# Pixie Studio - Pixel Editor — Pixel Sprite Animation Editor

> Professional pixel sprite and animation editor for game development. (iPhone/iPad app by FlyingWorm, LLC.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pixie-studio-pixel-editor/id1291222612 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [FlyingWorm, LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1291222611)
- Category: Productivity, Photo & Video
- Price: $4.99
- Rating: 3.89/5 from 44 App Store ratings · 30 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 4+
- Requires: iOS 10.0 · 175 MB
- Languages: English
- Released: 2017-10-23
- Data updated: 2026-06-10
- Monetization: paid
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pixie-studio-pixel-editor/id1291222612/reviews.md

## What is Pixie Studio?

Pixie Studio is a professional pixel sprite and animation editor with tons of features, created by a game industry veteran specifically for pixel art games.

* Paletted *
Palette based pixel editing allows you to easily change a color across all layers and frames of a sprite, and is based on IDs instead of indexed so you can rearrange your palette however you want.

* Multitouch *
A modern multitouch canvas that can be panned, zoomed and rotated at will.

* Alpha *
Full alpha support on layers and per pixel.

* Animation *
Full featured frame based animation. Each sprite file can contain multiple animations, so you can build an entire game character in a single file. Easily scrub through frames by dragging the frame panel.

* Realtime Preview *
Immediately see your pixel and animation changes while you're editing, with a repositionable and resizable preview window.

* Layers *
Every frame can have multiple layers with alpha. Shared and Background layers let you easily animate layers across frames. Image Reference layers for when you want to trace something from your photo library.

* Tiles *
Tile your art on the canvas and paint across seams.

* Pencil *
Pencil support on iPad Pro for perfect palm rejection. In Pencil mode, only the Pencil will draw, while your fingers can still zoom and pan the canvas.

* Universal *
One app supports iPad, iPad Pro, iPhone, and iPhone X with full feature parity across all versions.

* Speed *
Pixie Studio uses Metal to support silky smooth 60FPS. On the new iPad Pros, it supports Promotion at 120FPS.

* Selection *
Select areas and move, flip, copy or paste them.

* Symmetry *
Paint or erase with symmetry in the X or Y axis.

* Export *
Export PNG animation strips for use in game engines, and animated GIFs to show your friends.

* iCloud Drive *
Realtime iCloud Drive syncing of all files, so when you edit on your iPad you will quickly see it on your Mac. Exporting to your computer has never been easier!

* Future *
I want Pixel Edit Pro to be the ultimate pixel editor, and am not stopping here. I am continually adding new features, and listen to any feedback I get.

## Key features

- Palette-based editing
- Multitouch canvas
- Frame-based animation
- Realtime preview
- Layer support
- Tile painting
- Pencil support
- Symmetry painting

## Recent user reviews (10 of 30)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pixie-studio-pixel-editor/id1291222612/reviews.md

### 3/5 — Ui needs work

*2022-07-28, version 1.58*

That’s all.

### 2/5 — Rescale buttons and other stuff

*2021-05-16, version 1.58*

This app is good on its use but the layout in my screen is completely out , I am in an iPhone 11 and the scaling of the app borders are non existent and the buttons are too little when I bought it and opened it I though it was just a black screen until I noticed a. Little plus on the top

### 3/5 — Good app overall, the select feature is just broken (for me at least)

*2021-04-20, version 1.58*

This app is really good, but the select feature is really hard to use. I would expect that I had to select an AREA by setting the perimeter, not select the perimeter by itself. This means that if I want to select a circle, I can’t just select the perimeter of the circle to select all of it, I’d have to select the pixels of the circle individually, which is extremely annoying.

**Developer response:** You can use it offline, it is using iCloud Drive which will sync your files when you connect to the internet, but it doesn't require a connection.
You can also disable iCloud support entirely by going to your iOS Settings menu, iCloud, and hit the toggle for Pixie Studio, then it will be forced to local storage.
Please email support@flyingworm.com if you still can't figure it out!

### 5/5 — Ok. 15 mins with the app.

*2020-10-18, version 1.58*

All I can say is literally all the negative reviews must be from people who didn’t even try the app for longer than a few minutes.

Every complain that I read about that made me postpone this purchase for a good whole month turned out to be either false or might have been fixed by now. 

This is officially a top notch product. I’ve never owned an actual “pixel” program but have been using photoshop and stuff like that for ages especially for low poly stuff - this thing really makes me feel more at ease with that workflow.

Now that I’m getting an iPad Pro soon, I can only imagine working on this app will be substantially better (since I am only using an iPhone right now). 

Thanks dev, this is a FANTASTIC APP. I’d give it 10 stars if I could especially considering the cost of entry.

