Don’t let the “open source” tag fool you — Blender is high-end software created by some brilliant people. Completely compatible for the Mac, PC and even Linux, the Blender team is doing amazing things that will make your eyes pop.

While we’re not yet aware of any major movie, video game or show that’s using Blender for production level work, it’s clear that the development team is indeed working towards that goal.

As with all open source applications the download is free. So go ahead and get started downloading your free 3D animation program!

You many notice that some of these programs are not primarily for animation. Some, like Flash, are designed for other tasks. However if animation can be created with the software it will be considered for this list.

Which Animation Program is Right For You?

For each of the following animation programs we will display its price, complexity level, a link to the program and any other relevant information you might find useful. Hopefully this will educate you in finding the right animation program for you.

2D Animation Programs

The following animation programs are all primarily designed to function in 2D.

Toon Boom Studio 4

$299, toonboom.com/products/toonboomstudio, Download Free Trial

Toon Boom Studio is one of the best animation programs for internet users, and is well known for its depth and quality of their technical support. It’s a solid application that is made for animators, by animators. This makes it a perfect choice for creating your own original cartoons.

Animationish

$59.95, toonboom.com/products/animationish

Developed with the premise that animation programs do not have to be overly complicated to produce effective and fun cartoons, Animationish is a great application to learn the basics of cartoons.

Flip Boom

$39, toonboom.com/products/flipboom

The producers of Toon Boom created this animation program with kids in mind. It’s a simple program to get the hang of, with basic drawing inputs and previous/next frame navigation. Even the output controls have been slimmed down to make it as easy as possible for kids to grasp.

Flash

$699, adobe.com/flash

Adobe Flash has been around for a long time in one form or another. It has the benefit of being easy to use, but is missing some key toolsets that would truly benefit animators. That’s why Flash does not currently get top billing from most animation studios.

If the price does not scare you away you’ll find that Flash can provide a great interactive experience but is not an ideal animation program for cartoons.

After Effects

$999, adobe.com/aftereffects

While it’s primarily used for compositing and effects, After Effects can be used to create animation. It’s clearly overkill to use this program just for animation, but the fact that you can means it must go on this list. Frankly, I can think of several things I would rather do with a thousand dollars.

Pencil

Free, les-stooges.org | Download Pencil

Pencil is an interesting animation program in that it allows for both vector and bitmap drawings. It’s as if the drawing tools of Photoshop were combined with the powers of Flash. The software itself has been pared down to its most essential elements, meaning it’s an excellent introductory animation program.

Synfig

Free, synfig.org | Download Synfig

The creators of the Windows-only Synfig have ambitious goals of their animation software being used to create feature film quality animation. After watching an impressive demo it looks like they’re not far away from their goal. Synfig can create complicated lighting and camera effects, it’s up to you, the animator, to use them properly.

CreaToon

Free, creatoon.com | Download CreaToon

Another Windows-only animation program, CreaToon uses a cut-out animation process, similar to Toon Boom. The application itself seems a bit less polished, but the ability to use bitmap images within the program is useful.

Toon Boom Digital Pro

$2,499.99, toonboom.com/products/digitalpro

As internet animation programs go, Toon Boom Digital Pro is strictly for professionals, as indicated by its price tag. They have the credentials to back it up though. Besides the extensive list of TV and movies created with Toon Boom Digital Pro, internet sensations Adam Phillips and Bernard Derriman also use this animation program.

Toon Boom Studio Express

$149, toonboom.com/products/toonBoomStudio

This pared down version of Toon Boom Studio is a good introductory animation program for newcomers. There are limits, however, especially since only one scene can be created at a time. You can easily purchase Express and then upgrade to Studio later if you find that you need the extra punch.

SWiSH

$149.95, swishzone.com | Download Free Trial

SWiSH was initially created to take advantage of the open .swf format established by Flash. Originally billed as a cheaper Flash alternative, SWiSH has become a solid Windows-only text animation program in its own right, allowing you to easily create impressive swooping effects and export them for the internet.

Ulead Gif Animator

$49.95, ulead.com | Download Free Trial

Gif Animator is truly old school animation software. Animated Gifs have, in general, are almost extinct on the internet as Flash and DSL
speeds have become almost ubiquitous. This is a Windows-only application, and does not work in Vista. If you want to party like it’s 1999, this animation program will get you in the mood.

TV Paint

$475, tvpaint.com | Download Free Trial

While TV Paint was a solid animation program before, when they purchased the Mirage name and rolled the two applications into a single animation program simply called TV Paint many animators rejoiced. TV Paint is solid production level animation software, and there is a professional version available for 950�.

Plastic Animation Paper

$99, plasticanimationpaper.dk | Download Free Trial

This truly exciting animation program comes to us from the beautiful country of Denmark. Plastic Animation Paper is meant to be a replacement to a traditional light table/paper animation combination. This software is currently available for Windows and Linux, however they are diligently working on a version for the Mac. There is a free version for you to try, as well as a professional version for 695�.

