For a painter to create a masterpiece back in the days, one had to have tons of things at their disposal. Paints, oil, canvases, inspiration, peace, a muse, and a lot of patience! Not that all of those things are no longer required, but times have become a little less time-consuming and a lot more innovative. Because artists of today need only one thing – A Smartphone.
Whether it is painting or sketching or doodling, you name it; literally, anything is possible to create with the help of top-notch technologies. “Digital Art,” as it is called, has gained tremendous attraction for professional artists and amateurs alike.
So, all the Picassos and Vincents in the house, hold your brushes because we are here for you!
What is ProCreate? And why do you need an alternative?
If you are familiar with digital art, you will know that Procreate is a household name. And for those who don’t, here you go. It is software that blends the physical act of painting and technology beautifully. With its intuitive interface, Procreate is a raster graphics editor app for digital painting developed by Savage Interactive. With a broad spectrum of tools available such as over 130 brushes, multiple layers, blend modes, masks, 4K resolution export of process videos, autosave, and many other digital art tools, it is a haven for artists. For these and many advanced tools that it offers, it is a preferred choice of many notable comic artists and painters.
Currently, in version 5.1.5, it is available on iPad and Procreate Pocket for iPhone users, which isn’t fair for android users!
Best Procreate Android Alternatives
Hence, here is a list of the top 10 alternatives of Procreate for Android to create amazing artworks.
1. Autodesk SketchBook Pro – Draw and Paint
Pencils, inks, markers, and over 190 customizable brushes that can incorporate both textures and shapes, Sketchbook is an ultimate alternative for Procreate, not just for Android users!
With a drawing engine that can handle a 100 mpx and maintain the zoomed-in feeling of conventional drawing, this app’s precision and speed are reliable.
The interface works proficiently to give its users the feeling of traditional drawing or doodling. What’s more, you can even scan your designs from paper to digital in a snap. And it is free of cost.
Pros
- Efficient interface
- Impressive brush selections
- Fully compatible with the most popular platforms
- Ability to handle large canvases
Cons
- Since it is a professional-caliber tool, it’s not user friendly for beginners
- A bit of latency in the functionality
Supported Platforms – Android, Windows, and iOS
Price – Free
2. Ibis Paint X
Ibis paint X is a versatile drawing app with over 2500 material, over 800 fonts which provides 381 brushes, 71 filters, 46 screentones, 27 blending modes, recording drawing processes, stroke stabilization feature, various ruler features such as Radial Line rulers or Symmetry rulers, and clipping mask features.
It is an easy-to-use app with amazing features that closely resemble Procreate. The brushes are clean and crisp, giving a better precision in drawing, and one can also add as many layers as they want without any limit. Oh, it also allows you to record your drawing process as a video and share it with your friends.
Ibis paint X easily becomes the next best choice after Procreate, especially for Android users for a similar experience.
Pros
- Wide range of materials
- Limitless layers
- Stroke stabilization feature
Cons
- Lack of a free trial
Supported Platforms – Android and iOS
Price – Free, in-app purchases
3. Adobe Photoshop Sketch
Hands down the obvious competitor of Procreate, Adobe Photoshop provides a plethora of features for its artist users. You can draw using pencils, pens, markers, erasers, thick acrylic, ink brush, soft pastel, and watercolor paint brushes to create artwork.
You can try accessing Adobe Photoshop with Capture/Illustrator/Photoshop with layers preserved to enhance your artwork and designs. With Adobe Sketch, you can access 11 tools that can adjust the size, color, opacity, and blending settings.
Moreover, it also lets you add multiple images and drawing layers, which can effortlessly be renamed, restacked, transformed, and merged.
Pros
- Accessible through Adobe Capture, Illustrator, and Photoshop
- Availability of pro-grade tools
- Offers enhanced security at an affordable price point
Cons
- No option to rotate the canvas
Supported Platforms – Android, iOS, and Windows
Price – Free
4. Artrage – Draw, Paint, Create
Time to ditch your pens and pastels! A “realistic” drawing and painting app, Artrage is for all the artists out there to pour over their artistic madness and creativity. You can oil paint on textured canvas, draw with pencils or pastels on realistic paper, or blend watercolors to create delicate gradients
It offers 15 tools with countless variations via presets and settings such as
- Natural painting tools- oil brush, watercolor, palette knife, paint roller, paint tube
- Sketching and drawing tools – Airbrush, ink pen, felt pen, pencil wax, etc
- Utility tools – Flood fill, color sampler
- Special effect tools – Glitter tube, gloop pen
Bonus point- it supports S-pen making it handy for Samsung Galaxy Note users.
Therefore, it makes an excellent user app for kids as well as professionals.
