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PowerPoint Animations: Animate Text, Objects, and Slides in Your Presentations

Working with graphic assets can bring a degree of expectancy when delivering a presentation, such as in the case of PowerPoint animations. They can help add emphasis to slide content and reveal parts of the slide gradually to help presenters discuss topics sequentially. 

As a presenting software, PowerPoint provides all kinds of animations for emphasis, entrance, exit, and to create a set motion. Join us today to learn all about animations in PowerPoint and unleash your creative potential.

Table of Contents

How PowerPoint Animations Can Benefit Presentation Design

Understanding powerpoint animation basics, types of animations in powerpoint, how to animate text on powerpoint, animating objects for visual impact, crafting seamless slide transitions in powerpoint, mastering advanced animation techniques in powerpoint, dos and don’ts of powerpoint animations, real-world use cases of animated presentation slides, recommended animated powerpoint templates, enhanced engagement and understanding through animations.

Dynamic presentations can have many benefits. The importance of such animations is often only realized by people familiar with PowerPoint. As we’ve seen in our guide on visual communication , graphical elements can make concepts more understandable. In the case of animations, we can use the transitions between slides or elements to split concepts and make them clearer.

Audience engagement is another factor, as eye-catching slides often include surprise elements hidden behind animations. These elements attract the audience’s interest and increase retention rate. In this case, animations serve as powerful presentation aids for the speaker.

Capturing Audience Attention

PowerPoint animations are more likely to capture the audience’s attention than static slides. The moving objects on-screen are the type of visuals people are likely to find attention-grabbing instead of trying to read through static slides or looking at static images. On this behalf, storytelling techniques boost their efficacy in connecting with the audience by implementing animations and transitions rather than sticking to static slides. 

Emphasizing Relationships Between Elements

Whenever we work with contrasting values, like pros and cons slides , animations help the presenter highlight areas of interest or disclose the opposite values section by section. This, in turn, structures the speech for real-time interaction with the graphical assets rather than having the audience read the slide and lose focus on the speech. 

Interactive Presentations

As mentioned before, presenters can craft compelling stories through the careful use of animations in PPT. What is often overlooked is the link between interactive presentations and animations. For instance, a speaker can deliver different outcomes of the presentation by selecting one path whose outcome is revealed through an animation. This “wow” factor induces surprise and creatively presents case scenarios.

Another option is when introducing your team in presentations. Rather than using static slides, incorporating animations gives more rhythm to the presentation and invites the public to interact with the speaker.

Getting Started with Animation in PowerPoint

To start with animations in PowerPoint, select an object you wish to animate and go to the Animations tab to choose an animation to add to the slide element. When adding animations to multiple objects in a slide, you should consider the sequence you wish to use to animate objects.

Accessing Animation Features

When accessing animation features, you will come across various animation types. By expanding the Animations menu, you can select animations for entrance, exit, emphasis, and motion paths to create a path for your animated sequence. You can also click to instantly preview an animation for the selected object or switch to slideshow mode to see how the animation will appear.

Adding Animations to Text and Objects

Once an animation is added to a text or object, a number is assigned. This number shows the sequence in which the object will be presented. For example, the object will be the first to be animated on screen, followed by two, three, and so on.

You can adjust the sequence of animations, triggers, and other settings from the Animation Pane in PowerPoint.

Timing and Sequence in Animations

The Timing menu in the Animations pane provides options to set the duration of the animation, the time to delay the animation on the screen (if necessary), and to assess if the animation starts on click, with the previous or after the last animation. How you select these animations will help you adjust the time and sequence of the animations. For example, you can use ‘ with previous’ option to show two animated objects simultaneously.

Entrance, Exit, and Emphasis Animations

Some of the most commonly used animation types fall under three categories: entrance, exit, and emphasis animations.

Entrance Animations

The Entrance Animations are meant to start or introduce objects. You can explore all entrance-related animations by going to Animations -> Animation (menu) -> More Entrance Effects . This will reveal all entrance animations you can click to preview for a selected object. These often consist of basic animations with effects like appear, fly-in, float-in, strips, wheel, circle, box, dissolve-in, split, wedge, wipe, plus, diamond, checkerboard, blinds, etc. The animations can be divided into three categories: basic, subtle, and moderate. These categories help identify the type of effects in each category according to how prominent they might be on screen.

Exit Animations

The Exit Animations are meant to help exit a slide or animated sequence to close a topic or subtopic, or to conclude the on-screen animations for a slide. These animations are similar to the Entrance Animations with the same effects. You can use these animation types for an exit sequence using effects like blinds, circles, checkerboard, box, plus, split, wedge, wipe, diamond, dissolve out, contract, swivel, fade, zoom, basic zoom, collapse, float up, etc.

Like the Entrance Animations, you can go to  Animations -> Animation (menu) -> More Exit Effects to preview the animations and to see the three categories for basic, subtle, or moderate animations.

Emphasis Animations

Other than basic, subtle, and moderate, the Emphasis Animations come with an additional category, ‘exciting.’ Emphasis animations in PowerPoint provide visual aids for emphasizing content within slides. The effects for these animation types in PowerPoint are also quite different from the entrance and exit-themed effects. Effects like fill color, grow/shrink, transparency, line color, teeter, color pulse, object color, desaturate, darken, lighten, blink, wave, and others can help emphasize an object within a slide to make it pop out before the audience.

Exploring Motion Path Animations

If primary effects aren’t what you want, it’s time to switch to Motion Paths . These are animated effects in PowerPoint that showcase objects across a specific path. In other words, these are elaborate animations that drag objects on the screen based on a particular shape or path, such as a 4,5, 6, or 8-point star, crescent moon, circle, diamond, football, heart, octagon, pentagon, square, trapezoid, teardrop, right triangle, arc (down, right, left, up), curvy right, bounce right, etc.

Motion Paths are divided into four categories. The basic effects consist of shapes, whereas, Line Curves provide lines and curves to animated objects. Similarly, the special category contains more elaborate effects such as inverted square, loop de loop, peanut, bean, curved square, etc.

Choosing Appropriate Animation Styles

When choosing animation styles, picking a style that best resonates with your presentation slides is important. The animations’ names and categories can help you identify what might work for you. Furthermore, after adding an animation, you can go to Effect Options to view the various directions and options used to refine the animation to build your sequence further. Depending on the animation type, you can pick variations of the animation, directions, colors, transparency, points to edit or lock, or other options for selected effects. The image below shows the variations for the Wheel animation in PowerPoint via Effect Options .

Similarly, if you select Transparency from Emphasis Effects, you can choose how transparent the object will appear on the screen. Likewise, many color-themed effects enable picking a custom color to animate an object.

Since Motion Paths are unique, you will get options to edit points, lock paths, reverse the direction of the default animated sequence, etc.

Now that you know how to animate in PowerPoint, it’s time to explore making written content more interesting using animations.

Start by opening a blank PPT file and adding a placeholder text. The idea is to learn how text interacts with animation effects without working with complex graphic layouts.

Select the text and switch to the Animations tab. In there, pick an animation effect of your preference. You will get a preview of the effect applied – which will show the number of the animation order once completed.

Animations for text, like any other animation, can be controlled in terms of behavior by accessing the panel at the right-most section of the Ribbon.

Additionally, we can expand the animations panel to select from the different effects offered by PowerPoint.

Animating Text Elements on PPT Templates

Animating text elements to highlight key aspects of your slides can be a great way to create engaging presentations. The Animated 3D 4 Steps & Core PowerPoint Template shown below are among the Animated PowerPoint templates at SlideModel that animate objects and text elements for emphasis while retaining a clear layout.

As visible from the animated sequence from the Animation Pane in the image below, the slide deck uses animated text boxes with a mix of other slide elements to create a sequence where a four-step diagram is highlighted with supported text to help elaborate each part of the diagram in an animated sequence. We can add, remove, or modify the included effects via the Animation Pane.

Balancing Text Animations for Impact

By balancing text animations, you can have maximum impact when highlighting content for your slides. The animations can be triggered to start simultaneously to reveal all the text after a sequence of objects, before objects appear, or one by one to reveal the diagram contents gradually.

Animating Images, Shapes, and Charts

When animating shapes and images, you can use a variety of animation types for entrance, exit, and emphasis, and to make the content pop out. However, charts require subtle animations, and it’s best to use basic effects to reveal charts, such as Appear and Disappear .

The Animated Network Diagram PowerPoint Template is an example of how to animate shapes.

The template’s title slide reveals shapes and icons in the form of a diagram in an animated sequence.

You can also include images in such a template to customize the given diagram and animate it to reveal the image simultaneously or after a set of objects has already been revealed.

If you are including a chart in your slide that is to be animated, make sure the animation corresponds to other elements that might also be animated. For example, you can trigger the chart to be revealed after the slide title with a simple Appear effect. In such a case, the chart can be displayed altogether or gradually, in animated form.

Applying Object Animations Strategically

When placing slide objects, you must apply the animations strategically to avoid revealing information out of sequence. Furthermore, it is also worth considering how your effects appear. For example, in the image of the diagram below, would you prefer the diagram to appear floating upward or downward? Such considerations and other vital elements, such as your branding needs, are important to ponder when setting your animated sequence.

Enhancing Presentation Flow with Transitions

While Animations for PowerPoint are one way of making your slides engaging, PowerPoint Transitions is another. You can access them via the Transitions tab in PowerPoint and apply transitions between slides.

While many legacy transitions provide basic effects when switching between slides, some of the more recent additions to this menu, such as Morph Transition , enable the creation of elaborate animations by using Transitions to animate your slides. The below example shows a slide with the Morph transition, giving an animated effect to the diagram.

Maintaining Coherence Between Slides

When applying Transitions, it is essential to maintain coherence between slides by ensuring they don’t overlap with any added Animations. To do this, you should preview your slide deck to see how it might appear once all the animated effects have been included in your slides. Like PowerPoint Animations, you can also use Effect Options for Transitions to set a sequence or direction that best suits your needs.

Layering for Complex Animation Effects

Using layers of multiple objects and slides can easily create advanced animation effects. This can be done using not only PowerPoint animations but also transitions. The Animated Pendulum Swing PowerPoint Templates from the SlideModel archive of animated templates use Transitions like Morph to create animated sequences. The below example shows a swinging pendulum created using Morph.

Combining and Triggering Animations

Depending on the number of elements within a slide and the animations used, you can use triggers to customize and set sequences for slide elements to animate. The example below shows the selected pendulum’s various linking options for the on-click trigger. By placing your slide objects to be connected and triggered with different parts of your slide, you can create and customize animated sequences that can be pretty attention-grabbing. 

PowerPoint Animation Painter

If you thought you had to start from scratch to animate each slide of your presentation, you are sorely mistaken. Much like the Format Painter option in PowerPoint, we can find Animation Painter , which is accessible via the Ribbon under the Advanced Animation control options.

This tool helps us duplicate animations between elements of the same slide or copy animation effects from one slide to another. As a format copying tool, it requires at least one animation effect to be placed otherwise the option is grayed out.

Creative Experimentation

Experimenting with Animations in PowerPoint can be pretty helpful to avoid making monotonous presentations. Experimentation does not necessarily require making slides from scratch, but you can also use ready-made templates such as the 3D animation PowerPoint Templates at SlideModel. Alternatively, some slide deck templates offer a considerable range of animation effects intended for maximum audience engagement, which users can quickly customize by editing placeholder areas for text, images, and logos.

Below is a list of do’s and don’ts of PowerPoint Animations for making presentations that best use animated effects.

