Wondershare Anireel
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Ever since its inception back in the 1960s, computer animation has come a long way. In today's time, you will find some of the most advanced and innovative animation software that can be utilized for all kinds of animation purposes.
Here are the top 10 best animation software in the market right now.
No.10 Adobe Character Animator
Supported On: Windows, macOS
Appropriate For: Beginners
Why Is It Recommended?
For people who do not have much experience in animation and need a simple yet efficient interface, Adobe Character Animator is an excellent choice. Creating and animating characters with the help of this tool is extremely simple and requires minimal knowledge and animation skills.
User Comments:
"The greatest thing about Adobe Character Animator is that it allows you to input from your camera and microphone for real-time performance capture and automatically animate characters."
Pros
Create both live and non-live animation.
Fast speed and saves a considerable amount of time.
Extremely simple yet fun to use.
Cons
Heavily reliant on motion capture.
Lacks quite a few important animation tools that include onion skinning feature, feature to create vectors from scanned images, etc.
No.9 Adobe After Effects
Supported On: Windows, macOS
Appropriate For: Animation professionals with mid-level skills, animators focusing on 2D animation.
Why Is It Recommended?
Adobe After Effects is primarily used for 2D animation, as well as motion graphics. Even though it is used for 3D animation to some extent, the 3D capabilities of Adobe After Effects are quite basic. It offers full integration with Adobe Creative Cloud and also has a range of tools. Third-party plugins can be used for increased the capabilities of the software.
User Comments:
"Before you decide to dip your toe in the water, keep in mind that Adobe After Effects is not recommended for beginners."
Pros
The tool offers great flexibility.
UI is advanced and intuitive.
Full integration with other Adobe Creative Cloud applications.
Cons
The tool has a steep learning curve.
Known to face lagging issues at times.
Does not offer any tool to work with audio.
No.8 Adobe Animate
Supported On: Windows, macOS
Appropriate For: Beginners in the field of animation.
Why Is It Recommended?
When it comes to the best animation software for beginners, The Adobe Animate CC is one of the most popular 2D animation software in the world. It is a vector-based 2D animation software that comes with numerous features, is easy to use, and has an intuitive interface.
User Comments:
"You can use Adobe Animate to design vector graphics and animation for websites, TV series, web applications, game development, banner ads, and many other purposes."
Pros
A great tool for beginners in the field of animation
Regular updates ensure smooth functioning.
100 GB cloud storage facility.
Cons
Only suitable for beginner-level animation tasks.
Cannot be used for advanced or professional-level animations.
Limited capabilities.
No.7 RoughAnimator
Supported On: Windows, macOS
Appropriate For: Both for beginners as well as professionals.
Why Is It Recommended?
RoughAnimator is a straightforward animation software and is perfect for both beginners and professional animators. It comes with a host of advanced features and is perfect for creating hand-drawn animations.
User Comments:
"The process that goes into using RoughAnimator relies on the traditional hand-drawn frame-by-frame animations, so having a stylus is recommended for this app to shine brightest!"
Pros
Offers timelines with unlimited layers.
Offers great ease to adjust the exposure length of individual drawings.
Perfect for both beginners and professionals.
Cons
Bugs are a persistent issue with the software.
The learning curve is steepest with room for errors about the frame-by-frame animation procedure.
Has to room for improvement.
No.6 Animaker
Supported On: Windows, macOS
Appropriate For: Beginners, individuals with no background knowledge in animation.
Why Is It Recommended?
Even if you do not have any knowledge in animation, you can easily master video-making capabilities, create animated GIFs, and a lot more.
User Comments:
Animaker is an easy-to-use and efficient online animation tool that helps create personalized animated videos, most simply, just with a few clicks.
Pros
Free version available along with paid version.
Great fit for both individual professionals and startup organizations.
One of the best whiteboard animation software.
Cons
The free version comes with limited features.
You have to upgrade to the paid version to remove the watermark.