Some little tips for other people like me:

- YES there are layers.
- YES there are palettes which you can both import and export. 
- ... can’t remember more rn but suffices to say these were two of the most commented things I believe, so obviously either those reviews are very outdated and old (therefore Apple should simply delete them already, I see apps go through this deleted old reviews things all the time anyway), or they couldn’t even take the time to figure it out. 

If it took me 15 mins to figure all of this out, so I’m guessing these are outdated reviews but if they’re not, then simply ignore them they do not represent the current state of this wonderful app.

The one thing I do think as of right now that would help to improve this product is support for folders to organize projects further. I have at least not found this option and would really appreciate it, as I am planning on building a character system so having a rigorous structure is a must to be able to maintain such project (folders for head assets, face assets, hair assets, bodies... etc). Folders INSIDE of folders would also be nice (recursive folders essentially).

### 3/5 — Great improvements

*2020-08-17, version 1.58*

Update 8/20
We went backwards a step here and suddenly I’m unable to create folders which is frustrating. 
I’d also love to see a 2k x 2k max canvas size.

Still the best iOS pixel app atm I think, but the folder issue is a big one.

Update 11/8
Positives
Easy to use, contains tons of useful tools. Big improvements to the UI visually have been good and I like that you can adjust the size!
Palette features are still good! I like that I can organize my work. Devs seem actively working to make a sturdy pixel app for game devs, artist and animators.

Negatives
Still can’t import images into a layer, I also have a hard time getting the copy/paste function to work with selections. Currently it’s not possible for me to copy paste from one canvas to another it crashes. I also don’t love some of the navigation where importing/copying stuff between folders drags you out of your current folder.

Update 9/12
New features on this app have been great. Running into some bugs though! It seems I’m unable to import images into a layer which is a bummer as I often have to paste tiles into a main set.

I’d also love it if grid settings only applied to the canvas in use. 

The app is definitely moving in a positive direction and I can see it being a powerful mobile pixel studio. Hopefully devs will continue to squash bugs!
————
This app is suddenly my main tool for pixel art & animation. The updated palette features were so necessary and devs delivered!!   It has a ton of features and it’s good for animation, illustrations, & Tilesheets. Devs seem active which is honestly important to me in my main art apps. Would love to see some ui modernization but that’s such a minor thing as far as core workability goes!

### 5/5 — Best Pixel App

*2020-06-11, version 1.58*

Best pixel editor/animation tool I’ve found.

### 3/5 — Good but how do I save it as a gif/video in my photos?

*2020-05-24, version 1.58*

The app is really good! But I have one issue, I don’t understand how to save it as a gif/video in my photos.Once I figure that out it’s going to be 5 stars.Best pixel art app.

### 3/5 — The best pixel art app so far

*2020-01-11, version 1.56*

So every pixel art app I've used has had its problems, and Pixie Studio has its issues also, but I think it does what it intends to the best of all of them.
It has a nice selection of tools (a brush tool, gradient tool, mirror, a lot of control over the pencil and brush settings) and for the most part the app is easy to use, but it has a number of bugs and some things could be done better, which is why it only gets three stars.
I've noticed numerous crashes when trying to do animation, prompting me to have to save constantly. 
The bottom of some of the menus get cut off so that only a sliver of the "ok" button shows. 
This is also an issue when animating because with the frame menu up it cuts off the slider that lets you use tools like rotation, stretch and anything else that uses the slider. A slider shouldn't be used at all for these tools and I don't understand why so many of these apps don't let you just adjust with handles. Also you need to select with the marque what you want to adjust which can just get plain frustrating.
Also you can't see the grid unless you zoom in close. There is a custom grid, but the line width is so thick that it doesn't work as well.
Something else that would be super useful that none of these programs have is being able to anchor the point you want to rotate, stretch, or move around. This would make animating so much easier.
Still though of all the programs I've used this is the best, so it's the most worth it.

**Developer response:** Please email support@flyingworm.com and I will fix your crashes, and we can discuss your other issues, I am open to suggestions.

### 1/5 — Can’t even draw...

*2019-11-08, version 1.56*

I have spent a good amount of time trying to figure out how to draw.... yup, just draw. This is starting from the app being freshly downloaded creating a new file and then taking my finger or Apple Pencil and just sliding it across my screen just as I’ve done with Procreate, Pixaki, photoshop, Artstudio pro, Draw, and about every other app that is made for artistic purposes. 

I made sure the alpha was set correctly, the layer was selected, that I was using the correct tool, and that I was drawing with a distinct color, nothing works. I even tried importing an image, which it did successfully but I was still unable to draw on it. 

Hopefully this is a bug and not some SERIOUSLY unintuitive UI design. 

