounted packs.
The motion graphics section offers unique video and special effects backgrounds and loops.
MOV and MP4 formats from 720p to HD resolution.
VideoPlasty offers a free beginner’s guides and tutorials on how to make explainer videos.

System Requirements: These animations work with the popular video production/editing and presentation software that includes DaVinci, Resolve, Premiere Pro, Filmora, Final Cut Pro, HitFilm Express, Movavi Video Editor, iMovie, Camtasia, Keynote, PowerPoint, and more.

User Feedback “I wanted to add animation to my training videos but do not have any graphics skills. I found something very suitable on VideoPlasty, and for a few dollars, I got it and imported it into my presentation easily. This saved me an enormous amount of time and effort, trying to find someone to make an animation for me.” Sabella H.

This 15-minute video tutorial is about how to make explainer videos using the animation assets found on VideoPlasty. It is beginner-friendly.

Animiz is a software tool to make animated videos that are stored on the system’s cloud server. There is also a related whiteboard animation presentation system, a software program you download to use.

For the animated video Animiz tool, there is a free version for one user with 10GB of cloud storage. The Standard paid level is $29 per month for 100 GB of cloud storage. The Professional level is $299 per year for two users with unlimited cloud storage.

For the whiteboard animation software, there is a Free version that contains a Mango watermark with limited hand animations, free templates, with more than 10 dynamic characters, two backgrounds per project, and a limited video duration of one minute. The Professional version is a one-time fee of $39. It has no watermark, over 40 hand animations, professional templates, more than 30 dynamic characters, 10 backgrounds per project, and a limited video duration of 10 minutes.

The Enterprise level is a one-time fee of $199. It permits your branded watermark, over 80 hand animations, unlimited templates, more than 50 dynamic characters, unlimited backgrounds per project, and no limit on the video duration.

Easy to use.
Unlimited customization.
Drag-and-drop editing.
Free animated assets.
Over 300 scene templates.
Over 1,000 built-in animated roles for characters.
Over 5,000 royalty-free vector images.

System Requirements: Runs on XP, Vista, Win7, Win8, Win10.

User Feedback “We can create high-quality explainer videos. We use videos to promote our innovative products. This is an excellent whiteboard animation program!” Ronald J.

This three and one-half minute video by Talk Tech shows how to make an animation video using Animiz.

12. Focusky

Focusky is a software tool that you download to make HTML5 presentations, combined with a cloud service to store and publish your viewing presentations.

There is a Free version that includes 10 GB of cloud storage and allows 50 uploads per month. The Standard level is $9.90 per month. It includes 100 GB of storage and allows 200 uploads per month. It also allows publishing the presentation to 720p video and 30 offline presentations per month. The Professional version is $99 per year and allows unlimited cloud storage and unlimited presentations to publish to 1080p HD video and unlimited presentations for offline viewing.

Uses an innovative mind-mapping style. Instead of making slides, makes links between branches of content trees.
3D transition effects.
Multi-language support.
Background music.
Over 1,000 animated characters.
Over 600 premium templates for the Professional level.

System Requirements: Runs on a MAC and on a PC with XP, Vista, Win7, Win8, and Win10.

User Feedback “The Focusky system is so fun to use, and I can express my creativity freely without having to worry about making ordered slides. I can take my presentation on a tour through my mind map and zoom in on the things as I explain them. That is superb.” Henrietta J.

This 12 and one-half minute video tutorial made by Focusky helps beginners start to use the system to make an animated presentation.

Moovly is an online tool used to make animated tutorials, explainer videos, and promo videos.

A free version can be used to create videos to publish on YouTube or Vimeo containing the Moovly watermark and outro.

Paid plans range from an a la carte $20 a video offering to a subscription at just under $50 a month billed annually.

Many customization templates.
Offers automated template videos, data-based videos and live feed videos.
Drag and drop.
A huge library of over 1.3 million royalty-free digital assets to use.
No software to download or plug-in installation.
Almost all features can be tested with the free version before using them on the paid version.

System Requirements: This is a web-based system accessible by anyone with a browser and an Internet connection.

User Feedback “I started using this system and was making super interesting video presentations with animation and other special features easily. This is a very intuitive system.” Georgia N.

This 19-minute video made by Moovly gives a beneficial overview of how to use the system.

14. VideoScribe

VideoScribe is a whiteboard animation system with a seven-day free trial. Videoscribe pricing is $15 a month and up, depending on the plan you choose.

Video templates.
Digital library of more than 7,300 royalty-free images.
Use your own assets and VideoScribe will draw them.
Choose from many hands, pens, erasers and more.
More than 190 royalty-free music tracks.
Voiceover recording or import the audio file.
Share to Vimeo and PowerPoint.

System Requirements: Works on Windows and Mac.

User Feedback “For an easy to use whiteboard animation creation system, I would recommend VideoScribe.” Paula T.

The Better Men Society made this 12-minute video tutorial, and it shows the full process of making a whiteboard animation video.

15. Powtoon

Powtoon is an online video and animation presentation creation system used to make training videos, tutorials, internal communication pieces, content marketing, and educational presentations.

Powtoon offers a free trial. It has a variety of plans that range from $15 to $125 a month.

A library of hundreds of templates, animated characters, video backgrounds, and musical tracks.
No design or technical skills required to use this system.
Easy to create visuals to tell your story.
Help center with Powtoon user tutorials.
Hire a Powtoonist system.

System Requirements: This is a cloud-based system accessed by using a web browser.

User Feedback “Powtoon has been a terrific tool to improve the look and viewer engagement for our company newsletters.” Tony W.

Blue Brain makes this 15-minute video tutorial. A teacher makes it to show how to use Powtoon to create an animation video for a class.

The most important element of any video presentation, either live-streamed or pre-recorded, is to avoid boring the audience or making them feel confused.

Using animation presentation software helps make the live sharing of video streams and pre-recorded videos more engaging for the audience. Presentations are made more effective by highlighting the key concepts and giving the viewers a concise takeaway of what they need to know. I highly recommend using these tools. I make use of more than one in creating more interesting presentations.

Making a non-animated video? Make sure to check out our guide to the best video presentation software options available.

How To Learn A New Language: The Best Way to Get Started

Why the 4-day school week could save the future of us public education, leave a comment cancel reply.

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

11+ Best Animation Software of 2024 (Free, 2D, and 3D)

Want to get right to my favorite list of animation software right now? My top picks are Adobe Animate and Maya.

Emile Cohl, a French cartoonist, and animator created the world’s first animated film ‘ Fantasmagorie ’ in 1908. Ever since telling animated stories has fascinated and captivated people’s imaginations.

From cartoons like The Lion King and Spirited Away in the 1990s and early 2000s to modern Netflix anthology series like Love, Death, and Robots , animated stories have attained more than just cult status – they’re persistent in our culture.

And by 2022, over 80% of internet traffic will be video, making web-based video creation an increasingly important endeavor.

With the help of online animation software, even an amateur can create advanced animations like CGI, 2D vectoring, stop-motion animation, typography and motion graphics, and more.

Being skilled in animation is a lucrative field whether you’re looking to launch your career, get started with video editing , make money online , or monetize a YouTube channel .

This guide will help you choose the best animation software to use, whether you’re a professional looking for advanced 3D modeling or a business owner wanting a simple animated explainer video.

To help you choose the best animation software, I’ve curated a list of some of the best 2D animation software, best free animation software, and 3D animation software options this year.

Disclosure: I may receive affiliate compensation for some of the links below at no cost to you if you decide to purchase a paid plan. You can read our affiliate disclosure in our privacy policy .

What is Animation Software?

Animation software is used by animators to create motion graphics on a single-frame basis. Individual frames are combined to create motion graphics used for video games and animated movies.

Computer animation first started in the 1940s and 50s, but it was in 1988 with a product called Softimage that modern animation began. For the first time, animation, modeling, and rendering were combined into one tool, which has now been used to create hundreds of feature films and video games.

Animation is prevalent in nearly everything we do. From sending GIFs and creating presentations to creating video games and feature films, animation software is at the heart of it all. Making an animation involves a series of images that you manipulate over a set of keyframes.

You can either create professional animations yourself with software or hire someone to do it for you. You can even start a YouTube channel, choose the best animation-based names and run with your creations.

If you’re ready to download and use a tool yourself, this article ranks and reviews the best animation software to try this year.

Let’s get started.

What is the Best Animation Software?

Here are my picks for the best animation software for animators and businesses.

1. Adobe Animate .

Adobe Animate is a vector and 2d animation software that’s designed for web and mobile app development.

You can animate vector graphics, create interactive content, add effects, and more. This software also has built-in templates that you can customize to your liking.

Adobe Animate is designed for people who want to either animate vector graphics, create interactive content, add effects, and more. This software also has built-in templates that can be customized to your liking. Adobe Animate is best for people who want to create animations or interactive web pages.

Advanced Features:

Use Adobe Animate to animate vector graphics.
Create interactive content with Adobe Animate’s features.
Create content with simple drag-and-drop actions.
Add effects to your animations with Adobe Animate’s built-in templates, such as the color and tone effects, the temporal effect for video, and more.
Extensive support for animation of vector graphics
Built-in templates for simple customizations and interactive content
Color and tone effects, temporal effect on video, and more.

Here is a simple breakdown of Adobe Animate’s pricing:

Adobe Animate costs $20.99 per month for the personal version.

If you want to get access to all of Adobe’s products you can pay $79.99 per month and get access to all of their tools.

Either way Adobe Animate offers a free trial that you can try 100% risk-free.

Initially established in 1998, Maya is an Academy Award-winning (2003) 3D computer graphics and animation software. Currently owned by Autodesk, it is especially useful for the creation of interactive 3D applications like motion pictures, video games, TV series, special effects, and more.

It is, without any doubt, one of the best software tools on the market providing 3D animation, and has been acclaimed for its use in notable films like ‘Lord of the Rings,’ ‘Spiderman,’ ‘Star Wars,’ and ‘Ice Age.’

The best part is that it is compatible with all operating systems including Windows, Mac, and Linux.

Maya is one of the best animation software tools for creating animation pictures, video games, and adding 3D effects in motion pictures. If you require high-quality visual effects, then Maya has you covered.

Advanced Features :

Clip matching feature
Bifrost liquid creation feature that creates simulations of photorealistic movies
Excellent Adobe character animator
Allows deep adaptive liquid simulations
In-built accelerated modeling workflows
Paint effect feature that allows you to make 3D shapes by freehand drawing tools and drawing software
Enhanced viewport 2.0 and DX11Shader rendering engine (blur refFlections, shader effects, imparting translucency)
Free-form approach to 3D modeling that allows you to add as many layers as you want
Arnold integration – this RenderView feature can be used to view scene changes in real-time
Create your own scripts and plugins for better customization (in Maya-embedded Language or python scripting)
Voice-o-matic provides lip-syncing technology, motion capture, and walk cycles
Complex hand-made animation tasks made extremely easy
Efficient color management (useful Boolean operations on polygon geometry)
Create realistic effects including explosions and cloth simulations
Excellent rendering technology even for the most advanced projects
Comes with a 30-day free trial and 30-day money-back guarantee which are great to take it for a test drive

Maya is easily the best 3D animation software on the market and comes in at a reasonable cost of $1,700/year (or pay $215/month). They also offer a 30-day free trial so you can test the software before making the purchase.

Maya is one of the best on the market and my #2 pick this year.

3. Renderforest .

Renderforest is an all-in-one online video, animation, logo, and website maker. This tool is great for web designers, business owners, and those who aren’t necessarily looking for advanced 3D modeling.

If you aren’t a design expert but need to create a logo, animated video, music visualization, or professional intro, Renderforest is the obvious choice.

Renderforest is Best for:

Business owners that don’t want to hire an animator but can follow easy online instructions will benefit from joining Renderforest. If you don’t know how to code but want professional animations at one monthly price, this software is for you.

Best Features:

Machine learning and AI deliver the best logo design options with just a few clicks
Over 50,000 unique artwork files to choose from
Professional mockups and uploadable brand guidelines
100+ pre-made mobile-friendly website design templates
Hundreds of animated video templates to suit your needs including slideshows, intros, explainer videos, logo reveals, corporate presentations, and animated infographics,
Ready-made animated blocks
One-click web page animations
A super-intuitive user interface make it easy when creating animated videos in a few clicks
Their advanced AI does truly understand how to provide you high-quality logo and graphics
Simple monthly pricing depending on how many videos you need

Plans range from free to $49.99/month depending on how many animated videos you need. I recommend their popular $19.99/month plan, which is made for businesses that create a lot of videos.

4. Pencil2D .

Pencil2D is a simple and intuitive tool that helps you create 2D hand-drawn animations.

Open-source, and entirely free of cost, it is open to use by anyone, even for commercial purposes. On top of that, it is decidedly user-friendly, making it an ideal animation software for beginners who want to hand draw character designs.

This tool is tailor-made for traditional artists trying to learn about and master digital art. Pencil2D is also an easy-to-use platform for beginner digital artists with very basic requirements.

Key Features:

Very lightweight and easy-to-use
Seamlessly switch between workflows (Raster and Vector), which allows you to streamline and speed-up your work
Cross-platform software (runs on Windows, Mac, and Linux)
Unique ‘Timeline’ feature that will enable you to choose the pace at which the animation moves
One of the cheapest tools on the market
User-friendly and intuitive user interface
Comes with in-depth tutorials to help you get started
Minimal designing that lets you focus on the job at hand (animation) and paper drawings
Website continually updates you with the latest news and information regarding the software
Free access to a community of users to discuss problems, developments, and for brainstorming sessions
Must use separate layers for every image (similar to PhotoShop, Anime Studio, Adobe Animate, Adobe After Effects, Disney products, and Toon Boom Harmony)
Not yet available for 3D animation
Importing and exporting feature needs to be better

Pencil2D is entirely free of cost since it is an open-source software tool. You can access and download it online easily. Pencil 2D is the best free animation software for anyone just starting their animation journey.

5. Animaker.

Launched in 2014, Animaker is a do it yourself (DIY) 2d animation software and video editor. It offers a wide range of services, including aiding users to create animated videos using in-built videos and infographics.

In 2017, it launched a vertical video creator tool (animated), the first animation company to do so.

The in-built templates are extremely self-sufficient for basic animation work, including educational tutorials and classroom teaching.

Key Features :

It is a cloud-based animation and video maker for GIF, short video, and live video editing
Uses HTML and Adobe Flash
Can directly upload animated videos to platforms like Facebook and YouTube (videos can also be downloaded as mp4 extension)
Offers Google Chrome extension
Has one of the largest collections of animated characters, properties, icons, charts, and maps
Offers video creation in six different, unique styles and video layouts
Offers video infographics
Allows you to edit and customize explainer videos (text-to-speech, background music tracks, more than 100 sound effects)
Pro-level features (record, multi-movie, camera, curve, transition effects, enter, and exit effects)
Animaker deck (pools all the features of animated videos and convenience of powerpoint on the same platform)
Audio features include voice over and auto lip sync for characters
Text support for more than 50languages (custom font support)
Export video in full HD (1080 p)
At times, previewing can make the video lag
Sometimes there are errors in case of video upload
The free version does not offer HD animation

For starters, it offers a freemium version with basic and limited functionalities.

After that, Animaker offers three paid plans, including:

The ‘Basic’ plan is $10 per month (payable annually).
The ‘Starter’ plan costs $19 per month (payable annually).
The ‘Pro’ plan is priced at $49 per month (payable annually).
The Enterprise price which is customized based on your specific needs

6. OpenTooz.

Initially released in 2016, OpenToonz is a free animation software program. Since it is an open-source software tool, any developer can edit and modify its code to make it better and customize it to suit their needs.

Its main aim is to link academic research and animation to facilitate ideas and research.

OpenToonz is perfect for developers and animation artists who are looking for a high level of customizability. It is also suitable for small and medium businesses and creating education tutorials.

Offers GTS scanning tool that you can use for sequence scanning (only available for Windows)
Compatible with TWAIN (and an animation program interface)
Comes with an impressive variety of animation effects, including changing picture styles, affected incident light, and more
Offers a wide range of keyboard shortcuts so that you don’t have to use the mouse all the time
It is compatible with four types of scanning (black and white, colored and with or without binarization)
Creates efficient and seamless cutout animation
Offers FX schematic feature
It can develop wavy distortions and change picture styles
Offers in-built particles effect feature (create rain, snow, sparkles, smoke, and much more)
Supported on a large number of platforms like Windows, Mac, and Linux
Open-source software (can be edited at the source for high customizability)
Free for use
Trustworthy and endorsed by major animation studios (Studio Ghibli)
Comes with starting manual for first-time users (comes in English and Japanese)
User-friendly, intuitive interface
Needs an enormous RAM size to work seamlessly (otherwise, it may crash)
New frame by frame animation and frame creation requires drawing (it is not an automatic feature)
Provides only 2d animation but provides onion skinning

OpenToonz is a free animation tool. It can be accessed online and can be used for both commercial and non-commercial purposes.

7. Synfig .

Also known as Synfig Studio, Synfig is one of the newest animation tools on the market. It is a free animation software for 2D animation and character animation. Moreover, it specializes in vector graphics solutions.

Synfig is beneficial for creating cartoons for television, publicity campaigns, or a marketing initiative. You can use it for educational purposes as well.

Supported on Mac, Windows, and Linux
Provides two versions with different attributes for a different set of people (stable version and development version)
Provides vector tweening and thus eliminates the need for manual tweening
Offers a plethora of layers and filters to choose from (over 50 layers to create artwork and animation)
Stores its own files in XML file format
Supports animated graphic formats like GIF and MNG
Provides advanced controls (link parameters of various layers either directly or mathematically)
Incorporates HDRI (High Dynamic Range Imaging)
Free and open-source
Free video training for an in-depth understanding of the software in four languages, including English, French, and Dutch
Animation features include a bone system for cut-out animation using bitmap images or control vector artwork and a Skeleton Distortion Layer for bitmap artwork
Difficult to grasp at first
Takes a lot of time to wrap your head around its functionings
The user-interface is not very intuitive
There have been complaints regarding the bugs in the software in the past

Synfig Studio is open-source, free, and open to use by anyone. It mainly relies on donations from patrons to provide quality solutions.

8. KeyShot .

KeyShot is a stand-alone, ray tracing, and global illumination animation program. It is specifically used to create high-quality 2D and 3D animations. With KeyShot, you don’t even need to place an additional graphics card in your PC.

Furthermore, it supports more than 30 file types for rendering 3D animation and is laced with attributes, including interactive labeling, texture mapping, and physical lighting.

This software is especially useful for concept modeling, where the benefits of 3D are needed. You can also use it for jewelry designing, toy designing, and automobile designing.

Provides real-time 3D image rendering workflow
Native support for over 30 3D-file formats
Includes more than 750 preset materials to help you differently style your videos
Core strength lies in its speed and flexibility
Animation and VR available
HDRI lighting enables you to adjust and light your scene as per your requirement
KeyShot XR allows us to create interactive, touch-enabled visuals for mobile and web
Real-time ray tracing (progressive global illumination with dynamic lightning)
Can provide still image animations, interactive web content, and mobile content
Scattering media feature (adds particle scattering)
Unrivaled detailing, accuracy, and realism in visualization
Compatible with both Windows and Mac
User-friendly, intuitive interface (for those with experience)
Imports and exports a variety of model formats
Comes with a hefty price tag
3D animation can be difficult to grasp for a novice
Framing, sizing, and re-sizing the window might get difficult at times

KeyShot offers three pricing plans:

The ‘KeyShot HD’ is priced at $995.
The ‘KeyShot Pro’ is $1995.
The ‘KeyShot Pro Floating’ costs $2995.
The ‘Keyshot Enterprise’ costs $3995.

All the pricing plans come with a 15-day free trial period.

K-3D is another incredible 3D animation and modeling software on this list. Packed with flexible plugins, it is a potent tool for designers and artists. On top of that, it has been described to be intuitive, easy-to-use, and easy-to-learn.

Compatible with both Mac and Windows, it also offers a vast range of additional possibilities as compared to traditional modifier stacks for visualization. It also provides 2D animation for the basic user requirements. It is, however, not a free software tool.

It is best suited for professional artists, web designers, and animation specialists. It is also perfect for creating films and documentaries, designing jewelry and toys, and more.

Very flexible and comes with the power of a node-based visualization pipeline
Creates multiple combinations of your choice
Advanced undo/redo system
Can combine flexible plugins to provide you with numerous solutions (robust, object-oriented plugin architecture)
Designed to provide motion-picture quality animation from the ground-up (render engines)
Procedural and parametric workflows
Modification of start of a workflow propagates to the end (intuitive)
User-friendly and intuitive interface
Free software and can be used for commercial and non-commercial purposes
Can offer users both 2D animation and 3D animation
Can be useful for low-budget animation artists
Complex workflows are easy to create, understand, and decipher
Lacks proper tutorials about how to animate and use the product
Can be difficult for beginners to use without appropriate guidance

It is entirely free of cost and is open to use by any person. All you need is an internet connection.

10. Blender .

Blender is one of the most popular free animation tools used to create 3D animation. Initially released in 1998, it is widely used across a variety of industries. It is most suitable for animating most films, 3D printed models, motion graphics, and cinematographic visual effects.

Blender is perfect for a student animator. Although it is not very frequently used in a professional setting, it can be pretty useful for educational videos in smart classrooms that are VFX, and 3D enabled. Owing to its ‘game engine’ feature, you can use it to create games as well.

It is best for individuals and small studios and agencies whose requirements are not very demanding. It also works well for those with Apple iPhone and Android devices, people with OSX, or those using integrations with Cinema 4D, Moho, Stop Motion Studio, Flipbook, or Crazytalk Animator.

Performs rendering and creates renders using high-end production path tracers
Performs modeling; offers extensive toolset to perform activities like sculpting, retopology, and modeling
Robust simulation using industry-standard libraries like Bullet and MantaFlow
Offers efficient in-built video editor
Its new ‘game engine’ feature supports game creation
Offers modifiers to apply a non-destructive effect
‘Grease Pencil’ tool for 2D concept designing and 3D modeling
Supports a wide range of geometric primitives like metaballs, icospheres, and Bezier curves
Very user-friendly and intuitive interface
Offers high customizability
Award-winning animation and bone rigging features
Integration with multiple pipeline tools, including Collada, Alembic, and more
It is compatible with Windows, Linux, and MacOS
In-depth tutorials to help you understand the working of the software
A bit difficult for beginners to use
Steep learning curve

It is a free animation software tool.

11. PowToon.

Founded in 2012, PowToon creates and sells SaaS software to create animations. It is a web-based animation software that offers a wide range of services, specializing in 2D.

From creating educational tutorials to personal interaction – PowToon comes in handy for everything related to animation.

PowToon provides lots of templates and royalty-free images. Plus, it is great for professionals who deal extensively with presentations.

No watermarks
Downloadable as mp4
Full HD video (1080 p)
You have complete control over the privacy of your account
Directly export to various social media sites like YouTube
Detailed videos walkthroughs and tutorials available to help you get started
Multiple character animations and cartoons to choose from
Animations are clever and well-detailed
24/7 priority customer support
Has a free plan but with limited qualities
Can sometimes become slow (while editing)
No offline editing options
A bit expensive
Does not offer 3D animation

PowToon comes with four pricing plans:

The ‘Pro’ plan is $19 per month.
The ‘Pro+’ plan also costs $19 per month right now.
The ‘Agency’ plan is priced at $29 per month and is offered only on an annual subscription.

12. Animation Paper .

Animation Paper is one of the best animation software on the market right now and offers a variety of 2D animations for multiple uses. Compatible with Windows, Linux, and Mac, this software is useful for pro-animators, film-makers, students, and game developers.

Moreover, its ease of use and speed of working are huge differentiators in ensuring patronage. It is extensively used for hand-drawn animations and character creation. The best part is that it comes with a freemium plan.

Animation Paper is best suited for big studios, web-designers, and individual animators. That said, it can also be used in case of small and medium enterprises. You can also use it as an educational tool in smart classrooms.