Maintain Animation Moderation

It is essential to maintain moderation when using animations, as the use of too many animations on a single slide or presentation can make the content confusing.

Use of Appropriate Animations

Try to use appropriate animations for slide objects. The animation should suitably show if the object is to enter, exit, be emphasized, or be highlighted using a motion path.

Avoid Animation Overload

Avoid flashy animated sequences unless your presentation is meant for an audience that might find engaging, such as children in a classroom session.

Subtle can be Just as Engaging

Sometimes, subtle animations can be just as engaging as an animation with an elaborate effect. This can, in fact, be a better option than using animations that might be visually overpowering or difficult to follow due to elaborate effects.

Ensure Visual Consistency

As discussed earlier, it is vital to maintain consistency in using animated effects. Be it Animations or Transitions, using flashy effects or too many diverse effects can hurt how the audience perceives your content, as it might become confusing, visually overpowering, or unprofessional. In such a case, the audience might quickly lose interest in the presentation, leading to Death by PowerPoint.

Less is More

The design language of visual designs over the past decade or more has been intended to use fewer effects and graphical elements with ample space to make the interface look clean. Be it Modern UI or Material design apps, this design language has been evident across desktop and mobile UIs. Using the same concept, you can design your slides with fewer animations and graphical elements to make your content more visually appealing.

Turning PowerPoints into Millions

Courtney Allen, a professional PowerPoint designer who came out of a BFA in graphic design from Boise State University, had all but PowerPoint as a part of her portfolio. She started her freelancing career via Upwork, making over a thousand PowerPoints for clients, bringing in as many as $2 million. She suggests using simple designs and animations to make the most out of PowerPoint presentations. 

Guy Kawasaki Pitch Deck

Guy Kawasaki, a former Apple employee, whose famous 10-slide pitch deck has inspired a variety of PowerPoint templates. This rule was designed for startups and business presentations, focusing on pitching a concept to investors. While this isn’t directly related to using animations in presentations, it is an example of making the best use of minimalist content in a few slides. You can learn more about the Guy Kawasaki pitch deck from our article about the 10/20/30 rule for PowerPoint presentations .

How not to use an Animated PowerPoint Presentation in Court! 

Presentations with animations aren’t always a great idea. In 2014, a court in the United States criticized a PowerPoint presentation by the prosecutor, which led to the court throwing the case out. The presentation was made with sound effects and animations, with flashy elements like the bullseye. Some of the significant mistakes made by the prosecutor included ‘visual advocacy,’ where the defendant was marked with the word ‘guilt’ in the slide deck. Not to mention, the animated presentation seemed to be aimed at influencing the court using visual aids. Something that did not sit well with the court.

Use of PowerPoint by the US Military

The US Military has often been accused of Death by PowerPoint for preparing what some call the worst PowerPoint slides ever created. The issue became so profound that in 2011, it was revealed that an executive communications manager at Microsoft, Dave Karle, was tasked with ensuring that the US military could finally start using the software properly. After discussions with top military officials, an updated military presentation method was created, consisting of a number of presentation templates, tips, and graphics and more than 6000 map symbols. 

In this section, you can check some ready-made templates that can be easily customized for your presentation’s purposes. All these templates feature professionally made animation effects with native PowerPoint tools.

1. Multi-Purpose Animated PowerPoint Slide Deck

Those looking for how to animate in PowerPoint now have a ready-made solution to create mind-blowing presentations in a couple of minutes. This slide deck contains 26 slides in a broad selection of topics. We can present facts, introduce our team, our company, display charts with animated effects, and so much more. Check it out now!

Use This Template

2. Animated 8-Step Social Media Carousel PowerPoint Template

Bring dynamism to your social media posts by implementing this vivid social media carousel template. With eye-catching animated effects, this template emulates the typical carousel posts we can find on platforms like LinkedIn or Instagram.

3. Problem Solving Animated PowerPoint Template

Bring professional graphics to troubleshooting sessions with your team. This template, filled with PowerPoint animations, offers a user-friendly approach to conventional problem-solving situations in which the team has to observe the Issue Matrix, suggest possible solutions, and prepare an implementation plan and its corresponding process flow diagram. Thanks to its high-quality animation effects, the speaker can introduce the facts individually, without diverting attention from the speech.

4. Animated Company Profile Presentation Template for PowerPoint

We’ve seen this template as one of the examples of animations for PowerPoint. It is a 21-slide solution offering all the tools required for a corporate-styled company profile presentation, specifically tailored for service businesses.

5. Corporate Company Profile Animated PowerPoint Template

An alternative option for company profile presentations, featuring a minimalistic graphic layout with a broad variety of animation effects. Check these 12 slides and customize them with information relevant to your organization – we bring complex animation effects in a ready-made format. Colors and placeholder images can also be replaced.

6. Animated Roadmap PowerPoint Template

Bring more action to any planning meeting using this animated PowerPoint roadmap template. After a clear path overview, each milestone slide contains animation effects to introduce relevant information to the topic. It is a new take on traditional roadmap presentations that allows the speaker to pace themselves regarding how to disclose the information about the strategy to embark on.

7. Animated Pros & Cons Comparison Slide Template for PowerPoint

We mentioned the advantages of using PowerPoint animations to discuss contrasting values of a situation. Well, this animated Pros & Cons slide is the ideal tool for that purpose, offering a generalist view, then two accompanying slides for Pros & Cons, respectively, with animated effects to introduce additional information per point.

Using animations to make visually appealing and engaging presentations requires ensuring that your content corresponds with your added animated effects. It is always best to use animations in moderation and to keep your slides minimalist while unleashing your creativity as a presenter. Using ready-made PowerPoint templates can also help give you a good starting point to begin experimenting with animations and effects. This can also be useful for people new to PowerPoint Animations to explore what is doable with an animated slide deck, using animated sequences tailored for customization. 

Whether you’re using an animated template or making one from scratch, a preview in slideshow mode can save you a lot of trouble with potential issues tied to animated effects. Last but not least, using animations in PowerPoint isn’t always necessary, and you can even go for a simple slide deck with a handful of slides. What matters is that you should be aware of the information being presented, and the visual aids should be just to aid your slides and not meant to be the whole package on their own.

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7 Best Free Animated Presentation Software to Make Amazing Presentations

Animated Presentation software empowers you to display your content in an engaging way. From PowerPoint to Prezi, presentation tools are on the rise. It can be a struggle for you to choose from these tools. We have here 7 best free animated presentation software . Whether you need  the software for business proposals or for teaching a class, these 7 tools will probably help you win over and wow a crowd.   > Part 1: 7 Best Free Animated Presentation Software > Part 2: Animated Presentation Made by Focusky

Part 1: 7 Best Free Animated Presentation Software

1. focusky (strongly recommended).

When it comes to the feature-rich presentation tool with powerful function, Focuksy is undoubtedly one of the leader. You can find almost all basic features and functions of a standard presentation tool, including transitions and animations to create amazing visuals, an import function to add various contents like multi-media elements, and a preview mode that present the content in a nice formatted way. Additionally, Focusky features the multi-user account option that gives a chance for online collaboration, by allowing multiple users to access the created presentation.

Start Creating Animated Presentation with Focusky

2. Fishbole

Fishbole is beginner-friendly animated presentation software. You are not expected to have much experience or a bunch of money to work with this tool. Simply upload slides in the format of Google Slides, PowerPoints or images. presenting. The finished project can be shared via built-in social sharing options.

It is very easy to create a 3D animated presentation using Cinetor. You are five a wide range of beautiful themes and preset objects to help tell your story. In addition to these pre-designed elements, you are also able to use your own images and videos in the project, adding a personal touch to your presentation.

This animated presentation software puts together videos, images, sounds and animations to generate an impressive video presentation. It is an easy-to-use cloud-based content creation platform, which means you are not asked to download and install it to get the presentation done.

5. Biteable

Biteable has provided a wide selection of movie, music compositions, animation, and still scene templates to customize into your own presentation, simplifying the creation process. You can also upload your own music, logos and photos. If you are lack of design skills, just apply one of pre-made editable video templates.

From desktops to iPhone, Knovio makes it possible for you to create the presentation on any devices at any time. The finished project is viewable from any browser or mobile device.If you want to post the presentation in video websites like YouTube, export the project as a HD 1080p video.

7. Videoscribe

You are able to enjoy a huge library of free images and soundtracks, when creating animated video presentation with this software. Animation times can be set to give your presentation the best look. You are also allowed to record or insert voiceover in this video presentation.

Part 2:  Animated Presentation Made by Focusky

Video Tutorial

Get started, create a project, add multi media, publish and share, learn focusky in minutes.

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7 Best Video Presentation Maker for Mac: Make Amazing Video Presentation on Mac Devices

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6 online animated presentation creator - distribute your content every where

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Bring a touch of movie magic to the screen with incredible visual effects and animated page transitions. Add click-trigger and timed animations to make any topic easy to understand and captivating to watch.

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Use the Interactive Questions feature to add a fun quiz to your slides or gather feedback from your audience.

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Embed the slides on your website or post them on social media. Upload to Microsoft Teams, Google Classroom, Moodle or any other platform.

The benefits of interactive slides

🗣️ Active participation An interactive slide deck gives your audience cool things to click on and discover, boosting learning and engagement.

👂 Multi-sensory experience Audio, video, animations, and mouse interactions make your content immersive, entertaining and accessible.

🧑‍🤝‍🧑 People-friendly format Pop-ups and embeds condense more material into fewer slides so you can break information down into digestible chunks.


🎮 Gamification Games, quizzes and puzzles make information more memorable and enable you to gather feedback and check understanding.

How to make an interactive presentation

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Choose a template or a blank canvas

Get stunning results in less time with a ready-made template. Feeling creative? Design your own slides from scratch.

Customize the design

Add animations and interactions

Resources to become a pro presentation creator

How to create an interactive presentation: Get started in Genially.

How to present data without sending your audience to sleep.

No-code animation: Bring your slides to life with cinematic visual effects.

The art of digital storytelling: Engage and thrill on screen.

Genially in a nutshell

How do I make a presentation interactive and how does Genially work? Find the answers to all of your slide-related questions here!

What’s an interactive presentation?

Interactive slides contain clickable hotspots, links, buttons, and animations that are activated at the touch of a button. Instead of reading or watching passively, your audience can actively interact with the content.  

Genially’s interaction presentation software allows you to combine text, photos, video clips, audio and other content in one deck. It’s a great way to condense more information into fewer slides. 

If you’re a teacher, you can share multiple materials in one single learning resource. Students can create their own projects using digital media and online maps. For business or training, try embedding spreadsheet data, PDFs, and online content directly in your slides. 

An interactive slide deck is more user-friendly than a Microsoft PowerPoint presentation or Google Slides document. That’s because you can break information down into chunks with pop-ups, labels, voiceovers and annotated infographics.  

The other benefit of interactive content is increased engagement. It’s easier to keep your audience’s attention when they’re actively participating. Try Genially’s presentation software and free slideshow maker to see how it’s better than other presentation websites. You won’t go back to standard presentation apps!

How do you make a clickable slide?

The best way to make slides clickable is to use Genially’s free interactive presentation program. Design your slide then apply an interaction. In a couple of clicks, you can add popup windows, hyperlinks, close-up images, games, animations, multimedia and other content. 

Choose from the library of hotspot buttons and icons to show people what to click on. Go to Presenter View to get a preview and see how your content will appear to your audience.

How do I create presentations that look professional?

