#digital art programs

i have an android tablet and i don't draw much on my computer, so that does influence my program choices a bit!

clip studio paint (pro version, used on my tablet, not much on computer)

my favorite drawing program i've used so far!!!!!

every month i find some new tool/capability that i had no idea csp had and it blows my mind. i can't even reiterate enough that there's so much you can do with it 😭

it's kinda intense, i think, if you're new to digital art, and the interface is a tad crowded for a small tablet screen, but that's a no-brainer sacrifice for the capabilities of the app!

it does cost money but the desktop app is a one-time payment ($50USD for pro) and thus far they've had like bi-annual 50% off deals so imo it's well worth it

the mobile app is...unfortunately....subscription based but it's not expensive (coughunlikead*becough) and, for me, it's still worth it ($25/year)

autodesk sketchbook (used on my tablet, i believe there's a desktop ver but i haven't used it)

really nice if you're new to digital art!

totally free :))

the interface is really simple and easy to understand, and they have a good selection of built-in brushes.

the app does have quite a few limitations (no crop tool do you can't change the canvas size once you've created it, limited file saving options, limited keyboard shortcut options) but i used it for like two years and it served me well!

paint tool sai (used on my computer, afaik there's no mobile version)

this is the program i first used when learning digital art!

(i have not used sai2, but i've heard it has a few really nice features that were missing in the og sai)

pretty simple interface, beginner friendly

more tools than autodesk, fewer than csp

one time payment (i just looked it up and its ~$50 now, when i bought it 8ish years ago it was 70 but still worth it)

...photoshop... (used on my computer, no mobile version for drawing)

ugh, ad*be

if you're using it legally it costs money. subscription based, super expensive (by itself its $20.99/month or $239.88/year boooooo)

i don't really like actually drawing in ps, so i mostly use it for final touches and merch formatting

sadly, it DOES have some features that are unavailable in other apps so. i can't escape it.

i will say that i do like its type tool the most out of the programs i've used, so if a piece needs type, i'll import it into photoshop and add type there