Krita
Krita is a professional free and open source painting program designed for concept artists, illustrators, matte and texture artists, and the VFX industry to create digital art from scratch.
Sketchbook Pro
Sketchbook Pro is a professional-grade drawing and painting software designed for digital artists, offering a natural drawing experience with a clean interface and customizable brushes for creative professionals.
Quick Comparison
| Feature | Krita | Sketchbook Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Website | krita.org | sketchbook.com |
| Pricing Model | Free | One_time |
| Starting Price | Free | Free |
| FREE Trial | ✘ No free trial | ✘ No free trial |
| Free Plan | ✓ Has free plan | ✓ Has free plan |
| Product Demo | ✘ No product demo | ✘ No product demo |
| Deployment | ||
| Integrations | ||
| Target Users | ||
| Target Industries | ||
| Customer Count | 0 | 0 |
| Founded Year | 2005 | 2009 |
| Headquarters | Deventer, Netherlands | Toronto, Canada |
Overview
Krita
Krita is a professional-grade digital painting application that gives you a complete set of tools for illustration, concept art, and texture mapping. Whether you are a professional illustrator or a hobbyist, you can access a highly customizable interface and advanced brush engines without any subscription fees. You can manage complex projects using a non-destructive layer system and a wide variety of masks and blending modes.
The software solves the problem of expensive entry barriers to digital art by providing industry-standard features for free. You can create frame-by-frame animations, touch up photos with advanced filters, and work with CMYK or HDR color spaces. It is ideal for individual creators and small studios looking for a versatile, community-driven alternative to proprietary design suites.
Sketchbook Pro
Sketchbook Pro provides you with a distraction-free environment to focus on your digital art. You can transform your desktop or mobile device into a powerful digital sketchbook using a vast library of over 190 customizable brushes, including pencils, markers, and airbrushes. The software mimics the feel of traditional media while giving you the flexibility of digital layers and blending modes.
You can easily manage complex compositions with a streamlined interface that stays out of your way until you need it. Whether you are an illustrator, concept artist, or designer, the tool helps you capture ideas quickly and refine them into finished pieces. It is built for precision, featuring predictive stroke technology and perspective guides that assist you in creating clean, professional-grade artwork on any device.
Overview
Krita Features
- Brush Engines Customize over nine unique brush engines to mimic real-world media or create entirely new digital textures for your artwork.
- Vector & Text Tools Create complex shapes and typography on dedicated vector layers so you can scale your designs without losing any quality.
- Animation Tools Bring your drawings to life with frame-by-frame raster animation and onion skinning to see previous frames while you work.
- Wrap-around Mode Create seamless textures and patterns instantly by letting your image wrap around the edges of the canvas while you paint.
- Resource Manager Import brush and texture packs from other artists or share your own custom toolsets to expand your creative library.
- Drawing Assistants Use magnetic vanishing points and perspective grids to help you nail difficult technical drawings and architectural layouts every time.
Sketchbook Pro Features
- Customizable Brushes. Access over 190 standard brushes or create your own unique textures to achieve the exact look you want for your art.
- Layer Management. Organize your artwork with full layer support, including various blending modes and grouping options for complex digital compositions.
- Perspective Guides. Snap your strokes to one, two, or three-point perspective guides to create accurate architectural or environmental sketches easily.
- Predictive Stroke. Smooth out your hand-drawn lines automatically to create perfect curves and clean edges even when drawing quickly.
- Scan Sketch. Use your device camera to import paper sketches as transparent layers so you can start coloring and refining immediately.
- Symmetry Tools. Draw perfectly mirrored images with vertical, horizontal, and radial symmetry tools that reflect your strokes in real-time.
Pricing Comparison
Krita Pricing
- Full professional feature set
- No subscription required
- All brush engines included
- Animation tools included
- Commercial use allowed
- Everything in Free, plus:
- Automatic software updates
- Easy installation on Steam/Windows
- Direct support for developers
- Cloud save synchronization
Sketchbook Pro Pricing
- Standard brush set
- Basic layer support
- Symmetry tools
- Customizable UI
- Available on iOS and Android
- One-time $19.99 purchase
- 190+ customizable brushes
- Advanced perspective guides
- Color library and gradients
- Unlimited layers
- PSD export support
Pros & Cons
Krita
Pros
- Completely free with no recurring subscription fees
- Highly customizable interface to suit your workflow
- Excellent brush stabilization for smooth line art
- Supports professional color spaces like CMYK and HDR
Cons
- Performance can lag on very large canvases
- Steep learning curve for the advanced brush engines
- Text tool is less intuitive than competitors
- Occasional stability issues on certain hardware setups
Sketchbook Pro
Pros
- Extremely clean and unobtrusive user interface
- Natural brush feel mimics traditional drawing
- One-time purchase avoids expensive monthly subscriptions
- Excellent performance on older hardware and tablets
Cons
- Lacks advanced photo editing capabilities
- Limited text tool options for designers
- No cloud syncing between different devices