Pencil2D review

Pencil2D does one thing: it lets you draw frames and play them back without getting in your way. The project describes it as lightweight and easy to use so you focus on animating rather than hunting for buttons, and that matches its feature set. You sketch, ink and paint on raster or vector layers and switch between the two as you work. Downloads cover Windows 7 and later in 64-bit and 32-bit versions, macOS 10.14 and later, Linux and FreeBSD, with packages for Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, Arch and Flatpak, and legacy builds for Windows XP and older Macs. The current stable release, v0.7.2, came out in March 2026. Pencil2D is open source and free to use, even commercially. What it leaves out is everything beyond drawing: there are no bones, no tweening, no node effects and a much smaller brush set than Krita. That makes it a starting point rather than a long-term studio for most people.

Who it is for

Complete beginners and younger students who want to start drawing animation in minutes.

Price

Free and open source; no paid plan.

Pencil2D is completely open source and free to use, even commercially!
Quoted from the vendor pricing page on November 10, 2026.

Key features

• Minimal, lightweight interface focused on drawing frames
• Raster and vector layers in the same project
• Runs on Windows, macOS, Linux and FreeBSD
• Install packages for Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, Arch and Flatpak
• Legacy builds for older Windows and macOS versions

Strengths and weaknesses

• Strength: Free to use even commercially
• Strength: Very little to learn before the first animation
• Strength: Runs on older computers, with 32-bit Windows and Linux builds
• Weakness: No bones, cut-out rigs or tweening
• Weakness: Fewer brushes and effects than Krita
• Weakness: Not suited to long productions with many scenes

Key facts

• Price: Free and open source
• Animation type: 2D hand-drawn, raster and vector
• Platforms: Windows 7+, macOS 10.14+, Linux, FreeBSD
• Current release: v0.7.2, March 2026

Where it ranks

Pencil2D is No. 5 in our Best Free Animation Software verdict.