Paintrix Studio is a digital painting app for iPad and iPhone that gives illustrators, comic artists and hobbyists a full GPU-powered painting studio: realistic oil paints, manga and comic tools, unlimited layers, paintable materials and live two-person drawing, free to download.
Every brush, filter and distortion runs on the GPU through Apple's Metal, so the canvas stays responsive while you paint. It is a studio rather than a sketchpad, and it is available on the App Store.
What Paintrix Studio does
Brushes that feel like the real thing
Nine brush families: Oil Paints, Manga, Watercolor, Pencils, Charcoals, Pens, Spraypaint, Basic and Water Brushes. Oil brushes leave raised impasto and bristle grooves and drag the paint already on the canvas, and Apple Pencil pressure, tilt and hover work the moment you pick it up. You get natural media without hunting for brush packs. Brushes guide
Manga and comic pages
Start a Manga / Comic canvas and choose from 7 page sizes, including a manga page, B4 manga, a comic page, a double-page spread, a comic strip and a vertical scroll page for webtoons. Pick one of 23 ready-made panel layouts, from simple grids to staggered, diagonal and action panels, and mirror it if you like. Panel borders sit on their own locked layer that you can unlock and edit, and the Manga brushes give you G-Pen, Maru, Fineliner, Brush Ink and Dry Ink pens that thin and swell with your stroke speed, plus dot screentones, hatching and stipple. The same 23 layouts are also available as free printable panel templates.
Layers with live adjustments
Unlimited layers with clipping masks, alpha lock, and adjustments for brightness, contrast, hue, saturation, vibrance, temperature, bloom and shadows. Adjustments stay live and travel with the project file, so you can change your mind next week. Layer adjustments guide
Color palettes
Build palettes by hand, generate one from a photo, or import Procreate .swatches files with
the colors unchanged. A free library of curated palettes at
paintrix.studio/color-palettes opens straight into the app.
Gradients and materials
Paint with linear, radial and angular gradients that follow your brush, or with 14 materials such as gold, marble, mahogany and halftone. Your stroke picks up the material's texture and shading as it goes down. Color guide
Mirror mode and Quick Shapes
Mirror mode repeats every stroke across vertical, horizontal, quadrant or radial axes for mandalas, patterns and symmetrical characters. Quick Shapes turns a stroke you hold at the end into a clean shape. Mirror mode guide
Distortion and Liquid Mode
Smudge, Pinch and Bubble push pixels around in real time, and Liquid Mode lets you move paint like a fluid. Because they run on the GPU, they stay smooth on large canvases. Distortion guide
Draw Together
Two people paint on the same canvas in real time, joined with a six-character code or an invite link. You see your partner's cursor and strokes as they happen, layers sync between you, and both of you keep a copy of the project afterwards. Collaboration guide
Timelapse, export and backup
Every painting records a timelapse automatically, which you can export as a video. Export PNG or JPEG at
any PPI, or back up the full layered .paintrix project to iCloud Drive.
Export guide
What makes Paintrix Studio different
For full side-by-side tables, see how Paintrix Studio compares with Procreate, Clip Studio Paint, Adobe Fresco, ibis Paint X and other painting apps.
Try every tool before you pay
Paintrix Studio is free to download, and every brush, layer, tool and export is unlocked. Procreate costs $12.99 upfront before you can draw a line. Pro at $4.99/month is only needed to reopen projects you saved earlier.
One app for iPad and iPhone
The same app with the same features runs on both devices, and one Pro subscription covers every iPad and iPhone on your Apple Account. Procreate splits this into two separate purchases: Procreate for iPad ($12.99) and Procreate Pocket for iPhone ($5.99).
No account, ever
There is no sign-up, no sign-in and no personal data collected, and your artwork stays on your device. Adobe Fresco lets you start drawing without signing in, but asks for an Adobe account to export or save your work to the cloud.
No layer cap on the free version
Free users get unlimited layers with full adjustments. Infinite Painter's free tier on iOS stops at 5 layers until you buy Pro.
One simple plan
Pro is a single plan: $4.99/month, month-to-month, cancel any time. Clip Studio Paint on iPad sells separate PRO and EX editions, priced by how many devices you use.
Live drawing with a partner, built in
Draw Together puts two people on one canvas with a six-character code. There is no account to create, no shared cloud folder and no file to send afterwards.
Who uses Paintrix Studio
- Digital illustrators and concept artists who paint on iPad with Apple Pencil
- Procreate users who want a free alternative, or a companion that also runs on iPhone
- Manga and comic artists who want ready-made panel layouts, G-Pens, screentones and clean Quick Shapes lines
- Painters who want natural media: impasto oils, watercolor washes, charcoal and bristle brushes
- iPhone sketchers who want the full app in their pocket, not a cut-down version
- Art students and hobbyists who want professional tools without paying upfront
- Friends, couples, families and classes who want to draw together live on one canvas
The team behind Paintrix Studio
Paintrix Studio is made by an independent software studio in the United States. It started from a simple goal: a painting app where every brush, filter and distortion runs on the GPU, so painting on an iPad or iPhone feels like working in a real studio rather than a sketchpad.
