8bit Painter vs Qixel
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
8bit Painter
Create fun and easy pixel art with intuitive controls. Perfect for beginners, this app lets you design SNS icons, game assets, or craft patterns. Import photos to pixelize them and export your creations as transparent PNGs.
- Beginner-friendly interface
- Essential pixel drawing tools
- Photo to pixel art conversion
- Customizable color palettes
- Transparent PNG export
- Multiple canvas sizes
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Over 6 million downloads! An easy-to-use app for creating pixel art and 8-bit style artwork. 8bit Painter is a simple pixel art drawing app that beginners can start enjoying right away. With intuitive controls, you can easily create pixel art for social media icons, game skins, illustrations, patterns, and more. It is also great for making designs for Perler beads, cross-stitch, knitting, and other handmade projects. Key Features - Simple controls that are easy for anyone to use - Clear, focused tools for creating pixel art - Perfect for beginners - Great for making social media icons and game skins - Import photos and convert them into pixel art - Choose colors intuitively with a color wheel, sliders, and palettes - Export transparent images in PNG format - Export and import your artwork data Canvas Sizes 16x16 / 24x24 / 32x32 / 48x48 / 64x64 / 96x96 / 128x128 / 160x160 / 192x192 Choose the right canvas size for your project, from small social media icons to detailed pixel art and craft patterns. Image Import Import your favorite photos and automatically convert them into pixel art. It is also useful for creating social media icons, game skins, and pixel art assets. Color Selection Choose a base color with the color wheel, then fine-tune it with sliders or HEX input. You can also pick colors quickly from preset palettes, or save frequently used colors to your custom color palette for reuse. Artwork Data Management Export artwork data saved in your Gallery from the Settings screen, and import it again when needed. This is helpful for keeping your pixel art safe, preparing for a device change, or reinstalling the app. Artwork Storage - The initial artwork storage limit is 30 artworks - Expand the limit up to 600 artworks by watching rewarded video ads or purchasing the Remove Ads add-on Image Export - Choose from 3 export sizes - Supports transparent PNG images - Useful for social media posts, game skins, and exporting assets Remove Ads Add-On - Hides all ads - Expands the artwork storage limit to 600 artworks - Can be restored after reinstalling the app - One-time purchase How to Expand Your Storage Limit - Each rewarded video ad you watch increases your artwork storage limit by 5 artworks, up to 600 - Purchasing the Remove Ads add-on expands your artwork storage limit to 600 artworks Recommended For - Anyone who wants to start creating pixel art - People who want to make their own social media icons - Anyone who wants to create game skins easily - People making designs for Perler beads or cross-stitch - People designing knitting patterns or handmade projects - Anyone who wants to turn photos into pixel art - People looking for a simple pixel art editor - Anyone who wants to manage their artwork data and keep using the app over time Enjoy creating pixel art and 8-bit style artwork with 8bit Painter!
Qixel
Create short, retro-style pixel animations using a 20x20 grid of stylized blocks. Perfect for fans of 8-bit graphics and character design practice. Add music loops and save your creations to a gallery.
- Create 6-frame pixel animations
- Use stylized 'Qixel' blocks
- 20x20 grid for animation
- Add music loops
- Save animations to gallery
- Easy mobile/tablet use
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Become a Qixel animator in seconds with with Qixel Animate! Remember how the animated sprite loops in the original pixel games were short and sweet? We challenge you to make a great looking animation in no more than 6 frames - old school! Draw in stylised 'Qixel' blocks (think 3d pixels) to create awesome little pixel animations in a 20 x 20 grid. Great for retro games fans who like 8bit pixel graphics and artists who want to practice character design for Minecraft skins. - Choose from 3 frame speeds - Add music loops when you play back your animations - Save your animations to a gallery - Designed to be easy to use on mobiles and tablets for simple repeat play How to use Press the info button on the home page for a basic guide and press the Tutorial button on the home page to view the detailed guide. Examples Press the 'Examples' button on the home page to see some ready made pixel animation to give you some ideas. Don't forget to add some music to groove to! Qixel - Pixel Art Maker If you like this app and want to draw with 4 qixel shapes, check out our original Qixel app. Draw full screen and export your Qixel art to your iOS Photos app.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: 8bit Painter at 4.6 against Qixel's 3.6. 8bit Painter also leads on ratings volume (6.5K vs 16) and update cadence (every 5 weeks vs every 7 months). Qixel's advantage is iOS requirement (9.0 vs 17.6). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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
Both are free to download. 8bit Painter sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Qixel sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
8bit Painter holds the better App Store score, 4.6 against 3.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: 8bit Painter has 6.5K ratings behind it against 16, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 85% of 8bit Painter's written reviews are positive against 67% of Qixel's.
8bit Painter ships an update every 5 weeks, Qixel every 7 months. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and June 7, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | 8bit Painter | Qixel |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (6.5K ratings) — better | 3.6 (16 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 85.4% of reviews — better | 66.7% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 6.5K — better | 16 |
| Update frequency | Every 5 weeks — better | Every 7 months |
| Ads | Yes | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 17.6 | 9.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 29 MB | 17 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Takayuki Miyagawa | Frosby Designs Ltd. |
Customer experience
8bit Painter
Qixel
Bugs and requests
8bit Painter
Reported bugs
3 issues- Freezing and crashing issues
- Distortion when importing images
- Inability to delete saved artworks
Requested features
5 requests- Custom canvas sizes
- More color options and palettes
- Ability to delete or rearrange colors
- Layers and animation support
- Copy/paste and selection tools
Qixel
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
8bit Painter
- Remove Ads$5.99
Qixel
- Remove Ads$1.99
Questions
Is 8bit Painter free?
Is Qixel free?
Which has better reviews, 8bit Painter or Qixel?
Do 8bit Painter or Qixel have ads?
Which is updated more often, 8bit Painter or Qixel?
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