You’ve got a deadline looming and you’re staring at the screen with a blank presentation. We’ve all been there! Starting a presentation design from scratch is tricky, especially if you’re short on time. 

Genially’s free online presentation maker has over 2000 ready-to-use templates for professional slide presentations, photos slideshows, and more. Each slide design has been created by our team of top graphic designers. No need to worry about fonts, centering images, or designing a matching color scheme. It’s all done for you. 

Start by browsing our layouts and themes for education, business and then customize with your own text and images.

How do I share or download my slides?

Because Genially is a cloud based presentation software, you can simply share the link to your slides. Like other online presentation tools, there are no files to download or store on your computer. Everything is saved online.  

When you publish your slide deck, it gets its own unique url, just like a website. Share the link with others to let them explore the content in their own time. If you’re presenting live, just click the Present button. 

You can also embed your presentation on your website, company wiki, or social media. Genially is compatible with WordPress, Moodle, Google Classroom, and other platforms. If you use an LMS, you can also download your interactive design slides in SCORM format.

For slideshow videos and slideshows with music, share online or download as an MP4 video. Check out our free slideshow templates for ideas.

Can I make a free presentation in Genially?

You bet! Genially is an easy-to-use slide maker, with a free version and paid plans. The free plan allows you to create unlimited slides with interactions and animations. Subscribe to one of our paid plans for more advanced features.

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Join the 25 million people designing incredible interactive experiences with Genially.

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Make Videos More Engaging with Animation Presentation Software

Last Updated: 02/18/2022

By Scott Winstead

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Animation presentation software is a category of software that allows users to create animated stories and overlays for explainer videos or presentations. Some of the software tools are made to work with live-streaming systems. Others are better suited to use for recording and editing videos that will be viewed by users later. Some are presentation systems that can be used online. Others offer an easy way to enhance a video presentation.

More and more organizations use explainer videos. This helps increase conversions in digital marketing campaigns. I made a thorough investigation to select the top 15 best animation presentation software and reviewed my favorites. There is no single one that is a winner overall, so the order they are listed is not as important as what the tools can do. I use many of these tools and some of them together, depending on the project that I am working on.

14 Best Animation Presentation Software

• Microsoft PowerPoint →
• Zoho Show →
• Google Slides →
• Haiku Deck →
• VideoPlasty →
• VideoScribe →

Check out my reviews to see which of these animation creation software tools will improve your presentations.

1. Microsoft PowerPoint

Microsoft PowerPoint is a well-known software solution for making presentations such as an investment deck or a project slide presentation. This software is offered as part of a bundle of Microsoft products that includes PowerPoint, Word, Excel, Outlook, OneNote, OneDrive, and Skype.

This bundle is offered as a subscription service on the Microsoft 365 cloud. You can try it free for a month, and then the monthly subscription fee for a single user is $6.99 per month with a 16% discount offered for making an annual subscription payment. MS Office 2019, which includes PowerPoint, is also offered as a one-time purchase of $249.99

• Create and edit PowerPoint and other files from any mobile device that has an Internet connection.
• A Microsoft 365 Family subscription (two to six people) unlocks a Family safety app. This is a mobile locator and driving safety system.
• OneDrive is included with 1 TB of online storage.
• OneDrive ransomware recovery allows recovery of automatically backed up files for up to 30 days prior to the date of a ransomware attack.
• Using a PC or Mac with Money in Excel allows financial management and budgeting.
• Automatic backup across all devices.
• Easy file sharing for collaborating on PowerPoint presentations with others. Many free templates are available.

System Requirements: Microsoft 365 can be used on any device including a PC, Mac, laptop, tablet, or smartphone. It works on Windows, iOS, macOS, and Android systems.

User Feedback “I love having access to all of my files anywhere I go and know they are securely stored. I can work from anywhere and update my PowerPoint presentations. I was amazed at how nicely I could make my presentations using animation.” Joe S.

This video is a tutorial that teaches how to animate a presentation using PowerPoint. It starts with a simple line drawing as a guide for the subsequent overlays of various shapes to create the parts of the drawing. The artist shows how to make a humanlike character from various shapes using the copy, merge, and subtract functions. Then, the artists narrating the video adds colors and motion. The result is a charming drawing of a student with things rotating around him.

For those seeking in-depth training, this two-hour video shows how to start as a beginner and quickly become an expert in making PowerPoint presentations using MS 365.

The Prezi system includes three software tools: Prezi design, Prezi Present, and Prezi Video. These tools are used to create data visualizations, animated presentations, and animated overlays that float on top of a video presentation. The video can either be recorded or streamed live. Animation overlay makes the video have more clarity and reinforces the message being given by the video host.

Prezi offers a 14-day free trial, and thereafter the software is billed on an annual subscription basis, which starts for one user at $60 ($5 per month billed annually).

• Prezi offers reusable templates that can be customized for any purpose. This makes it very easy to get started using these tools.
• Object animation adds visual excitement and attracts attention to key concepts.
• Prezi maintains a royalty-free image library that can be used to make presentations by subscription members.
• Prezi Plus memberships ($180 per year) allow files to be downloaded to be used offline and the use of interactive maps.
• Prezi Premium memberships ($708 per year) include the Plus account benefits with SQL connectors, iFrame import integrations, callouts, and page linking.
• Offers a PowerPoint converter to import PowerPoint presentations into the Prezi system.

System Requirements: The Prezi system is a software as a service (SaaS) cloud offering that can be used by any device connected to the Internet. Prezi Plus users can download the files. Prezi video works with the popular video streaming apps, including Cisco WebEx, Facebook Live, GoToMeeting, GoToWebinar, Google Meet, LinkedIn, Microsoft Team, OBS, Slack, Twitter, YouTube, and Zoom.

User Feedback “I thought the software looked interesting and was surprised at how easy it was to create a more exciting presentation using this system. I am not a graphics guy at all. I have to give accounting reports. My co-workers complained that my presentations were boring before I used these tools, so this helped me make them look more interesting.” Andy A.

This video tutorial shows how to use stock images from the Prezi library and work with a grouping of objects to make animations for your presentations more easily. It shows how to make objects fade in, appear when you click on them and work with layers with an example of how to make an animation of trees growing.

Vyond is an animation production system that can create presentations in three animation styles, which are contemporary, business-friendly, and whiteboard animation . Vyond offers a comprehensive video creation guide that shows a step-by-step way to make an animated video.

Vyond offers a 14-day free trial that does not require a credit card. Thereafter, the service is available on an annual subscription basis for three levels, billed for each user. The levels are Essential $49 per month (49% discount as $299 per year), Premium $89 per month (40% discount as $649 per year), and Professional $199 per month (48% discount as $999 per year).

• The Essential level allows a user to export the Vyond video in MP4 format at 720p resolution.
• The Premium (or higher) level allows a user to export the Vyond video in MP4 format at 1080p resolution and allows exports as animated gifs in an eight-second loop.
• The Professional or Enterprise level allows collaboration when creating a video with others, shared libraries, an admin user panel, and video sharing feature to allow managed, private video sharing.
• ISO27001 Compliance
• GDPR/CCPA Compliance
• Privacy Shield Compliance
• Live Chat for Support

System Requirements: This is a cloud-based system that can be accessed by any device connected to the Internet. Paid subscription members can download a completed video in MP4 format.

User Feedback “I feel like I can go anywhere that I can imagine with Vyond. It opened up new horizons for all of us. When I found Vyond, it was exactly what I was looking for. I did the trial to be sure and then was sold on the system.” Gina Y.

In this video by Rued Riis, he shows how to make an animated video very quickly using the Vyond Studio system by using free templates and a few clever tricks. The video shows the creation of an animation video for an imagined company. The project is completed within 20 minutes.

4. Zoho Show

Zoho Show is a free online software tool that is a part of the overall comprehensive Zoho cloud offerings. Collaborative teams use Zoho Show to design slides and create visually-engaging presentations.

• Presentation editor with animations, text formatting, backgrounds, transitions, charts, media files, photos, shapes, and tables.
• Automatic contextual formatting in format mode.
• Allows importing presentations made with PowerPoint.
• Supports these formats: ppt, pps, odp, sxi, pptx, and ppsx.
• Each imported presentation must be 100MB or less. There is no limit on the number of imported presentations.
• Presentations can be published online or downloaded, saved, and used offline.
• Zoho supports multi-languages.

System Requirements: This is cloud-based online service accessible by any device that has an Internet connection by using any major browser such as Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Internet Explorer, and Safari.

User Feedback “I have used Zoho Show for more than a decade, and I can truly say that it is a handy presentation creation tool that helps my ideas for businesses to reach a much larger audience.” Miguel A.

This one-minute video tutorial shows how to animate an object in a presentation to make the object follow a custom path of a curvy line.

5. Google Slides

Google Slides is a free cloud software that can be used to make and share presentations. All you need is a Google account or a Gmail account, and you can sign in to use the software. You can store the presentation that you create online on your Google drive. The presentation can be shared with a collaborative team to help make it and with anyone else on the Internet by giving them a link to the presentation file when it is ready for viewing.

• Google offers a free template gallery.
• Any object can be animated to make it move, fade in, or fade out.
• Animations can play automatically, in sequence, or when they are clicked on.

System Requirements: Google Slides can be accessed from any device with an Internet connection by using a browser.

User Feedback “Google Slides are super easy to use and great for making a simple animation presentation quickly.” Roger S.

This two-minute video tutorial shows how to add animations to Google slide presentations. The narrator suggests using a few animations to make your presentation more visually interesting but not to add too many that make it look silly.

Keynote is pre-installed on every Apple device. Mac and iPad users concrete illustrations and diagrams using Apple Pencil. Then, these objects can be imported to use with Keynote to make presentations.

• Apple offers 30 free themes that can be customized.
• Keynote has 30 cinematic effects to create animations and transitions.
• Objects can be animated to follow a custom path by using Apple Pencil or your finger on an iPhone and iPad.
• Textures, color gradients, and photo overlays can be added to the text for a 3D-like effect.
• The Apple object library has more than 700 shapes, mathematical equations, galleries, and charts.
• Photos taken by an iPhone can be sent directly to Keynote on a Mac for further creative use.
• YouTube and Vimeo videos can play within Keynote presentation slides.

System Requirements: Keynote software comes with any Mac, iPad, iPhone, and can be used with a PC, if the Keynote files are stored on the iCloud.

User Feedback “I appreciate that Keynote presentation display properly on any device no matter what its size and the display configuration. My Keynote presentations look just as good on a smartphone as they do on a desktop monitor.” Barbara T.

This 18-minute video by Grumop Media teaches how to use ten things about everything you need to know to animate in Keynote. These include building ins and outs, creating actions, motion paths, and using motion blur. You will learn how to create a basic animation, apply multiple actions, animate multiple objects, change the pivot point, animate groups, animate text, and the “magic move.”

7. Haiku Deck

Haiku is popular because of the thousands of free templates and a huge library of royalty-free images for making presentations.

Haiku has a seven-day free trial. The Basic version is free and limited to a single presentation shared publicly on the web (no download). The Pro level version for unlimited presentations is $19.99 per month, offered at a 49% discount if prepaid as an annual subscription at $119.88.

Haiku offers a Premium version that is $14.99 per month or $179.88 per year. There are special, lower, discounted prices for non-profits, students, and educators of $9.99 per month or $59.88 billed annually. A classroom version for up to 150 students is $99 billed annually.