The learning curve can be steep.
Wondershare Anireel
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No.5 OpenToonz
Supported On: Windows, macOS, and Linux.
Appropriate For: Experienced animation experts wanting to execute advanced animation tasks.
Why Is It Recommended?
OpenToonz is a popular and open-source 2D animation software. The program may appear to be quite simple in the initial stages, the program is used for advanced animation works and has also been used to produce quite a few major cinema productions for film and TV.
User Comments:
"Since this tool is open source, you can use its code and customize it as you wish. It is free to use both for commercial and non-commercial purposes."
Pros
Free and open source.
Offers a range of advanced tools.
Cons
Advanced tools are not very intuitive.
Steep learning curve.
No.4 Pencil2D Animation
Supported On: Mac OS, Windows, and Linux
Appropriate For: Beginners, People looking for a minimalist animation software
Why Is It Recommended?
Pencil2D is a popular animation software for kids. It is an intuitive and perfect tool for beginners being minimalist and very easy to use.
User Comments:
"To get the most out of your hand-drawn animations, we would recommend investing in acquiring a graphics tablet and a stylus."
Pros
Minimalist, easy to use, and intuitive.
Open source program.
Great for hand-drawn animations.
Cons
Cannot be used on smartphones.
Does not come with advanced animation features and tools.
No.3 Toontastic
Supported On: iOS and Android
Appropriate For: Kids, Beginners, and Adults With Basic Level Knowledge in Animation.
Why Is It Recommended?
Toontastic is one of the most straightforward and easy-to-operate animation software and the platform is fun to use while being pretty intuitive. The app is owned by Google and is a seamless storytelling app that is great for creating animated cartoons, both for children and adults with minimum animation knowledge or skills.
User Comments:
With this creative platform, users will draw characters and scenes and give guidance and direction for how their stories unfold, from beginning, middle, and end.
Pros
User-friendly and fun to use.
Appropriate for a variety of skill levels.
It is free to use with no ads at all.
Cons
It is free to use with no ads at all.
The sound effects overpower the character's voices at times.
Unavailable on older devices.
No.2 Blender
Supported On: Windows, macOS and Linux
Appropriate For: Advanced tasks and professionals.
Why Is It Recommended?
Blender has been one of the most popular and best free animation software for over 2 decades. It is an open-source 3D creation suite that is perfect for 3D animation at advanced levels.
User Comments:
"Luckily, there are tons of tutorials available on the web to get you started."
Pros
Great animation software that is free to use.
Appropriate for advanced tasks.
Comes with some advanced tools.
Cons
Difficult to learn and master.
Difficult to make image animations with this software.
Not available on smartphones.
No.1 Wondershare Anireel
Supported On: Windows
Appropriate For: All kinds of professionals with different levels of skills and expertise. Millennials and GenX, people aged between 30 to 55 years.
Why Is It Recommended?
Wondershare Anireel is one of the best animation software in the market right now if not the best animation software in 2021. It is ranked as the top animation software that enables you to bring your imaginations to life with a huge range of features and customizable elements.
User Comments:
"Wondershare Anireel is simply outstanding. I have basic animation needs as well as execute more advanced animated tasks and the software offers great resources and features for all kinds of requirements."
Pros
Simple and convenient to use with an advanced and intuitive interface.
Offers seamless and effective animated video editing
Comes at a competitive and affordable price
Cons
The price is not the cheapest.
It's a very young product.
Not suitable for too professional people to use.
Limited amount of assets.
Key Takeaways from This Episode
● We hope this article has been helpful and informative for all budding as well experienced animation artists and who are looking for the best animation software.
● We have listed the top 10 best animation software and discussed all important details about each of these tools.
● The list has a blend of all kinds of animation software including 3D animation software, Adobe animation software, and Whiteboard animation software.
● The efficiency of any animation software also depends on your skills, system hardware, and the kinds of videos you are creating.