Motion Studio

$39.95, wisdom-soft.com/ms

This Windows-only is a quirky little program designed only to create .exe files. This could be useful for a slideshow or looping display, however the animation part of the program is relatively limited.

Pro Motion

cosmigo.com/promotion | Download Free Trial

Pro Motion is a Windows-only animation program designed for close-up pixel manipulation. This makes it ideal software for building sprite-based characters such as those found in video games.

3D Animation Programs

For the most part 3D is considered to be software for professionals, although the following applications are seeing use at home and open-source movies.

3D Studio Max

$3,495, autodesk.com/3dsmax | Download Free Trial

3D Studio Max wins the dubious honor of being the most exspensive animation software program on this list. You many notice that this and the next program, Maya, are both owned by Autodesk. While it’s a popular program for industrial designers and architects, it’s also found a core following in film and video games.

Maya

$1995, autodesk.com/maya

Increasingly Maya is becoming the 3D tool of choice for film, as it allows for a vast array of shading and lighting effects. Maya is also extremely customizeable, allowing for easy integration with third party software. This makes it an easy choice for animation production houses. There’s a Personal Learning Edition that you can download for free, which we recommend if you’re considering this software.

Lightwave

$995, newtek.com/lightwave | Download Free Trial

Lightwave is a truly professional 3D program, used to create many movies and TV special effects. Tackling Lightwave is not something you should enter into lightly. Fortunately there is a 30 day trial for this animation software, which we highly recommend.

Blender

Free, blender.org | Download Blender

Blender has recently made a pretty impressive splash when it was used to create the impressive cartoon Big Buck Bunny. This entertaining and professional cartoon should be all the reason you need to try out this open source animation program.

Anim8or

Free, anim8or.com | Download Anim8or

Truly a personal labor of love, this 3D animation program is the creation of Steve Glanville, a software engineer for NVidia. Anim8or, besides being difficult to spell, is a Windows-only application. It is not professional level animation software, but it was never intended to be. Regardless, it is a good introductory animation program, especially if you’re interested in learning how to animate in 3D.

Swift 3D

$249, erain.com/products/swift3d | Download Free Trial

The original intention of the Swift 3D software was to offer a 3D alternative to Flash users. This animation program will let you model and animate directly in the software, and then export to the Flash-friendly .swf format.

Photograph Animation Programs

Almost falling into the miscellaneous category, the following photograph animation programs use still photos to create animated movies.

iStopMotion

$49, boinx.com/istopmotion

This is the only Macintosh-only application on this list. iStopMotion is a fun program designed for stop-motion animation. It can work with the camera built into your Mac, or can quickly import photos to build your animations.

Morpheus

$49, my.smithmicro.com/win/photoanimation

Morpheus is an animation program designed to transform your photos into into other things such as cartoons or animals. The morphing process itself is the extent of the animation involved, but it can be interesting to play with.

Animation Programs for Beginners

On the beginner end of the spectrum we have cartoon software that is designed from the word go to be easy to pick up and use. Often these programs are meant as animation software for kids. That’s not to say that you couldn’t use them to learn at any age, you just need to prepare yourself for big colorful icons and limited options. The plus side is that animation programs for beginners is relatively inexpensive, usually under $50.

Animationish

$59.95, toonboom.com/products/animationish

If you’re looking for a great introduction to cartoon animation programs you will appreciate what Animationish has to offer. It’s been developed from the ground up under the premise that animation programs do not have to be overly complex to produce fun and exciting cartoons. Animationish is a great software package to learn the basics of cartooning.

Flip Boom

$39, toonboom.com/products/flipboom

As simplified as it gets, this animation program from the makers of Toon Boom Studio was designed for kids. It’s a basic program, as indicated by its price. The interface has big colorful icons for easy recognition for animation fans of all ages.

Animation Programs for Advanced Users

Toon Boom Studio 4

$299, toonboom.com/products/toonboomstudio, Download Free Trial

Consistently one of the best animation programs available today, Toon Boom Studio is well know for being well supported and its ease of use. It was created by animators who know what they’re doing. It’s a perfect software choice for you to create your very own cartoons.

If you’re interested in a more complete list you can find all animation programs here (free and not free).

Pencil

Pencil Homepage | Download Pencil

If you can imagine the vector drawing attributes of an animation program like Flash combined with the bitmap drawing characteristics of Photoshop, you’d be close to Pencil, the first of our free animation programs. It’s a great starting software package, as the developers have done a great job paring it down to its most essential parts.

Synfig

Synfig Homepage | Download Synfig

Synfig is an impressive animation program that is currently only available on the PC. It does a great job of creating camera and lighting effects. Synfig is well on its way towards establishing itself as solid software, not bad for a free animation program.

Let’s hope that some day they’re able to create a Mac version.

CreaToon

CreaToon Homepage | Download CreaToon

It would be great if this was also available for the Mac, but currently CreaToon is only for the PC. It uses a limited animation style, kind of like Toon Boom in that regard. Of particular interest is the ability to use bitmap images inside the animation program itself. The application could use a bit of polish, but it’s free so we’ll let such issues pass.