Comparison

Pixquare vs Pixel Edit Lite

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

Head to head
About

Pixquare

This application is a comprehensive pixel art editor designed for both beginners and professionals. It offers a wide array of tools for creating game assets, animations, and digital art. The interface is intuitive and customizable, supporting various input methods and advanced features for detailed artwork.

Highlights
  • Intuitive and customizable UI
  • RGB and Indexed color modes
  • Tileset/Tilemap system
  • Timelapse recording
  • Apple Pencil support
  • Animation timeline panel
  • Aseprite file compatibility
Features
Read full description

Pixquare is the #1 pixel art editor, recommended by top pixel artists, game developers, and creators worldwide! Whether you're a beginner or a pro, its simple interface and rich toolset make pixel art creation easy and fun! Download now to create game assets, animate, or simply doodle pixel art! With feedback from thousands of artists, Pixquare is designed for your best pixel art experience ever! • HIGHLIGHTS: - Support both iPads & iPhones - Highly customizable and intuitive UI with left-hand mode available - RGB and Indexed mode - Tileset/Tilemap system - Timelapse recording - Apple Pencil support: gestures, sensitivity, touch rejection - Manual & auto-save modes - Shortcut options: keyboard, gesture pad, joystick - Custom themes • VERSATILE TOOLS: - Brush: spray, pixel perfect, pressure sensitivity, contour, dithering, custom brush, jumble, blur - Eraser: pixel perfect, pressure sensitivity, dithering - Move: transformation and snapping supported - Line: straight & curve mode, perfect angle - Shape: ellipse & rectangle mode, filled, perfect ratio - Selection: 5 types & 5 modes - Color: solid/gradient fill, contiguous/non-contiguous, and more - Color picker: 4 modes (HSV, HSL, Wheel, RGB), history, drag-to-fill - All tools offer shading - Additional tools: + Color replace + Color adjustment + Outline + Text with font import capability + Custom object • LAYER/TIMELINE PANEL: - Optimized for animation & organized layers - Multi-selection, layer grouping, frame tagging, and bulk operations - Visibility and editing-lock toggle - Supports reference layers - Frame duration and cel opacity - Linked cells, onion skin, and clipping mask • ADDITIONAL FEATURES: - Symmetry tool with unlimited axes - Reference images - Color palette: save/load from Lospec, import/export, color gradient generator - Blending modes, alpha lock - Preview with a separate animation loop - Canvas rotation, Finder-like file system - Guideline • FILE IMPORT/EXPORT: - Aseprite file compatibility (importing & exporting) - GIF importing with all frames - PNG, GIF, MOV, Sprite sheet export options (layers, frames, size, and animation) - Import Photos and files as reference layers and images ------------------------------- WHY ARTISTS LOVE PIXQUARE? "Genuinely the best pixel art app for the iPad that I would recommend anyone to get!" - Jon Davies, Pixel Artist on Super House of Dead Ninjas, Binding of Isaac. "Pixquare has more than meets the eye. A seemingly simple interface that has the intuitive control you look for. The gesture pad is comparable to a desktop keypad." - Michael, Pixel Artist, Author of Pixel Logic book "I've been sharing it with basically everyone I know with an iPad because I think it's one of the best software out there for creating pixels on the iPad." - CupOhJoe, Game Developer "This is one fine app to pixel on the iPad! You can tell there's a lot of love for the craft poured in here" - Ota Jaider, Pixel Artist ------------------------------- • SCREENSHOT ARTWORK AUTHORS: - FICO (@FicoPx) - Tofu (@tofupixel.bsky.social) - Mossy (@MossyPixe) - chili (@ryviolie) - Lesma (@pixe_lesma) - ue_voxel (@UeVoxel) - TransientCode (@TransientCode) - 08games (@the08games) - Rinspirit_art(@rinspiritart.bsky.social) - natalie (@cafeaunat) ------------------------------- SUPPORT: User guide: https://docs.pixquare.art Email: info@pixquare.art Twitter: https://twitter.com/pixquare_app Website: https://www.pixquare.art/ NO SUBSCRIPTION. BUY ONCE AND ENJOY FREE UPDATES FOREVER!

About

Pixel Edit Lite

Create detailed pixel art on a 16x16 canvas with a minimalist interface. This tool focuses on a clean design to help you craft beautiful retro sprites and artwork.