• Over 40 million royalty-free photos.
• Thousands of professional templates.
• Privacy locks for presentations.
• Easily add audio narration.
• Embed YouTube videos.
• Save and download the project as video, ppt, or pdf formats.
• Optional Haiku Deck Zuru presentations are created with the aid of artificial intelligence programming.
• The Premium version includes in-depth analytics and lead tracking, view notifications, live web playback, and priority technical support.

System Requirements: Works with iPad, iPhone, and is also accessible by any device on the web. Presentations are in the cloud for ease of collaboration and sharing with viewers.

User Feedback “I think the results from using the AI help of Zuru are terrific. Zuru AI quickly selected images from the millions in the library, which fit my presentation perfectly.” Steve J.

This five-minute, beginner’s level video shows how to create an animation of a bouncing ball by manipulating items on the stage. It teaches how to use timeline-based animation with keyframes and how to smooth transitions between those keyframes.

Visme is a tool that can be used at a basic level for free to make infographics, charts, social media graphics, and presentations. It is easy to include animation that helps you improve your visual communications.

The Basic level free account allows you to create up to five projects with storage of 100 MB, with limited templates, charts, and widgets for publicly-published projects, including Visme branding. The project can be downloaded as JPG.

The paid Standard level is $180 per year. This level increases projects to 15 with 250 MB storage, with premium templates, assets, charts, widgets, and no Visme branding. The project can be downloaded as a PDF file. The Business level is $348 per year. It includes the Standard level and unlimited projects, 10 GB storage, privacy controls, the ability to upload video and audio files, and downloads as PPTX, HTML5, video, and GIF. There is an Enterprise level that includes more security and analytics. The Enterprise level price is quoted based on the number of users.

• Useful to create branded content (paid level).
• Creates animated and interactive content.
• Thousands of free templates.
• Thousands of free icons.
• Millions of royalty-free photos.
• 50+ charts, maps, and data widgets.
• Paid subscribers can add video, audio, and embed them. Save your customized digital assets in a private library.

System Requirements: This is a cloud-based service that can be used by anyone with Internet access.

User Feedback “Visme does much more than I expected. I started with a free account, did a couple of projects, and then became a paying member. I love this system.” Wayne D.

This video tutorial, produced by Visme, teaches how to use custom animations in infographics. Visme has over 300 ready-to-use animations that are very easy to add to your presentations, including isometric graphics that give an illusion of 3D animation. There are more than 50 people represented by animation characters that you can use. There are hands with arms, which make gestures. These can be used to emphasize something. There are six categories of special effects and animated icons too.

9. VideoPlasty

VideoPlasty is a source for stock animations, stock animated gifs, and stock motion graphics. There are more than 9,000 royalty-free animation assets to choose from for those who want to use them in making presentations with other software tools. Choosing an appropriate animation from the VideoPlasty library is fun, easy, and saves a huge amount of production time compared to creating your animations from scratch.

A couple dozen of the animations offered on this system are free to use, even for commercial purposes. There are paid animations that range from $5 for one to $99 for a set of up to 100.

• There are dozens of categories to choose from and a handy search tool to help you find a good choice.
• Buy the animations individually or in discounted packs.
• The motion graphics section offers unique video and special effects backgrounds and loops.
• MOV and MP4 formats from 720p to HD resolution.
• VideoPlasty offers a free beginner’s guides and tutorials on how to make explainer videos.

System Requirements: These animations work with the popular video production/editing and presentation software that includes DaVinci, Resolve, Premiere Pro, Filmora, Final Cut Pro, HitFilm Express, Movavi Video Editor, iMovie, Camtasia, Keynote, PowerPoint, and more.

User Feedback “I wanted to add animation to my training videos but do not have any graphics skills. I found something very suitable on VideoPlasty, and for a few dollars, I got it and imported it into my presentation easily. This saved me an enormous amount of time and effort, trying to find someone to make an animation for me.” Sabella H.

This 15-minute video tutorial is about how to make explainer videos using the animation assets found on VideoPlasty. It is beginner-friendly.

Animiz is a software tool to make animated videos that are stored on the system’s cloud server. There is also a related whiteboard animation presentation system, a software program you download to use.

For the animated video Animiz tool, there is a free version for one user with 10GB of cloud storage. The Standard paid level is $29 per month for 100 GB of cloud storage. The Professional level is $299 per year for two users with unlimited cloud storage.

For the whiteboard animation software, there is a Free version that contains a Mango watermark with limited hand animations, free templates, with more than 10 dynamic characters, two backgrounds per project, and a limited video duration of one minute. The Professional version is a one-time fee of $39. It has no watermark, over 40 hand animations, professional templates, more than 30 dynamic characters, 10 backgrounds per project, and a limited video duration of 10 minutes.

The Enterprise level is a one-time fee of $199. It permits your branded watermark, over 80 hand animations, unlimited templates, more than 50 dynamic characters, unlimited backgrounds per project, and no limit on the video duration.

• Easy to use.
• Unlimited customization.
• Drag-and-drop editing.
• Free animated assets.
• Over 300 scene templates.
• Over 1,000 built-in animated roles for characters.
• Over 5,000 royalty-free vector images.

System Requirements: Runs on XP, Vista, Win7, Win8, Win10.

User Feedback “We can create high-quality explainer videos. We use videos to promote our innovative products. This is an excellent whiteboard animation program!” Ronald J.

This three and one-half minute video by Talk Tech shows how to make an animation video using Animiz.

11. Focusky

Focusky is a software tool that you download to make HTML5 presentations, combined with a cloud service to store and publish your viewing presentations.

There is a Free version that includes 10 GB of cloud storage and allows 50 uploads per month. The Standard level is $9.90 per month. It includes 100 GB of storage and allows 200 uploads per month. It also allows publishing the presentation to 720p video and 30 offline presentations per month. The Professional version is $99 per year and allows unlimited cloud storage and unlimited presentations to publish to 1080p HD video and unlimited presentations for offline viewing.

• Uses an innovative mind-mapping style. Instead of making slides, makes links between branches of content trees.
• 3D transition effects.
• Multi-language support.
• Background music.
• Over 1,000 animated characters.
• Over 600 premium templates for the Professional level.

System Requirements: Runs on a MAC and on a PC with XP, Vista, Win7, Win8, and Win10.

User Feedback “The Focusky system is so fun to use, and I can express my creativity freely without having to worry about making ordered slides. I can take my presentation on a tour through my mind map and zoom in on the things as I explain them. That is superb.” Henrietta J.

This 12 and one-half minute video tutorial made by Focusky helps beginners start to use the system to make an animated presentation.

Moovly is an online tool used to make animated tutorials, explainer videos, and promo videos. A free version can be used to create videos to publish on YouTube or Vimeo containing the Moovly watermark and outro. The Pro version is $49 a month. This level allows you to download HD quality videos, and there is no Moovly branding. The Max level is $99 per month, which adds screen and webcam recording, subtitles, color removal, and text-to-speech.

• Many customization templates.
• Offers automated template videos, data-based videos and live feed videos.
• Drag and drop.
• A huge library of over 1.3 million royalty-free digital assets to use.
• No software to download or plug-in installation.
• Almost all features can be tested with the free version before using them on the paid version.

System Requirements: This is a web-based system accessible by anyone with a browser and an Internet connection.

User Feedback “I started using this system and was making super interesting video presentations with animation and other special features easily. This is a very intuitive system.” Georgia N.

This 19-minute video made by Moovly gives a beneficial overview of how to use the system.

13. VideoScribe

VideoScribe is a whiteboard animation system with a seven-day free trial. Videoscribe pricing is $35 per month or a discount of $168 per year or a one-time lifetime use payment for one user of $800.

• Video templates.
• Digital library of more than 7,300 royalty-free images.
• Use your own assets and VideoScribe will draw them.
• Choose from many hands, pens, erasers and more.
• More than 190 royalty-free music tracks.
• Voiceover recording or import the audio file.
• Share to Vimeo and PowerPoint.

System Requirements: Works on Windows and Mac.

User Feedback “For an easy to use whiteboard animation creation system, I would recommend VideoScribe.” Paula T.

The Better Men Society made this 12-minute video tutorial, and it shows the full process of making a whiteboard animation video.

14. Powtoon

Powtoon is an online video and animation presentation creation system used to make training videos, tutorials, internal communication pieces, content marketing, and educational presentations.

Powtoon offers a free trial. It has a Pro version for $19 per month or discounted to $228 yearly. This level includes five premium exports per month and 2 GB of storage. The Pro+ version is $39 per month or discounted to $468 for a year. It includes unlimited access to content and 10 GB of storage.

The Agency level is $99 per month or discounted to $1,188 yearly. It includes unlimited premium exports, unlimited access to content, and the ability to build your own characters, third-party reseller rights, and 100GB of storage.

• A library of hundreds of templates, animated characters, video backgrounds, and musical tracks.
• No design or technical skills required to use this system.
• Easy to create visuals to tell your story.
• Help center with Powtoon user tutorials.
• Hire a Powtoonist system.

System Requirements: This is a cloud-based system accessed by using a web browser.

User Feedback “Powtoon has been a terrific tool to improve the look and viewer engagement for our company newsletters.” Tony W.

Blue Brain makes this 15-minute video tutorial. A teacher makes it to show how to use Powtoon to create an animation video for a class.

The most important element of any video presentation, either live-streamed or pre-recorded, is to avoid boring the audience or making them feel confused. Using animation presentation software helps make the live sharing of video streams and pre-recorded videos more engaging for the audience. Presentations are made more effective by highlighting the key concepts and giving the viewers a concise takeaway of what they need to know. I highly recommend using these tools. I make use of more than one in creating more interesting presentations.

Making a non-animated video? Make sure to check out our guide to the best video presentation software options available.

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16 Best Animation Software for 2024 (Free and Paid)

Here's our compiled a list of the best paid and free animation software out there to help you make the right decision for your animation needs!

Computer animation has come a long way since inception in the year 1960. The fundamentals of animation software or animation tool can be traced back to the time when William Fetter, a computer graphics designer made a diagram of a human body inside an airplane cockpit. Although the intention was to maximize the efficiency of Boeing’s cockpits, it paved the way towards more sophisticated process flows and thus, towards animation generated by computers. The credit for the first animation software, however, goes to Ivan Sutherland, an MIT graduate. His program Sketchpad (developed in 1963) drew lines that looked like recognizable figures. Little did he know that his idea would become a multibillion-dollar industry in the years to come.

Slowly and steadily, more progress was made in the field. The movie Tron which was released in the year 1982, was one of the first movies to use computer-generated graphics. Movies like the Terminator, Jurassic Park, Toy Story, the Matrix, and Avatar further refined the process, adding more details and sophistication to computer animation. The animation software industry grew to great heights within this period. 

Fast forward to 2024, we have a plethora of examples to celebrate the genius of CGI or computer-generated imagery. There are a variety of animation software available in the market, widely used by professionals at animation studios. Depending on the medium you choose —hand-drawn or 2D, 3D, or stop-motion and the price range, there are plenty of options to get started. A well-built animation software provides intuitive controls and flexibility that can be easily understood by a beginner but also has vastly superior tools for an experienced user. 

Browse through this list of quality animation software, and select the one that best suits your requirement. We hope it will help you hone your foundation skills, practice animation styles, and help you get professional results.

How we reviewed the list of best animation softwares

In our selection of the best animation software, we emphasize tools that balance ease of use with powerful capabilities, perfect for aspiring animators and seasoned professionals alike. These programs offer intuitive interfaces, extensive animation features, and flexibility across various styles, from traditional frame-by-frame animation to cutting-edge 3D modeling. Our list is continually updated to ensure you're equipped with the latest advancements in animation technology, enabling you to bring your creative visions to life with efficiency and flair.