High-quality lines (you don’t have to worry about resolution getting degraded upon transformation)
‘Light table’ feature
Customizable toolbar
Color-coded layering in animation
Efficiency in coloring and performing post-paint changes
It offers a free version called ‘Plastic Animation Paper’ (can be used for commercial and non-commercial purposes)
Many alternative ways of flipping, like keys, wheel, return flip, among others
Offers smooth real-time rotation and zooming
Can play video scenes in sequence to check continuity
Intuitive and user-friendly interface
Super-fast responsiveness while drawing and flipping
Lasso (ease of rotation, repositioning and scaling drawings)
Easy import of video animations or frame stacks
Real-time full-frame reference on the second monitor
Lightweight, simple, and efficient
3D animation is not available
The free version has limited functionalities

It has a free version called ‘Plastic Animation Paper.’ However, the paid version will cost $79 per month and will be available in the future.

Animation and 2d Animation Software FAQ.

Which animation software is best.

Adobe Animate is the best animation software for web and mobile app development. Why? You can animate vector graphics, create interactive content, add effects, and more with Adobe.

What is a good animation software for beginners free?

Good free 2d animation software for beginners is Animate CC which comes with pre-made templates and effects. Having a decent amount of animation tools available also means you won’t have to rely on 3rd party plugins for additional functionality.

Is Adobe Animate free?

No Adobe Animate is not free. It is either $20.99 per month for the standalone product or $52.99 per month for the entire Adobe bundle.

The market is full of different types of animation software. However, every business is different, and every individual has different requirements. So you need to establish the exact nature and objective of your work when choosing your software. Simply put, you need to determine what you aim to achieve with your animation.

For instance, if you are looking to create complex, top-notch animations for your professional reel, you might want to go for software like Maya or Animation Paper. However, if you need some basic animations for your website or online business , you can go with any of the free software tools.

If you want advanced 3D modeling for video games and movies, go with Maya .

If you’re looking for business animations like logos and explainer videos, I’d go with Renderforest.

Finally, you may also want to take into account other things, like the price, complexity, ease of use, and customer support you require.

Is there any tools that you like not included on this list? Let me know in the comments.

Read More on AdamEnfroy.com: If you’re looking for more software reviews, you can check out my guides to the best video editing software to use this year.

Editorial Process:

Our reviews are made by a team of experts before being written and come from real-world experience. Read our editorial process here .

Some of the links in this article may be affiliate links, which can provide compensation to us at no cost to you if you decide to purchase a paid plan. These are products we’ve personally used and stand behind. This site is not intended to provide financial advice. You can read our affiliate disclosure in our privacy policy .

Adam Enfroy

Meet Adam Enfroy

Hey, I’m Adam. I launched this blog in 2019 and turned it into a $1M/year business within 2 years. I then launched my YouTube channel in 2021 and turned it into a $4M/year business. Today, I help over 6,000 students build profitable blogs and YouTube channels.

Check out my YouTube channel .

We test and review software products based on an independent, multi-point methodology. If you use our links to purchase something, we earn a commission. Read our editorial process and disclosures .

#ezw_tco-3 .ez-toc-title{ font-size: 120%; ; ; } #ezw_tco-3 .ez-toc-widget-container ul.ez-toc-list li.active{ background-color: #ededed; } Table of Contents

13 Best Data Recovery Software of 2023 (Mac + Windows)

7 best ai video generator tools ranked & reviewed (2024).

7 Best Microlearning Platforms of 2024 (Ultimate Guide)

these are the great apps I have used the 3 one, but leave the animation because of the need for money.

If anyone is aspiring to become an animator, then they should keep themselves updated about these Softwares. We should definitely improve ourselves so that we can reach greater heights. Will definitely use some and give my opinions. Thanks

Thanks for sharing this amazing list. Some of these software looks super useful and I will definitely try them next, and share my feedback.

Great article. Thank you for those insights.

I use maya my cg work. It’s a great software for cg work. It contain very usefull tool. I am loving with maya. Thanks for sharing

Thanks for putting this blog together to help us weed through all of the options. I took your advice on Renderforest and excited to try it out. And I agree with having guidelines for choosing an application, especially if you decide to buy one before you try it out. Believe me, this does happen. If you’re a beginner, consider the application’s ease of use; it should have an easy learning curve to begin using it, otherwise you can get discouraged trying to figure out how to use it.. And definitely consider pricing and what the application offers.

Presentation Guru

The best ways online to create an animated presentation.

A lot of people rely on static slide decks created using conventional presentation apps like PowerPoint or Keynote. It seems that the use of animations is still perhaps overrated. Many presenters don’t like experimenting with animations, even for their PowerPoint slides, as they like playing it safe.

This can perhaps be attributed to the plethora of technical issues that presenters can face due to device and software compatibility problems, many of which we touched upon in our post about common tech problems faced by presenters.

While you might not be an expert in using professional animation software like 3D Studio Max, Maya or Adobe After Effects, however, you can easily create animated presentations using some easy to use web services.

Video presentations made using web apps can be shared online or downloaded as offline video files which you can play using a computer or mobile device, without worrying about device compatibility problems. In what is to follow, we will provide you with a list of the 5 best web services for making animated presentations.

1) GoAnimate

It doesn’t matter whether you are a techie or someone who still has problem navigating through the Windows Start menu. If you know how to use a mouse and keyboard that’s all you need to start making professional looking animations using GoAnimate . This web service allows creating animations using a readymade template, background music and animated characters that you can pick and choose from the given options.

Using GoAnimate is pretty much like using PowerPoint. The only difference is that instead of a slide deck, you can create animated videos with your custom branding. GoAnimate is perfect for making anything from short video clips to marketing demos, videos for your YouTube channel and of course, animated presentations with interesting characters.

GoAnimate videos can be downloaded offline, uploaded to YouTube or used for your projects made using other software like Lectora. GoAnimate has a monthly subscription system, however, you can sign-up for a 14-day free trial to test the service.

Wideo is another awesome website for making animated presentations using readymade templates, animated characters and a plethora of useful tools that can help you create animated video clips in no time.

You can start making animated presentations and video clips by either starting from scratch, or opt for a readymade template. Wideo provides a simple slide based layout to help presenters create animated videos with custom branding, animated characters, audio tracks and some awesome backgrounds. Wideo not only provides animated characters but you can also create videos using realistic imagery, such as marketing and sales video presentations with details about your product or service.

Videos made using Wideo can be downloaded offline, uploaded to YouTube and shared across social media websites.

Wideo can be used on a 7-day trial basis, with a limitation of making 30 second videos. This should be enough to test drive the service and see if you want to use Wideo as your animation maker.

3) Animation Maker

Animation Maker is another easy to use web app for making animated videos. You can make use of 120 different animation styles for making awesome video animations. The available video templates cater for all kinds of categories, such as for making animations about education, travel, business, health, food, sports, etc. Animation Maker even has templates for making animated infographics.

You can also add audio tracks and voice-over to further enhance your animated video clips. Animation Maker gives the option to export videos directly to YouTube and Facebook, as well as to download them offline.

Animation Maker has a free edition with limited functionality. The free version is limited to 2 minute SD quality videos.

4) PowToon

PowToon works pretty much like GoAnimate and Wideo. You can use readymade templates for making animated presentations and video clips by designing various slides that play out in animated form. PowToon offers a lot of resources like royalty free music, animated charts and graphs, as well as online collaboration features to help you design some awesome animated presentations.

Presentations made using PowToon can be downloaded as MP4 files or uploaded to YouTube. You can also export your content in PDF or PPT format. PowToon has a Presentation Mode for making animated video presentations, and a Movie Mode, which is suitable for making video clips of a different nature, such as perhaps marketing videos, animations for a class lecture, informative video clips, etc.

PowToon offers a free version with 100MB storage, with the option to make 5 minute video clips. The premium packages offer a lot of additional features, with the option to create HD and Full HD video animations.

5) MakeWebVideos

MakeWebVideos is so easy to use that you can create an animated video clip in just 30 minutes. There are several useful templates offered by this online video software that you can pick for making awesome video animations. You can get started by picking a video template, and follow a simple 3 step process to change the graphics, text and background music to quickly create an animated video presentation, marketing video, public service message, etc.

With easy editing features, you can create HD videos which can be downloaded offline or embedded online. MakeWebVideo gives you an estimate for your video once it’s complete. It’s more of a pay as you go system, where costs can vary according to the type of video you create and the resources you use.

Here is an explainer video which shows how you can create animated videos with MakeWebVideos in just a few minutes.

The web services mentioned in this post include presentation services which are as easy to use as PowerPoint. These web apps offer an easy to use mechanism for presenters to create professional looking animated video presentations and clips, without the need for any graphic designing or coding related knowledge. By using your creative sense, these services can enable you to turn boring charts and confusing data into easy to understand, animated video clips, with a voice over, background music, informative text and animated characters.

If you liked this, you might also like

Create the Best Video Presentations with these Innovative Tools

How to Turn Your PowerPoint into a Video

Latest Posts

Farshad Iqbal

+farshad iqbal, latest posts by farshad iqbal ( see all ).

Let’s look at Interactive Digital Whiteboards - 6th March 2018
Six of the Best Laptops for Presenters - 16th January 2018
Where Can I Find Great Clip Art and More for Powerpoint? - 12th December 2017
The Best Digital Whiteboards for Presenters - 21st November 2017
The Best Screen Mirroring Apps and Technology for Every Occasion - 24th October 2017

23 Comments

28th February 2017 at 3:29 pm

Great post Farshad. Thanks for the information and the links.It’s really useful.

1st March 2017 at 2:00 pm

Thanks Jim.

Best animated explainer videos

3rd May 2017 at 6:38 am

Thanks for such useful tools list and their details go animate and powtoon are really useful to make some best explainer videos

Animation Maker

23rd November 2017 at 1:48 pm

What do you think about premium features of powtoon? worth or not?

Cartoon Maker Apps

10th May 2018 at 5:16 am

Hi Farsahad,

Thanks for sharing these animation tools. I was always wondering how can I make animated presentation. I’m going to try them and see if they works for me.

Rosie Hoyland

10th May 2018 at 9:18 am

We’d love to know how you get on and what worked for you. Keep us posted.

20th June 2018 at 12:58 pm

Congratulations on your post, it is very complete. We don’t know if you have used http://www.genial.ly before but it is a very useful tool to create animated and interactive content very easily. We think it will be very interesting for you to take in consideration Genially in your next articles. Kind regards

21st June 2018 at 10:09 am

Hi Cecilia – thanks for introducing this to us – it looks interesting – we’ll explore further…

23rd October 2018 at 11:21 am

Thanks For sharing this information. It’s Nice..!!! https://games.lol/

Village Talkies

17th January 2019 at 11:39 am

Corporate Video Production Company in Bangalore and Explainer, Animation Video Maker in Chennai Wow! your article is really great with detailed information. It is really very helpful for us.

MiniBigTech

23rd July 2019 at 8:09 am

This blog totally depends on animation as there is numerous firm in Pakistan they are providing good. So every entrepreneur should see this content before using the services. Check it out click on video animation service . Please contact us at any time.

19th December 2019 at 10:53 am

Thanks for the information

Explainby Video

31st January 2020 at 12:01 pm

Great listing of the tools this would really help to create an explainer video animation with online tools this is really amazing Thanks!

27th July 2020 at 4:28 am

Thanks for sharing excellent informations. Your web-site is very cool

30th July 2020 at 11:04 am

Very informative article. It’s worth visiting and recommending. Thank you for sharing this helpful information with us. Keep going and update the latest information at this knowledge hub.

Digital Marketing Agency Pakistan

12th January 2021 at 11:14 am

Very nice & informative. Thanks for sharing with us, Did you know that Dexterous is the best digital marketing agency pakistan.

13th August 2021 at 2:10 pm

Thanks, Farshad for your blog loaded with so much information. Stopping by your blog helped me to get what I was looking for.

sajithkumar

27th August 2021 at 7:24 am

While surfing through the net for Animated Presentation. I found your post, it’s interesting and the narration is good.once again thanks for sharing this wonderful post.

Digious Solutions

14th September 2021 at 11:05 pm

Very Informative, Keep sharing the blogs. Digious Solutions is the website of a development company in the US, UK and local Markets, providing Web Development , Graphic Design , Digital Marketing , Mobile Application Development , E-commerce Solutions and many more services. We aspire to become the premier IT Company focusing on new realms.

suvarnabhoomi infra

16th November 2021 at 9:01 am

Keep sharing more stuff. Your blog looks good.

23rd November 2021 at 10:41 am

thanks for great post

25th November 2021 at 7:08 am

Thanks for sharing such excellent information.

6th January 2022 at 2:17 pm

Very good article. Thanks for your work

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Follow The Guru

Join our Mailing List

Join our mailing list to get monthly updates and your FREE copy of A Guide for Everyday Business Presentations

The Only PowerPoint Templates You’ll Ever Need

Anyone who has a story to tell follows the same three-act story structure to...

Video Editing

Animation Tips
Website Tips

55+ Best Animation Software: Online, 2D, 3D, and More

Renderforest Staff

14 Jun 2023

18 min read

55+ Best Animation Software: Online, 2D, 3D, and More

Unleash your creative genius and bring your imagination to life with the power of animation! If you’ve ever dreamed of making characters dance across the screen, telling captivating stories, or creating stunning visual effects, you’re in for a treat. Animation software has revolutionized how we communicate, entertain, and engage with audiences of all ages.

According to recent research, video marketers claim that 66% of consumers prefer watching a video to reading about a product.

Animated videos are everywhere. We use them for different purposes, from explainer videos for business to animated video greetings and everything in between. Yet to reach the desired results, putting quality over quantity has got to be your top priority.

But with so many online animation software solutions available, finding the perfect tool to meet your specific needs can feel like searching for a needle in a haystack.

But fret not! We’ve done the legwork for you and compiled a comprehensive list of the 55+ best animation software tools . So, whether you’re an aspiring filmmaker, a marketing guru, or a student eager to make a splash with your presentations, we are about to dive in together and turn your dreams into reality!

Top 55+ Animation Software: Suitable for Pros and Beginners

When it comes to video animation software , a plethora of options are available, catering to individuals with varying skill levels and preferences. From user-friendly programs designed for beginners to sophisticated tools equipped with advanced features, the market offers a diverse range of choices. However, it is important to note that certain animation software solutions may present a steep learning curve for novice users, while others may pose budgetary constraints.

Thus, it is crucial to assess your own proficiency and requirements before selecting the most suitable animation software. Beginners may find solace in intuitive platforms that prioritize ease of use, allowing them to grasp the fundamental concepts of animation quickly. On the other hand, experienced animators may seek software that offers a robust suite of tools, enabling them to delve into intricate details and push the boundaries of their creative endeavors.

With these tools, you can create 2D and 3D animation , stop motion animation, whiteboard animation , and more.

Let’s see which one will be your favorite!

Online Animation Tools

One of the best things about online animation tools is that you don’t have to download these tools on your device to start working. All you need to do is upload your files to the editor and start editing your animated video. Here are some great online animation software solutions to make your job easier.

Renderforest

Operating system: Website

Description:

Renderforest shines as a remarkable cloud-based platform, offering many features to transform your creative ideas into visually stunning masterpieces. With its focus on ready-made templates, the software has hundreds of thousands of explainer animations , cartoon videos , and more!

It opens up a world of possibilities, catering to a diverse range of needs, including tools for kinetic typography, product or service promotional videos, music visualizations , logo animation templates , wedding or travel slideshows, mobile app promotions, event invitations, corporate presentations, infographics, and lot more.

What makes Renderforest truly remarkable is its accessibility. You can create videos in minutes, see how each scene looks in real-time, and render and export them in SD 360 quality with watermarks. If you want the final result to be without watermarks and in HD quality, you need to subscribe to one of the plans or pay for a one-time export . The platform also offers a text animation video maker for combining text with motion and a free cartoon maker —along with cartoon templates —for cartoon creations. For branding purposes, you can even make a 3D logo animation online free of charge. And did we mention the free AI animation generator ?

As one of the best animation apps , Renderforest serves as an invaluable solution for both individuals and businesses alike. It caters to those seeking professional-grade results and broadcast quality without the burden of technical expertise required to build a product from scratch. By harnessing the power of Renderforest, users can confidently present their products or ideas with a polished and captivating touch, leaving a lasting impression on their audience.

Animatron is a web-based animation software that empowers users to create and modify animated videos and interactive content with ease. Established in 2011 as a corporate spin-off from JetBrains, the company has garnered recognition for its innovative offerings. Central to Animatron’s capabilities is its HTML5 animation tool, which seamlessly displays created animations on various mobile and desktop web pages.

Animatron also offers a collaborative environment, allowing teams to work seamlessly together on projects. By enabling real-time collaboration and providing tools for version control, Animatron enhances productivity and streamlines the creative workflow. Whether you’re working on a solo project or collaborating with a team spread across different locations, Animatron ensures a smooth and efficient production process.

With Moovly’s intuitive platform, users can seamlessly create captivating animated videos, engaging video presentations, dynamic animated infographics, and various other video content that incorporates a harmonious blend of animation and motion graphics.

Moovly’s cloud-based platform ensures accessibility and flexibility, allowing users to work on their projects anytime, anywhere, and from any device with an internet connection. This seamless integration enables a smooth and collaborative workflow, facilitating teamwork and enabling users to bring their collective ideas to fruition.

Animaker is an easy-to-use animated video creation tool. Create an account to begin your video and choose a template to customize. Be sure to watch the tutorials before starting to learn all of the features included with Animaker. When complete, download a video to your computer or directly to YouTube or Facebook. The free version of the tool allows animated videos up to 2 minutes in length and five exports per month. The tutorials reside on YouTube. If your district blocks YouTube, the videos may not be viewable. You could always view them at home and bring them to class “on a stick” to share.

Description: PowToon is a web-based animation software that allows users to create animated presentations by manipulating pre-created objects, imported images, provided music, and user-created voice-overs. Powtoon uses an Apache Flex engine to generate an XML file that can be played in the Powtoon online viewer, exported to YouTube, or downloaded as an MP4 file. PowToon is also available in the Google Chrome Store and has an application on Edmodo.com.

With this web-based tool you can create 3D animations without any prior knowledge. You can see animated characters moving instantly. Get high-quality animations that are automatically retargeted to your 3D character and ready to bring into your project. No need to reanimate a walk cycle for each character. Search the Store for the right animation and get instant feedback on timing.

Description: Wideo is designed to help its users create, edit, and share videos very easily . With its user-friendly interface, you can bring your ideas to life in a matter of moments. Simply drag and drop elements or upload your own images; with just a few clicks, you’ll be animating your content.

Whether you’re a seasoned animator or a beginner taking your first steps into the world of video creation, Wideo provides a seamless and intuitive experience. The process is as simple as can be—just select the desired elements, arrange them as you please, and watch your creations come to life.

This is an online tool to create visual aids for your story. It can be used to create infographics, presentations, and other visual content in a time-saving manner. Whether you are looking for a cost-effective solution or seeking additional advanced features, Visme has something to offer. If you want to animate for free , the software has both free and paid versions.

MakeWebVideo

If you need a business video advertisement or a product video to promote your company, website, or an upcoming event – you’ve come to the right spot! This website has developed an online video animation maker that lets you make a professional video for your website and will help increase your business sales.

Vyond is an online tool that lets you create your own animated videos. Create your own characters, choose the one that fits your needs with the specific description. Audio is automatically lip-synced to the characters in real time, so it looks professional. This platform has a free trial available for 14 days.

The software stands as a dynamic and innovative animation software solution that revolutionizes how presentations are delivered. Unlike traditional slide-based approaches, Prezi takes storytelling to new heights by enabling users to create captivating and fluid visual narratives.

Concentrated on digital animations, Prezi offers a unique zooming canvas that allows presenters to seamlessly transition between different visual elements, creating a smooth and engaging flow of information.

2D Animation Software

2D animation is one of the most popular animation styles. From captivating feature films to engaging advertisements, 2D animation has found its place in various industries, and its popularity continues to surge.

In fact, the global 2D animation software market is predicted to grow at +10% CAGR through the years 2023 to 2030 .

The allure of 2D animation lies in its ability to blend creativity and nostalgia, evoking a sense of wonder and imagination. With the advent of advanced technology, 2D animation software has experienced a remarkable resurgence, offering artists a wide array of tools and techniques to bring their visions to life.

The main types of 2D animation software include but don’t limit to the following:

Traditional animation software
Vector-based animation software
Motion graphics software
Rigging and animation software

With each stroke and movement, 2D animation software is forging new frontiers in the art of storytelling, weaving tales that touch the hearts and minds of viewers.

Let’s furtherly explore some key market players to help you create your next animated video for business or any other purpose.

Operating system: Website

Designed for traditional 2D animation, Toon Boom inspires artists and animators to bring their creative visions to life. Users can unleash their artistic talents through hand-drawn animation techniques, utilizing the software’s intuitive drawing tools, frame-by-frame animation capabilities, and onion-skinning functionality. These features allow precise control over each frame, ensuring smooth and fluid movements that breathe life into characters and objects.

Another powerful feature of Toon Boom is its robust rigging system. Artists can design and rig complex character structures, allowing for efficient and consistent animation. The software’s bone and deformation tools provide flexibility and control, enabling animators to achieve various movements and expressions.

Moho (Animion Software)

Operating system: Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X

Moho is a proprietary vector-based 2D animation software for animators. Moho has two different versions: Moho Debut and Moho Pro. The first one doesn’t have all the functions that the Pro version has, plus the Debut version is a bit more restricted in terms of possible length and image size.

The features include drawing tools, smart bones, Photoshop files import, quad meshes, full 3D space and camera, lip-sync tools, and more.

Moho’s standout feature lies in its exceptional ease of use, allowing users to effortlessly create reusable 2D rigs while maintaining a high level of control. This unique combination makes it an ideal choice for various applications, including TV shows, web series, and even video game animation.

Synfig Studio

Operating system: Linux, Mac OS X, Windows

Synfig Studio is a feature-rich, open-source computer animation program that operates on a timeline-based, 2D vector graphics framework.

What sets Synfig Studio apart is its unique architecture, consisting of both a front-end and back-end application. This distinctive setup allows users to create animations seamlessly in the intuitive front-end interface. Later, they can render their creations in the back end, even on a separate computer, without needing a graphical display connection.

As an open-source software, Synfig Studio is freely available, granting access to its comprehensive suite of animation tools and features without any cost. Yet, it requires certain levels of professionalism to bring your ideas to life.

Adobe Animate

Operating system: Windows, OS X

Developed by Adobe Systems, Adobe Animate is one of the best animation software and multimedia authoring programs available today. If you aim to create captivating vector graphics and animations, Animate is the ideal tool to bring your vision to life.

The versatility of Adobe Animate extends across various platforms and mediums. Once you’ve crafted your animations, you can seamlessly incorporate them into websites, online videos, rich internet applications, video games, and television programs. This broad range of applications allows you to showcase your creations to a wide and diverse audience.

Additionally, the software supports rich text and raster graphics, offering flexibility and creative freedom in your designs.

Operating system: Linux, OS X, Microsoft Windows

Pencil 2D is an open-source and free animation software for creating digital animations. You can easily produce simple 2D drawings and graphics, and create a hand-drawn animation by using the bitmap/vector drawing interface of the application. It started as a simple “pencil test” at first and developed into professional animation software.

Operating system: Linux, macOS, Microsoft Windows

OpenToonz, an esteemed open-source 2D animation software, offers a wide array of creative tools and features. As part of the same family, Toonz Premium is a professional-grade product providing advanced capabilities for animation production.

OpenToonz’s open-source nature fosters a collaborative and supportive community, driving ongoing development and innovation. Artists and developers can contribute to the software’s improvement, ensuring that it remains up-to-date and relevant in the ever-evolving field of animation.

DigiCel FlipBook

DigiCel FlipBook embraces the essence of the traditional animation process. Inspired by the likes of Toon Boom Harmony and TVPaint, FlipBook aims to replicate the traditional hand-drawn animation experience. As such, it does not support skeletal animation, focusing on individual frame creation and onion skinning for inbetweening.

By emphasizing frame-by-frame creation and onion skinning, FlipBook allows animators to craft each individual frame with precision and care meticulously. This approach offers full control over the animation process, lending a traditional touch to the final product.

Retas Studio

Operating system: Microsoft Windows, Mac OS

RETAS (Revolutionary Engineering Total Animation System) is an exceptional 2D animation software bundle created and distributed by Celsys. Available for both Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X, RETAS offers a comprehensive solution for the entire animation production process.

Notably, RETAS has earned a prominent position in Japan’s anime industry, being regarded as a leader in the field. Its robust features, reliability, and advanced capabilities have made it a preferred choice among professionals in the Japanese animation community.