Highlights
  • 16x16 canvas
  • Minimalist interface
  • Retro sprite creation
  • Pixel art design
  • Clean editor
Features
Read full description

The pocket sprite editor for PICO-8. Copy a sprite on your Mac, edit it on your iPhone, paste it straight back. Pixel Edit Lite is a small, touch-first pixel art and sprite editor for iPhone. Draw with your finger, work offline, and create retro sprites whenever inspiration strikes. Work on a single sprite or build out a full sprite sheet — navigate between sprites, duplicate them, and copy and paste between sprites. Choose 8×8, 16×16, 32×32, or 64×64 canvases for sprites, game art, icons, and other pixel art projects. Built with PICO-8 and TIC-80 style sprite workflows in mind, with real PICO-8 clipboard format support: copy a sprite in PICO-8 on your Mac, paste it here, edit, and paste it back. Features • Clean, minimal interface • Always-on sprite sheet with navigation, duplication, and copy/paste • 8×8, 16×16, 32×32, and 64×64 canvases • Precision pixel drawing with pencil, eraser, and fill • Shape tools: line, rectangle, and circle, outlined or filled • Undo and redo • PICO-8 and TIC-80 color palettes • Grid-based editing • Rotate, flip, and shift tools • Fast, responsive touch controls • Automatic local saving • Recent Projects — reopen past sheets in one tap • Import and export through Files, including iCloud Drive • Share via the native Share Sheet — AirDrop, Messages, save to Photos, and more • Real PICO-8 sprite clipboard format support • Works offline Pixel Edit Lite is intentionally simple. No complicated desktop-style workflow — just a small pixel editor you can keep with you when you're away from your computer.

Screenshots

Pixquare4 screens
Pixel Edit Lite4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: Pixquare at Free against Pixel Edit Lite's $2.99. Pixquare also leads on ratings volume (3.3K vs 6) and iOS requirement (16.0 vs 18.0). Pixel Edit Lite's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 7) and review sentiment (100% vs 89%). On rating, update cadence, ads and device support 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

Pixquare is free to download; Pixel Edit Lite costs $2.99 up front. Pixquare sells 6 one-off in-app purchases. Pixel Edit Lite asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Pixel Edit Lite holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Pixquare has 3.3K ratings behind it against 6, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 89% of Pixquare's written reviews are positive against 100% of Pixel Edit Lite's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Pixquare ships an update weekly, Pixel Edit Lite every 5 days. The most recent releases landed on November 9, 2026 and November 7, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Pixquare versus Pixel Edit Lite: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPixquarePixel Edit Lite
PriceFree — better$2.99
Rating4.8 (3.3K ratings)5.0 (6 ratings) — better
Positive reviews88.9% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings3.3K — better6
Update frequencyWeeklyEvery 5 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterPaid
DevicesiPhone, iPad — betteriPhone
Requires iOS16.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size68 MB1 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSon NguyenApurva Mehta

Customer experience

Pixquare

All ratings3,278 ratings
Positive96.8%
Neutral1.3%
Negative1.9%
Written reviews727 reviews
Positive88.9%
Neutral4.4%
Negative6.7%

Pixel Edit Lite

All ratings6 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Pixquare

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Duplicate layers that cannot be removed
  • Drawn content disappearing from layers
  • Lack of save functionality

Requested features

8 requests
  • Ability to merge layers
  • Option to customize imported palette colors
  • Radial symmetry tool
  • Polyline tool
  • Separate layer and timeline sections
Show 3 more
  • Brush stabilizer
  • Ability to rotate symmetry lines
  • Higher canvas resolution

Pixel Edit Lite

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

6 purchases

Pixquare

One-time6
  • Buy me a coffee$1.99
  • Full access for iPhones$7.99
  • Life-time full access$9.99
Show 3 more
  • Life-time full access$12.99
  • Life-time full access2 variants$19.99
  • Life-time full access$24.99
None

Pixel Edit Lite

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Pixquare free?
Pixquare is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Pixel Edit Lite free?
Pixel Edit Lite costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Pixquare or Pixel Edit Lite?
Pixel Edit Lite is rated higher. Pixquare averages 4.8 out of 5 from 3.3K ratings, while Pixel Edit Lite averages 5.0 from 6 ratings.
Do Pixquare or Pixel Edit Lite have ads?
Neither Pixquare nor Pixel Edit Lite shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Pixquare or Pixel Edit Lite?
Pixquare ships an update weekly, and Pixel Edit Lite every 5 days. Most recently, Pixquare was updated on November 9, 2026 and Pixel Edit Lite on November 7, 2026.

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