Here is a list of the best 16 Animation Softwares

Top paid animation softwares.

• Adobe Character Animator
• Toon Boom Harmony
• DigiCel Flipbook
• Cartoon Animator 5
• Stop Motion Studio

Top Open Source & Free Animation Softwares

• Synfig Studio

What are the Best Animation Softwares of 2024?

1.  adobe character animator.

This animation software comes from one of the biggest development companies in the world and serves up to the hyped expectations. One of the recent additions to the Adobe family, this simple animation software uses facial recognition, gesture recognition , etc. to animate cartoon characters. The Character Animator is a real-time animator that uses your facial expressions, hand movements, full-body motion capture, and various other inputs to animate characters. It is extremely smooth and fast and you can live stream your development process to share work with team members or your audience. Just plug in your microphone, web camera and start animating! You can also create a character from your artworks in a few mouse clicks using the built-in Adobe Sensei . 

System Requirements:

To run Adobe Character Animator, you'll need Windows 10 or macOS 11.0 or later, at least 8GB RAM, and a GPU with 2GB VRAM.

Adobe Character Animator is one of the best animation software and is used by many Hollywood film houses. The software offers a huge variety of options for animating. You can also use the built-in puppets to begin animating as soon as you open the software. Animation options include breathing, walking, blinking, behaviors, etc. It is a great animation software for beginners as well as experienced professionals.

The free trial lasts for 7 days after which you can buy the paid versions of this simple software for animation. You can buy all the Adobe applications (creative cloud) for around 54.99 USD per month, billed annually. Adobe has created different packages for individuals, businesses, schools, and professionals. You can check this link out for more information on pricing.

2.  Toon Boom Harmony

Toon Boom by Harmony is a cartoon animation software for beginners as well as for professionals. The software allows the user the flexibility, fluidity, and the smoothness of traditional animation. The learning curve is moderate since the software is meant for newbies as well as for professionals. The software has been used by leading animation studios for more than 25 years.

 GitHub illustrator and animator, Tony Jaramillo writes in his testimonial, “Harmony makes it possible to level up our animation productivity without sacrificing quality...we're big fans”.

Some of the most famous users of Toon Boom are Universal Studios, Fox Studios, Cartoon Network, Ubisoft, and Lucas Film.  

To run Toon Boom Harmony, you'll need Windows 10 or macOS 10.13 or later, 8GB RAM, and a modern OpenGL graphics card.

New features that came with the latest update include a stabilizer for lines, stylus pressure responsiveness, and tilt and angle responsiveness. Standard features include a brush engine, traditional paperless animation, deformers, cut-out animation, 2D/3D integration, export to game engines, and pipeline integration. It is also easily integrable with software such as Adobe Illustrator, and extensions such as PSD, PSB, PDF, and Bitmaps.

Pricing options come in different packages that include this animation software. Harmony Essentials cost 25 USD per month, billed annually. Similarly, Harmony Advanced is 63 USD per month and the Harmony Premium is 115 USD per month . You can use the software for free for 21 days; a duration that is good enough to understand and explore this amazing animation software. 

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3.  digicel flipbook.

This 2D animation software is easy-to-use but don’t let the simplicity fool you. You can do a lot of things with this animation software although it is intended for beginners. Developed by DigiCel, FlipBook runs on both Windows and macOS. You can also call this a frame by frame animation software since the method it employs deals with designing one frame at a time. Since the learning curve is smooth, you can directly dive into animating. The software lets you easily scan your artworks from paper directly onto the software. You can also make stop motion videos if you want. 

To run DigiCel FlipBook, you'll need Windows 7 or later, macOS 10.10 or later, and a graphics card with 512MB VRAM.

Some of the features of FlipBook include a multiple-frame work desk , lip-sync support , pan, zoom, rotate, blur options, import and export capabilities, and scanning options. The software is efficient and super-smooth. The speed is amazing as well. You can make changes while the animation is running and the changes are visible the next time the loop runs! As aforementioned, the animation software is simple to use. However, some big names have complimented the software and recommended it to their followers. Disney’s Animation Director, Eric Goldberg calls it a great program and praises the draw tool provided by the software.

DigiCel’s Flipbook is priced according to four different packages that are Lite, Studio, and ProHD. If you use the free version of this animation software, all published exports are watermarked. The Lite version is listed at 98 USD but is currently at a sale price of 19 USD! The package offers 2 columns, 300 frames, and 800x600 screen capabilities. As the packages advance, so do their features. A complete pricing list can be seen here .

4.  Moho Debut 13.5

The Moho Debut is an animation software suitable for beginners interested in learning the art of animation. The interface is easy to understand and allows you to animate real fast. The simplicity does not, however, undermine the strength and the robustness of this software. The tools offered by Moho Debut are powerful and can be used to convert your strangest imaginations into an animated story. The software comes with multilingual support and has the capability to handle English, Spanish, French, German, Chinese, and Japanese.

To run Moho Debut 13.5, you'll need Windows 7 or later, macOS 10.13 or later, 4GB RAM, and OpenGL 2.0 graphics.

The software runs on both macOS and Windows and offers advanced and sophisticated freehand tools. Features such as bone rigging, pen pressure support for tablets, animated effects for shapes and layers, brushes that can be used to easily edit and animate, PSD support, and keyframe options are available. Advanced masking options and an auto freeze tool are also available. 

The software is priced at 59.99 USD. The free trial can be availed for 30 days.

5.  Movavi

Movavi Video Editor & Animation tool is great software for novice editors and enthusiastic video content creators. It features a simple UI with short tutorial hints to help you get started quickly. It also supports drag and drop, which is perfect for quickly blending multiple video clips into a comprehensive work. You can create everything from gaming videos for YouTube to video tutorials and slideshows.

To run Movavi Video Editor, you'll need Windows 7 or later, macOS 10.13.6 or later, 2 GB RAM and a 1.5 GHz dual-core Intel, AMD, or compatible processor.

The animation tool offers more than just basic video editing tools. Users can take advantage of advanced tools like panning and zooming, animating an object , creating stop motion , applying slow motion, and tracking moving objects. The program also provides plenty of creative transitions and animated titles, which can be used to create eye-catching videos.

Movavi Video Editor offers a 7-day free trial period, so you can try the software before deciding to commit to it. The paid version is priced at 54.95 USD per year or 79.95 USD for a one-time payment. The bestselling version often comes with a huge discount and includes the video editor plus effect packs including gradients, LUTs, and VHS effects.

6.  Moho Pro 13.5

The Moho Pro is the advanced version of its lighter version, the Moho Debut. The user base is more professional and advanced. The software is costlier but has more features that can be used to create better animations. This 2D animation software includes all the features of Moho Debut. The latest version Moho Pro 13 integrates the best animation technology with the most sophisticated tools. 

To run Moho Pro 13.5, you'll need Windows 7 or later, macOS 10.13 or later, 4GB RAM, and a modern OpenGL graphics card.

Moho Pro offers a bone rigging system, physics engine, dynamic bones, and smart bones to control complex movements, frame by frame capabilities, vector tools with Bezier handles, accurate SVG, AI, and EPS import, 4K video export, vector export, motion blur, and multilayer and multi-channel control. The newest update adds bitmap frame by frame capabilities, bitmap freehand drawing tools, custom bitmap brush creation, 3D objects light manipulation, 3D objects material properties support.

This animation software is priced at 399.9 USD with a free trial that lasts for 30 days. You can also purchase add-ons to improve the experience. The 100 Brush Pack, for example, is priced at 39 USD. Other add-ons include the Retro Space Pack, School Days Pack, Content Pack, and the Puppets Pack. 

7.  Flipsnack

Flipsnack is a web based flipbook animation software that allows users to create and share publications with a realistic page flip effect. With this tool, you can transform your static documents into all sorts of animated publications such as magazines, catalogs, presentations, portfolios, brochures, you name it, without any effort whatsoever. This software comes equipped with an intuitive drag-and-drop editor and a plethora of fully customizable templates, therefore it is suitable for every type of user, whether you’re tech-savvy or not. Flipsnack is constantly updating and developing new assets but when it comes to interactivity, some of its key features at the moment are the following: photo slide-shows; GIFs; audio and video elements; map embedding, and social media buttons integration.

If you want to share your animated content, there are various ways in which you can do it, be it publicly, unlisted, or private, with Flipsnack you can select and manage your audience according to your needs. Moreover, if you want to track the performance of your animated flipbooks, you can do that using Flipsnack’s integrated option, which offers insights about every impression, view, share, and average reading duration for each publication. However, for a deeper understanding of your audience and content performance, you can also connect your account to Google Analytics.

In terms of pricing options, Flipsnack offers a free trial that allows you to create up to 3 catalogs of 30 pages each, a Starter plan for 14$/month; a Professional 35$/month; a Business plan for 79$/month, a Business plan for 207$/month and an Enterprise plan for 355$/month.

Do check out these topics

• 12+ Best Animation Website Examples for Animators
• 25 Best Design Portfolio Websites to Inspire You [2024 Updated]
• 47 Best Drawing Apps and Art Apps
• Best Product Design Portfolio Website Examples

8.  Cartoon Animator 5

Cartoon Animator 5 is a 2D animation software intended for both beginners as well as for professionals. You can design characters and digitally animate them via expressions and lip-sync capabilities. The Cartoon Animator 5 community is a strong one and materials for learning the software are easily available. Much like Adobe’s Character Animator, you can use your facial expressions and your voice to make animations. A few examples of videos made using this animation software are given here; The Curious Child , a TV series by Eon De Bruin , and an Animated comic by Fransesco .

To run Cartoon Animator 5, you'll need Windows 10 or later, 2GB RAM, a modern CPU, and a graphics card with 1GB VRAM.

Key features of this amazing animation software include webcam and iPhone facial mocap, hand tracking and digital puppets, full-body motion capture, sprite-based facial system, audio lip-syncing, precise FK/IK system, smart motion retargeting, stretch animation, and so much more. If you want to explore all the features of this superb software, head to this link for a detailed view. The software also lets you integrate your work with Adobe Photoshop and allows you to use PSD templates for designing. Pipeline features include capabilities to import 3D motions into 2D artworks and to create custom and unique elastic motion libraries. Finally, you can work with a huge number of file extensions without any trouble. It supports up to 4K resolution monitors.

The free trial is for 30 days after which you can buy the pro edition for 149 USD, edition with dynamic character design for 199 USD, or avail special bundle discounts.

9.  Stop Motion Studio

An animation software for beginners, Stop Motion Studio helps to create high-quality stop motion videos. Adopting the frame by frame animation technique, this software can help you make 4k stop motion videos with ease. The software is cross-platform and cross-device and can run on Android, iOS, macOS, and Windows. Your projects are accessible from all the devices where you have your account.

To run Stop Motion Studio, you'll need Windows 10 or macOS 10.15 or later, 1GB RAM, and a graphics card with 512MB VRAM.

You can use your phone camera to click the single frames or you can even hook up your digital camera to your device. You also have the option to use a second phone to add more perspective to your videos. Editing these images is also easy and just requires a few touches or clicks. You can add audio clips, titles, credits, and filter effects to your videos as you click the frames. There is also the option to add looping to your videos using in and out set points. The software has built-in sound clips that you can use in your videos and you can directly record our voice and apply it on the video as you work your way through the project. Other features include grid and onion skinning options, paint tools, magic eraser, and import of images, audio, video files, etc.

