Comparison

Pixel Art Camera vs Pixel Art Effect

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Pixel Art Camera

Transform your photos and videos into pixel art in real-time with a variety of unique styles and creative effects. Save your creations as videos, Live Photos, or GIFs.

Highlights
  • Convert photos to pixel art
  • Record videos in pixel art style
  • Load videos from camera roll
  • 30+ unique styles
  • 10+ creative effects
  • Save as video, Live Photo, or GIF
Features
Read full description

Pixel art yourself! Real-time Pixel Art Camera: Turn everything into pixel art! ● Convert any photo to pixel art ● Record videos in pixel art style directly from the camera ● Load videos from the Camera Roll and turn them into retro pixel art ● 30+ Unique Styles ● 10+ Creative Effects ● Save your art as a Video, as a Live Photo or as a GIF Turn your favorite moments into amazing pixel art using different styles and patterns. ------------------------------- PRO Subscription ------------------------------- Subscriptions are billed monthly or annually depending on the selected subscription plan. Subscriptions will automatically renew unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. The subscription fee is charged to your Apple ID account at the confirmation of purchase. If you subscribe before a free trial ends, the remainder of the trial period will be forfeited. You can manage your subscription and turn off auto-renewal by going to your account settings in the App Store. Privacy Policy: https://net-sigma.com/privacy-policy Terms of Use: https://net-sigma.com/terms-of-use

About

Pixel Art Effect

Transform your photos into retro or modern pixel art with customizable effects. Adjust pixel size, edge thickness, and choose from various pixel shapes. Add text and crop images into different shapes before or after applying the pixel art effect.

Highlights
  • Convert photos to pixel art
  • Adjustable pixel amount
  • Customizable edge thickness
  • Multiple pixel designs (square, hexagon, triangle, torn)
  • Add text to photos
  • Crop photos into shapes
Features
Read full description

The Pixel Art Effect app lets you turn your photo into video game pixel art. The effect ranges from modern pixel art which has a more subtle pixelated effect (many small pixels) to retro pixel art which is made up of fewer larger pixels. You can control the amount of pixels you want. There 6 designs to choose from which differ in color etc. You can control the edge thickness. This is the outline of the artwork. There are also 4 pixel designs to choose from. These pixel designs are standard square, hexagon pixels, triangular pixels and torn pixels. See the screenshot for a visual example. No internet connection is required! Step 1: To convert your image to pixel art! Simply tap the "Add a Photo". You will be presented with the option of choosing a photo from your photo library or taking a picture with your camera! Step 2: Tap the "Apply Pixel Effect" button. Step 3: Save your pixel art to your photo library or share it to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Google+, VK or any other social network, forum or site and set the picture as a profile picture, cover photo etc. As of version 2.2, Pixel Art Effect allows you to do a lot more with your photos! The effects are endless because you can mix and combine the features and effects. You can also add text to your photos before or after applying the pixel effect! Add the text before applying the pixel effect if you want the text to become pixelated as well! You can also crop your photos into various shapes. Choose from a circle, flag, heart, star, square or rectangle.

Screenshots

Pixel Art Camera4 screens
Pixel Art Effect4 screens

Verdict

The call

Pixel Art Camera and Pixel Art Effect both sit at 4.6 stars, but that hides the real split: 95% of Pixel Art Effect's written reviews are positive against 66% of Pixel Art Camera's. Pixel Art Effect also leads on iOS requirement (9.0 vs 15.0). Pixel Art Camera's advantage is ratings volume (1.2K vs 103). On price, rating, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Pixel Art Camera sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month and Pixel Art Effect sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Pixel Art Camera against 4.7 for Pixel Art Effect. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Pixel Art Camera has 1.2K ratings behind it against 103, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 66% of Pixel Art Camera's written reviews are positive against 95% of Pixel Art Effect's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 5 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and September 29, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Pixel Art Camera versus Pixel Art Effect: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPixel Art CameraPixel Art Effect
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (1.2K ratings)4.7 (103 ratings) — better
Positive reviews66.4% of reviews95.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings1.2K — better103
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeksEvery 5 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.09.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size20 MB31 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperNET SigmaDanny Pajevic

Customer experience

Pixel Art Camera

All ratings1,220 ratings
Positive89.7%
Neutral4.9%
Negative5.4%
Written reviews137 reviews
Positive66.4%
Neutral8.0%
Negative25.5%

Pixel Art Effect

All ratings103 ratings
Positive93.2%
Neutral3.9%
Negative2.9%
Written reviews40 reviews
Positive95.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative5.0%

User reviews

Pixel Art Camera

From 1.2K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Excellent filters and effects
  • 👍 Fun and creative app
  • 💡 Great for pixel art and retro aesthetics
  • 🚀 Easy to use
  • 👍 Worth the price for Pro version

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes and bugs after updates
  • 💰 Paywall for full features
  • 📢 Intrusive ads
  • 🔍 Difficult to select photos from library

Pixel Art Effect

From 103 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Easy to use and intuitive
  • 🎨 Great for pixel art creation
  • 🖼️ Useful for artists and designers
  • 🎮 Perfect for game design (e.g., Animal Crossing, Minecraft)
  • ✨ Produces cool pixel effects

Room to improve

  • ⚠️ Radically alters original colors
  • 🤏 Minimum/maximum pixel limits can be restrictive
  • 💡 Filters are applied without an option to disable
  • 🐛 High contrast and brightness issues
  • 🧐 Lacks detailed customization options

Bugs and requests

Pixel Art Camera

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Crashes when trying to load photos
  • Video export issues, cutting off footage
  • Inability to save images with transparent backgrounds

Requested features

5 requests
  • More customization options for filters and effects
  • Ability to revert to original colors
  • Adjustable pixel size
  • Support for video editing and GIFs
  • Recently used or favorite filters list

Pixel Art Effect

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Radically alters original colors
  • Minimum/maximum pixel limits
  • Contrast goes super high, making pictures too bright
  • Filters are applied without an option to disable

Requested features

3 requests
  • Allow choosing pixel count for both length and width
  • Option to apply or not apply filters
  • More detailed customization options

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Pixel Art Camera

Subscriptions2
  • Pixel Art Camera PRO$4.991 Month
  • Pixel Art Camera PRO3 Days trial$9.991 Year
One-time1
  • Pixel Art Camera Pro$19.99
1 purchases

Pixel Art Effect

One-time1
  • Remove Ads$1.99

Questions

Is Pixel Art Camera free?
Pixel Art Camera is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Pixel Art Effect free?
Pixel Art Effect is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Pixel Art Camera or Pixel Art Effect?
Pixel Art Effect is rated higher. Pixel Art Camera averages 4.6 out of 5 from 1.2K ratings, while Pixel Art Effect averages 4.7 from 103 ratings.
Do Pixel Art Camera or Pixel Art Effect have ads?
Neither Pixel Art Camera nor Pixel Art Effect shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Pixel Art Camera or Pixel Art Effect?
Pixel Art Camera ships an update every 5 weeks, and Pixel Art Effect every 5 weeks. Most recently, Pixel Art Camera was updated on October 14, 2026 and Pixel Art Effect on September 29, 2026.

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