One star for lack of...the primary function this app is supposed to have and for having to spend $10 in order to find that out.

**Developer response:** I'm very sorry as I never got a notification for this review, Is this still an issue?

### 5/5 — My go to pixel app.

*2019-09-10, version 1.54*

Very active dev, very fast fixes for reported issues. Very impressed.

Very good comprehensive set of tools.

Ty for fixing the dropper issue so quickly. 

I have noticed in 1.54 an issue in the main menu (where you can make new files/pick existing files) A file keeps coming back no matter how many times you delete it. 

It’s called ffmpeg_log_to_unity_bind. 

Much thanks for the app you are developing. 
_________________________________________________________
Requested Features - Option to do pictures with colors not being tied to the pallete for animations/images that consist of many colors. Prevent from getting overwhelmed by 100/1000+ swatches. 

Alternatively if the above is not possible. The ability to create palette folders that can be created within the palette bar on the fly. Can be expanded/collapsed as needed as well as labeled to better organize your palettes.

## Frequently asked questions about Pixie Studio

### What is Pixie Studio?

Pixie Studio is a professional pixel sprite and animation editor designed for pixel art games. It offers a comprehensive set of tools for creating detailed pixel art and complex animations, catering to both individual artists and game development teams.

### What are the key features of Pixie Studio?

Key features include palette-based editing for easy color management across frames and layers, a multitouch canvas with zoom and rotation, full alpha support, frame-based animation with realtime preview, layer management, tile painting, and symmetry tools. It also supports Apple Pencil for precise drawing.

### How much does Pixie Studio cost?

Pixie Studio is a paid application. The provided information indicates it does not have in-app purchases or ads, suggesting a one-time purchase for full access to all features.

### What devices is Pixie Studio compatible with?

Pixie Studio is a universal app, meaning it supports iPad, iPad Pro, iPhone, and iPhone X with full feature parity across all versions. It is optimized for performance, utilizing Metal for smooth 60FPS and even 120FPS on compatible devices.

### How can I use Pixie Studio for my projects?

You can use Pixie Studio to create character sprites, environmental assets, and animations for your pixel art games. The app allows you to export PNG animation strips for game engines and animated GIFs for sharing your work.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 1.58 — 2020-05-23

- Small fix for crash from 1.57

- All tools available on toolbar
- Tool options moved to small panel on top
- Select mode now has accessible buttons without ... menu
- Select mode nudging buttons
- Fixed issue with being unable to move a selection back to its original position
- UI Refresh of file browser
- New animation panel for switching between animations
- Help button shows labels for buttons
- New import window, with much improved importing
- Ability to import into an existing Tileset
- New much faster quantize and import algorithms
- Refresh animation panel, now has delete button and deleting goes to nearest previous frame rather than jumping to 0
- Layer content copy/paste
- Ability to convert between standard/shared layers
- Layer previews update while drawing
- Autosave
- Hide UI while interacting option
- iPhone landscape support with popups for layers, tiles, palette
- Toggle for palette panel
- Updated to Unity 2019.3, various speed improvements
- Fixed current selection not showing art beneath it
- Fixed clone to layer in selection mode
- Fixed flatten layers to work on all frames
- Various other tweaks

### 1.57 — 2020-05-22

- All tools available on toolbar
- Tool options moved to small panel on top
- Select mode now has accessible buttons without ... menu
- Select mode nudging buttons
- Fixed issue with being unable to move a selection back to its original position
- UI Refresh of file browser
- New animation panel for switching between animations
- Help button shows labels for buttons
- New import window, with much improved importing
- Ability to import into an existing Tileset
- New much faster quantize and import algorithms
- Refresh animation panel, now has delete button and deleting goes to nearest previous frame rather than jumping to 0
- Layer content copy/paste
- Ability to convert between standard/shared layers
- Layer previews update while drawing
- Autosave
- Hide UI while interacting option
- iPhone landscape support with popups for layers, tiles, palette
- Toggle for palette panel
- Updated to Unity 2019.3, various speed improvements
- Fixed current selection not showing art beneath it
- Fixed clone to layer in selection mode
- Fixed flatten layers to work on all frames
- Various other tweaks

### 1.56 — 2019-10-22

Gradient fill tool
Swap between 2 colors
Fixed thumbnail generation
Fix isolate mode
Various other fixes

### 1.55 — 2019-09-26

New more compact tool and selection UI
New faster brush system with hardness/flow/spacing

Premultiply alpha with canvas color
Fixed double painting issue when using an image reference layer
Fixed multitouch stopping panning on image reference
Fixed GIF export leaving trails
Fixed selection operations causing incorrect alpha

### 1.54 — 2019-09-08

Fix for dropper not going away on hold mode
Fix for speed issue

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-06-10.*