This animation software costs just a dollar and 9.99 USD Windows & macOS. The mobile application costs 5.99 USD

10.  Animaker

Animaker is a browser-based animation software that can be used by beginners, professionals, and animation enthusiasts. It is a great tool for making handcraft videos, whiteboard videos, short marketing bits, animated infographic videos, and educational videos. Used by huge brands such as Amazon, Nokia, Siemens, and Dell, Animaker’s buffed-up client base speaks for itself. With Animaker, you can make 2D and 2.5D videos via a variety of tools and features. You can choose from different plans based on your needs.

To run Animaker, you'll need a modern web browser with WebGL support, 512 MB of RAM and Windows 7 or higher OS.

Animaker supports full HD and both horizontal and vertical layouts. Animaker provides great features for animation such as record, curve, camera in/out, multimove, transition effects, and enter/exit effects. Along with these, the animation software also has a deck feature that allows users to use animations as videos or presentations. The software also has some amazing audio features such as text-to-speech, preloaded background tracks, sound effects, voice recording, etc. You can also use libraries for pre-defined templates.

With the free package, you can download your animations with a watermark. The free package also lets you work with HD support. The basic pack is priced at 10 USD per month supports creation of 5 custom characters & HD quality videos. The starter pack is priced at 19 USD per month and is intended for individuals and startups. Supports full HD and you can download 10 premium animations without the watermarks. The business pack is priced at 49 USD per month and has all the features that this great animation software has to offer.

11.  Powtoon

Another browser animation software that is free to use, Powtoon is intended for beginners but can also be used by more advanced animators. It can be used to make dynamic video presentations. Used by brands such as Microsoft, IBM, Google, Adobe, Coca Cola, eBay, Cisco, and Starbucks, Powtoon is a trusted software that can be used to develop engaging infographic videos and marketing bits. 

The official website describes Powtoon as a platform for visual communicatio n. Hopping on the visual communication description, the animation software is a great means to talent acquisition, change management, internal communications, and marketing. Schools and universities can also use Powtoon to make infographic videos and educational tutorials to teach their students. In fact, during times such as these when the world is fighting against COVID-19, such a tool can come in handy to reach out to colleagues and team members.

With Powtoon’s free version, you can export YouTube videos, Facebook videos, Vimeo videos, and PDFs, and Powerpoints. The version also offers customs styles and you can change the aspect ratio as well as sizes. You can implement image files and animate and make GIFs. Once you get past the beginner level, you can choose from the various packages based on your requirements. Powtoon is one of the best animation software that you can use to learn about animation. You can import themes from Microsoft Powerpoint as well in case you don’t want to start working from scratch.

The three paid packages that come with this animation software are Lite, Pro, and Business. At 15 USD per month, you can buy the Lite package which gives you access to free content and 5 premium exports per month. The Pro is priced at 40 USD per month and gives you access to all PRO templates and Unlimited premium exports. With Business, the cream package, you get all the features of Powtoon with 3rd-party reseller rights at 125 USD per month.

12.  Terragen

Terragen is a free animation software for Windows. You can use it to make CG animation. It is meant for moderate level users but can be used by beginners who are interested in learning animation. The learning curve is moderate and it requires some time to get the hang of it. The newest feature, the ray-traced preview is great for animation. It can be installed on all Windows devices and is an amazing animation software for 3D animation. Developed by Planetside Software, Terragen 4.4, the latest update is feature-rich.

To run Terragen, you'll need Windows 7 or later, macOS 10.12 or later, 4GB RAM and a 2Ghz Dual Core CPU.

Besides ray-traced preview, some of the other features include photo-real clouds, ozone simulation, faster rendering (almost double), lens effects, and new shaders and enhancements, etc. Terragen Pro comes with FBX, render layers and AOVs, spherical cameras, full 3D motion blur, and stereo cameras. The drawback of this animation software is that its interface looks very complicated. However, with use and understanding, you can work on it effortlessly.

The creative edition starts from $15 per month & professional edition for $38 per month. The complete price list of Terragen can be found here .

Open Source & Free to Use Animation Softwares

1.  pencil 2d  (open source animation software).

This is a great free animation software for people who are into traditional hand-drawn animation. The software allows you to work with both raster as well as with vector graphics. The minimal design of the interface makes it easy and smooth to work with. The clutter-free UI/UX experience is one of the selling points of this free software. 

Pencil2D is a cross-platform software that runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux. The software is open-source which has allowed a great and helpful community to develop around this product.

To run Pencil 2D, you'll need Windows 7 or later, macOS 10.12 or later, and ICore-5 (3rd Generation or Above) or comparable CPU. 4GB of RAM

The software has a variety of handy animation tools and options. You can also upload your Pencil 2D project to aid in the development of the software; one of the plus points of being open-source. You can import GIFs and export them as well. The latest version, v0.6.6 released on year 2021 with several new tweaks and adjustments. Bug fixes and patches were also part of the update. 

The biggest disadvantage of using Pencil2D is that the software requires you to fill in your preferences every time you open it.

2.  Synfig Studio  (Open-source 2D Animation Software)

Another open-source 2D animation software that comes free of cost. If you are not comfortable with a frame by frame animation software, this is the perfect tool for you. You can run this free animation software on Windows, Linux, and macOS. Since the software is open-source, you can make changes to the source code and submit enhancements and upgrades.

To run Synfig Studio, you'll need Windows 7 or later, macOS 10.13 or later, or a Linux system with a modern OpenGL graphics card.

One of the main features of Synfig Studio is vector tweening; you can convert any vector graphic into another form easily . The software offers powerful tools to help you achieve that. Synfig also provides more than 50 layers to make artworks and animations. Some of the layer types are geometric, transformations, gradients, filters, distortions, fractals, etc. The bone system is also full of options and is a powerful tool on its own. The software also provides an additional skeleton distortion layer. Finally, you can connect different layers via mathematical expressions. With the help of this, you can make characters, puppets, and complex dynamic structures. The software has a steeper learning curve for beginners.

3.  Blender  (Free and Open Source 3D creation suite)

Probably the best free animation software on this list and one of the most recommended software for animation by professionals, Blender is an open-source software that runs on different platforms with ease. It is one of the few 3D modeling and animation software that is free of cost, yet it does not lack any power or robustness of its paid counterparts. In fact, it might just have a slight edge over them. This animation software is suitable for beginners as well as for professionals. With the help of Blender, you can develop animations, games, animated models, animated movies,  renders, and other types of 3D prints . It is available on macOS, Linux, and Windows. 

To run Blender, you'll need Windows 8 or later, macOS 10.13 or later, or a Linux distribution, with 8GB RAM and a graphics card that supports OpenGL 4.3 or higher.

Blender is a pretty good animation software when it comes to the features it offers. Blender provides real-time viewport review as well as CPU and GPU rendering. With Blender, you have PBR shaders and HDR lighting support. Other features include VR rendering support, advanced modeling, sculpting, and UV tools, advanced rigging and animation tools, powerful visual effects, auto-tracking, manual tracking, camera reconstruction, drawing in 2D mode оnto the 3D viewport, onion skinning, etc.

Blender is one of the best free animation software that you can use at all levels. Blender has some amazing open projects where you can contribute. Ever since the year 2005, the Blender Foundation has tried to invite developers and animators to contribute to open projects to promote creativity and innovation in Blender. The first such project was called ‘Elephants Dream’, which won the best short film award. Here is the official link to all open projects started by the Blender Foundation. If you are an advanced animator, make sure to check these out. 

Some of the drawbacks are that the learning curve is very steep and it would take beginners a lot of time to learn to use this software. It is also not easy to make image animations since the software aims more at 3D animation.

4.  OpenToonz  (Open Source)

OpenToonz is a free animation software that you can use to make cartoon animations. It runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux. OpenToonz was customized by Studio Ghibli and is in use by the same for many years. It was first used in the making of the famous film, ‘Princess Mononoke’ by Studio Ghibli. Since it is open-source, you can contribute to its source code as well.

To run OpenToonz, you'll need Windows 7 or later, macOS 10.14 or later, and a 64-bit CPU with at least 4GB RAM.

OpenToonz has all the features required to make a great animated film. Its unique features have been specifically customised to meet those requirements of the production staff. The scanning tool or 'GTS’ for instance, that specializes in animation. OpenToonz also comes with an effects development kit developed by Dwango. The SDK is a plug-in effect for image processing. Other features include digital drawing tools such as vector and bitmap drawing tools, indexed color palettes, animated special effects, and composite scene, scripting, motion tracking, frame-by-frame animation, motion tweening, bones character animation, particle systems for dust, rain, and similar effects, etc.

It can be used free of charge for both commercial and non-commercial videos. In case you face any issues, you can post your query in the developers’ forum or any community blog. The plug-in effects of this animation software are, however, very limited.

5.  TupiTube  (Free animation tool for children and teenagers)

Here’s a treat for Mac users; a free animation software with amazing features and lots of content. The software was developed by animators who wanted to allow people to make and edit videos without having to pay for them. The learning curve of this software is moderate and you can create quality 2D videos once you get the hang of it. You can contribute to the Tupi source code as well and tweak it in case you require specific customizations or would like to help the community.

To run TupiTube, you'll need Windows 7 or later, macOS 10.9 or later, or Ubuntu 18.04, and OpenGL 2.0 compatible graphics.

Features of TupiTube include support for vector illustrations, adding shapes, filling areas, import raster images, export all your finished images into different file formats, support for tweeting positions, etc. You can also make lip-sync animations using TupiTube. The software also supports vector illustrations and different file formats. The official website contains lots of resources for animators of all levels. It features an extensive resource base of examples and tutorials. One of the drawbacks of Tupi is that it cannot be used to make 3D videos.   

Although the list of animation software is exhaustive, we have tried to put together the best intuitive software programs, and we hope it'll give you a good start.

You might want to check out our list of the best graphic design software . For Tech-savvy creatives read our review on the best drawing and art apps .

As you get creative with your animation portfolios, do remember to create your portfolio website to showcase your work. Your design portfolio represents a window for the world to view your work and judge your talent, skills, and experience. 

So, if you haven’t built a website to showcase your design portfolio, start today with Pixpa. Here are some great examples of graphic design portfolios created on Pixpa for your inspiration. Explore all features that make Pixpa the perfect choice for creative professionals. Get ready to express yourself in stunning new ways and create awesome animation clips with ease and efficiency!

Frequently Asked Questions

1. where can i animate for free.

You can use open source or free to use software like Pencil 2D, Synfig Studio, Blender or OpenToonz to animate for free. Of these Blender is a highly recommended free to use software while OpenToonz is an open source program developed by Studio Ghibli.

2. What is an example of an animation software?

Adobe Character Animator is an example of a popular animation software used to create computer based animations. 

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Top 10 Presentation Software for 2023

Keerthana Haresh - April 1, 2022 - Leave your thoughts. 13 min read

online presentation maker , online presentation software , ppt alternative , Presentation Software

Introduction: 

If you want to create a high-quality presentation for your personal needs, business, or anything else - you’ll need top-notch presentation software that’s got the right features that you need! We’re going to showcase the best presentation software available on the market today, and compare their features like their template options, the availability of graphic assets, real-time collaboration, and more! 

So if you’re looking for a great alternative to the presentation software you’re currently using, look no further than this comprehensive guide! Some of the software we’re going to be looking at include Animaker Deck, Prezi, Visme, and more. 