Animation Paper

Operating system: Linux, Windows, macOS

Animation Paper, developed by Krogh Mortensen Animation, is an exceptional software package designed specifically for hand-drawn 2D animation. With its intuitive interface and innovative features, Animation Paper revolutionizes the animation workflow, allowing animators to draw directly on the screen without the need for traditional line tests.

This free animation program caters to beginners, providing a user-friendly platform to explore the art of animation. It offers a seamless and intuitive drawing experience, empowering aspiring animators to unleash their creativity and bring their ideas to life.

CelAction 2D

Operating system: Windows

CelAction2D is a professional 2D animation software specialized in films, TV series, and commercials. Using vector graphics and bitmaps, character models and their movements can be edited. Over 60 effects and many audio samples are available in order to make scenes more dynamic. The animation will be previewed in low resolution but can be rendered out in any resolution you wish up to 4K. The program has no drawing tools, so your sketches or photos have to be imported from different software (such as Photoshop, Illustrator, or Flash).

Maefloresta

Operating system: Unix-like, Windows, macOS

Maefloresta is a Colombian startup providing products and services to create animated content. Their main product is TupiTube, a simple animation software that kids and teenagers use to create animations. It was developed by two young Colombians to encourage young people throughout Latin America to animate.

TupiTube is free and open-source software, compatible with phones, tablets, and PCs. It offers features like basic tools for vector illustration, support for tweening of positions and colors, a library panel to organize files, and different formats for exporting. The goal is to reach a professional level for more advanced users eventually.

More Templates

3D Animation Software

Unlike 2D animation, which is flat, 3D animation is the art of placing objects and characters in a 3-dimensional space and giving them a more realistic feel. Check out our list of the best 3D animation software and learn how to make 3D animation with some free resources.

Autodesk 3ds Max

Operating system: Windows 7 or later

Description: Autodesk 3ds Max, formerly 3D Studio, then 3D Studio Max is a professional 3D animation software for making 3D animations, models, games, and images. It’s developed and produced by Autodesk Media and Entertainment. It has modeling capabilities and a flexible plugin architecture and can be used on the Microsoft Windows platform.

It is frequently used by video game developers, many TV commercial studios, and architectural visualization studios. Autodesk is also used for movie effects and movie pre-visualization. For its modeling and animation tools, the latest version of 3ds Max also features shaders (such as ambient occlusion and subsurface scattering), dynamic simulation, particle systems, radiosity, normal map creation and rendering, global illumination, a customizable intuitive interface, new icons, and its own scripting language.

Maxon Cinema 4D

Operating system: AmigaOS, MacOS, Microsoft Windows

Description: CINEMA 4D is a 3D modeling, animation, motion graphics , and rendering application developed by MAXON Computer GmbH in Germany. It is one of the best animation software available, and is capable of procedural and polygonal/SubD modeling, animating, lighting, texturing, rendering, visual effects, video editing and compositing, and common features found in 3D modeling applications. Four variants are currently available from MAXON: a core CINEMA 4D ‘Prime’ application, a ‘Broadcast’ version with additional motion-graphics features, ‘Visualize’ which adds functions for architectural design, and ‘Studio’, which includes all modules.

Initially, CINEMA 4D was developed for Amiga computers in the early 1990s, and the first three versions of the program were available exclusively for that platform. With v4, however, MAXON began to develop CINEMA 4D for Windows and Macintosh computers as well, citing the wish to reach a wider audience and the growing instability of the Amiga market following Commodore’s bankruptcy.

Operating system: Windows, MacOS, Linux

Description: Houdini is one of the best animation software, and was developed by Side Effects Software based in Toronto. Side Effects adapted Houdini from the PRISMS suite of procedural generation software tools. Its exclusive attention to procedural generation distinguishes it from other 3D animation software open-source solutions.

Houdini is an advanced motion graphics tool, and has been used in various feature animation productions, including Disney’s feature films Frozen and Zootopia; the Blue Sky Studios film Rio, and DNA Productions’ Ant Bully.

Side Effects also publishes a partially limited version called Houdini Apprentice, which is free of charge for non-commercial use.

Description: Poser is a 3D computer graphics program optimized for modeling human figures. The program has gained popularity due to allowing beginners to produce basic animations and digital images and the extensive availability of third-party digital models. Poser is a 3D rendering software package for the posing, animating, and rendering of 3D polymesh human and animal figures. Akin to a virtual photography studio, Poser allows users to load figures, props, lighting, and cameras for still and animated renderings.

Using a subset of the Alias object (OBJ) file format and a text-based markup for content files, Poser comes with a large library of pre-rigged human, animal, robotic, and cartoon figures. The package includes poses, hairpieces, props, textures, hand gestures, and facial expressions. As Poser itself does not allow for the original modeling of objects, a large community market of artists emerged, creating and selling Poser content using third-party software like Modo, ZBrush, Blender, or Autodesk 3ds Max.

Description: iClone is a real-time 3D animation and rendering software program that enables users to make 3D animated films. Real-time playback is enabled by using a 3D video game engine for instant on-screen rendering.

Other functionality includes full facial and skeletal animation of human and animal figures, lip-syncing, import of standard 3D file types including FBX, a timeline for editing and merging motions, a scripting language (Lua) for character interaction, application of standard motion-capture files, the ability to control an animated scene in the same manner as playing a video game, and the import of models from Google 3D Warehouse, among many other features that make animation easy. iClone is also notable for offering users royalty-free usage of all content that they create with the software, even when using Reallusion’s own assets library.

Operating system: AmigaOS, Mac OS X, iPad, Linux, AROS, MorphOS, Windows

Description: Aladdin4D is a computer program for modeling and rendering three-dimensional graphics and animations, currently running on AmigaOS and Mac OS X platforms. A-Eon Technology Ltd owns the rights and develops current and future versions of Aladdin4D for AmigaOS, MorphOS & AROS. All other platforms including OS X, iOS, Windows & Linux are developed by DiscreetFX. Nova Design added many modern features and made it easier to create animated videos with the software. It was one of the first 3D animation software on any platform to employ volumetrics, which were primarily used to create volumetric gas. However, unlike the majority of Amiga 3D programs, it used scanline rendering instead of the more photo-realistic ray-tracing technique. Scanline rendering is similar to the rendering technique used in most Pixar movies.

Autodesk Maya

Operating system: Windows 7 or later OS X 10.8 or later RHEL/CentOS 6.2 or later

Maya is an application used to generate 3D assets for use in film, television, game development, and architecture. The software is also one of the best animation software for character animation and is used by major studios around the world. It was initially released for the IRIX operating system. However, this support was discontinued in August 2006.

Users who are students, teachers (or veterans or unemployed in USA markets) can download a full educational version from the Autodesk Education community for free. The versions available at the community are only licensed for non-commercial use (once activated with the product license) and some products create watermarks on output renders. The software comes with a full 36-month license. Once it expires, users can log into the community to request a new 36 months license and download the latest Autodesk product.

Operating system: Windows, Mac OS, Linux

Description: Blender is professional and free animation software. Its 3D computer graphics software toolset is used for creating animated films, visual effects, art, 3D printed models, interactive 3D applications, and video games. Blender’s features include UV unwrapping, texturing, raster graphics editing, rigging and skinning, fluid and smoke simulation, particle simulation, soft body simulation, sculpting, animating, match moving, camera tracking, rendering, video editing, compositing, motion graphics, and character animation. It further features an integrated game engine that makes animation easy.

Operating system: Windows, Linux

Description: Cascadeur is a professional 3D graphics software for physics-based action animation. The software offers a wealth of tools you can use to achieve the most realistic look for your animation. The software comes with editable mockups and tools to create an animation from scratch. The AI tools help to adjust the timing and trajectories so that users can concentrate on the animation process. Cascadeur is compatible with other animation software, such as Maya, Unity, Autodesk 3DS Max, Cinema4D, and others.

LightWave 3D

Operating system: AmigaOS, Windows, macOS

Description: LightWave is a software package used for rendering 3D images, both animated and static. It includes a fast rendering engine that supports such advanced features as realistic reflection, radiosity, caustics, and 999 render nodes. The 3D modeling component supports both polygon modeling and subdivision surfaces. The animation component has features such as reverse and forward kinematics for character animation, particle systems, and dynamics. Programmers can expand LightWave’s capabilities using an included SDK, which offers Python, LScript (a proprietary scripting language) scripting, and C language interfaces.

Autodesk MotionBuilder

Description: MotionBuilder is a professional 3D character animation software produced by Autodesk. It is used for virtual production, motion capture, character animation, and traditional keyframe animation. It was originally named Filmbox when it was first created by Canadian company Kaydara, later acquired by Alias and renamed MotionBuilder. Alias, in turn, was acquired by Autodesk.

It is primarily used in film, games, television production, as well as other multimedia projects. Mainstream examples include Assassin’s Creed, Killzone 2, and Avatar.

At SIGGRAPH 2012, Autodesk announced a partnership with Weta Digital and Lightstorm Entertainment to develop the next generation of technology.

Description: Daz Productions, Inc., commonly known as Daz 3D, is a 3D content and software company specializing in providing rigged 3D human models, associated accessory content, and software to the prosumer market. It was originally part of Zygote Media Group, a general-purpose, application-agnostic 3D content broker, and split off as “Digital Art Zone” in 2000 to focus on supplying content for the Poser market.

After acquiring other modeling tools, DAZ 3D created their own 3D posing/animation package, DAZ Studio, while still continuing to make the content compatible with Poser for several years. DAZ 3D also sells third-party applications usable with their products.

Operating system: Windows, macOS

Description: Bryce, an impressive 3D modeling, rendering, and animation program, is renowned for its specialization in crafting breathtaking fractal landscapes. Drawing inspiration from the awe-inspiring beauty of Bryce Canyon, known for its rugged and striking scenery, the software replicates and simulates these captivating landscapes with remarkable precision.

The roots of the original Bryce software lie in the exploration of fractal geometry to generate realistic computer images of mountain ranges and coastlines. By harnessing the power of fractals, Bryce enables artists and designers to create stunningly realistic and immersive environments that evoke the majesty of nature

Operating system: Windows, Linux, macOS

Description: Modo (stylized as MODO, originally modo) is a polygon and subdivision surface modeling, sculpting, 3D painting, animation, and rendering package developed by Luxology, LLC, which is now merged with and known as Foundry. The program incorporates features such as n-gons and edge weighting and runs on Microsoft Windows, Linux, and macOS platforms.

Modo’s workflow differs from many other notable 3D applications. It is often viewed as the fastest modelling app on the market that has a well-developed interoperability with other applications (CAD and 3D).

Modo was used in the production of feature films such as Stealth, Ant Bully, Iron Man, and Wall*E.

Operating system: Windows, macOS, Linux, Free BSD

Description: K-3D is a free 3D animation software solution with modeling capabilities. It features a plug-in-oriented procedural engine for all of its content. K-3D supports polygonal modeling, and it includes basic tools for NURBS, patches, curves, and animation. Despite its name, it is not a KDE application; it uses the GTK+ toolkit via gtkmm.

K-3D features procedural and parametric workflows. Properties can be adjusted interactively and results appear immediately. The node-based visualization pipeline allows more possibilities than traditional modifier stacks or histories. Selection flows from one modifier to the next. Standards form the foundation on which K-3D builds – including native RenderMan support that integrates tightly with the K-3D user interface. K-3D supports a node-based visualization pipeline, thus allowing the connection of multiple bodies. Work on one side of a model, show the other side mirrored, and see the end result welded together as a subdivision surface in real time. Go back, modify the beginning of a workflow, and watch as changes propagate automatically to the end.

Description: Anim8or is a freeware OpenGL-based 3D and character animation program by R. Steven Glanville, a software engineer at NVidia. It is a compact program with several tools which would normally be expected in high-end, paid software.

Users have the flexibility to customize the interface theme, including the option to switch to a dark gray background color mode. This feature enhances visibility, ensuring that the designed models or characters are easily discernible on the viewport window screen. Moreover, Anim8or offers anti-aliasing capabilities in the 3D view, provided you have a capable graphics chip. This anti-aliasing functionality grants users fine control over the thickness of lines within their models. By smoothing out jagged edges and enhancing the overall visual quality, anti-aliasing contributes to the creation of polished and refined models.

Description: Moviestorm is a real-time 3D animation software published by Moviestorm Ltd. The motion graphics software is available to and used by people of all age groups and appeals to those with a diverse range of backgrounds and interests, from amateur and professional filmmakers, through to businesses and education, as well as people just looking to simply tell stories or create messages to share using video. Moviestorm enables the user to create animated movies using machinima technology. It takes the user from the initial concept to finished, distributed movies . Sets and characters can be created and customized, and scenes can be filmed using multiple cameras.

Moviestorm is being used predominantly in education by students of film and media studies as a means to develop their skills and expand their portfolio, as well as a collaborative cross-curricular creative tool in education sectors from elementary to high school.

Messiah Studio

Operating system: Windows 2000 and later

Description: Messiah Studio is a 3D animation and rendering application developed by PMG Worldwide. It runs on the Win32 and Win64 platforms. It is marketed to run on Mac OS X and Linux via Wine. Messiah’s fourth version, Messiah Studio was released in April 2009, and version 5.5b as Messiah Animate was released in November 2006. Messiah Studio6 was released in April 2013.

Hash Animation: Master

Operating system: Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X

Description: Hash Animation: Master is a 3D character animation application offered by Hash, Inc. that includes tools for modeling, rigging, animation, texturing, lighting, and rendering. Although this software was developed for and is targeted towards independent artists, with a workflow optimized to enable one artist to create a rendered animated piece from start to finish, the workflow also presents economic advantages for larger workgroups.

The software uses a proprietary spline mesh technology to perform modeling and animation, and it is different in this sense from polygon mesh or NURBS-based programs. The system used is called patch-based modeling. It uses multiple intersecting splines to create surfaces called patches. Patches present efficiency in that one patch can describe a complex curved surface that would require many facets to approximate in flat polygons.

Aside from the typical 4-sided patches common in many spline modeling environments, Animation: Master can also create 3 and 5-sided patches that enable mesh topologies not possible in other applications.

Operating system: Windows XP and later OS X 10.6 and later

Description: CrazyTalk is Reallusion’s brand name for its 3D animation software. The product series includes CrazyTalk, a 3D facial animation software tool, and CrazyTalk, a face and a body 3D animation suite.

CrazyTalk, the 3D facial animation software, is a real-time animation software that enables users to make 3D animated cartoons. It is a facial animation tool that uses voice and text to vividly animate facial images. It has an auto motion engine that allows animators to use the intensity of their voice to drive their animations in real time.

CrazyTalk is developed and marketed by Reallusion, a company that has a software and digital content development base in Taiwan with offices and training centers in the U.S. and Germany.

Explore Animated Explainer Video Templates

Description: KeyShot is a real-time 3D rendering software. It aims to deliver results instantly, reducing the time it takes to load and create shots. KeyShot allows users to elevate visuals creating a lifelike animation. It offers features such as CPU rendering, HDRI lighting, physical lighting, denoise, camera control, KeyShot cloud, etc.

KeyShot was introduced by Luxion, which specializes in advanced 3D rendering, animation, and lighting technology. Luxion developed KeyShot based on scientific research on material representation and global illumination.

Toontastic 3D

Description: Toontastic 3D is a creative storytelling tool available for tablets, phones, and Chromebooks. It works both for iOS and Android. Toontastic allows you to draw, animate, and narrate your own animated cartoons. You can choose from existing characters, draw your own, or add your face to characters.

The app doesn’t require a login or password and works offline. Exporting and downloading your files is easy and free. Because of its interactive and simple interface, Toontastic has gained popularity among kids and students.

25+ Social Media Tools to Ease Your Job for Every Campaign
How to Make an Explainer Video Online
30+ Best and Free Explainer Video Templates

Other Animation Software

There are also some other animation tools that we think you should know about.

Wondershare FilmoraPro

Operating system: Microsoft Windows (64-bit), Mac OS X 10.13 or later

Description: Wondershare FilmoraPro is a powerful and straightforward video editor for all levels, from middle to advanced. Its flexible keyframing, advanced tools, smoothing effects, and motion blur will help you create a high-quality animation video. And the auto color correction and audio mixer will upscale your 2D animation video to a new level. If you are looking for greater productivity, better control, and more ways to customize your animation video, FilmoraPro is the right choice.

Adobe After Effects

Operating system: Microsoft Windows, macOS

Description: Adobe After Effects is a digital visual effect, motion graphics, and compositing application developed by Adobe Systems and used in the post-production process of filmmaking, video editing, and television production. Among other things, After Effects can be used for keying, tracking, compositing, and animation. It also functions as a very basic non-linear editor, audio editor, media transcoder and is one of the best animation software for motion graphics lovers.

Pivot Animator

Description: Pivot Animator (formerly Pivot Stickfigure Animator and usually shortened to Pivot) is a freeware application that allows users to create stick-figure and sprite animations and save them in the animated GIF format for use on web pages and the AVI format (in Pivot Animator 3 and later).

Pivot provides a simple, easy-to-use interface with a few features. It uses fixed-length ‘sticks’ to ensure size consistency during the animation.

Microsoft PowerPoint

Operating system: Microsoft Windows

Description: Microsoft PowerPoint is a presentation program currently developed by Microsoft, for use on both Microsoft Windows and Apple Macintosh operating systems. PowerPoint, initially named “Presenter”, was created by Forethought Inc. Microsoft’s version of PowerPoint was officially launched on May 22, 1990, as a part of the Microsoft Office suite. PowerPoint is useful for helping develop the slide-based presentation format and is currently one of the most commonly used slide-based presentation programs available. Microsoft has also released the PowerPoint mobile application for Apple and Android mobile operating systems.

Operating system: Linux, macOS, Windows

Description: Unity is a cross-platform game engine developed by Unity Technologies, which is primarily used to develop video games and simulations for computers, consoles, and mobile devices.

Unity is marketed to be an all-purpose engine, and as a result, supports both 2D and 3D graphics, drag and drop functionality, and scripting through its 3 custom languages. The engine targets the following APIs: Direct3D and Vulkan on Windows and Xbox 360; OpenGL on Mac, Linux, and Windows; OpenGL ES on Android and iOS; and proprietary APIs on video game consoles.

Unity is the default software development kit (SDK) for Nintendo’s Wii U video game console platform, with a free copy included by Nintendo with each Wii U developer license. Unity Technologies calls this bundling of a third-party SDK an “industry first”.

Stop Motion Studio

Operating system: macOS, Windows

Description: Stop Motion Studio helps to create stop-action movies. It was created by Cateater LLC, a South Carolina-based development studio. Features include 4K Ultra HD, frame-by-frame editing, overlay mode, built-in movies gallery, and sound effects. It supports digital cameras and allows the use of a second device as a remote camera. Stop Motion Studio is available on various devices, including iPhone, iPad, macOS, as well as Android, and Windows. It has been honored with numerous awards and is one of the best software for creating stop-motion animations.

Operating system: Unix-like system, Windows, OS X

Description: Krita stands as a remarkable animation software and painting program that caters to both professionals and enthusiasts. Created by artists with a passion for making art tools accessible to all, Krita offers a powerful and free platform for unleashing your creative potential.

With Krita, artists can explore a multitude of artistic endeavors. Whether you’re creating concept art, texture and matte paintings, illustrations, or even comics, this versatile software provides the tools and features needed to bring your ideas to life.

Operating system: Linux, Windows, OS X

Description: Stykz is one of those free animation programs that have no hidden costs, license, or permission required to use Stykz to its fullest. This makes Stykz one of the best free animation software available on the market.

If you’ve ever used Pivot StickFigure Animator, you’ll feel right at home working with Stykz. Stykz is the first multi-platform stick figure animation program in the world (as far as we know), so you’ll be able to use Mac OS X, Windows, and Linux* to create, edit and preview your animations. (*Linux is in internal beta but will be available soon.)

Adobe Character Animator

Description: Adobe Character Animator is desktop application software that combines live motion capture with a multi-track recording system to control layered 2D puppets drawn in Photoshop or Illustrator. It can be used to produce both live and non-live animation.

Adobe Character Animator imports layered Photoshop & Illustrator documents into puppets that have behaviors applied to them. The puppets are then placed into a scene, which can be viewed in the Scene panel and Timeline panel. Rigging is set up in the Puppet panel, though basic rigging is fully automatic based on specific layer names like Right Eyebrow and Smile. The final output of a scene can be exported to a sequence of PNG files and a WAV file, or any video format supported by Adobe Media Encoder. Live output can be sent to other applications running on the same machine via the Syphon protocol (Mac only) or Adobe Mercury Transmit on both Mac and Windows. Scenes can also be dropped directly into After Effects and Premiere Pro, using Dynamic Link to avoid rendering.

Clip Studio Paint

Operating system: Windows, macOS

Clip Studio Paint is an illustration/manga/animation production software. Its high-performing rendering engine makes it possible to draw with natural and realistic brush strokes and multi-core CPU support handles high resolution and multiple layers. Since its launch in 2012, more than 3 million people worldwide have used this software.

The software is widely used in the professional field as well, including many manga artists and animation studios. Not only the software itself, but Celsys also provides various services for its users, including CLIP STUDIO ASSETS for downloading materials and CLIP STUDIO TIPS for tutorials and drawing techniques. Currently, the software is supported in 7 different languages. A free version is available to try on PC and iPad.

Dragonframe

Operating system: Windows, macOS, Linux

Description: Dragonframe is one of the best animation software for stop-motion videos. It allows you to do feature-level, performance-based animation in any format. The software permits users to manipulate the camera and the scene and then combine the frames into a stop-motion video. A 30-day free trial is available.

Dragonframe was developed by brothers Jamie and Dyami Caliri when they were working on a commercial called “The Dragon.” Later, they formed DZED Systems LLC to develop Dragon Stop Motion for the public. Dragonframe has since been used to create Disney’s Frankenweenie, Laika’s Coraline, The Boxtrolls, and ParaNorman, as well as the holochess scene in Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

The Bottom Line

As you can see, in the realm of animation software, the choice ultimately depends on your specific needs and skills. So, there is no one answer to which is the best animation software.

With the extensive list of animation tools provided, you have a wealth of options to explore and find the perfect fit for your creative journey. Whether you’re delving into 2D or 3D animation, these software options offer the tools and features necessary to craft captivating animations and explainer videos .

As you embark on your animation-making endeavors, don’t forget to consider Renderforest as a comprehensive solution that encompasses a vast array of tools and resources to elevate your creations. From animation to beyond, Renderforest provides a platform to unleash your creativity and bring your ideas to life.

Take the leap, explore the possibilities, and create the most compelling animations with the help of Renderforest. Start your animation journey today!

Create Your First Video Now!

Dive into our Forestblog of exclusive interviews, handy tutorials and interesting articles published every week!

Create Professional

Animated Videos with 1000s of Templates

in Minutes without Technical Skills.

How to make a YouTube Short in 3 steps

15 min read

09 Aug 2024

How to create training videos in 3 steps

13 min read

How to start a podcast: a complete 2024 guide

02 Aug 2024

Video & Animation

Most Recent
Presentations
Infographics
Data Visualizations
Forms and Surveys
Case Studies
Design for Business
Digital Marketing
Design Inspiration
Visual Thinking
Product Updates
Visme Webinars
Artificial Intelligence

30 Best Animation Software for Beginners in 2024 [Free & Paid]

Written by: Mahnoor Sheikh

Animated visuals are a lot more engaging than plain, static images. In fact, they generate the highest number of shares on social media compared to other forms of visual content.

Some of the best animation software in the market are Visme, Adobe Animate, Adobe Character Animator, Pencil2D, Biteable and Animaker.

In this guide for beginners, we’re going to explore these options and more to help you find the best animation software for your needs.

So, if you’re (seriously) interested in animation, you’ll need this guide.

Let’s get started.

30 Best Animation Software for 2024

Adobe Animate
Adobe Character Animator
Autodesk Maya
Moho Animation Software
SideFX (Houdini)
VistaCreate
Adobe Creative Cloud Express
PosterMyWall
Animatron Studio
Clip Studio Paint
CelAction2D
Synfig Studio
Linearity Move

Quick Comparison Guide

Made with Visme Infographic Maker

Software #1: Visme

Visme is a cloud-based, online design tool that lets anyone create animated social media images, infographics , presentations, ads, banners and other visuals.