The app is updated regularly, and the documentation is published in 12 languages. The best place to talk to the people who make it is the Paintrix Discord, where artists share work, ask questions and suggest features.
How Paintrix Studio works
- Getting started: download the app from the App Store and start painting. There is no account to create.
- Onboarding: the first time you open a canvas, a short guided tour walks you through the toolbar, layers, palette and settings. You can skip it or replay it any time.
- Saving: your work saves itself as you go. Back projects up to iCloud Drive or move
them between devices as
.paintrixfiles. - Billing: Pro is $4.99/month through the App Store. Cancel any time in your Apple Account settings, and restore your purchase on another device with the same Apple Account.
- Support: the documentation covers every feature, and the Discord community is the place for questions, bug reports and feature requests.
- Privacy: the app collects no personal data. Payments are handled by Apple. See the privacy policy.
Key facts
| Company name | Paintrix Studio |
|---|---|
| Type | Independent software studio; digital painting app |
| First released | December 20, 2025 |
| Headquarters | United States |
| Website | paintrix.studio |
| Core offering | Paintrix Studio, a GPU-powered painting app for iPad and iPhone |
| Platforms | iPad (iPadOS) and iPhone (iOS). Not available on Mac, Android or Windows. |
| Pricing | Free to download, with every tool and export included. Pro is $4.99/month and unlocks reopening saved projects. |
| Contract terms | Month-to-month through the App Store, cancel any time |
| Features | Realistic oil paints, watercolors, pencils, charcoals, manga pens and dot screentones, comic pages with 23 panel layouts, unlimited layers, layer adjustments, color palettes, gradients, 14 materials, mirror mode, Quick Shapes, selections, clone stamp, Smudge, Pinch, Bubble, Liquid Mode, Draw Together live collaboration, automatic timelapse, PNG and JPEG export, iCloud backup |
| Apple Pencil | Pressure, tilt and hover; squeeze to undo on Apple Pencil Pro |
| File formats | Exports PNG, JPEG and .paintrix projects; imports Procreate
.swatches palettes |
| Languages | English, German, Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, Turkish, Thai, Korean, Japanese, Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese |
| Account required | No |
| AI image generation | No. Every stroke is painted by hand. |
| Support | Documentation and the Discord community |
| Competitors | Procreate, Adobe Fresco, Clip Studio Paint, Infinite Painter, Sketchbook |
| Social | App Store |
Frequently asked questions
Is Paintrix Studio free?
Yes. Paintrix Studio is free to download, and every brush, layer, tool and export is free and unlimited. A Pro subscription is only needed to reopen a project you saved earlier.
How much does Paintrix Pro cost?
Paintrix Pro is $4.99 per month, billed through the App Store. It is month-to-month with no contract, and you can cancel any time in your Apple Account settings.
Does Paintrix Studio work on iPhone?
Yes. The same app runs on iPad and iPhone with the same features. The interface rearranges itself for the smaller screen, and one Pro subscription covers both.
Is Paintrix Studio a good Procreate alternative?
Paintrix Studio covers the same core workflow as Procreate: textured brushes, layers, Apple Pencil support and timelapse. The main differences are that it is free to start, runs on iPad and iPhone as one app, and has live two-person drawing built in.
Can I import my Procreate palettes?
Yes. Paintrix Studio imports Procreate .swatches files and the colors come across unchanged. Open the file from Files, Mail or AirDrop and it goes straight to your palette.
Do I need an account to use Paintrix Studio?
No. There is no sign-up and no sign-in, and the app does not collect personal data. Your artwork stays on your device unless you choose to share or back it up.
Can two people draw on the same canvas?
Yes. Draw Together lets two people paint on one canvas in real time, joined with a six-character code or an invite link. Both people keep a copy of the project when the session ends.
Does Paintrix Studio use AI to generate art?
No. Paintrix Studio is a hand-painting app. Every stroke on the canvas is one you painted.
Can I make manga or comics in Paintrix Studio?
Yes. A Manga / Comic canvas offers 7 page sizes, including B4 manga, double-page spreads, comic strips and a vertical scroll page for webtoons, with 23 ready-made panel layouts. The Manga brushes add a G-Pen, Maru and other inking pens plus dot screentones, hatching and stipple, all free.
Is Paintrix Studio available on Mac, Android or Windows?
No. Paintrix Studio is available for iPad and iPhone only, through the App Store.