When selecting the right presentation software, there are a number of factors to consider: 

• Is it beginner-friendly and easy to use?
• Does it suit your budget?
• Does it have a wide variety of templates to choose from?
• Can you add audio to your presentations?
• Can you embed content, add videos or GIFs?
• Can you animate the elements in the presentation?
• Does it include Brand Kit features?
• Does it have a large built-in asset library?
• Does the presentation software include analytics?
• Does the software provide real-time collaboration?
• Can the finished presentation be shared to your friends and colleagues easily?
• Finally, does it contain a great balance of features?

Let’s take a look at the 10 best presentation software available today:

• Animaker Deck
• Google Slides
• Beautiful.ai

1. Animaker Deck

Animaker Deck is one of the most feature-packed, innovative, modern and complete presentation software available online. 

Not only is it easy to use, it contains one-of-a-kind features such as a built-in character builder where the user can create animated avatars to include in their presentation. It also comes equipped with tons of template characters which can be used right from the software. 

You can use Animaker Deck to create all sorts of presentations - whether they’re for birthday wishes, a sales proposal, annual reports, family albums, and more. Let’s look at the various advantages offered by Animaker Deck:

Character Builder:

Animaker Deck contains a Character builder where users can create unique avatars to use in their presentation. No other presentation software offers such a wide variety of creative customizations such as Deck. The builder is a breeze to use and can be learnt by anyone!

You can create both male and female characters of all types - whether you’re looking to create a snazzy football coach for your coaching classes, or a fun-loving partygoer for spring break, there are tons of preset outfits and customization options to create any character you desire. You can even create an avatar of yourself or your favorite celebrities!

Template Options:

Animaker Deck comes equipped with tons of pre-built templates that can make a user’s work easier. There are templates for employee onboarding, performance appraisals, internal sales presentations, business proposals, and lots more!

You can also start with a blank template or add new slides to existing templates, and save slides later to use as your own templates.

Graphic Assets Library:

Animaker Deck comes equipped with a massive stock asset library that contains over 80M+ Stock assets. It contains a partnership with both Getty and GIPHY, which means you’ll get access to thousands of stock images and videos that can be used however you choose. You can also use icons, animated backgrounds and even animate the objects that you choose to include in the presentation!

Real-Time Collaboration:

You can easily collaborate with your colleagues with Animaker Deck’s real time collaboration features. Creative teams can exchange ideas, work on a project together, and make updates in real-time, all from the comfort of their couch!

Slides Pro: 10$/Month

Animaker Pro: $49/Month

Enterprise: Custom Pricing

Prezi is another great presentation software that offers an alternative to traditional presentations with their intuitive interface that allows you to create a fluid flow with topics and subtopics that can be zoomed in on. While their interface is not exceptionally beginner-friendly, it’s a great option to add an innovative touch to your presentations.

Easy-to-Use:

Prezi definitely has a learning curve, but it is user-friendly after you get the hang of it. The interface is different and can be hard to navigate initially.

Prezi offers tons of templates, and you can also use a blank template from scratch. The templates can be customized as you choose, and their concept of zooming in to presentations is present in all of them.

Stock Asset Library:

The graphic asset library has usual elements like images, videos, and icons. The premium plan offers access to over 80,000 icons and 500,000 images.

Videos and Gifs:

There is an option to upload or embed videos from YouTube. Embedded videos are not viewable in offline mode. There are currently no GIFs available in Prezi.

Real-time Collaboration:

There is a feature called Prezi for teams which is available and has a Slack integration.

You can access Brand Kits with Prezi’s team plans, and your brand can be customized with your choice of color and available fonts.

Sharing to Social Media:

Prezi presentations can be shared to social media via a share button at the top-right corner of the Prezi page. The presentations can be shared to LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.

Plus: 12$/Month

Premium: $16/Month

Teams: Custom Pricing

Visme is an easy-to-use presentation software with plenty of features and customization options. You can create infographics, interactive charts and reports with Visme too.

There are tons of customizable options available in Visme. You can choose from fully designed presentations or even create your own templates using their mix-and-match by choosing a presentation theme.

You can also start with a blank canvas, add new blank slides to existing presentation templates.

There are tons of assets available in Visme’s library - including icons, illustrations, stock photos, videos and 3D graphics, audio clips, charts, and graphs to include in your presentations.

Animations and Transitions:

Elements inside Visme can be animated, and there are also slide transitions that smoothen the transition between slides with style. There are also custom animations available for animating elements even further.

Collaborations:

Visme has features for colleagues and teams to collaborate with each other in real-time, and leave comments with edits and feedback. You can also easily share your projects with other people and move the project along.

Visme has a brand design tool to keep all your content on-brand. You can upload all of your branding assets - which includes logo, fonts and colors to Visme with their Brand Wizard. You can also easily access thousands of templates and input your brand fonts and colors.

Once the presentation is complete, it can be shared to multiple social media channels easily.

When a presentation is finished, it can be easily shared via a link, and analyzed for sharing.

Personal - $15/month annually

Business - $29/month annually

Enterprise: Custom pricing

4. Google Slides

Google Slides is Google’s presentation software that can be assessed via your Google account. You can easily create presentations with Google Slides. It is similar to Powerpoint and there is an advanced version called G Suite, which includes storage and management capabilities.

Google Slides is very user friendly and is similar to Google Docs and Google Sheets.

There are tons of templates to choose from, and presentations can also be created from scratch.

The stock assets are very simple to add. There are both classic and generic shapes available. Images can also be uploaded from your desktop, Google Drive or a URL.

Collaboration:

Real-time collaboration is offered on Google Slides.

Videos and GIFs:

Videos can be uploaded with a YouTube link or from a Google Drive.

Animations:

Elements inside Google Slides can be animated and transitions can be added as well.

Share to Social Media:

Presentations can be shared via email or link.

Google Slides is free for anyone with a Google account.

There are also plans that start from 6$/month and go upto 18$/month.

Keynote is the presentation software offered by Apple. The Keynote editor can be used by anyone with an Apple ID.

It is similar in usage to Powerpoint and Google Slides, which makes it very simple to use.

There are a limited number of templates to choose from, and Templates can also be uploaded into the software.

There are tons of classic icons and symbols to choose from, and they are also customizable in terms of color and font. Images can also be uploaded from your computer.

Colleagues and team members can work on a project at the same time via a link or an email.

You can not embed videos in Keynote Slides, and GIFs can be added as .gif images.

You can animate slides and objects and also add effects.

You cannot share to Social Media on Keynote.

There is no Brand Kit features available on Keynote.

Keynote is totally free to use, and is available on the App Store.

Slides is a presentation software that contains a built-in grid to help with composition. Slides is totally free to use, with paid plans available too.

Slides is pretty beginner-friendly, the editing board has a simple interface which is easy to learn.

There are very few templates to use, so presentations have to be built from a blank template.

There are graphics available such as icons and shapes that are available. Photos have to be imported from a URL.

Paid plans contain features for collaboration. Teammates can leave comments and feedback to help with making edits.

Videos and GIFs are available to use and pretty easy to add to your presentation. Videos can be uploaded and GIFs can be uploaded as .mp4 as video.

You cannot add audio with Slides.

Animations can be added to all elements and features. The length of the duration can also be customized.

Slides support sharing to various social media platforms.

The paid plan offers analytics.

The paid plans start at $5/month and go upto $20/month for features like unlimited collaborations and Google Analytics.

Slidebean is a simple presentation software that contains quite a few templates and customizations.

Slidebean also uses artificial intelligence to help you use the best possible slide layouts and configurations. Check out this product review  here .

Slidebean is very easy to use. Adding content is simple and there are templates available to use. You can also start from a blank template.

There are 2 modes for editing - outline or design mode. There are tons of choice for how you can move the content blocks around.

There are tons of templates available to use. They are neatly organized and there are sections available by brands as well.

There are lots of icons and images to choose from.

Real-time collaboration features are available in the paid plans.

Slidebean contains GIPHY integration which means that GIFs can be added. The paid plan offers a feature to add videos.

Audio features are not available.

Animations can be added to the elements and content blocks.

You can share presentations to social media in the paid plans.

Analytic features are available in the paid plans.

There’s a free plan and it has limited capabilities.

There are 3 price levels from $8/month, $19/month, and $149/month.

8. Beautiful.ai

Beautiful.ai is a presentation software that helps you create good-looking slides with the help of AI (artificial intelligence).

Beautiful.ai is fairly simple to use. All you have to do is add smart slides, add your content and choose from different layouts. This makes Beautiful.ai a nice software that beginners and those who are not familiar with graphic design.

There are basic templates available that can be used to create unique presentations.

Graphic Asset Library:

The stock asset options are fairly limited, and there are free stock photos and icons to choose from.

Your teammates can collaborate on your projects for viewing or editing.

Both videos and GIFs can be uploaded from your computer. Videos can also be imported from YouTube.

Preset animation styles can be added to each slide, but their customizability is limited.

There are no brand kit features available, but there are customizable themes and they can be saved to use later.

You can easily share your presentations to social media. You can send email invites, share a public or private link, or share directly to social media platforms.

Beautiful.ai currently offers a Pro plan at $12/month and a Team plan at $40/month.

9. Powerpoint

Microsoft Powerpoint is the most popular and well-known presentation software on this list. It is familiar, reliable and easy to use.

The traditional interface of Powerpoint makes Powerpoint fairly easy to use. All types of users - students, professionals and businesses can learn Powerpoint and make presentations easily.

There are lots of templates that come equipped with Powerpoint, and they are all customizable.

You can browse stock images, icons and stickers by searching for relevant keywords in Powerpoint’s graphic library.

You can share your presentation with specific people.

Your computer can be used to upload both videos and GIFs. Videos can also be embedded from YouTube.

Audio files can be uploaded from your computer.

There are lots of animation and transition options available in Powerpoint.

Brand Kits are not available, but custom themes can be saved.

Presentations cannot be shared to social media platforms.

There are no analytic features available in Powerpoint.

There are different plans for businesses that start from $5/month and go upto $20/month.

10. Genially

Genially is a presentation software that’s known for its creativity. This software is known for presentations and video presentations.

Genially is fairly simple to use, and comes equipped with tons of choices. Any change can be applied to all slides with the simple click of a button.

There are tons of template options, with both free and paid options available.

There are tons of graphic assets available. Images can be uploaded or found on their integration with Pixabay.

Genially’s professional plan allows collaboration upto 5 team members.

GIFs can be imported with the GIPHY integration and videos can be added with YouTube links.

Audio files can be uploaded from your computer, via SoundCloud and a few other integrations.

Third-Party Content:

Genially contains a nice feature where you can add third party content with Genially integrations.

Brand Kit features are available in the premium plans.

All completed presentations can be shared to various social media platforms.

Genially’s premium plans contain analytic features.

Genially contains a free plan, which gives you access to unlimited presentations but a limited pool of resources.

There are two types of paid plans. The education plan starts at $1.25/month and go upto $20.82/month, billed annually. The professional plan starts at $7.49/month and goes upto $79.15/month, billed annually.

In conclusion, there are plenty of great presentation software available on the market that can help you create the perfect presentation that you desire. Depending on your choice of features, suitability, and price, you can select these software and have a great experience creating your presentation of choice.

If you have any questions or comments, leave them in the comments section below!

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By Iveta Pavlova

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Updated: May 13, 2022

Investigating which is the best animation software for beginners? Check out this selection of animation software including some of the most popular and preferred products on the market , as well as less-known but still very good animation tools available today.