It comes packed with animation and interactivity features to help you create eye-catching designs that do much more than just static images.

Visme’s animation software lets you access thousands of premade templates, a library of free stock photos and videos, customizable pre-animated characters, illustrations and gestures, and much more.

Friendly and intuitive drag-and-drop editor.
Thousands of animated templates in various categories.
Customizable pre-animated assets: Characters, illustrations and gestures
20+ customizable pre-designed animated characters, including poses, body style, gender, skin tone, and more.
3D character creator for building customizable 3D characters
Animation timeline feature to customize scenes and sync audio.
14+ different types of animated graphs, charts and maps.
Advanced custom animation that can be applied to any object.
Interactive links, call-to-action buttons and hover effects.
Searchable libraries of free stock photos, videos, icons and shapes.
Wide range of AI-powered tools including AI image generator , AI writer and AI image edit and touchup tools .
Import your own images, videos and fonts.
Embed videos and other online content into your designs.
Team collaboration features: Share your projects.
Brand kit : Save your brand colors, fonts and logos for later use.
Insightful analytics: Access graphs and statistics for project views.
Offline animated download formats: GIF, MP4 video and HTML5.
Publish and share online : Use a link or generate an embed code.

Pricing: Free plan with limited features. Paid plans start at $12.25/month per user, billed annually.

Pros: All-in-one design tool packed with animation and interactivity features, great for both non-designers and designers, millions of free graphic assets inside the editor.

Cons: A variety of design and customizability options can lead to a slightly steep learning curve.

Ideal for: Marketers, corporate teams, teachers, trainers, personal use.

Spice up your designs with animated illustrations

Animated gestures to bring your designs to life
Add animations into any content, from presentations to infographics and more
Customize illustrations to match your brand colors

Software #2: Adobe Animate

Adobe Animate is a new and improved version of Adobe Flash Professional. The software lets you create interactive vector graphics and 2D animations for videos, ads, games, television and more. With Adobe animation software, you can animate characters, avatars, shapes and other assets using timeline controls.

Vector brushes with size, smoothness, pressure and velocity settings.
Intuitive timeline controls with advanced animation settings.
Virtual camera feature that lets you add pan, zoom and other effects.
Synchronize audio with your animations and create audio loops.
Typekit integration gives you access to premium web fonts.
Export in Flash, HTML5 Canvas, WebGL, SVG and more.

Pricing: Starts from $22.99/month.

Pros: Extensive export and sharing options to publish your animations in virtually any format for any platform.

Cons: Just like any other Adobe software, Animate has a steep learning curve, especially for beginners.

Ideal for: Game designers, YouTubers, cartoon makers.

Software #3: Adobe Character Animator

Adobe Character Animator is another one of Adobe’s animation software stack. But unlike Adobe Animate, Character Animator lets you use motion capture to create live animations of your 2D characters. For example, you can create a character in Illustrator or Photoshop , import it into Character Animator, set it up with tags and then animate it using your own facial movements using your webcam.

Real-time motion capture and automatic facial tracking.
Download characters from Creative Cloud Market.
Integration with Photoshop and Illustrator.
Move the character’s limbs with your mouse.
Timeline panel for recording and editing scenes.

Pricing: Included in the Creative Cloud All-Apps Plan that costs $59.99/month.

Pros: Easy to replicate real-life movements and expressions with facial tracking. Plenty of import and export options.

Cons: This software is available as part of the all apps pack, not as a standalone product. Also, you need to have a webcam and microphone to use the motion capture feature.

Ideal for: Bloggers, marketers, entertainers, educators.

Software #4: Blender

Blender is an open-source video editing software that lets you have total control over your animations. The tool offers advanced command line and programming features for rendering, modeling and creating 3D animations. It works across different operating systems, so you can use it on Linux, Windows and Mac.

Powerful rendering, modeling and sculpting tools.
Advanced animation and rigging tools.
Draw and edit in 3D mode.
Video editing and VFX, including motion tracking, masking and compositing.
Powerful and realistic simulation tools.
Extensive Python API for scripting and customization.
Customizable user interface, window layout and shortcuts.

Pricing: Free.

Pros: It doesn’t cost anything to use Blender. Also, advanced animation and rendering tools make it fit for both beginners and expert users.

Cons: Blender has a very steep learning curve as it’s packed with so many features. Beginners will be overwhelmed and might need to spend hours on tutorials before getting it right.

Ideal for: Animators, engineers, scientists, artists, students.

Software #5: Autodesk Maya

Autodesk Maya is one of the best software for making animations. It’s a robust 3D animation, modeling, rendering and simulation tool for creating expansive and immersive worlds, realistic characters and sensational effects. The graphics animation software shines due to its top-notch and complete 3D production package and models.

animation software - Autodesk Maya home page

Ability to create physically accurate simulations in a single visual programming environment
Construct 3D models based on vertices, edges, faces, geometric primitives and drawn curves
Accelerate performance with interactive workflows
Create, view, and edit animation curves using a graphical representation of scene animation.
Work directly with data using native tools and quickly load and modify large datasets.
Use Integrated Arnold renderer to view scene changes in real time, including lighting, materials, and cameras.

animation software - Autodesk Maya interface

Pricing. Maya's subscription plan starts at $235 per month. The Flex plan starts at $300 for Minimum, $1500 - Popular and the Custom plan.

Pros. This professional animated tool offers a wide range of tools and features for 3D animation and visual effects. User-friendly interface. Adaptable and scaleable for the most complex worlds, characters and workflows. Ability to iterate faster and accelerate workflows.

Cons. The tool is pricey for smaller startups and creators. It has a steep learning curve for beginners.

Ideal for: Creative designers and artist

Software #6: Cinema 4D

When it comes to animated tools for motion graphics, Cinema 4D is an industry-standard and powerful software for visual creators at all levels. The software is perfect for 3D computer animation, modeling, simulation and rendering.

As a complete program for animation, you’ll find features for motion graphics, design, VFX, AR/MR/VR, game development and all kinds of visualization.

animation software - Cinema 4D home page

Quickly turn a series of images into a 3D model
Emit smoke, fire and explosion from any Spline or object
Comprehensive color management for stunning cinematic results
Supports advanced features like symbols annd gradient filled shapes
Import vector art from PDF, SVG, Illustrator into your 3D scenes
Supports polygonal, volume, parametric modelling and character animation
Abillity to realistic-looking and multi-threaded simulations
Cinema 4D is available in 12 different languages
Compatible with Windows, macOS and Linux operating systems

animation software - Cinema 4D interface

Pricing : Cinema 4D costs $81.91 per month, billed annually.

Pros: Cinema 4D is one of the easiest 3D packages to learn and use. Has a robust knowledgebase and other support options. Equipped with lots of amazing animation and modelling-friendly features.

Cons. The tool is super expensive for starters. The interface can be overwhelming without proper guidance.

Software #7: OpenToonz

If you’re looking for a professional animation tool without breaking the bank, OpenToonz is a great fit. Although it’s free and open-source, the software has lots of features for creating multiple animation styles . Whether you’re a beginner or expert, you can bring static objects and characters to life using 2D animation capabilities.

OpenToonz has applications in different animation projects, including amateur and professional production, commercial use, school education and more.

animation software -Open Toonz home page

Ability to create cutting-edge animation with multiple effects using the SDK plugins
Automatic changing picture styles using the deep learning technology
Produces affected incident light and wavy distortion effects
Compatible with 4 types of image scanning (black & white, colored, with or without binarization)
Compatible with Windows and macOS

animation software -Open Toonz interface

Pricing. OpenToonz is free.

Pros. The tool is open-source and can be used free of charge for both commercial and non-commercial projects.

Cons. Unaesthetic and antique interface. Steep learning curve with little or no resources for learning.

Software #8: Moho Animation Software

Moho Pro is a powerful, professional-grade animation software that can perform almost any task related to 2D vector animation. It’s a perfect work tool for amateur and expert animators, hobbyists and digital artists Unlike other animated tools, Moho blends robust animation technology and state-of-the-art animation tools.

animation software -Moho animation home page

Includes language support for six languages (English, Spanish, French, Russian, German and Japanese)
Comprehensive content library full of characters, props and backgrounds.
Powerful vector drawing tools
Complete rigging system to enable users to create easy to animate 2D puppets timeline, audio recording and sound effects
Advanced timeline with graph mode and editable interpolation
Photoshop’s PSD file integration
Create personalized meshes to animate vectors and images
Automate animation using power features like particles, gravity, dynamics and wind

animation software -Moho animation interface

Pricing: Moho Debut 14 starts at $59.99, while Moho Pro costs $399.99.

Pros: Moho is feature-rich and versatile. There are lots of tutorials, guidance and excellent resources to help users get started. Supports file import and integration with Adobe Photoshop

Cons: Steep learning curve for beginners. Most features available in Pro version.

Software #9: Unity

Unity is a 3D animation, CGI and cinematics tool for film, television and gaming. The animated tool comes in handy for collaborative iteration in real-time, rather than hours and days of rendering. Unity enables faster production with features like shared composition, accelerated rendering and multiple options to automate non-creative tasks.

Integrate with Digital Content Creation tools of your choice
High-definition render pipeline to render beautiful visuals and cinematic shots
Animate and edit your project with familiar toolsets
Orchestrate timing, angles, movements, and cues in real-time using editing and sequencing tools
Access lightning-fast recording to speed up projects and shorten review cycles
Unity is available in nine languages

animation software -Unity design interface

Pricing: Unity’s student and personal plans are free. The Pro plan is $185 per seat per month, the Industry plan starts at $450 per month, billed annually, and the enterprise plan has custom pricing.

Pro: The tool is intuitive, easy to use and has a user-friendly interface. Rich library of asset for creating multiple projects

Cons: The free plan has limited features.

Ideal for: Creatives, designers and artists

Software #10. SideFX (Houdini)

Houdini is a 3D animation tool for rigging, modeling, VFX, animation, lighting, look development and rendering in gaming, film, TV and advertising. Its intuitive, user-friendly features enable artists and creators to create multiple iterations and easily share workflows with co-creators.

Realistic, fire, smoke, fluids, particles and solid simulations that are faster and easier to set up
Procedural modeling techniques for maintaining a robust construction history and creating complex models like cityscapes, environments and more
Provides a complete suite of features for rigging and animating characters and creatures
Offers layout, development and lighting tools that enable creators to make USD-based scene graphs
Ability to integrate visual effects into live-action shots to produce high-quality results.

animation software -Houdini design interface

Pricing: Houdini has a free plan for the learning edition. The paid plans starts at $269 (1-year rental)

Pros: This animated software offers robust rendering and modeling capabilities The procedural workflow saves time by allowing changes to be made quickly in the pipeline. Offer fluid, solid, particle and other powerful simulation capabiities.

Cons: For a program for animation, SideFX has a steep learning curve and requires a lot of practice for beginners to get the hang of it.

Software #11: VistaCreate

More than just your basic animation software, VistaCreate features an extensive library of animated templates and thousands of pre-animated objects and characters. The tool lets you create animated ads, square videos and even Facebook covers with no design skills.

You can also combine videos and animated GIFs with your images, such as a moving background, to create short and eye-catching video posts for social media.

Thousands of animated templates to use and customize.
Access to over 50 million stock photos.
Library of videos and animations to use in designs.
Upload your own fonts, graphics and animations.
Download in MP4 video format.
Share your animated video directly to social media.

Pricing: Free plan with limited features. Pro plan starts from $10/month, billed annually.

Pros: Create animated video artworks in various formats; stories, presentations, social media. Has a mobile app to create designs on the go.

Cons: The free version gives you access to limited storage and creative assets.

Ideal for: Marketers, small business owners, freelancers.

Software #12: Adobe Creative Cloud Express

If you’re looking for a very basic animation software to create video posts for social media, Adobe Creative Cloud Express can help you do that right from your phone.

Use the Adobe Creative Cloud Express iOS app to create short videos with animated text and photos by choosing a template, and customizing it using one of the few animation styles available. As of now, you can only access the animation feature on mobile, not on the desktop app.

Access customizable templates in various formats.
Sync your designs across multiple devices.
Create animated posts on the go with the iOS app.
Thousands of free images and icons.
Download as an MP4 video or share online.

The Adobe Creative Cloud Express interface.

Pricing: Adobe Creative Cloud Express has a free plan. Paid plans start at $9.99/month.

Pros: Create animated social media posts on the go with the iOS mobile app. Simple, easy-to-use interface. Sign in with your Adobe account.

Cons: Lack of advanced animation features. Animations only available in the iOS app, not in Android or Web version.

Ideal for: Freelancers, marketers, bloggers.

Software #13: PosterMyWall

This animated software is straightforward and incredibly easy to use. You don’t even need to sign up to start editing a template. PosterMyWall lets you design promotional posters, graphics and videos using a large library of templates and stock videos.

What makes PosterMyWall stand out among other tools is that it lets you download your designs as high-quality videos, including 4K and Full HD. You can also send them off for printing if you’re living in the US.

Large collection of animated video templates.
Thousands of stock videos to use in your designs.
Bulk printing for your designs on various materials.
Download your videos in 4K and Full HD quality.
Save as high-quality MP4 and GIF files.
Share your designs with a link or embed online.

Pricing: Free plan with free social media downloads. Premium plans start from $9.95/month.

Pros: Create animated videos in high quality; 4K and Full HD. Start editing a template in your browser without signing up.

Cons: Download options are limited in the free plan. Limited animation features.

Ideal for: Individuals, businesses.

Create engaging animated content with Visme

Add animated icons and illustrations
Increase interest and engagement through your design
Add enter and exit effects to create fully animated content

Software #14: PixTeller

PixTeller’s animation software is great for both business and personal use. It’s a good alternative for a full-featured video editing tool if you’re looking for something more basic.

You can create short animated videos in PixTeller by setting frame-by-frame motions, and then editing the attributes of each frame, such as colors, rotation, opacity and more.

Hundreds of pre-animated templates to customize.
Customize a frame by frame timeline.
Unique text effects to make your animations pop.
100,000+ shapes to add to your animated videos.
Share the URL of your video to specific people.
Download in MP4 video and GIF formats.

Pricing: Their basic paid plan doesn't come with animation capabilities. The paid plan with animation features starts from $12/month, billed annually.

Pros: Create animated posts and banners by editing a frame by frame timeline.

Cons: Lack of advanced animation features. Option to download as MP4 or GIF only available in the paid plan.

Ideal for: Marketers, freelancers, bloggers.

Software #15: Animatron Studio

This a great option if you’re looking for a feature-rich animation tool. Animatron Studio offers a huge gallery of pre-animated elements and templates to help you create explainer videos, HTML5 banners, ads and more.

The customization options are near endless—you can even customize the expressions of the characters. If you’re looking for a less robust version, you can also check out Animatron Lite.

Thousands of pre-animated objects, characters and more.
Extensive customizability options.
Import, place and edit your own graphics.
Built-in voiceover features to add narration.
Real-time collaboration and comments.
Export to HTML5, MP4, SVG and GIF formats.
Share online with a link or use an embed code.

Pricing : Animatron has a free plan with limited features. Paid plans start from $15/month, billed annually.

Pros: Advanced customization options for all pre-animated characters and objects. Download your designs in several popular formats.

Cons: Interface can be glitchy, no free stock videos available inside the software.

Ideal for: Marketers, corporate teams, educators, freelancers.

Software #16: Biteable

If you want to create bite-sized, animated videos like promos, ads and social media videos, Biteable is a good option. This video animation software lets you share and download animated videos by editing one of their premade templates.

You can also look through thousands of stock footage clips and scenes to put together an entirely customized video. Biteable also lets you share your project with teammates with its collaboration features.

Browse hundreds of professional video templates.
Access thousands of stock footage clips and animations.
Add audio tracks using a huge library or upload your own.
Share your video project with other team members.
Publish your video on Biteable with privacy controls.
Download your designs in Full HD MP4 video format.
Share directly to social media, or use a link or embed code.

Pricing : Free plan with limited features. Paid plans start from $49/month, billed annually.

Pros: Make all kinds of marketing videos, including explainers and demos. Access thousands of stock footage clips to create something unique.

Cons: You can only download in MP4 video format. Free plan exports come with a watermark.

Ideal for: Marketers, trainers, educators.

Software #17: Animaker

Animaker is ideal for businesses and educators who want to create interactive presentations and videos. This animation software comes with a large library of templates and pre-animated elements, including illustrations, characters and gestures.

Large collection of animated templates and assets.
Six unique video styles to edit and remix.
Pro-level animation features like Curve, Camera In and Out.
200+ music tracks and sound effects to add to your videos.
Enterprise and team management features.
Upload directly to YouTube and Facebook or share URL.

Pricing: Free plan with limited features. Paid plans start from $12.50/month, billed annually.

Pros: Create animated videos for all kinds of business or personal uses. A variety of video styles, including several for whiteboard videos.

Cons: Only 5 watermarked downloads in the free plan. Only good for creating videos, not animated images.

Ideal for: Marketers, presenters, freelancers.

Software #18: Canva

Canva is a popular online design tool that has recently introduced a few basic animation features. It lets you download your graphic designs as a GIF or video by choosing one of the six animation styles available in the app.

Thousands of editable templates in various categories.
Millions of free and paid photos, icons and other assets.
Six different animation styles to choose from.
Invite team members and share your brand elements.
Organize your designs into folders.
Download your animated designs in GIF and MP4 video formats.

Pricing : Canva has a free plan with limited features. Paid plans start from $15/month.

Pros: Pay-per-use graphic assets. Good for adding basic animation to images.

Cons: No custom animation capabilities. Limited animation features in the free plan.

Ideal for: Marketers, bloggers and small business owners.

Software #19: Easil

Easil is another web-based design tool that also supports GIF downloads. However, the only way to make an animated GIF in Easil is by duplicating an image frame several times and making edits to each frame.

Brand kit feature to save your brand colors, colors and logos.
Creative text effects like drop shadow and masks.
Resize templates and designs for social media or print.
Create color schemes with the color palette generator.
Team and sub-team sharing features.
Download animated GIFs.

Pricing: Starts from $7.50/month per user, billed annually.

Pros: Plenty of features for team sharing and enhancing your visual brand.

Cons: The only way to create an animated GIF is to duplicate an image several times and make changes to each “frame”. No GIF download option available in the free plan.

Ideal for: Brand managers, marketers, bloggers.

Software #20: Pencil2D

Pencil2D is an open-source 2D animation software that lets you create 2D animated characters using vector drawing tools and traditional animation workflows. It works on all the popular platforms, including Windows, MacOS and Linux.

Simplified user interface that’s easy to use for beginners.
Customizable toolbar to fit your own creative process.
Layers panel for bitmap, sound, camera and vector layers.
Timeline and keyframes to add, subtract and duplicate frames.
Versatile drawing tools to help you create vector drawings.
Various export formats: GIF, MP4, AVI, WEBM and more.

Pros: It’s free to use and cross-platform, so it can work on any operating system. Simple and minimalistic editor to help you create traditional, hand-drawn animations.

Cons: Pencil2D is great for simple drawing animation, but lacks advanced animation and character building tools. It’s not ideal for complex or modern-style animations.

Ideal for: Digital artists, cartoon makers, game designers, basic animators.

Software #21: Powtoon

Powtoon is an online animation software that lets you create fun, interactive videos with animated characters and premade graphic assets. It’s a great tool for making video presentations, explainer videos and whiteboard animations.

Dozens of premade templates spread across five categories.
Thousands of built-in graphics, animated characters and more.
Advanced animation controls and character customization.
Choose from built-in audio, record audio or upload audio files.
Screen and webcam recording to create tutorials and video presentations.
Import and edit Photoshop and PowerPoint files.
Download in various formats or share directly to social media.

Pricing : Paid plans start from $15/month, billed annually.

Pros: Easy to use tool for beginners. Plenty of built-in graphic assets. Advanced character customization.

Cons: Limited options for built-in music. Advanced features and removing the watermark are locked for free users. Working on heavy projects can slow down Powtoon’s editor.

Ideal for: Marketers, presenters, educators, trainers.

Software #22: Procreate

Procreate is one of the most powerful and intuitive animated tools that uses frame-by-frame animation techniques. It gives users all the benefits of working digitally while recreating the familiar experience of pencils, pens and paint on paper. Thus, making it an excellent tool for beginners.

If you already have an iPad and an Apple pencil, download the app from Apple Store and start creating animations.

Get the perfect shape every time with the QuickShape feature.
ColorDrop feature to quickly pick any color you want.
Extra special FX to add gorgeous finishing touches to your work.
Gaussian, motion and perspective blur.
Complete font control to add gorgeous typography to your design.
Paint with filters to add perfect finishing touches to your artwork.

Pricing: Procreate comes with one-time pricing of $12.99 exclusively from the Apple Store. No subscription.

Pros: Simple and easy-to-use interface. Wide range of brushes and an option to import Photoshop (.abr) brushes into your app. 120hz performance to take full advantage of Apple’s ProMotion technology.

Cons: Only works with iPad and Apple pencil. It works in pixels, so you can’t create vectors. Difficult adjustment layers.

Ideal for: Beginners, freelancers and hobbyists.

Software #23: Clip Studio Paint

Clip Studio Paint is an all-in-one animation solution that lets you create comics, general illustration and 2D animation. The software is compatible with macOS, Windows, iOS, iPad, Android and Chrome OS.

Thus, if you can manage to use its slightly confusing user interface, then Clip Studio Paint can be one of the best animation tools for you.

Adjustable pen pressure to recreate the natural, high-quality lines of pen and paper.
Automatically taper the beginning and end of brush strokes and reduce shaky and wavering lines.
Use 3D references for accurate compositions.
Light table function for free reference specific keyframes while inbetweening.
Drawing frames between keyframes

A screenshot of the Clip Studio Paint website.

Pricing : Free trial up to 6 months. Clip Studio Paint Pro costs $54 while Clip Studio Paint EX costs $237.

Pros: Multiple export options and advanced vector toolkit. AI technology, 3D Capability, Bundles of brush options, drawing flexibility.

Cons: Stifling Pro or Ex prices. Lack of audio support. Slightly confusing UI. No rigging tools.

Ideal for: Beginners, hobbyists and professionals.

Software #24: CelAction2D

CelAction 2D is another powerful animation tool that gives you all the quality of hand-crafted animation. With four editions available — Studio, Professional, Animator and Educational — the animation software has something for everyone. The tool interoperates well with other software, helping you to choose the best tools for your production pipeline.

Furthermore, you can import 3D CGI models in CelAction2D and position them anywhere in a fully 3dimensional space.

The software features a dockable tool panel that allows you to work on multiple monitors and increase productivity.
More than 60 special effects to make your animation visually rich with minimal effort and time. Moreover, you can create special effects and save them in the library for reuse.
Advanced Inverse Kinematic Tool that helps you pose your character and model.
You can import drawing assets from other software such as Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, GIMP and others.
The 2D animation can be rendered in NTSC, PAL and HDTV format and at any resolution.

A screenshot of the CelAction2D website.

Pricing: The monthly rental cost for this tool starts at $70/ month paid annually .

Pros: Supports large teams. Import your scanned sketches, photos or even 3D CGI and animate them quickly.

Cons: No cross-platform support; works only with Windows. No drawing tools.

Ideal for: Digital artists, cartoon makers, animators.

Software #25: Synfig Studio

Synfig Studio is a more robust tool than the other open-source and free animation software in the market. It gives you advanced controls that help you create high-quality animation exceptionally quickly. It’s a tweeness animation system designed to speed up the animation process by using sprites and digital tweening.

If you want to experiment with newer features, Synfig Studio is best for you. Also, it’s a great alternative to Adobe Animate.

Transform any vector shape into another with the Vector tweening feature. Thus, eliminating the need for manual tweening.
50+ layers and filters to create complex animation.
Additional Skeleton Distortion layer to apply complex deformations to bitmap artwork.
Vector animation with Lottie export.
Built-in feature to upgrade the animation output using automatic friction effects.
Supported on Mac, Windows and Linux.
Provides advanced controls like link parameters for various layers.

A screenshot of the Synfig Studio website.

Pricing : Free and open to use by anyone.

Pros : Free and open-source. Yet, you will get advanced animation tools that are fit for both beginners and experienced animation enthusiasts. Free video tutorials for an in-depth understanding of the software.