Pros
- Realistic experience of drawing or doodling
- Creative tools with special effects
- Supports S-pen
Cons
- Limited set of tools
- Not completely polished, so be ready to tackle some bugs
Supported Platforms – Android and iOS
Price – $4.99
5. Concepts
Concepts is a flexible platform to think, plan and create. It allows you to sketch your ideas on the infinite canvas, write and doodle notes with tilt + pressure, draw storyboards, product sketches, and design plans.
In terms of flexibility, it is a good enough substitute for Procreate for android users. Since it is powered by a hybrid vector-raster fluid engine- 64-bit precision, Concepts provide an infinite canvas with sharp strokes at any zoom level and mobile from the ground up.
Sketching and doodling get even more fun with its realistic pencils, pens, and brushes that respond to pressure, tilt and velocity with optional live smoothing. Its usability increases because of the drag+drop image feature straight onto the canvas as a reference or to trace.
Pros
- Tilt+pressure feature
- Drag+drop image feature
- Vector-raster fluid engine
Cons
- Lacks pro-grade tools
Supported Platforms – iOS, iPadOS, Windows 10, Android, and Chrome OS
Price – Free
6. MediBang Paint – Make Art
A simplified alternative for making digital art, MediBang Paint is a digital painting and comic creation program that comes loaded with brushes, font, premade backgrounds, and other resources.
If you have a knack for doodling comics, this is your perfect replacement. MediBang Paint includes various unique tools for illustrators and artists. Such as numerous brushes, screen tones, and backgrounds, cloud fonts, and comic creation tools. Not only the interface is super simple and user friendly, but it also lets you get crazy with its free comic fonts available for comic books, giving it a somewhat professional look.
It also offers cloud storage to manage, backup, and share their work without any mess. Moreover, it is free and available on every platform, making it easily accessible for aspiring comic artists or amateurs. Although it isn’t pro-grade as Procreate, you can still get the benefits of its features.
Pros
- Various comic creation tools
- Cloud storage backup
Cons
- Latency in UI
- No option for time-lapse
Supported Platforms – Android and iOS
Price – Free, in-app purchases
7. Artflow
Artflow is a fast and intuitive painting and drawing application with 100+brushes and tools, 10 layers filters, and canvases up to 6144×6144. With its high-performance paint engine, you can paint, sketch, and draw smoothly without any lag. It gives you the freedom to unlock the power of your imagination with the support of pressure-sensitive pens like Samsung’s S Pen.
The fast, fluid, intuitive, and accessible interface enhances the drawing experience for the artists. Although it is not as proficient as its competitors, it is still a good substitute for getting hands-on Digital Art.
Pros
- Supports large canvases
- Intuitive user interface
Cons
- Most of the features are paid
Supported Platforms – Android
Price – In-app purchases
8. Tayasui Sketches
With over 20 incredibly realistic tools, Tayasui Sketches is a good alternative for artists. Some features such as brushes editor, color eyedropper, layers, etc., enhance the sketches. Furthermore, the stylus support brings a realistic touch to its brushes.
The brushes have been designed to make every stroke seem vivid and precisely like a brush on paper.
Pros
- User-friendly interface for easy and convenient operation
Cons
- Technical glitches and latency in the app can be a little frustrating
Supported Platforms – Android
Price – Free, In-app purchases
9. PaperColor
PaperColor is an application for drawing, doodling, and graffiti painting that imitates the paintbrush. It provides a wide range of color library and different styles of paintbrushes.
It is a perfect stop for those who are new to this art and want to start from scratch with its Base map feature to learn drawing straightway. Having said that, it is extremely simplistic and cannot match the high-end user interface of Procreate.
Pros
- Great for graffiti painting
- Decent range of color library
Cons
- Not recommended for professionals
Supported Platforms – Android
Price – Free, in-app purchases
10. Clip Studio Paint
Lastly, Clip Studio Paint is the getaway for all anime lovers. It provides various pens and brushes to draw comics and manga, illustrations, and sketches comfortably.
Also, it gives fully posable 3D drawing figures to study composition. While it is a useful app for doodling and sketching, it is perfect for comics and manga. Meanwhile, it also supports S pen pressure-sensitivity on compatible Samsung Galaxy Devices.
The user can even import Adobe Photoshop brushes and create time-lapses.
Pros
- Excellent for creating anime, comics, and manga
Cons
- Requires membership to unlock many features
Supported Platforms – Android, iOS, and Windows
Price – in-app purchases
Frequently Asked Questions
What app is similar to Procreate for Android?
Among the list of best alternative apps mentioned, Adobe Photoshop Sketch is the most similar to Procreate that Android users can benefit from.
What app is like Procreate but free?
Adobe Photoshop sketch and Autodesk Sketchbook is like Procreate and also free!
Do you need Apple Pencil for Procreate?
Yes, but if your device is not Apple Pencil compatible Procreate supports third-party styluses such as Wacom and TenOneDesign. However, for Procreate Pocket, you do need an Apple pencil.