Cons: Software sometimes crashes. Steep learning curve. The user interface is not very intuitive.

Ideal for: Beginners, solo artists and experts.

Software #26: KeyShot

KeyShot is an easy-to-use, advanced, simplified animation software that helps users create photorealistic, scientifically accurate animations. The tool is well-known for its high-quality 2D and 3D animations without an additional graphics card.

Additionally, it supports 30+ types for rendering 3D animation and comes with interactive labeling, texture mapping, physical lighting, and more.

750+ templates to help you differently style your animation.
Real-time 3D image rendering workflow.
More than 30 3D file formats.
Adjust and light your scene as per your requirement with its HDRI lighting.
Create interactive, touch-enabled visuals for mobile and web.
Still image animations, interactive web content and mobile content.

Pricing: Plans start from $99/month billed annually.

Pros: Works with both Mac and Windows. Import and export a wide range of model formats. Detailing, accuracy and realism in visualization are unmatched.

Cons: Not a friendly user interface for beginners. Framing, sizing and resizing the window sometimes get complicated. 3D animation is difficult to grasp for a novice.

Software #27: Linearity Move

Linearity Move is a user-friendly, cloud-based animation software that simplifies the creation of high-quality vector animations.

It is ideal for both beginners and professionals, and offers seamless integration with Linearity Curve and other graphic design tools like Figma and Adobe Illustrator.

Auto Animate for easy, one-click animations.
Real-time collaboration (coming soon).
Supports 8K resolution exports.
Free templates and animation presets.
Compatible with MacOS and iOS, with Apple Pencil support.
Upload your brand elements and assets.

best animation software - an image of Linearity Move interface

Pricing : Linearity offers a free plan with limited features. Paid plans start from $14.99/month billed annually.

Pros: Affordable, works in your browser, cross-platform compatible, integrates well with Linearity Curve and other vector design software, easy to use for beginners.

Cons: Limited advanced features for professional animators, primarily used for simpler animations like social media graphics and videos.

Software #28: Toon Boom Harmony

Toon Boom Harmony is a professional-grade animation software widely used in the TV and film industry. It offers a range of tools for end-to-end 2D animation, including rigging, compositing and special effects.

Harmony is known for its powerful capabilities and high-quality output, which makes it a top choice for professional animators.

Advanced rigging and deformers for character animation.
Comprehensive compositing tools.
Support for bitmap and vector graphics.
Integration with Storyboard Pro for seamless storytelling.
Extensive export options including various video formats and image sequences.
Specialized tools for cut-out animation, paperless animation and traditional animation.

best animation software - an image of Toon Boom Harmony interface

Pricing: Plans start at $28.50/month. You can take advantage of a free trial to check out the software before you buy.

Pros: Versatile animation software for various types of animation styles and purposes, professional-grade tools.

Cons: Unintuitive interface, steep learning curve, expensive, requires powerful hardware.

Software #29: Krita

Krita is a free, open-source digital painting and animation software. It is known for its wide range of painting tools and capabilities for creating frame-by-frame 2D animations.

The platform is used widely in the digital VFX industry and is a favorite of illustrators, comic book and concept artists.

Extensive brush engine with customizable brushes.
Support for frame-by-frame 2D animation.
Onion skinning for smooth transitions between frames.
Animation timeline for precise control.
Export in various video formats and image sequences.
Layer management and blending modes for complex animations.

best animation software - an image of Krita interface

Pricing: Free

Pros: Free and open-source, powerful painting tools, suitable for both beginners and professionals.

Cons: Limited support for complex animations, requires a good understanding of digital painting and art skills.

Software #30: Steve AI

Steve AI is an easy-to-use online animation software for making videos—specifically text-to-animation and voice-to-animation videos for social media and marketing purposes.

It’s a very simple software and ideal for those looking for a straightforward tool for creating animations for websites and social platforms like Facebook and Instagram.

AI-driven video creation with minimal effort.
Large library of pre-made templates and assets.
Support for both 2D and 3D animations.
Real-time collaboration for team projects.
Export in various video formats and GIFs.
Customizable character animations and voiceover integration.

best animation software - an image of Steve AI interface

Pricing: Steve AI has a free plan with limited features. Paid plans start from $15/month.

Pros: Easy to use, affordable, AI-powered video creation.

Cons: Limited advanced features for professional animators, lack of customization.

Animation Software FAQs

Q. which software is best for animation.

Visme stands out as an all-in-one visual content creation platform that empowers users to create stunning and engaging animations, animated presentations, infographics, documents and more. With Visme’s intuitive interface and robust features, anyone—beginner or professional—can make captivating animations in a matter of minutes.

Visme has a rich library of assets, templates, graphics, images, icons and animations. You can animate each of these design elements to provide an immersive experience for your audience.

Access a wide range of animation options, including entrance, emphasis, exit, and motion path animations, animated icons, illustrations and special effects. Enhance audience engagement with interactive elements such as clickable buttons, links, hotspots, pop-ups, and hover effects.

Q. Do you need coding for animation?

No, you do not necessarily need coding skills to create animations, especially with the advent of user-friendly animation software and tools available today. Many animation platforms, like Visme, Adobe Animate, Toon Boom Harmony, and others, offer intuitive interfaces and drag-and-drop functionality that allow users to create animations without writing a single line of code.

These platforms provide pre-built assets, templates, and animation effects that users can customize and combine to create engaging animations. The process typically involves arranging visual elements on a timeline, adjusting their properties, and specifying how they move and interact with each other.

Q. Is there a free animation software?

Yes, there are several animation software options available for free. These software for creating animation provide basic features and are excellent for beginners, students, or individuals looking to explore animation without investing in expensive software.

Animation companies like Visme, Blender, OpenToonz, and Synfig Studio provide free access to animation tools. However, you need to purchase or upgrade to a paid version of the software to access advanced features and additional assets.

Q. What animation software should beginners use?

When searching for animation tools for beginners, it's crucial to start with user-friendly software that offers a gentle learning curve. Visme stands out as an excellent choice for beginners due to beginner-friendly features like

Intuitive drag-and-drop interface. Beginners can easily navigate the platform, add elements, and create animations without getting overwhelmed by complex menus or tools.
Vast selection of pre-designed templates suitable for various animation purposes. These templates serve as a starting point, allowing beginners to customize and personalize their animations without starting from scratch.
Visme supports various formats, including animated presentations, videos, GIFs, and social media posts. This versatility enables beginners to explore different types of animations and choose the format that best suits their projects.
A diverse library of graphics, icons, characters, and animations: This extensive library simplifies the process of finding the right visuals for their projects.
Animation Presets. Visme includes animation presets and effects that beginners can apply to their elements with a single click
Interactive Tutorials and Support. Visme offers interactive tutorials and guides that help beginners learn the basics of animation. Additionally, the platform provides excellent customer support, ensuring beginners can seek assistance whenever they encounter challenges.

Visme’s shallow learning curve allows aspiring animators to dive into the world of animation without feeling overwhelmed. The tool makes the creative process enjoyable and rewarding for beginners.

Q. How to make an animation with Visme

Creating interactive content doesn’t have to be overwhelming.

Whether you're creating presentations, marketing materials, or educational content, Visme empowers users to bring their ideas to life with captivating and professional animations. Follow these steps to create animations with Visme:

1. Find a template you love or start with a blank canvas. Fully customize the template or canvas to include your branding and messaging using the design features in Visme

2. Incorporate animations and interactive elements.

Create a clickable menu, table of contents or navigation bar to easily navigate between pages.
Link slides, pages or content blocks to objects to make them actionable and create an interactive experience.
Make your content come alive with interactive hover effects and pop-ups that offer your audience a deeper and more engaging experience.
Incorporate animated enter and exit effects into your design elements to turn your content into a dynamic masterpiece that grabs the attention of your audience from start to finish.
Create personalized interactive content by embedding YouTube videos, Loom recordings, surveys, polls, quizzes and more.
Animate your design elements so they pop off the page and create a more dynamic look and feel for your content.
Connect with third-party integrations like GIPHY, Typeform, Loom, Google Maps and more to create more dynamic and personalized content.

3. Download and share your animation: Share your interactive content with your audience by sharing an online link, downloading it as a GIF, MP4 or HTML5 file, or embedding it on a web page.

What is the Best Animation Software?

Choosing the best animation software can be confusing, especially if you’re a beginner and you’re looking for an easy, affordable option that scales with your needs.

For beginners who want to create animated content for marketing and internal communication purposes, we recommend Visme.

With Visme, you can create animated GIFs, marketing videos , explainers, animated charts and graphs, interactive documents with live data and more.

The best part? You don’t need to be a designer or animation expert to use Visme — the drag-and-drop editor works in your browser and makes animation a breeze!

If you’re ready to create animated and interactive content of your own, sign up for a free Visme account and test it out for yourself.

Create beautiful and interactive visual content with Visme

Trusted by leading brands

Create Stunning Content!

Design visual brand experiences for your business whether you are a seasoned designer or a total novice.

About the Author

Mahnoor Sheikh is the content marketing manager at Visme. She has years of experience in content strategy and execution, SEO copywriting and graphic design. She is also the founder of MASH Content and is passionate about tea, kittens and traveling with her husband. Get in touch with her on LinkedIn .

How to Create Engaging Training Videos for Employees

Idorenyin Uko Jun 23, 2023

How to Make Video Infographics: An Effortless Guide + 6 Video Infographic Templates

Raja Mandal May 19, 2023

12 Best Software for 3D Animation You Should Know [Free & Paid]

Olujinmi Oluwatoni Apr 14, 2023

How to Cut a Video for Mobile: Including Best Editing Apps & Mobile Video Creation Tips

Orana Velarde Mar 29, 2023

Discover how teams use Genially for eLearning, Marketing, and Communications.

K12 Schools

Explore how teachers use Genially to bring interactive learning to the classroom.

Higher Education

Discover how Learning Design teams and Faculty use Genially to build interactive courses.

Contact Sales

START CREATING

Build interactive images

Discover how to make interactive visuals and graphics.

Create interactive slides

Engage your audience with interactive slides and presentations.

Make interactive infographics

Learn how to design interactive data visualizations and diagrams.

More formats

From resumes to reports, make any kind of content interactive.

eLearning templates

Interactive resources for eLearning and corporate training courses.

K12 teaching templates

Interactive classroom resources for primary and secondary education.

Gamification templates

Escape games, quizzes, and other game-based learning activities.

Marketing templates

Interactive microsites, brochures, videos, and branding materials.

Explore all Genially templates

Browse over 1,500 pre-built designs. Save time and create professional interactive materials in minutes.

Explore Genially pricing and plans.

Plans for Teachers

Create interactive learning materials and use Genially in class with your students.

Make interactive presentations

Create show-stopping presentations and clickable slide decks with Genially’s free online presentation builder. Leave boring behind and tell a story that’s interactive, animated, and beautifully engaging.

INTERACTIVE CONTENT

A presentation that works like a website

Engage your audience with interactive slides that they can click on and explore. Add music, video, hotspots, popup windows, quiz games and interactive data visualizations in a couple of clicks. No coding required!

NO-CODE ANIMATION

Make your slides pop with animation

Bring a touch of movie magic to the screen with incredible visual effects and animated page transitions. Add click-trigger and timed animations to make any topic easy to understand and captivating to watch.

Image of the Genially tool showing the insertion of multimedia elements from Spotify, Google Maps and Youtube

INTEGRATIONS

Live from the world wide web

Embed online content directly in your slides for a media-rich interactive experience. From YouTube and Spotify to Google Maps and Sheets, Genially works seamlessly with over 100 popular apps and websites.

Image of the Genially tool showing free libraries of backgrounds, color palettes, vector graphics, images, charts, graphs, maps and smartblocks.

TEMPLATES & TOOLKIT

Genius design tools

With Genially, anyone can create a polished and professional presentation. Choose from over 2000 pre-built templates, or create your own design using the drag-and-drop resources, color palettes, icons, maps and vector graphics.

Image of a Genially interactive presentation

ONLINE PLATFORM

Safe and sound in the cloud

Because Genially is online, you can relax knowing that your slides are always up-to-date. There’s no risk of forgetting to save changes or accessing the wrong file. Log in from anywhere, collaborate with your team, and make edits in real time.

All-in-one interactive presentation maker

Real-time collaboration

Co-edit slide decks with others in real time and organize all of your team projects in shared spaces.

Multi format

Present live, share the link, or download as an interactive PDF, MP4 video, JPG, HTML, or SCORM package.

Engagement Analytics

See how many people have viewed and clicked on your slides and keep tabs on learner progress with User Tracking.

Import from PPTX

Give your old decks a new lease of life by importing PowerPoint slides and transforming them with a little Genially magic.

Keep content on-brand with your logo, fonts, colors, brand assets, and team templates at your fingertips.

Quiz & Survey Builder

Use the Interactive Questions feature to add a fun quiz to your slides or gather feedback from your audience.

Beautiful templates

Make your next deck in a flash with Genially’s ready-to-use slides.

Okr shapes presentation

School notebook presentation

Animated sketch presentation

Minimal presentation

Land of magic presentation

Onboarding presentation

Visual presentation

Animated chalkboard presentation

Online Education Guide

Terrazzo presentation

Startup pitch

Historical presentation

THEMES FOR EVERYONE

Interactive presentation ideas

From classroom materials to business pitches, make an impact every day with Genially.

A photograph with 7 children of different nationalities in a school classroom with a laptop making a presentation

Education presentations

Photograph of 3 people gathered together talking about a report with a tablet

Pitch decks

Photograph of 4 people in an office using a laptop to make a company presentation

Business presentations

Photo of 1 girl with a mac computer doing a slideshow

Thesis defense

Why the world loves Genially presentations

Reviews from people rating the tool genially

Share anywhere

Present live

From the front of the room or behind a screen, you’ll wow your audience with Genially. Heading off grid? Download in HTML to present dynamic slides without WiFi.

Share the link

Every Genially slide deck has its own unique url, just like a website! Share the link so that others can explore at their own pace, or download an MP4 video slideshow or PDF.

Post online

Embed the slides on your website or post them on social media. Upload to Microsoft Teams, Google Classroom, Moodle or any other platform.

Composition of an eye surrounded by image icons to illustrate the Genially method; interactive visual communication

The benefits of interactive slides

🗣️ Active participation An interactive slide deck gives your audience cool things to click on and discover, boosting learning and engagement.

👂 Multi-sensory experience Audio, video, animations, and mouse interactions make your content immersive, entertaining and accessible.

🧑‍🤝‍🧑 People-friendly format Pop-ups and embeds condense more material into fewer slides so you can break information down into digestible chunks. 

🎮 Gamification Games, quizzes and puzzles make information more memorable and enable you to gather feedback and check understanding.

How to make an interactive presentation

With Genially’s easy-to-use presentation platform, anyone can make incredible visual content in moments.

Choose a template or a blank canvas

Create content starting from a Genially template

Get stunning results in less time with a ready-made template. Feeling creative? Design your own slides from scratch.

Customize the design

Add animations and interactions

Resources to become a pro presentation creator

Image showing the interactivity of the Genially tool

VIDEO TUTORIAL

How to create an interactive presentation: Get started in Genially.

Image showing a presentation about the Genially tool

EXPERT TIPS

How to present data without sending your audience to sleep.

Image showing how the Genially tool is no-code

MICRO COURSE

No-code animation: Bring your slides to life with cinematic visual effects.

Neon image talking about storytelling in Genially

PRESENTATION IDEAS

The art of digital storytelling: Engage and thrill on screen.

Genially in a nutshell

How do I make a presentation interactive and how does Genially work? Find the answers to all of your slide-related questions here!

What’s an interactive presentation?

Interactive slides contain clickable hotspots, links, buttons, and animations that are activated at the touch of a button. Instead of reading or watching passively, your audience can actively interact with the content.

Genially’s interaction presentation software allows you to combine text, photos, video clips, audio and other content in one deck. It’s a great way to condense more information into fewer slides.

If you’re a teacher, you can share multiple materials in one single learning resource. Students can create their own projects using digital media and online maps. For business or training, try embedding spreadsheet data, PDFs, and online content directly in your slides.

An interactive slide deck is more user-friendly than a Microsoft PowerPoint presentation or Google Slides document. That’s because you can break information down into chunks with pop-ups, labels, voiceovers and annotated infographics.

The other benefit of interactive content is increased engagement. It’s easier to keep your audience’s attention when they’re actively participating. Try Genially’s presentation software and free slideshow maker to see how it’s better than other presentation websites. You won’t go back to standard presentation apps!

How do you make a clickable slide?

The best way to make slides clickable is to use Genially’s free interactive presentation program. Design your slide then apply an interaction. In a couple of clicks, you can add popup windows, hyperlinks, close-up images, games, animations, multimedia and other content.

Choose from the library of hotspot buttons and icons to show people what to click on. Go to Presenter View to get a preview and see how your content will appear to your audience.

How do I create presentations that look professional?

You’ve got a deadline looming and you’re staring at the screen with a blank presentation. We’ve all been there! Starting a presentation design from scratch is tricky, especially if you’re short on time.

Genially’s free online presentation maker has over 2000 ready-to-use templates for professional slide presentations, photos slideshows, and more. Each slide design has been created by our team of top graphic designers. No need to worry about fonts, centering images, or designing a matching color scheme. It’s all done for you.

Start by browsing our layouts and themes for education, business and then customize with your own text and images.

How do I share or download my slides?

Because Genially is a cloud based presentation software, you can simply share the link to your slides. Like other online presentation tools, there are no files to download or store on your computer. Everything is saved online.

When you publish your slide deck, it gets its own unique url, just like a website. Share the link with others to let them explore the content in their own time. If you’re presenting live, just click the Present button.

You can also embed your presentation on your website, company wiki, or social media. Genially is compatible with WordPress, Moodle, Google Classroom, and other platforms. If you use an LMS, you can also download your interactive design slides in SCORM format.

For slideshow videos and slideshows with music, share online or download as an MP4 video. Check out our free slideshow templates for ideas.

Can I make a free presentation in Genially?

You bet! Genially is an easy-to-use slide maker, with a free version and paid plans. The free plan allows you to create unlimited slides with interactions and animations. Subscribe to one of our paid plans for more advanced features.

Discover a world of interactive content

Join the 25 million people designing incredible interactive experiences with Genially.

15 Best Video Presentation Software to Try in 2024

Ready to make an outstanding video presentation? Here are the best tools to help you learn how to make video presentations and create one in no time.

Victoria Greywing

11 minute read

With the rise in remote work, online classes, and virtual events, video presentations have become a crucial aspect of effective communication.

In fact, having a video in a presentation already shows that 32% more people will interact with your content .

Making a video presentation takes time, so having a reliable tool is more important than ever. That's why we've compiled a list of the best video presentation software to try this year.

Whether you're a marketer, educator, or business owner, these tools offer a range of features to help you create engaging and memorable presentations.

Factors to consider when choosing video presentation software

1. ease of use.

The worst thing you need to avoid is spending hours learning how to use tools, not getting any work done, and then giving up in frustration. The software should be easy to use, even for those with limited technical skills. This will ensure that you can create presentations quickly and efficiently.

2. Customizability

Customization is the part that adds a creative look to your presentations. Such tools should allow you to customize your presentations to suit your needs and the preferences of your customers.

This includes the ability to add your branding elements like logo, banner, etc., choose from a range of templates, and add multimedia.

3. Interactive features

Although not essential, interactive elements help engage your audience. Adding quizzes and polls, allowing users to comment on slides, and even embedding videos or other content makes your presentations more memorable.

4. Advanced editing tools

There is no good video presentation without editing. You need tools like an image editor that offer important features like transitions, filters, captions, pitcure upscaling , etc. This will help you create more professional-looking presentations that can grab the viewers’ attention.

5. Compatibility & sharing options

The best video presentations are those that can easily be shared with others. The tool should offer quick export options and compatibility with different devices.

Whether it’s through email or social media, you should be able to easily share the presentations with other users.

Our top 15 video presentation software

Jump ahead to page section.

Powtoon is a cloud-based animation tool that is ideal for displaying data visually . It's an excellent option for HR teams, educators, and marketers who want to create eye-catching materials for their presentations.

The tool offers a range of templates, characters, and backgrounds that you can customize as you like.

Powtoon’s drag-and-drop interface makes it easy to create videos even if you have no prior experience.

You can add text, images, and other visual elements to quickly compose captivating animated videos that share your ideas and stories.

Plus, you can upload audio clips or background music to accompany your visuals and further enhance the impact of your message.

Powtoon is compatible with both Windows and Mac and offers a range of subscription options, making it accessible to everyone.

This versatility further cements its reputation one of the best ai video editing software apps available.

Source: Powtoon

Great for creative video content
Drag-and-drop interface
Wide range of templates
Quick share to social media and other platforms
Offers team collaboration
Slow loading speed for some users
Watermark in the free plan

Pricing: 3-month free trial, $15/month for Lite, $60/month for Professional, $100/month for Agency

Movavi Video Editor

Movavi Video Editor helps you learn how to make effective presentations with its intuitive tools. It's user-friendly and offers plenty of features for both beginners and professionals alike.

Do you need a specific transition or title effect? This tool offers a wide selection of them. You’ll also find a library of sounds, music, backgrounds, and text editing options.

Furthermore, you can record your voice and add it to your video as a separate audio track.

Movavi Video Editor has many filters and special effects that will fit any occasion. From retro filters to artistic effects, you can add unique touches to your presentation to impress your audience.

More advanced features include AI background removal , denoizer, and upscaling feature as well as audio editing tools, color correction, and more.

Source: Movavi

Intuitive interface
Supports all popular video and audio formats
Great editing features
Massive media library
Intel, NVIDIA, and AMD hardware acceleration
Free trial limits the audio length and adds a watermark on the output video

Pricing: 7-day free trial, $54.95/year, $74.95 for a lifetime license

A video maker for presentation videos, Lumen5 has everything from business and marketing to educational or training materials, suitable for all types of presenters.

The uniqueness of this platform is its AI-driven text-to-video feature. You can simply enter your text, and Lumen’s video maker will automatically create a video based on your content.

The tool offers a library of images, videos, and music, which you can use to create professional-looking video presentations. You can also upload your images, videos, and audio to customize your video.

Source: Lumen5

Easy to use
AI-powered video maker
Millions of images, videos, and music
Real-time collaboration feature
Fewer animation options
Slow render speed

Pricing: Community (free), $79/month for Basic, $199/month for Starter, $29/month for Professional, Enterprise (custom price)

Storydoc is a revolutionary interactive platform for efficient content creation. It combines templates and a powerful drag-and-drop builder to help you create stories, reports, presentations, and other content quickly.

This online tool provides an intuitive visual editing experience, allowing you to add text, images, GIFs, videos, music, and more.

This tool turns static documents into immersive content experiences that boost engagement, encourage conversion, and stay memorable in readers’ minds.

Storydoc also comes with comprehensive content analytics that lets you see how readers interact with your content and optimize based on what you find.

Ready-made business templates
Interactive elements
Integrations with CRM tools and other apps
Limited customization
Few editing options

Pricing: 14-day free trial, $30/month for Starter, $45/month for Pro, Team plans (contact for details)

With Canva, you can easily make professional-looking visuals for websites, social media posts, presentations, posters, and more, without needing any design experience.

Just drag and drop elements onto the slides, add your own images, videos, or audio, or pick one from Canva's library. You can even customize the fonts, colors, and other details for each design. Canva also provides a vast library of event templates like invitation templates , poster templates, flyer templates, and many more.

The best thing is that by using the “Present and record” feature you can transform your presentation into a video format. Select your microphone and webcam and quickly record yourself talking as you show your slides.

Source: Canva

Variety of templates
Highly customizable
Quick share
Free version limitations
Can't mix different designs

Pricing: Canva Free, 1-month free trial or $119.99/month for Canva Pro, $149.90/month for Canva for Teams

Biteable is a simple and powerful online video maker that anyone can use. There are many animations, videos & images, soundtracks, and recordings you can add to your project as well as upload your own content.

With a script mode, you can entirely avoid complex editing and use Biteable’s built-in text editor to write out your script. Once you’ve finished, the platform automatically creates an animation based on the script.

All the media is stored in different categories, making it easy to find what you need. You can also measure the performance of your video using Biteable’s analytics feature.

Source: TechCrunch

Various tools and media are available
Simple sharing by email, Slack, WhatsApp, and even SMS
Online collaboration
Limited editing options
Can't download video files directly from the platform

Pricing: 7-day free trial, $99/month for Pro, $199/month for Teams

Synthesia is an AI-driven tool for any content creator who loves storytelling and presenting information. It's ideal for creating short animated explainer videos, tutorials, and product demos, as well as for crafting impactful marketing stories.

The platform helps you create a video in minutes with its AI-powered technology. You simply type the text you need to create a video, choose your desired avatar and voice style, and Synthesia does the rest.

You can also customize your video by adding text, shapes, images, and music, and even recording your presentation .

Source: Synthesia

Intuitive user interface
Simple video creation process
Ready-made avatars, voices, and scenes
Few features in a personal plan
No collaboration options

Pricing: Free demo (200 words limit), $30/month for Personal, custom price for Corporate

Animoto is an incredibly versatile platform that’s made for various kinds of videos, including video presentations, slideshows, social media content, and more.

Featuring advanced tools like automatic video production and an array of aesthetic templates, it's easy to create eye-catching presentations in minutes.

Animoto offers a library of royalty-free stock footage so you can find the perfect scene to fit your project.

Best of all, users can make their work stand out by adding custom branding and logos, music, transitions, captions, and graphics.

Source: Animoto

AI-powered smart video creator
Customizable templates and themes
Limited customization options
No advanced audio editing tools are available

Pricing: Free, $8/month for Basic, $15/month for Professional, $39/month for Professional Plus

Animaker is a DIY tool that offers a wide selection of animated styles like 2D and 3D objects, whiteboards, and infographics as well as vibrant backgrounds and scenes.

You can customize the content with text, voiceover, and music options and drag and drop them into your project.

The interesting part is you can build a character representing you to enliven your presentation. Animaker also offers 100M+ stock images and videos and 1000+ templates to choose from.

Source: Animaker

User-friendly & intuitive interface
Drag & drop editing
Versatile animations
Character builder for personalization
Limited music library
Few scene templates

Pricing: Free trial, $10/mo for Basic, $19/mo for Starter, $49/mo for Pro, Enterprise (contact for details)

Wideo is a web-based video maker for industries like marketing, education, and e-commerce.

You can create explainer videos, promotional videos, product demos, and more. With a rich library of cartoon elements, you can build a video from scratch or take advantage of the professional templates that come with the platform.

In Wideo player automatically generates a transcript based on the video’s text and you can switch between video and presentation modes to get a better idea of how the video will look.

Video saves in MP4 format and you can share it on YouTube and other social media.

Source: Wideo

Easy-to-use drag-and-drop editor
Text-to-speech feature
Pre-made templates for quick creation
Low-quality templates compared to other tools

Vimeo is a well-known video hosting platform where you can upload and share videos. But it also has an easy-to-use video maker, allowing you to create attention-grabbing videos.

The platform offers a large music library where you can find the perfect tune for your video. With Vimeo’s portfolio feature, you can organize your videos into collections and even create a custom URL for your portfolio.

For making video presentations, Vimeo has many templates you can customize and add your own visuals. Change the scale, opacity, and style of text and graphics, and add layouts, transitions, stickers, narration, and more.

Source: Vimeo

Built-in sharing options
Customizable templates
Integration with multiple popular tools, such as Google Drive, Dropbox, and Slack.
Few advanced video editing options
Very limited access to features in a free plan

Pricing: Free plan, $12/month for Starter, $20/month for Standard, $65/month for Advanced, Enterprise (contact sales)

Vyond provides cartoon animations and videos with customizable characters, scenes, and text effects. This easy-to-use software helps bring your stories and brand presentation messages to life.

The platform comes with many templates based on job roles, categories, and styles.

You can mix them up or start from scratch with a blank canvas and add your own visuals. You can also record your voice directly from the microphone or use text-to-speech .

Source: Vyond

Big library of characters, props, and backgrounds
Wide range of styles to choose from
Version history for collaboration
Few character and scene customization options
Hard to manage multiple scenes and characters
No closed captioning

Pricing: 14-day free trial, $49/month for Essential, $89/month for Premium, $179/month for Professional, Enterprise (custom pricing)

Moovly is an online video maker for presentations with many visual styles like doodles, cartoons, motion graphics, and more. You can quickly add voiceovers using built-in AI voices, generate subtitles, and even translate them to any language you need.

The tool offers great animations and effects for your videos and allows work collaboration. There is also a library of images, videos, music, and sound effects to choose from.

Source: Moovly

Straightforward interface
Easy management
Integrations with YouTube, Google Drive, Dropbox, and other tools
Free trial limitations
Lack of variety in designs
No advanced animation capabilities

Pricing: Free, $99 per month for Pro, $199 per month for Max, Enterprise (custom pricing)

Microsoft PowerPoint

Microsoft PowerPoint is the go-to presentation-building tool for countless businesses and professionals. It's a staple of creating stunning visuals and helpful resources for any type of presentation.

Combined with a creative mind, creating presentations no longer remains complicated or time-consuming. With everything from templates to animations, PowerPoint provides all the necessary tools for designing exceptional video presentations.

Customize your slides with whatever images and videos you need to represent your ideas. Then, just export the presentation as a video. You can also upload a voice-over narration or add sound effects.

Source: Microsoft

All-in-one presentation solution
Familiar with many users
Limited advanced design capabilities
Not good for complex animations
Large file size when exporting as a video

Pricing: 1-month free trial, $6.99/month with Microsoft 365 or $159.99 one-time payment

Prezi is cloud-based presentation software that allows users to create dynamic and engaging presentations using a range of templates and multimedia elements. It's a great option for industries like education, marketing, and business.

One of the standout features of the tool is its zooming presentation interface, which allows presenters to create a more immersive and interactive experience for viewers.

With Prezi, you can easily create and customize templates, add animations and transitions, and collaborate with others in real time, making it ideal for remote teams and learners.

The basic plan is limited in features, while the advanced plans offer more opportunities like offline access, PowerPoint presentation converter, voiceover, custom branding, analytics, and more.

Source: Prezi

Easy-to-use interface
Feature-rich
Wide range of templates and multimedia elements
Limited free trial features
Animations can distract viewers
The zooming interface can be overwhelming for some viewers

Pricing: 14-day free trial, $7/mo for Standard, $12/mo for Plus, $16/mo for Premium

Enhance the impact of your messages with video presentations

Here they are, video presentation software options available this year, each with its own unique features and capabilities.

By considering the factors outlined in this article, you can select the right software option for your needs and create engaging and memorable presentations that leave a lasting impression on your audience.

And don't forget to check some great presentation examples for inspiration.

Found this post useful?

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter.

Get notified as more awesome content goes live.

(No spam, no ads, opt-out whenever)

You've just joined an elite group of people that make the top performing 1% of sales and marketing collateral.

Victoria is a content manager with 4+ years of experience and has formerly worked in marketing and blogging niches. She likes writing texts and researching new complicated topics to share her expertise with trustworthy resources.

Create your best presentation to date

Try Storydoc interactive presentation maker for free

Ready to get started?

Create video presentations that demand attention.

Trusted by 9+ million people and over 10,000 companies

Create video presentations that demand attention with the Biteable video presentation maker. Deliver critical information with pitch-perfect video templates, one-click branding, and a seamless video creation experience for your best presentation yet.

How to make animated videos in minutes, start a free 7-day trial of biteable., pick an animated video template or build your own with pre-made animated scenes., customize your video: add or remove scenes , include animated text, upload your own pictures and video clips. you can even add a voice over, download your masterpiece or share it far and wide with a single, trackable link ., a video presentation maker that rises above the rest, on-point templates.

Get started with brandable templates, ready-made scenes, and best-in-class animations.

Smart editing

A done-for-you editing experience takes the hard work out of the equation.

Branding made easy

Automatically apply your company colors and logo to your entire presentation.

Getting started

Mark video presentation off your to-do list with biteable.

If you can make a PowerPoint, you can make a video presentation with Biteable.

Choose from a full library of brandable templates and scenes, all designed with a professional audience in mind. Build out your video presentation with animated text, characters, and icons — all with the click of a button. Polish it off with a premium music track.

Need to add your own media? No problem. Seamlessly add video clips and pictures for a polished look in minutes. Better yet, record new footage, add a voice-over, or capture your screen without leaving the app.

Biteable’s all-in-one video presentation maker does the hard work for you. All you have to do is go be the star of the meeting.

Create videos that drive action

Activate your audience with impactful, on-brand videos. Create them simply and collaboratively with Biteable.

Make a video presentation for

Asynchronous meetings.

Create video presentations and send them to your team with a single link.

Live meetings

Whether you meet on Zoom or in person, a video presentation beats a PowerPoint any day.

Video reports

A performance report is boring, but a video presentation report is bold and memorable.

Making a video presentation: FAQs

Your answers to the most frequently asked questions about making a video presentation.

How do I make a video presentation for free?

It’s hard to make a video presentation for free, because free video makers have limited features that usually aren’t geared toward professional presentations. Your best bet is making a presentation during a free trial with a leading video presentation maker. Most people quickly realize purchasing a subscription is worth the money.

How do I make a video out of a presentation?

Not all online video makers are geared toward making a video out of a presentation, so it’s important to use one that focuses on making videos for a professional setting. Look for features like: templates and scenes geared toward the business world; video branding capabilities; an easy-to-use workflow.

How do I make a narration video presentation?

There are three ways to make a narration video presentation.

Record narration separately and sync it to your presentation.
Upload first-person video footage. Merge it with your presentation.
Use a video presentation maker with in-app voice-over and recording features. (This is the easiest way to make a narration video presentation.)

How do I make an animated presentation?

Making an animated presentation from scratch is difficult unless you have advanced skills. Your best bet is to find a video presentation maker with a library of animations you can add to your presentation. Look for an online video maker that offers unique animations geared toward a professional setting.

“Biteable gives us the speed and quality to create videos that allows our 3-person team to play at the level of a 60-person team.”

Tara Aiken, Regis Corporation

4 must-have tips for making video presentations

Creating a video presentation is easy with Biteable. And it’s even easier if you follow these best practices.

Have a goal in mind

Every great video presentation starts with a goal. What are you trying to accomplish? Maybe you want to share a new idea with your colleagues. Maybe you want to report on important company metrics. Or maybe you want to do something else entirely.

It’s incredibly difficult to make a video presentation that moves the needle until you define exactly what your presentation aims to achieve. Figure that part out and the rest becomes much easier.

Choose a proven template

Now that you know what your presentation aims to achieve you can pick a template that fits. You can create your video presentation from scratch, but using a template as a starting point gives you guide rails for tempo and pacing, plus a proven structure designed by pros.

Biteable video presentation maker has plenty of template options geared toward a professional setting, plus hundreds of extra video scenes and animations to build out your video presentation as much or as little as you like.

Use animations that underscore your message

One of the biggest advantages of video presentations over something static like a PowerPoint is the presence of motion. Without even realizing it, your audience will remember the information better simply because video is a multimedia experience that combines movement, sound, and visuals. To make the most impact, choose your animations wisely and use movement in a way that underscores your key points.

Are you presenting on the massive growth your marketing team achieved? Use a graph showing upward movement to drive the point home. Do you have one key point you’re trying to make? Use animation to circle your text or arrows that point at your most important information.

(All of this is easy to do with the video scenes available in Biteable.)

Keep it short and sweet

The length of your video presentation matters. Too short and you won’t be able to convey enough information. Too long and your audience will tune out.

There’s no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to video presentation length. But in general, 1-2 minutes is the sweet spot for making a video presentation that holds attention while still getting all the important information across.

You’d be surprised how many details you can share in this amount of time. A 15-minute live presentation can easily be condensed into one or two minutes if you hone your message to focus on the key details.

Brand your video

This is probably one of the most important — and most overlooked — parts of creating a successful video presentation. You’d never create a PowerPoint with erratic, off-brand colors. Making a video presentation is no different.

It’s a subtle change, but it gives off a big signal that you are polished and professional, and that you and your video presentation mean business.

Take advantage of the unique branding feature in the Biteable video presentation maker to easily apply your colors and logo to your entire presentation.

"> "> Make a presentation video today

Home » Blog » 7 Best Animated Presentation Software to Create Engaging and Eye-Catching Presentations

7 Best Animated Presentation Software to Create Engaging and Eye-Catching Presentations

September 22, 2022

Creating presentations that are both engaging and eye-catching can be a difficult task. It often takes a lot of time and effort to find the right images, videos, and fonts to make your presentation stand out.

When it comes to building engaging and eye-catching presentations, nothing beats the power of animation. With the proper animated presentation software , you can create stunning visuals that will capture your audience’s attention and keep them engaged from start to finish.

There are a lot of different options out there when it comes to animation software, but we’ve compiled a list of the seven best ones that will help you create an amazing presentation.

Each of these programs offers unique features and capabilities that will help you make your presentation stand out from the rest.

What Is an Animated Presentation Software and How Does It Work?

Animated presentation software is a type of program that allows users to create presentations that include vibrant visuals and effects for both personal and professional use.This can include text, images, or even entire slides that move or change as the presentation plays.

Generally, these programs are used to create more engaging and eye-catching presentations, but they can also be used for more traditional presentations as well.

With animation software, you can add movement to your slides, making them more dynamic and exciting to watch. This can help keep your audience’s attention focused on your presentation, which can lead to a more successful presentation overall and can be a great way to impress potential clients or customers.

Reviews of the Best Animated Presentation Software

Microsoft powerpoint.

Most Popular Animated Presentation Software

Microsoft PowerPoint is the most popular animated presentation software. It is easy to insert 3D objects and embedded animations directly into PowerPoint decks from your own files or a library of content.

You can also create well-designed, impactful slides with the help of Designer and Ideas in PowerPoint. Additionally, with Presenter Coach, you can practice your speech and get recommendations on pacing, word choice, and more through the power of AI.

PowerPoint presents your slides in a dynamic way with enhanced transitions and animations
It allows you to work with others at the same time to co-author presentations
It will enable you to add pictures, videos, and shapes to your slides
It helps draw on slides to make notes or highlight key points
It allows you to export your presentation to video or PDF.
Easily create engaging and eye-catching presentations
Compatible with Microsoft Office Suite
Wide range of templates and themes to choose from
It can be used for both personal and professional purposes
The revision history feature helps track changes.
Many users find the program difficult to use
It can be challenging to co-author presentations with others
Slideshows often look amateurish.

PowerPoint offers a free 30 days trial and four paid plans.

Business Basic: $6.00 user/mo
Apps for Business: $8.25 user/mo
Business Standard: $12.50 user/mo
Business Premium: $22.00 user/mo

Best Animated Presentation Software With the Most Simple Interface

Visme is the best-animated presentation software with the most straightforward interface. It is elementary to use and has a vast library of customizable templates. You can also add your own branding to create beautiful, branded content.

The software is also interactive, allowing you to engage your audience with hotspots, hover effects and clickable menus. Overall, Visme is the best choice for creating engaging and eye-catching presentations.

Visme is an interactive presentation software that uses animations and interactions to engage your audience
With Visme, you can create an interactive experience with hotspots, hover effects and clickable menus
Visme produces an extensive library of high-resolution photos, icons, videos and audios
Additionally, Visme offers exclusive 3D graphics to set your work apart
Hotspots, hover effects and clickable menus add interactivity
More design capabilities
Easy to use.
The presentations are not as polished as those created with other software
You need an internet connection to use Visme.

Visme offers a free trial and three payment plans.

Personal: $12.25/month billed annually or $29/month billed monthly
Business: $24.75/month billed annually or $59/month billed monthly
Visme for Team: You need to contact sales for a quote

Best Animated Software for Educators

Prezi is the best animated presentation software for educators. It is elementary, easy to use and helps you to create engaging and eye-catching presentations. The science conversational presenting feature makes it possible for you to give your ideas in a more exciting way, which is great for educators.

Additionally, the business and education templates make it easy to get started quickly, and the video and design galleries provide you with plenty of resources to help make your presentations stand out. Overall, Prezi is an excellent choice for anyone looking for an animated presentation software that is both easy to use and provides a lot of features and resources.

Prezi offers a science conversational presenting feature, which helps make presentations more engaging
Business and education templates make it easy to get started quickly
The video and design galleries provide plenty of resources to help make your presentations stand out
It’s easy to use and makes lessons more exciting and easier to remember
The design gallery has plenty of options to choose from so you can customize your presentations to fit your needs.
Prezi is straightforward to use, with a simple and intuitive interface
It makes it easy to create beautiful, eye-catching presentations
Prezi’s animations and effects help make your presentations more engaging and exciting
It allows you to customize your presentations
It is straightforward to use.
It can be a little expensive
It can be challenging to create complex animations and effects.

Prezi offers 14 days free trial and four payment plans.

Basic: This contains the Basic plan which is free and the Plus plan starting at $12/month
Individual: This contains the Standard plan starting at $3/month, Plus plan starting at $12/month and the Premium plan starting at $16/month
Students and Educators: This contains the Edu Plus plan starting at $3/month, Edu Pro plan starting at $4/month and the Edu Teams which is only available for minimum of 10 seats by contacting support
Business: This contains the Plus plan starting at $12/month, Premium plan starting at $16/month and the Teams plan by contacting support.

Best Free Animated Presentation Software

Genially is an online platform that enables users to create and share interactive images, videos, and presentations. It is elementary to use and has a broad range of features that make it perfect for creating engaging and eye-catching displays. Some well known features include the ability to add animations, build quizzes, and embed videos.

Genially creates interactive presentations and slides
It contains a free online tool with thousands of templates to fit any theme
It offers effective presentations with interactivity and animation that attract better than a magnet.
It is very easy to use
There are lots of templates to make selection from, so you can find the perfect one for your presentation
You can create interactive presentations that engage your audience
The animations and interactions are very eye-catching and will attract attention.
The presentations can be pretty large in size, which can slow down your computer
You need an internet connection to use Genially.

Beautiful.ai

Best Animation Presentation Software for Experts

If you’re looking for presentation software that will take your design skills to the next level, Beautiful.ai is definitely worth a look. This program applies the rules of great design in real-time, so your slides will always look polished and professional. Plus, you can unlock millions of modern images and icons to reflect your brand guidelines. With all of these features, it’s easy to see why Beautiful.ai is one of the best animated presentation software options for experts.

Beautiful.ai is a presentation software that designs for you
It applies the rules of great design in real-time
It helps unlock millions of modern images and icons that reflect your brand guidelines
It has features that enable you to control your brand from one account.
It’s easy to use and apply the rules of great design in real-time
Keeps every slide body on brand
Scale productivity across your organization.
There can be a learning curve if you’re not familiar with design software
It’s essential to have strong brand guidelines to get the most out of Beautiful.ai.

Beautiful.ai offers a free trial and two paid plans

Pro for Individuals: $12/mo billed annually
Team for Team Collaboration: $40 per user/mo billed annually and $50 per user/mo billed monthly

Best Animated Presentation Software for macOS

Keynote is the best presentation software for creating engaging and eye-catching presentations. With dynamic backgrounds, motion effects, and live video feeds, Keynote makes your presentations stand out from the crowd.

Additionally, Keynote makes it easy to work with a team of presenters, and to outline your presentation ideas. Finally, with handwriting to text conversion and video support, Keynote is the most complete presentation solution for mac users.

It adds accessibility descriptions to images, image galleries, movies, and audio.
It helps apply a color, gradient, or image to the background of any presentation.
It has an interface that helps to create themes to use as a model for new displays.
It helps to add a large, decorative letter to make the beginning of your story or paragraph stand out.
It allows you to export your presentation as a movie or animated GIF.
It has a feature that turns text, text boxes, images, shapes, lines, arrows, videos into links.
Keynote is very easy to use, with a user-friendly interface.
You can create highly engaging and visually appealing presentations with Keynote.
Keynote makes it easy to work with a team of presenters.
Keynote offers a wide range of features that make it the most complete presentation solution for mac users.
Keynote is not available on all devices.
Keynote has limited fonts and font styles.

Google Slides

Most Budget-friendly Animated Presentation Software

Google Slides is the most budget-friendly animated presentation software because it is easy to use and collaborate with others. You can make beautiful presentations together, and stay in sync while you work. With presenter view, speaker notes, and live captions, presenting your ideas will be a breeze.

Plus, you can connect seamlessly to other Google apps you love. So if you’re looking for an easy to use and affordable presentation software, Google Slides is the perfect choice.

Seamlessly connect to your other Google apps
Present slideshows with confidence
Make beautiful presentations together
It extend collaboration and intelligence to other PowerPoint files.
It is easy to use
It collaborates with others
It creates beautiful presentations.
Cannot print slides
Limited to Google Docs fonts only.
Does not support videos or audio files.

Slides offer two plans.

For Personal Use: Free
Business Standard: $12 per user/month

Buyer’s Guide for the Best Animated Presentation Software

Ease of use.

The software should be easy to use so you can create presentations quickly and easily. Look for software that has templates or themes that you can use to create your presentation. This will save you time and help you create a professional-looking presentation.

The best animated presentation software will offer a variety of features to help you create engaging presentations. Look for software that lets you add animation, audio, and video to your presentations. It should also let you share your presentations online or export them to different formats.

The cost of the software varies depending on the features it offers. If you need basic features, you can find free or low-cost options. If you need more advanced features, you’ll need to pay more. Consider your needs and budget when choosing the right software for you.

Compatibility

Make sure the software is compatible with your operating system and devices. You should be able to use it on your laptop, desktop, or mobile device. Choose software that offers support in case you have questions or run into problems.

FAQs on the Best Animated Presentation Software

There is no one “best” animated presentation software. However, some programs are better than others at certain things. For example, some programs are better at creating cartoons or illustrations just like the Beautiful.ai , while others like Microsoft PowerPoint are better at creating slideshows or importing videos.

You can make an animated presentation for free by using Genially . If you want to create a professional-quality presentation, you may need to purchase a subscription to one of the paid programs.

The software that most professional animators use for their presentations is Microsoft PowerPoint . This software is very powerful and allows users to create complex animations and effects. Other popular choices include Prezi and Visme .

When you’re creating an animated presentation, it’s important to start with a storyboard. This is a series of sketches that show how your presentation will flow. Also, use powerful software and keep it simple. It is also important to use quality visuals and practice always.

The first thing to do is to consider your needs and objectives for the presentation. If you’re looking to create a more basic animation, then a program like Microsoft PowerPoint may be sufficient. However, if you want to create something more complex or professional-looking, you may need a more advanced program like Beautiful.ai .

Animation software can help to liven up dull or complex topics, making them more engaging and easier to understand. Additionally, animated visuals can also capture attention and hold interest more effectively than static slides.

Final Thoughts

Animation software can help to liven up presentations and make them more engaging and understandable. Additionally, using visuals that are animated rather than static can capture and hold attention better.

Animators have several software to select from while creating their presentations, each with its own set of advantages and disadvantages. For example, if you have a Mac, you may prefer to use Keynote . If you are an expert and looking for something to make your presentation more eye-catching, we recommend Beautiful.ai .

However, animators looking to get software with a low budget will find Google Slides exciting, while Visme is an excellent choice for animators looking for a simple interface.

With our platform, you have the opportunity to earn money by writing high-quality blog posts that resonate with our audience.

7 Best Sketching Tools for Creative Expression

Sketching is your starting point if you are a lover of art or say you have…

The Best Membership Site Platforms to Launch…

Entrepreneurs, course creators, and bloggers are always looking for ways to share their expertise and knowledge…

Empower Your Sole Proprietorship with the Best…

The evolution of bookkeeping over time has peaked in this present age of technology. The existence…

Guides & Tips

Privacy Policy
Compare Products

8 Best Free Animated Presentation Software to Revolutionize Your Presentations

May 26, 2023
Animated Presentation Software , Presentation Maker , Presentation Software

Have no idea how to catch your audience’s eyes? Try an animated presentation software to revolutionize your creations! Whether you are a team who is looking for efficient online collaboration or a personal player, that is a good speaker needs an engaging presentation with dynamic effects and attractive design.

A handy-use animated presentation maker must include a wide range of materials, user-friendly operation, a popular animation library, and more innovative features. Here are our 8 best free animated presentation software recommendations for you.

8 Best Free Animated Presentation Software

1. mango presentation maker.

Mango Presentation Maker (Mango PM), developed by Mango Animate, is a free animated presentation software for people from all walks of life. It provides a wide range of free animated presentation templates to help you engage your audience in webinars, meetings, or classes with interactive effects.

With Mango PM, the best free animated presentation software, you can easily showcase your ideas by playing 3D effects and building animation simulation scenes. It will help you catch the audience’s eyes backed by a huge library of all kinds, such as animation characters, SWF, planar and three-dimensional models.

Make Your Own Animated Presentations

2. Animatron

Want to make a lasting impression on your audience? Try Animatron, a free animated presentation maker with cool features to share your story with the world. It offers a wide range of captivating animated characters and hundreds of free pre-animated assets like props and backgrounds. It also allows users to import their own images and company logos to customize their work.

Animiz as an animated presentation software has designed an amazing range of professional animations, which are available at your fingertips. It is easy for people who need to find out fittable elements from the photo gallery. Animiz supports users to import a ready ppt file and turn them into an animated video presentation in a breeze. It also declares that it is the best animated presentation software to make animation videos and interactive business presentations.

No need to start from scratch. Focusky provides a full library of online templates for users to create high-quality presentations within minutes. Moreover, this animated presentation software breaks the traditional slide-to-slide transition effect and delivers impressive experiences to your audiences. To help audiences stay focused on and keep up with their speech, you could add annotations like arrows, brushes, text, and more when presenting.

Keynote is the best animated presentation software application with 18 stunning preset dynamic backgrounds to captivate the audience. It also provides more than 100 cinematic transitions and effects that allow your word to pop with just a tap, and 700 Apple-designed shapes to illustrate your point. But there’s one limitation, you must have an Apple ID to create presentations on your iPad or iPhone.

6. Microsoft PowerPoint

Microsoft PowerPoint is the pioneer of animated presentation software. It supports users in using voice, touch, and ink to interact naturally just by easily speaking or inking into a slide and waiting for the automatic conversion in seconds. Users are also able to practice the speech and get recommendations from Presenter Coach, an AI who can take your presentation to the next level.

Powtoon is undoubtful the best animated presentation software, which has a huge amazing professionally-designed template asset to help you create more video and visual content faster. For businesses, this free animated presentation maker empowers you to transform everyday communications into powerful company-wide visual experiences with the highest level of service and security.

Visme is dedicated to helping users create anything and make them stand out interactively. This all-in-one animated presentation maker provides detailed steps and solutions for users to produce perfect presentations in minutes. It allows users to turn statistics and figures into beautiful visuals in quite an easy way. For team collaboration, your team is capable of working online together to discuss ideas and give feedback in real-time no matter where they are.

Above is our list of the 8 best free animated presentation software, you are in the position to choose the one that you are satisfied with to make the most out of your energy and showcase all your fantastic ideas. But if you are not good at making ideas appear on paper or do not want to spend too much effort in part-time creation, Mango Presentation Maker will be the best animated presentation software for you with vast pre-made templates and colorful animation elements.

Start Creating Animated Presentations Easily

Create your best ai content.

Mango AI - create AI-generated videos & images

Create Animated Video Free With Step By Step Instruction

Let’s wrap it up Now you know the secret of how to create animated videos. It is time for you

7 Best AI Voiceover Generators to Create Voiceovers for Free in 2024

Digital technology is changing rapidly. To make your video engaging enough to appeal to a wider audience, it is necessary

Turn Your Photo Into Animated Character In A Split Second

Wrap it up! We can see that create an animated character is actually not difficult and complicated. Mango Animate Character

10 Stunning YouTube Outro Templates to End Your Videos with a Bang

Do you know what’s another important aspect of a video? After you completely tell the content to your audience, it

Latest Posts

Top 12 AI Creation Tools: Stories, Images, Videos, Sound and More

In today’s society, people have begun to accept AI tools in their daily lives. While ever-expanding intelligence may sound frightening,

12 Talking Photo Apps You Must Know

The talking photo is a way to animate your image, enhancing the value and engagement of the content. You might

AI narrator, text to voice AI free, text to voice generator online free

How to Create Your Own AI Narrator in a Breeze

As a content creator, you’re always on the hunt for fresh methods to captivate your audience. A standout tool in

Free animation maker to make explainer videos, promo videos, training videos, whiteboard videos, character videos, and text videos.

Animation Maker
Whiteboard Animation Software
AI Video Generator
AI Video Maker
Presentation Maker
Privacy Policy
Terms of Service
Support Center

7 Best Animated Presentation Software You Should Know About

When you’re preparing a presentation for a business conference or smaller audience of students, you probably think about making it more interactive and attention-grabbing. One of the best ways to create such a presentation is to make slides animated.

Fortunately, there’s a huge number of applications for any operating system that offer animations for presentations. Some of them are even free and cross-platform. Let’s check the most popular ones.

Content Table

Microsoft PowerPoint

Back in the day, the words PowerPoint and presentations would be used interchangeably. This software is known worldwide and is mostly used on Windows computers and laptops.

PowerPoint has a lot of animation options, transitions, and settings to customize the duration, delay, motion, and other key parameters. You can also add a sound to transitions.

Presentations are saved in PPTX format, which is the international standard. That means your file will be compatible with virtually every computer.

All these features and even more advanced ones for editing presentations are included in Microsoft’s desktop office suite . The prices start at $6 per user/mo for businesses and $69 per year for individual use.

Focusky is positioned as software for HTML5 business presentations and therefore a good option for business teams.

Focusky - Best Animated Presentation Software

Focusky offers advanced animations, including free 3D transition effects — for example, zooming, panning, and rotating. The product provides users with more than 300 animation effects, numerous motion paths, animated backgrounds, and GIF characters.

The solution works on Windows and Mac computers. There’s even a free plan, but it applies a watermark on presentations and restricts import to PPTX and access to templates. All the best options are available within the Professional plan for $99 yearly.

Keynote is the Apple software for presentations, which is normally pre-installed on every Mac and iPhone. As the entire Apple office suite, Keynote is free.

Keynote - Best Animated Presentation Software

In Keynote , you’ll find enough templates for presentations, as well as animation options for objects and text. Transitions for slides are also available. The design of animations in Keynote is really unusual and impressive for viewers.

Except for the omnipresent PPTX format, you can save your slides as a GIF file, set of images, PDF, or even a movie. Keynote definitely offers a bit more than some other free applications. If you have Apple devices or Mac computers, this app would be a solution to most presentation-related tasks.

Visme is an online service that offers presentation editing, animations, and design. The key advantage here is a template library — no need to start design courses to draft a professional presentation.

Visme - Best Animated Presentation Software

Source: Visme

Whatever field your company is active in, Visme has presentation templates. Technical or financial teams, nutrition blogs, education — there are designs for creating a perfect look and feel of a presentation.

You can add classy transitions and animations, save the final version of a presentation as JPG or PNG slides, PPTX or PDF files, or even as a video with sound. Such features are great for anyone who needs truly professional slides on a nearly daily basis.

Visme is an online-based solution, so you’ll need an Internet connection to work there. The pricing starts at $297 per year for 1 user.

Prezi is one of the most popular presentations apps. No doubt, the best about it is the intuitive and clear interface. Any user can navigate and work in Prezi easily without additional expertise.

Prezi - Best Animated Presentation Software

Just like Visme, Prezi offers a template library. However, it provides only 200+ designs — it’s enough in most cases, though. Also, animation choice is pretty much limited to fading and zooming in and out.

Thanks to the desktop app, Prezi can run on Windows and Mac computers without the Internet. In fact, this software is perfect for an occasional presenter.

There’s a free plan, but the best features and functionalities are available in the Plus plan, which costs $12 per month.

Genially is another feature-rich and user-friendly presentation service. Fully online-based, it provides you with numerous templates and animation choices.

Genial.ly - Best Animated Presentation Software

In Genially, you have 4 motion paths and several animation options for each one. Start, speed, and direction can be easily customized in the settings.

Moreover, there’s integration with popular stock image websites, such as GIPHY or Pixabay, the ability to insert the so-called smart blocks (charts and infographics), and interactive elements. With these functionalities, Genially is rather a good alternative to Visme or Prezi.

The output presentation can be shared online or downloaded as JPG, PDF, and even HTML. The standard PPTX format isn’t really at the core of Genially, so the best idea would be to deliver the presentation right from the browser.

The Pro plan unlocks necessary features and costs 7.49 EUR per month.

Final thoughts

Presentations play a crucial role in today’s business routine and education. They’re a nice way to deliver thoughts to prospects, colleagues, or students in an understandable way. Animations are perfect to win the attention of your audience.

Each of the numerous presentation editing software has animations and transitions for interactive slides. However, the set of features is different in all applications and hence the pricing may vary.

Choose a suitable app based on how often you need presentations, whether advanced animations and templates are important for you, and certainly the cost.

Video Marketing
Case Studies
Create a video

Introduction:

If you want to create a high-quality presentation for your personal needs, business, or anything else - you’ll need top-notch presentation software that’s got the right features that you need! We’re going to showcase the best presentation software available on the market today, and compare their features like their template options, the availability of graphic assets, real-time collaboration, and more!

So if you’re looking for a great alternative to the presentation software you’re currently using, look no further than this comprehensive guide! Some of the software we’re going to be looking at include Animaker Deck, Prezi, Visme, and more.

When selecting the right presentation software, there are a number of factors to consider:

Is it beginner-friendly and easy to use?
Does it suit your budget?
Does it have a wide variety of templates to choose from?
Can you add audio to your presentations?
Can you embed content, add videos or GIFs?
Can you animate the elements in the presentation?
Does it include Brand Kit features?
Does it have a large built-in asset library?
Does the presentation software include analytics?
Does the software provide real-time collaboration?
Can the finished presentation be shared to your friends and colleagues easily?
Finally, does it contain a great balance of features?

Let’s take a look at the 10 best presentation software available today:

Animaker Deck
Google Slides
Beautiful.ai

1. Animaker Deck

Animaker Deck is one of the most feature-packed, innovative, modern and complete presentation software available online.

Not only is it easy to use, it contains one-of-a-kind features such as a built-in character builder where the user can create animated avatars to include in their presentation. It also comes equipped with tons of template characters which can be used right from the software.

You can use Animaker Deck to create all sorts of presentations - whether they’re for birthday wishes, a sales proposal, annual reports, family albums, and more. Let’s look at the various advantages offered by Animaker Deck:

Character Builder:

Animaker Deck contains a Character builder where users can create unique avatars to use in their presentation. No other presentation software offers such a wide variety of creative customizations such as Deck. The builder is a breeze to use and can be learnt by anyone!

You can create both male and female characters of all types - whether you’re looking to create a snazzy football coach for your coaching classes, or a fun-loving partygoer for spring break, there are tons of preset outfits and customization options to create any character you desire. You can even create an avatar of yourself or your favorite celebrities!

Template Options:

Animaker Deck comes equipped with tons of pre-built templates that can make a user’s work easier. There are templates for employee onboarding, performance appraisals, internal sales presentations, business proposals, and lots more!

You can also start with a blank template or add new slides to existing templates, and save slides later to use as your own templates.

Graphic Assets Library:

Animaker Deck comes equipped with a massive stock asset library that contains over 80M+ Stock assets. It contains a partnership with both Getty and GIPHY, which means you’ll get access to thousands of stock images and videos that can be used however you choose. You can also use icons, animated backgrounds and even animate the objects that you choose to include in the presentation!

Real-Time Collaboration:

You can easily collaborate with your colleagues with Animaker Deck’s real time collaboration features. Creative teams can exchange ideas, work on a project together, and make updates in real-time, all from the comfort of their couch!

Slides Pro: 10$/Month

Animaker Pro: $49/Month

Enterprise: Custom Pricing

Prezi is another great presentation software that offers an alternative to traditional presentations with their intuitive interface that allows you to create a fluid flow with topics and subtopics that can be zoomed in on. While their interface is not exceptionally beginner-friendly, it’s a great option to add an innovative touch to your presentations.

Easy-to-Use:

Prezi definitely has a learning curve, but it is user-friendly after you get the hang of it. The interface is different and can be hard to navigate initially.

Prezi offers tons of templates, and you can also use a blank template from scratch. The templates can be customized as you choose, and their concept of zooming in to presentations is present in all of them.

Stock Asset Library:

The graphic asset library has usual elements like images, videos, and icons. The premium plan offers access to over 80,000 icons and 500,000 images.

Videos and Gifs:

There is an option to upload or embed videos from YouTube. Embedded videos are not viewable in offline mode. There are currently no GIFs available in Prezi.

Real-time Collaboration:

There is a feature called Prezi for teams which is available and has a Slack integration.

You can access Brand Kits with Prezi’s team plans, and your brand can be customized with your choice of color and available fonts.

Sharing to Social Media:

Prezi presentations can be shared to social media via a share button at the top-right corner of the Prezi page. The presentations can be shared to LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.

Plus: 12$/Month

Premium: $16/Month

Teams: Custom Pricing

Visme is an easy-to-use presentation software with plenty of features and customization options. You can create infographics, interactive charts and reports with Visme too.

There are tons of customizable options available in Visme. You can choose from fully designed presentations or even create your own templates using their mix-and-match by choosing a presentation theme.

You can also start with a blank canvas, add new blank slides to existing presentation templates.

There are tons of assets available in Visme’s library - including icons, illustrations, stock photos, videos and 3D graphics, audio clips, charts, and graphs to include in your presentations.

Animations and Transitions:

Elements inside Visme can be animated, and there are also slide transitions that smoothen the transition between slides with style. There are also custom animations available for animating elements even further.

Collaborations:

Visme has features for colleagues and teams to collaborate with each other in real-time, and leave comments with edits and feedback. You can also easily share your projects with other people and move the project along.

Visme has a brand design tool to keep all your content on-brand. You can upload all of your branding assets - which includes logo, fonts and colors to Visme with their Brand Wizard. You can also easily access thousands of templates and input your brand fonts and colors.

Once the presentation is complete, it can be shared to multiple social media channels easily.

When a presentation is finished, it can be easily shared via a link, and analyzed for sharing.

Personal - $15/month annually

Business - $29/month annually

Enterprise: Custom pricing

4. Google Slides

Google Slides is Google’s presentation software that can be assessed via your Google account. You can easily create presentations with Google Slides. It is similar to Powerpoint and there is an advanced version called G Suite, which includes storage and management capabilities.

Google Slides is very user friendly and is similar to Google Docs and Google Sheets.

There are tons of templates to choose from, and presentations can also be created from scratch.

The stock assets are very simple to add. There are both classic and generic shapes available. Images can also be uploaded from your desktop, Google Drive or a URL.

Collaboration:

Real-time collaboration is offered on Google Slides.

Videos and GIFs:

Videos can be uploaded with a YouTube link or from a Google Drive.

Animations:

Elements inside Google Slides can be animated and transitions can be added as well.

Share to Social Media:

Presentations can be shared via email or link.

Google Slides is free for anyone with a Google account.

There are also plans that start from 6$/month and go upto 18$/month.

Keynote is the presentation software offered by Apple. The Keynote editor can be used by anyone with an Apple ID.

It is similar in usage to Powerpoint and Google Slides, which makes it very simple to use.

There are a limited number of templates to choose from, and Templates can also be uploaded into the software.

There are tons of classic icons and symbols to choose from, and they are also customizable in terms of color and font. Images can also be uploaded from your computer.

Colleagues and team members can work on a project at the same time via a link or an email.

You can not embed videos in Keynote Slides, and GIFs can be added as .gif images.

You can animate slides and objects and also add effects.

You cannot share to Social Media on Keynote.

There is no Brand Kit features available on Keynote.

Keynote is totally free to use, and is available on the App Store.

Slides is a presentation software that contains a built-in grid to help with composition. Slides is totally free to use, with paid plans available too.

Slides is pretty beginner-friendly, the editing board has a simple interface which is easy to learn.

There are very few templates to use, so presentations have to be built from a blank template.

There are graphics available such as icons and shapes that are available. Photos have to be imported from a URL.

Paid plans contain features for collaboration. Teammates can leave comments and feedback to help with making edits.

Videos and GIFs are available to use and pretty easy to add to your presentation. Videos can be uploaded and GIFs can be uploaded as .mp4 as video.

You cannot add audio with Slides.

Animations can be added to all elements and features. The length of the duration can also be customized.

Slides support sharing to various social media platforms.

The paid plan offers analytics.

The paid plans start at $5/month and go upto $20/month for features like unlimited collaborations and Google Analytics.

Slidebean is a simple presentation software that contains quite a few templates and customizations.

Slidebean also uses artificial intelligence to help you use the best possible slide layouts and configurations. Check out this product review here .

Slidebean is very easy to use. Adding content is simple and there are templates available to use. You can also start from a blank template.

There are 2 modes for editing - outline or design mode. There are tons of choice for how you can move the content blocks around.

There are tons of templates available to use. They are neatly organized and there are sections available by brands as well.

There are lots of icons and images to choose from.

Real-time collaboration features are available in the paid plans.

Slidebean contains GIPHY integration which means that GIFs can be added. The paid plan offers a feature to add videos.

Audio features are not available.

Animations can be added to the elements and content blocks.

You can share presentations to social media in the paid plans.

Analytic features are available in the paid plans.

There’s a free plan and it has limited capabilities.

There are 3 price levels from $8/month, $19/month, and $149/month.

8. Beautiful.ai

Beautiful.ai is a presentation software that helps you create good-looking slides with the help of AI (artificial intelligence).

Beautiful.ai is fairly simple to use. All you have to do is add smart slides, add your content and choose from different layouts. This makes Beautiful.ai a nice software that beginners and those who are not familiar with graphic design.

There are basic templates available that can be used to create unique presentations.

Graphic Asset Library:

The stock asset options are fairly limited, and there are free stock photos and icons to choose from.

Your teammates can collaborate on your projects for viewing or editing.

Both videos and GIFs can be uploaded from your computer. Videos can also be imported from YouTube.

Preset animation styles can be added to each slide, but their customizability is limited.

There are no brand kit features available, but there are customizable themes and they can be saved to use later.

You can easily share your presentations to social media. You can send email invites, share a public or private link, or share directly to social media platforms.

Beautiful.ai currently offers a Pro plan at $12/month and a Team plan at $40/month.

9. Powerpoint

Microsoft Powerpoint is the most popular and well-known presentation software on this list. It is familiar, reliable and easy to use.

The traditional interface of Powerpoint makes Powerpoint fairly easy to use. All types of users - students, professionals and businesses can learn Powerpoint and make presentations easily.

There are lots of templates that come equipped with Powerpoint, and they are all customizable.

You can browse stock images, icons and stickers by searching for relevant keywords in Powerpoint’s graphic library.

You can share your presentation with specific people.

Your computer can be used to upload both videos and GIFs. Videos can also be embedded from YouTube.

Audio files can be uploaded from your computer.

There are lots of animation and transition options available in Powerpoint.

Brand Kits are not available, but custom themes can be saved.

Presentations cannot be shared to social media platforms.

There are no analytic features available in Powerpoint.

There are different plans for businesses that start from $5/month and go upto $20/month.

10. Genially

Genially is a presentation software that’s known for its creativity. This software is known for presentations and video presentations.

Genially is fairly simple to use, and comes equipped with tons of choices. Any change can be applied to all slides with the simple click of a button.

There are tons of template options, with both free and paid options available.

There are tons of graphic assets available. Images can be uploaded or found on their integration with Pixabay.

Genially’s professional plan allows collaboration upto 5 team members.

GIFs can be imported with the GIPHY integration and videos can be added with YouTube links.

Audio files can be uploaded from your computer, via SoundCloud and a few other integrations.

Third-Party Content:

Genially contains a nice feature where you can add third party content with Genially integrations.

Brand Kit features are available in the premium plans.

All completed presentations can be shared to various social media platforms.

Genially’s premium plans contain analytic features.

Genially contains a free plan, which gives you access to unlimited presentations but a limited pool of resources.

There are two types of paid plans. The education plan starts at $1.25/month and go upto $20.82/month, billed annually. The professional plan starts at $7.49/month and goes upto $79.15/month, billed annually.

In conclusion, there are plenty of great presentation software available on the market that can help you create the perfect presentation that you desire. Depending on your choice of features, suitability, and price, you can select these software and have a great experience creating your presentation of choice.

If you have any questions or comments, leave them in the comments section below!

How to Embed a Video in Powerpoint? [Supercharge your PPTs Now]

25 Best Presentation Templates for the Perfect Pitch [For 2023]

15 Compelling Presentation Ideas To Entice Your Audience [in 2023]

Subscribe to get awesome DIY tips that could break the boundaries of other DIY tools.

Create Engaging Animated Videos On Your Own

Our drag-and-drop builder makes it easy for anyone to create pro-level animated videos using pre-made templates and ready-to-go assets with zero technical skills.

Mobile Site
Staff Directory
Advertise with Ars

Filter by topic

Biz & IT
Gaming & Culture

Front page layout

Deepfake face-off —

Popular ai “nudify” sites sued amid shocking rise in victims globally, “nudify” sites may be fined for making it easy to “see anyone naked,” suit says..

Ashley Belanger - Aug 16, 2024 4:36 pm UTC

San Francisco's city attorney David Chiu is suing to shut down 16 of the most popular websites and apps allowing users to "nudify" or "undress" photos of mostly women and girls who have been increasingly harassed and exploited by bad actors online.

These sites, Chiu's suit claimed, are "intentionally" designed to "create fake, nude images of women and girls without their consent," boasting that any users can upload any photo to “see anyone naked” by using tech that realistically swaps the faces of real victims onto AI-generated explicit images.

"In California and across the country, there has been a stark increase in the number of women and girls harassed and victimized by AI-generated" non-consensual intimate imagery (NCII) and "this distressing trend shows no sign of abating," Chiu's suit said.

"Given the widespread availability and popularity" of nudify websites, "San Franciscans and Californians face the threat that they or their loved ones may be victimized in this manner," Chiu's suit warned.

In a press conference , Chiu said that this "first-of-its-kind lawsuit" has been raised to defend not just Californians, but "a shocking number of women and girls across the globe"—from celebrities like Taylor Swift to middle and high school girls. Should the city official win, each nudify site risks fines of $2,500 for each violation of California consumer protection law found.

On top of media reports sounding alarms about the AI-generated harm, law enforcement has joined the call to ban so-called deepfakes.

Chiu said the harmful deepfakes are often created "by exploiting open-source AI image generation models," such as earlier versions of Stable Diffusion, that can be honed or "fine-tuned" to easily "undress" photos of women and girls that are frequently yanked from social media. While later versions of Stable Diffusion make such "disturbing" forms of misuse much harder, San Francisco city officials noted at the press conference that fine-tunable earlier versions of Stable Diffusion are still widely available to be abused by bad actors.

In the US alone, cops are currently so bogged down by reports of fake AI child sex images that it's making it hard to investigate child abuse cases offline, and these AI cases are expected to continue spiking "exponentially." The AI abuse has spread so widely that "the FBI has warned of an uptick in extortion schemes using AI generated non-consensual pornography," Chiu said at the press conference. "And the impact on victims has been devastating," harming "their reputations and their mental health," causing "loss of autonomy," and "in some instances causing individuals to become suicidal."

Suing on behalf of the people of the state of California, Chiu is seeking an injunction requiring nudify site owners to cease operation of "all websites they own or operate that are capable of creating AI-generated" non-consensual intimate imagery of identifiable individuals. It's the only way, Chiu said, to hold these sites "accountable for creating and distributing AI-generated NCII of women and girls and for aiding and abetting others in perpetrating this conduct."

He also wants an order requiring "any domain-name registrars, domain-name registries, webhosts, payment processors, or companies providing user authentication and authorization services or interfaces" to "restrain" nudify site operators from launching new sites to prevent any further misconduct.

Chiu's suit redacts the names of the most harmful sites his investigation uncovered but claims that in the first six months of 2024, the sites "have been visited over 200 million times."

While victims typically have little legal recourse, Chiu believes that state and federal laws prohibiting deepfake pornography, revenge pornography, and child pornography, as well as California's unfair competition law, can be wielded to take down all 16 sites. Chiu expects that a win will serve as a warning to other nudify site operators that more takedowns are likely coming.

"We are bringing this lawsuit to get these websites shut down, but we also want to sound the alarm," Chiu said at the press conference. "Generative AI has enormous promise, but as with all new technologies, there are unanticipated consequences and criminals seeking to exploit them. We must be clear that this is not innovation. This is sexual abuse."

reader comments

Channel ars technica.

Top products
BIM Collaborate Pro
Fusion extensions
Flow Capture
Flow Production Tracking
View all products
View Mobile Apps
Collections
Architecture, Engineering & Construction
Product Design & Manufacturing
Media & Entertainment
Buying with Autodesk
Pay as you go with Flex
Special offers
Help with buying
Industry solutions
Educational access
Product support
System requirements
Download your software
File viewers
Students and educators
Installation
Account management support
Educational support
Partner Finder
Autodesk consulting
Contact support
Certification
Autodesk University
Conferences and events
Success planning
Autodesk Community
Developer Network
Autodesk Customer Value
ASEAN (English)
Canada (English)
Canada (Français)
Deutschland
Europe (English)
Hong Kong (English)
India (English)
Latinoamérica
Magyarország
Middle East (English)
New Zealand
Singapore (English)
South Africa (English)
United Kingdom
United States

Product intro
Capabilities
Maya features
M&E Collection

Autodesk Maya: Create expansive worlds, complex characters, and dazzling effects

3D animation and visual effects software

Image courtesy of Framestore

What is Maya?

Autodesk Maya is professional 3D software for creating realistic characters and blockbuster-worthy effects.

Bring believable characters to life with engaging animation tools.

Shape 3D objects and scenes with intuitive modeling tools.

Create realistic effects—from explosions to cloth simulation.

See system requirements

Maya overview (video: 7:18 min.)

Hyperrealistic model made with Maya by Youssef Abbas

Character wearing armor and holding a flag on a mountaintop

Stylized character made in Maya by Alexandre Mougenot

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness VFX by Framestore

Two animated creatures trekking through the snow

Louis & Luca and the Snow Machine by Qvisten Animation

Girl with short hair looking to the right

Silhouette by VES-winning students of ArtFX School of Digital Arts

Why use Maya?

Accelerate workflows

Maya’s powerful tools help you iterate faster so you can focus on creativity and meet deadlines.

Deliver stunning visuals

Add fine details to characters and scenes, and deliver quality work that keeps clients coming back.

Scale for complexity

Top artists in the industry rely on Maya to create the most complex shots, characters, and worlds.

What you can do with Maya

Young Rocket and siblings Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

Still from the film Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. Image courtesy of Framestore.

Breathe life into 3D models with powerful animation tools

Whether you’re animating lifelike digi doubles or lovable cartoon characters, Maya has the animation toolset to bring your 3D assets to life.

Environment created with Bifrost for Maya. Image courtesy of Lucien Wutsh Michanol.

Create detailed effects and environments with Bifrost

From blazing explosions to luscious forests, Bifrost for Maya makes it possible to create complex simulations and worlds in a single visual programming environment.

Video: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles on a rooftop at night, from a talk with Mikros Animation

“To create something new, unique, and never seen … we went for 3D dry brushes drawn on planes in Maya [for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ].”

—Gaspard Roche, Associate Head of Characters, Mikros Animation

“Maya and our other Autodesk tools have played an essential role in allowing us to excel in our animal and creature work.”

—Amaan Akram, Head of VFX, Untold Studios

“The Marvels” promotion taking over the Las Vegas landmark, Sphere

“From Maya for 3D animation to Arnold for 3D rendering, these tools enabled us to bring the extraordinary to larger-than-life.”

—Jocelyn Birsch, Director of Experience, The Mill

Fantastic forest in Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania

“We used Bifrost to scatter everything that enriched the fantastic forest sequence in Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania .”

—Thomas Kutschera, Head of Groom CFX, Pixomondo

Workflows and use cases

Video: Animating the Characters of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

Animating Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 characters

Watch how Framestore developed stunning character animations for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 with Maya.

Creature in a blue hat and green scarf looking at a device

Streamlining teamwork: Qvisten’s OpenUSD asset pipeline

Qvisten Animation built an OpenUSD (Universal Scene Description) asset pipeline with Maya to streamline teamwork and future-proof productions.

Video: An inside look at Hogwarts Legacy

An Inside Look at the Hogwarts Legacy Game

Discover how the team at Warner Bros. Games Avalanche created and refined characters, animations, and cinematics for the highly anticipated fantasy game using Maya.

Maya resources

STAY UP TO DATE

M&E YouTube channel

Watch talks from industry experts and discover new tools, workflows, and more.

Maya learning channel

Find modeling, rigging, animation, FX, and rendering tutorials to get you producing digital content.

Read Maya news and stories from animation, VFX, and games studios.

When to choose Maya or 3ds Max

Maya and 3ds Max are used by creative studios around the world for animation, modeling, visual effects, and rendering.

USD in Production at Animal Logic

Animal Logic shares their journey of how they integrated USD in Maya into their production pipeline.

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

What is maya used for.

Maya is a professional 3D animation, modeling, simulation, and rendering toolset, designed for creating realistic characters and blockbuster-worthy effects. From fantastic creatures to sweeping landscapes and explosive battle sequences, top artists, modelers, and animators rely on Maya’s award-winning toolset to bring today’s most-loved animated and live-action films, TV shows, and video games to life.

Who uses Maya?

Maya is used by 3D modelers, animators, lighting artists, and FX artists across the film, TV, and games industries.

Maya vs 3ds Max

Maya and 3ds Max are used by creative studios around the world for animation, modeling, visual effects, and rendering. Learn when to choose Maya and when to choose 3ds Max .

Which operating system does Maya run on?

Maya can run on Microsoft® Windows®, Apple® macOS®, and Linux®. See Maya system requirements for details.

How do I download Maya?

Autodesk provides download and install instructions for individuals and administrators . Your available downloads appear in Autodesk Account . Find your product, select a version, platform, language, and download method. For more information, visit Autodesk support .

Can I install Maya on multiple computers?

With a subscription to Maya software, you can install it on up to three computers or other devices. However, only the named user can sign in and use that software on a single computer at any given time. Please refer to the Software License Agreement for more information.

How do I convert my Maya free trial to a paid subscription?

Launch your trial software and click Subscribe Now on the trial screen or buy Maya here . When buying your subscription, enter the same email address and password combination you used to sign in to your trial. Learn more about converting a trial to a paid subscription .

How much does a Maya subscription cost?

. If you have infrequent users and are interested in a pay-as-you-go option, please visit www.autodesk.ca/en/flex to learn more.

Do you offer subscriptions for students, educators, and educational institutions?

Students and teachers at qualified academic institutions worldwide are eligible for free access to Autodesk software for one-year through the Autodesk Education Community .

Support and problem solving

Find troubleshooting articles and resolve your issue.

Get more with the Media & Entertainment Collection

Bring breathtaking scenes and characters to life for film, TV, and games.

Media & Entertainment Collection

All of the creative tools you need to build a powerful and scalable 3D animation pipeline for complex simulations, effects, and rendering.

Media & Entertainment Collection includes:

MotionBuilder

8 Best AI Video Editing Tools to Use in 2024

Published: August 19, 2024

I've been editing videos for almost a decade, both professionally and for my passion projects. So, believe me when I say I know how tedious editing even the shortest videos can be.

A hand reaches out of a computer, symbolizing AI

Fortunately, many AI video editing tools can help speed up the process of editing, whether you're a beginner or an expert videographer.

Here are 8 of the best AI video editing tools I've found and what I like most about them.

The State of Artificial Intelligence in 2024

New research into how marketers are using AI and key insights into the future of marketing.

Marketing AI Tools
Practical Tips
Trends and Statistics

Download Free

All fields are required.

You're all set!

Click this link to access this resource at any time.

Best AI Video Editing Tools

1. adobe premiere pro.

I've been using Adobe Premiere Pro for work and for my own passion projects for 10 years, so I was intrigued when the video editing software announced that new AI tools are available on its platform and that more are on the way.

These are a few of my favorite AI tools within Adobe Premiere Pro:

Text-based editing

This feature allows users to auto-generate their transcripts, highlight text to add clips to their timeline, edit, reorder, and refine their clips like they would a text document.

AI audio category tagging

I love this feature because it makes audio editing a breeze by recognizing if a clip is music, sound effects, dialogue, or ambient sound and providing access to relevant tools for editing based on the sound type.

Speech to text

To make your videos more accessible, Adobe Premiere Pro‘s speech-to-text feature automatically generates transcripts in up to 18 languages. It can also distinguish between speakers and create captions that match the video’s cadence and speech pattern.

Price: Plans start at $22.99 per month.

Best For: Intermediate to professional video editors. Though beginners can use Adobe Premiere, it does have a bit of a learning curve.

2. DaVinci Resolve

DaVinci Resolve has many AI tools and has incorporated AI into its platform for years. The one I find the most interesting is its facial recognition. Now, bear in mind I have very minimal experience with DaVinci Resolve, so I don't have much experience with this feature.

That said, its facial recognition allows users to group clips based on the people who appear in them. All I'd have to do is select a group of clips and right-click to select “Analyze Clips for People.” From there, DaVinci Resolve will scan the clips, assess the faces that appear, and group clips with the same faces together.

If you're editing video of an event with a lot of people and you want to narrow down your clips to include a specific group, this feature will save time and effort.

Price: Users can download DaVinci Resolve for free, or buy the studio version for $295.

Best for: Beginner to expert video editors.

I can‘t scroll through TikTok for over a minute without seeing a video edited with CapCut. I’ve never used CapCut, but I'm truly amazed by the quality of the videos people churn out using the app.

CapCut is known for being a user-friendly video editing app that is suitable for anyone, regardless of their level of editing experience. Part of what makes CapCut so easy to use is its AI tools, which can do most of the work for you.

For example, let's say I have a long-form video I want to shorten so I can upload it to a short-form video platform like Instagram Reels or YouTube Shorts. I can take that long-form video, upload it to CapCut, and identify standout moments, and the app will generate a shorter version of the video.

Price: CapCut is free to use but paid options start at $20.84 per month.

Best for: Short-form video editing for platforms like TikTok, Instagram Reels, or YouTube Shorts.

Runway is a platform specializing in creating AI tools for video editing and other aspects of visual art. To be honest, I wouldn't recommend Runway for beginner video editors or those with no experience at all.

The platform can do a lot, but its plethora of tools and their uses can be overwhelming. Even I, an experienced video editor, was only able to assess the tip of the iceberg of what Runway can do.

That said, its AI video generator is simple to use. To test it out, I entered a prompt asking for a video of a cat frolicking in a forest and chasing after a butterfly. The images weren't perfect, but I can see them being used to figure out concepts or inspiration for shots or art.

A generated tabby cat chases a red and black butterfly through a forest.

Price: Runway is free with limited features, and paid plans start at $12 per user per month.

Best for: Expert video editors.

I'm pretty familiar with InVideo after using it to create a TikTok video a while back. You can read all about it here if you want to know my experience with InVideo.

In short, I enjoy InVideo because it's very simple to use. Unlike Runway, I definitely recommend it for marketers and creators who want to churn out simple short-form videos with little to no video editing experience.

My favorite feature of InVideo is its AI text-to-video tool. When I used InVideo to create a TikTok, I entered a script into the text box, selected a few images, and the platform generated a video based on the script in just a minute.

Price: InVideo is Free, and price plans start at $15 per month.

Best for: Editing and generating short-form videos on a tight schedule with little to no experience.

6. ClipChamp

Clipchamp is a video editing app by Microsoft that allows users to easily make videos even if they have no video-editing experience. A standout AI tool is its AI text-to-speech, which boasts over 400 voice styles in 170 languages.

Users can choose a mood, pitch, accent, and gender for the voice.

Price: Free for beginners, and prices start at $11.99 for everyday editors.

Best for: Beginners looking to make short-form videos.

Screenshot of ClipChamp's AI text-to-speech

Image Source

7. Descript

I found Descript to be pretty easy to use. It‘s a platform boasting a variety of AI tools, and one I find the most convenient is its AI transcript generator. Uploaded a video of myself talking to my cat (don’t judge me), and the AI transcribed it perfectly.

I then uploaded a clip from a concert I went to where the singer shouted the name of the next song over a crowd of screaming fans. The AI misheard the singer, so the transcription was incorrect (the song's name is actually “Space Ghost Coast to Coast”).

However, Descript allows me to edit the transcription so it's correct.

Price: Limited features available for free and pricing starts at $12 per person per month.

Best for: Beginners editing quick-hit videos.

8. Wondershare Filmora

Wondershare Filmora is a cross-platform video-editing software that is known to be ideal for beginner and intermediate video editors and creators. I was impressed by the number of versatile AI tools available I found while browsing its site.

One tool that sticks out to me is the AI Frame Interpolation. This feature enhances video visuals without losing quality, increases low frame rate automatically, and supports a variety of video formats including GIFs.

If I want to slow down a video without deteriorating its appearance, the AI Frame Interpolation would be most useful.

Wondershare Filmora's AI Vocal Remover is also interesting. User can separate vocal and music from a song and keep high quality audio while removing vocals.

Price: There is free version with limited features, and pricing starts at $49.99 per year.

Best for: Beginners and intermediate editors looking to create long or short-form videos.

Video editing can take anywhere from from several minutes to a few hours, depending on the project. If you're curious about how AI can streamline the process for you and give some of your time back, you now have new tools you can test out for yourself.

Don't forget to share this post!

How to Write Content that Generative AI Search Engines Will Cite, According to Experts

Generative AI in Marketing: How It Fits Into Your Strategy, According to Jasper's Head of Enterprise Marketing

The Best AI Search Engines to Try in 2024

How Search AI Will Revolutionize the Future of SEO, According to HubSpot's SVP of Marketing

23 ChatGPT Prompts Marketers Should Use

18 Best AI SEO Tools & How to Use AI in 2024 [New Data]

Looking for the Best AI Tools for Excel? Here Are My 6 Favorite Options

AI Media Planning: 6 Expert Tactics You Can't Ignore

I Tried 5 AI Logo Generators. Here's My Favorite

AI Experiment: Hacking HubSpot Chat to Improve the Customer Experience

New research into how marketers are using AI and key insights into the future of marketing with AI.

Marketing software that helps you drive revenue, save time and resources, and measure and optimize your investments — all on one easy-to-use platform

IMAGES

7 Best Animated Presentation Software You Should Know About (2023)
7 Best Animated Presentation Software You Should Know About (2023)
7 Best Animated Presentation Software You Should Know About
7 Best Animated Presentation Software You Should Know About (2023)
Top 133 + Animated presentation software
7 Best Animated Presentation Software You Should Know About

COMMENTS

10 Best Animated Presentation Software You Should Know About
1 Visme. An animated presentation software allows users to apply special effects to the transition between slides. Using a tool like Visme will turn your presentations into works of digital art. The animation options are classy, easy to use and never over the top.
Top 12 Best Video Presentation Software of 2024 [Including Free ...
5 Powtoon. Powtoon has long been a favorite for creating video presentations, especially explainer videos. Their animated and whiteboard explainers have been around for a while. Now the software has a lot more creative options for making video presentations in five main styles with lots of templates in each.
15 Best Presentation Software for 2024 (Full Comparison Guide)
You need high-quality business presentation software to take your slides to the next level. Some of the best presentation software include Visme, Haiku Deck, Prezi, Microsoft PowerPoint, Canva and Google Slides. In this comparison guide, we'll analyze each of these tools and many more to understand what the difference is between them so you ...
The Best Presentation Software
The Best Presentation Software . Beyond PowerPoint, our top-rated presentation apps make slideshows (animated videos, Q&As, and collaborative brainstorming sessions) easy to create and a pleasure ...
Free Presentation Software (With 1000+ animated characters!)
Powered Presentation Software! Make a lasting impression on your audience with Avatars, Animations, Gifs and more Start now Free Forever. Animaker is trusted by some of the world's leading brands. ... "Animaker is undoubtedly the best animated software for business presentations! Ever since we started using Animaker Deck, our presentations ...
12 Best Animation Software for Beginners: Premium, Free & Online
The suggestions include software for 3D animation, software for traditional 2D frame-by-frame animation, as well as software for Flash-style animations. 7. Blender. Open Source 3D creation. Free to use for any purpose. Blender is a cross-platform free 3D creation suite offering a powerful arsenal of tools.
How to create animated presentations [Easiest Way for 2023]
Go carefully through the different templates and select a suitable one for your use case. Then click Add all. A pop-up window will appear, asking you to overwrite; click confirm to insert the template. Once you have clicked the confirm button, all the slides will be inserted into the project.
The best presentation software in 2024
The best presentation software. Canva for a free presentation app. Beautiful.ai for AI-powered design. Prezi for non-linear, conversational presentations. Powtoon for video presentations. Pitch for collaborating with your team on presentations. Gamma for conversational AI features.
7 Best Free Animated Presentation Software to Make Amazing ...
Part 1: 7 Best Free Animated Presentation Software 1. Focusky (Strongly Recommended) When it comes to the feature-rich presentation tool with powerful function, Focuksy is undoubtedly one of the leader. You can find almost all basic features and functions of a standard presentation tool, including transitions and animations to create amazing ...
Animated Presentation Maker
VEED's professional video editing software lets you create captivating presentations that engage your audience from start to finish. Our vast selection of animation options allows you to bring your ideas to life, making your message stand out and leave a lasting impression. Make video presentations for your clients, make pitches to investors ...
15 Best Animation Presentation Software for Beginners
11. Animiz. Animiz is a software tool to make animated videos that are stored on the system's cloud server. There is also a related whiteboard animation presentation system, a software program you download to use. For the animated video Animiz tool, there is a free version for one user with 10GB of cloud storage.
Best Interactive Presentation Software in 2024 (Free & Paid)
Discover the best interactive presentation software, including free tools for presentations, and presentation platforms for video and animated presentations. This is a preview of your story Powered by. Home / Blog / ... Create your best presentation to date.
11+ Best Animation Software of 2024 (Free, 2D, and 3D)
1. Adobe Animate. Adobe Animate is a vector and 2d animation software that's designed for web and mobile app development. You can animate vector graphics, create interactive content, add effects, and more. This software also has built-in templates that you can customize to your liking.
The Best Ways Online To Create An Animated Presentation
3) Animation Maker. Animation Maker is another easy to use web app for making animated videos. You can make use of 120 different animation styles for making awesome video animations. The available video templates cater for all kinds of categories, such as for making animations about education, travel, business, health, food, sports, etc. Animation Maker even has templates for making animated ...
55+ Best Animation Software: Online, 2D, 3D, and More
Description: PowToon is a web-based animation software that allows users to create animated presentations by manipulating pre-created objects, imported images, provided music, and user-created voice-overs. Powtoon uses an Apache Flex engine to generate an XML file that can be played in the Powtoon online viewer, exported to YouTube, or ...
30 Best Animation Software for Beginners in 2024 [Free & Paid]
Made with Visme Infographic Maker. Software #1: Visme. Visme is a cloud-based, online design tool that lets anyone create animated social media images, infographics, presentations, ads, banners and other visuals. It comes packed with animation and interactivity features to help you create eye-catching designs that do much more than just static images. ...
Make interactive presentations for free
No-code animation: Bring your slides to life with cinematic visual effects. The art of digital storytelling: Engage and thrill on screen. Create clickable presentations and slide decks with animation, infographics, multimedia and beautiful design. Easy to use. 1000+ templates.
15 Best Video Presentation Software to Try in 2024
4. Advanced editing tools. There is no good video presentation without editing. You need tools like an image editor that offer important features like transitions, filters, captions, pitcure upscaling, etc. This will help you create more professional-looking presentations that can grab the viewers' attention. 5.
Presentation Video Maker I Create Animated Videos with Biteable
There are three ways to make a narration video presentation. Record narration separately and sync it to your presentation. Upload first-person video footage. Merge it with your presentation. Use a video presentation maker with in-app voice-over and recording features. (This is the easiest way to make a narration video presentation.)
7 Best Animated Presentation Software
Microsoft PowerPoint is the most popular animated presentation software. It is easy to insert 3D objects and embedded animations directly into PowerPoint decks from your own files or a library of content. You can also create well-designed, impactful slides with the help of Designer and Ideas in PowerPoint.
8 Best Free Animated Presentation Software to Revolutionize Your
8 Best Free Animated Presentation Software. 1. Mango Presentation Maker. Mango Presentation Maker (Mango PM), developed by Mango Animate, is a free animated presentation software for people from all walks of life. It provides a wide range of free animated presentation templates to help you engage your audience in webinars, meetings, or classes ...
7 Best Animated Presentation Software You Should Know About
Keynote. Keynote is the Apple software for presentations, which is normally pre-installed on every Mac and iPhone. As the entire Apple office suite, Keynote is free. Source: Apple. In Keynote, you'll find enough templates for presentations, as well as animation options for objects and text. Transitions for slides are also available.
Top 10 Presentation Software for 2023
10. Genially. Genially is a presentation software that's known for its creativity. This software is known for presentations and video presentations. Easy-to-Use: Genially is fairly simple to use, and comes equipped with tons of choices. Any change can be applied to all slides with the simple click of a button.
Popular AI "nudify" sites sued amid shocking rise in victims globally
Deepfake face-off — Popular AI "nudify" sites sued amid shocking rise in victims globally "Nudify" sites may be fined for making it easy to "see anyone naked," suit says.
Autodesk Maya
Maya is a professional 3D animation, modeling, simulation, and rendering toolset, designed for creating realistic characters and blockbuster-worthy effects. From fantastic creatures to sweeping landscapes and explosive battle sequences, top artists, modelers, and animators rely on Maya's award-winning toolset to bring today's most-loved ...
8 Best AI Video Editing Tools to Use in 2024
Best for: Editing and generating short-form videos on a tight schedule with little to no experience. 6. ClipChamp. Clipchamp is a video editing app by Microsoft that allows users to easily make videos even if they have no video-editing experience. A standout AI tool is its AI text-to-speech, which boasts over 400 voice styles in 170 languages.

12 Best Animation Software for Beginners (Premium, Free, and Online)

Premium animation software for beginners… Who aim big!

1. Adobe Character Animator

Pricing plans:

2. Cartoon Animator 4 (formerly CrazyTalk Animator 3)

3. Stop Motion Studio

4. DigiCel FlipBook

5. Moho (Anime Studio) Debut & Moho (Anime Studio) Pro

Features for the Debut version:

Features for the Pro version:

6. Toon Boom Harmony

Open-source & Free animation software… To test the waters!

8. Pencil2D

9. Synfig Studio

Online video animation tools… To create videos in seconds!

10. Animaker

The easiest way to create professional animated videos.

Bonus software: Wideo

Ready to make your first video animation?

Add some character to your visuals

Subscribe to our newsletter

Browse High Quality Vector Graphics

Related Articles

Iveta Pavlova

Hey! You made it all the way to the bottom!

How-To Tutorials

Web Design Trends 2020: High Tech & Visually Mind-Blowing

Everything About Zoom Backgrounds + Special Free Backgrounds to Use

The best presentation software in 2024

The best presentation software

The best presentation software at a glance

The best free presentation software

The best presentation app for AI-powered design

The best presentation app for conversational presentations

The best presentation app for video presentations

The best presentation app for collaborating with your team

The best presentation app for conversational AI

The best presentation app for audience engagement

The best presentation app for generative AI

What about the old standbys?

What about PowerPoint and Google Slides add-ons?

Related articles

Improve your productivity automatically. Use Zapier to get your apps working together.

7 Best Free Animated Presentation Software to Make Amazing Presentations

Part 1: 7 Best Free Animated Presentation Software

2. Fishbole

5. Biteable

7. Videoscribe

Part 2: Animated Presentation Made by Focusky

Video Tutorial

Related article

Make Animated Presentation

Bring your presentations to life with animated presentations!

Upload slides, videos, or start recording

Add music, animations, images, text, and more!

Present, pitch, and share your presentation

Loved by creators.

The 15 Best Animation Presentation Software (2024 Rankings)

What are the Best Animation Presentation Software Tools?

2. Microsoft PowerPoint

5. Zoho Show

6. Google Slides

8. Haiku Deck

10. VideoPlasty

12. Focusky

14. VideoScribe

15. Powtoon

How To Learn A New Language: The Best Way to Get Started

11+ Best Animation Software of 2024 (Free, 2D, and 3D)

What is Animation Software?

What is the Best Animation Software?

1. Adobe Animate .

Advanced Features:

Advanced Features :

3. Renderforest .

Renderforest is Best for:

Best Features:

4. Pencil2D .

Key Features:

5. Animaker.

Animated Videos with 1000s of Templates