In this post about the best animation software for beginners, you will find premium, free and open-source products, as well as online tools for animating. No matter if you are just making your first steps in animating , search for an alternative to the software you are using right now or want to experiment with a completely different type of animation (e.g. traditional frame-by-frame, Flash-style animations, stop motions, 2D and 3D animations, etc.), this post will help you sort out your options. Let’s begin!

Article overview: – Premium animation software for beginners – Open-source & Free animation software – Easy online video animation tools

Premium animation software for beginners… Who aim big!

A selection of the best animation software available on the market right now and preferred by all levels of users. These products are armed with rich arrays of functions and tools that will allow you to create powerful animation projects. Each of these software products come with subscription plans or as one-time purchases with free trials or free versions included. If you are a complete beginner, don’t worry – all of these programs come with tons of tutorials to start with!

1.  Adobe Character Animator

Animate in real-time. really..

• automatic lipsyncing and animation of facial features like mouth, eyes, and eyebrows;
• support of real-time animation and live streaming;
• in-app template puppets;
• streamline recording and editing;
• scene snapshots which act like onion-skinning;
• walk cycles, behaviors, breathing, blinking, and other animation options;
• replays, magnets, and more functions.
• Perfect for online education, game streaming, live chat and more.

Pricing plans:

• Free trial – 7 days
• Creative Cloud All Apps – $52.99/month billed annually
• Students and teachers – $19.99/month billed annually
• Business – from $33.99/month billed annually

If you are interested in the software, check out these  16 Tutorials to Learn Adobe Character Animator . And if you are ready to go with the software – grab these free Character Animator Puppets .

2. Cartoon Animator 4 (formerly CrazyTalk Animator 3)

Professional 2d creativity and animation design.

Cartoon Animator 4 is software for all levels of users – suitable for beginners as well as professionals who want to create engaging high-quality animations.

The software allows you to create custom 2D characters, choose characters from the huge database, and import PSD character templates.  You can easily make any static image move by applying different motion templates provided in the library, even 3D motions.

The software also comes with a bone rigging tool, and supports audio lip-syncing, facial detection, and many more simple and advanced features, depending on the edition you are using. Pretty much, Cartoon Animator 4 allows you to have full control over your 2D characters and create professional animation.

• 4K video support;
• library of pre-made character templates and motion templates;
• tools for creating 2D characters including rigging and bone tools;
• tools for animating characters including elastic and bouncy curve editing, facial free form deformation, audio lip-syncing;
• tools for creating talking heads and employing them on any character;
• easy to import PSD files as character templates, and export them to PSD for graphic editing;
• live facial motion capture – from any angle;
• head driven body movements;
• up to 360 degrees head-turning;
• supports many popular images and video formats;
• plus many more advanced animation features.
• Pro Edition – $99 (+80 motions), discount available
• Pipeline Edition – $248 (+80 motions), discount available
• Special bundle discounts
• Free trial – 30 days

3. Stop Motion Studio

Stop-motion animation software for beginners.

An app perfect for beginners in video making. Stop Motion Studio will help you create amazing 4K stop-motion animations that can easily be mixed with 2D style drawings painted directly onto the image.

With the frame-by-frame editor enriched with super handy features, you have a powerful and affordable app for your device. Stop Motion Studio can be installed on iPhone, iPad, macOS, Android, and Windows , and you can easily open the same project on different devices.

• 4K ultra HD videos;
• runs on iPhone, iPad, macOS, Android, and Windows;
• manual or automatic control of the focus, exposure, ISO, white balance
• DSLR camera support;
• green screen option and background library;
• import of images, audio, video files;
• frame-by-frame view and easy editing;
• grid and onion skinning options;
• connect a remote camera as a second device;
• paint tools, sound effects, magic eraser, and more handy tools.
• for iOS – $4.99
• for Mac – $9.99
• for Android – $4.99
• for Windows – $9.99

4. DigiCel FlipBook

Easy to use and powerful enough to create great 2d animations.

Considered as one of the easiest 2D animation software on the market , DigiCel FlipBook allows you to create traditional frame-by-frame animation. You can draw directly onto the software or scan your paper drawings – it’s completely up to your personal preferences! The software also allows you to create stop motion animations if that’s the type of animation you are looking for. Boosted with very useful features, DigiCel FlipBook is a powerful and easy-to-understand tool for traditional 2D animation.

• shoot and scan your drawings or draw right into the software;
• lipsync support;
• work on one or multiple frames at a time;
• pan, zoom, rotate, blur, dissolve;
• import/export functions, and more;
• runs on macOS and Windows.
• Free version with a watermark
• FlipBook Lite:  $19.99*
• FlipBook Studio:  $49.99*
• FlipBook ProHD:  $99.99*

*promotional offer

5. Moho (Anime Studio) Debut  &  Moho (Anime Studio) Pro

Complete 2d animation software.

While Moho (Anime Studio) Debut is aimed at beginners, even for kids , it includes powerful features that allow you to realize your vision into an animation. The revolutionary tools are combined with an easy-to-understand interface. Once you get the hang of it, you can try the Pro version which is quite more pricy, in fact, but it comes with powerful features that will help you create professional animations.

Features for the Debut version:

• available for Windows and macOS with online or offline activation;
• multilingual support: English, Spanish, French, German, Chinese (Simplified), and Japanese;
• advanced freehand tools;
• advanced bone rigging, plus pin bones;
• tablet support with pen pressure support;
• animated effects for layers and shapes;
• easy to edit and animate brushes;
• support for images and layered PSD;
• keyframe options: additive cycle, stagger, bounce, elastic;
• advanced masking options, auto freeze tool, and more.
• Free trial: 30 days.

Features for the Pro version:

• all features included in the Debut version;
• advanced bone rigging system, plus a Physics engine, Dynamic bones, and Smart bones to control complex movements;
• smart wrap for images and vectors;
• frame by frame capabilities;
• vector tools with bezier handles, plus accurate SVG, AI, and EPS import;
• 4k video export, vector export;
• realistic motion blur;
• easy control of multiple layers and channels, and even more.

6. Toon Boom Harmony

The most powerful software for animation production..

• runs on Windows and macOS;
• advanced vector/bitmap drawing technology;
• advanced palettes and painting tools providing effective control over texture and color;
• a toolset for traditional frame-by-frame animation;
• integrating 3D elements with 2D characters;
• special effects including volume and lighting effects to characters with auto toning;
• different camera angles and control over the composition;
• cut-out animation with master controllers;
• integration with other software: multilayer PSD and PSB files, Illustrator, PDF, bitmaps, audio;
• easy export to game engines.
• Harmony Essentials: $25.50 per month or $209 annual subscription
• Harmony Advanced: $64.50 per month or $500 annual subscription
• Harmony Premium: $117.50 per month or $954 annual subscription
• Free trial: 21 days.

Open-source & Free animation software… To test the waters!

A selection of free animation software for beginners and not only! These completely free software products allow coding gurus from around the globe to contribute and enrich them with even more powerful features. The listed software options are some of the best ones to start learning animating. The suggestions include software for 3D animation, software for traditional 2D frame-by-frame animation, as well as software for Flash-style animations.

8. Pencil2D

Light and easy to use tool for 2d hand-drawn animations.

If you are into traditional hand-drawn animation , then maybe Pencil 2D is a great software to start your animation project. This free software lets you use both raster and vector graphics and you can switch easily between the two types of artwork. Pencil 2D is a cross-platform tool and lets you focus on animating even when you are on the go. Since the software is completely free and open-source, users can have access to the source code and add features.

• runs on Windows, Mac OSX, Linux & Free BSD
• supports raster and vector images;
• includes various handy tools;
• includes distortion and light effects;
• import/export as a GIF is available;

9. Synfig Studio

Open-source 2d animation software.

Very easy for those of you who have worked with Flash and are looking for a similar animation software instead of frame-by-frame animation software. Synfig is based on vectors and allows you full control of editing the vector artwork in the animation. You also have advanced control over your characters, as well as the option to create character puppets.

Luckily, Synfig is 100% free and you can use it on Windows, Linux, and Mac. Since the software is open-source, you also have the option to access the source code.

• full-control vector editing which allows automatic calculation of frames;
• a variety of over 50 layer types including geometric, gradients, filters, distortions, transformations, etc.;
• control over your character by using a bone system and complex deformations;
• advanced controls for creating character puppets and other dynamic structures.

Online video animation tools… To create videos in seconds!

Maybe becoming a professional animator isn’t a part of your plan and you just want to create quick animations, let’s say, for your brand. There are many great tools available on the web that will help you realize your ideas.

10. Animaker

World’s largest animated library.

Animaker is an online tool for animation that offers plans for all kinds of users – from beginners to enterprises. Each version comes loaded with features and assets to help users create amazing animated videos in a diversity of styles. With Animaker, you can create 2D and 2.5D videos, animated infographic videos, handcraft videos, whiteboard videos, typography animations, and more.

• 6 styles of videos: 2D, 2.5D, infographics, handcraft, whiteboard, typography;
• horizontal and vertical video layouts;
• full HD video support;
• animated infographic maker with over 100 charts, 1000 icons, and 3000 maps;
• advanced features for animation such as record, multimove, curve, camera in and out, transition effects, enter/exit effects;
• a deck feature allowing you to use the animation as a video or an animated presentation;
• audio features: text-to-speech, background music tracks, sound effects, voice recording, plus the option to import your custom sounds;
• a library of pre-designed templates.
• Basic – $10 per month billed annually
• Starter – $19 per month billed annually
• Pro – $45 per month billed annually
• Enterprise – you have to contact Sales

The easiest way to create  professional animated videos.

Vyond Studio offers an online animation-making tool suitable for people of all skill levels to make great professional animations including explainer videos, whiteboard videos, and more kinds of animated videos. Enriched with handy features, this online tool for video animation allows you to build animations based on characters, make engaging data visualizations, and more.

• a convenient drag-and-drop tool;
• a rich library with pre-built templates and assets;
• import images and MP4s;
• an array of enter and exit effects for static images;
• automatic lip-syncing;
• a library of characters available for full customization;
• camera tool – pan zooms and camera angles;
• team collaboration.
• Free trial – 14 days
• Essential –  $299 per year
• Premium – $649 per year
• Professional – $999 per year
• Enterprise – contact Sales

A cool online tool for creating animated videos for different purposes: social media, advertising, explainer videos, whiteboard videos, presentations, and more. The tool is perfect for users of all levels , as well as big and small businesses. Easy to work with, Moovly provides a library of templates, as well as images, video, and audio files to choose from.

• user-friendly drag and drop interface;
• a library of templates, images, video clips, and sound files;
• upload your own media easily
• download and sharing options
• Pro – $24.92/month billed annually
• Max – $49.92/month billed annually
• Enterprise – custom pricing

Bonus software:  Wideo

Online animation software for all levels of users.

A great online tool for animation that doesn’t require any previous experience in animating. With Wideo, you can create animated videos for different purposes: explainer videos, data videos, promotional videos, animated presentations, videos for e-commerce, business, real estate, and more.

To help you get started easily, the guys from Wideo have provided very useful  lessons  for beginners that explain the basics of working with the tool.

• HD and full HD support;
• a library of scene templates suitable for videos for all kinds for purposes;
• a library of graphic assets;
• music soundtracks;
• video length and storage capacity depending on your plan;
• YouTube upload, and more.
• Basic – $19/month billed annually
• Pro – $39/month billed annually
• Enterprise – $79/month billed annually

Ready to make your first video animation?

We hope we’ve been helpful with this selection of animation software for beginners. The good thing is, that all software products offer free versions or free trials. So, you will be able to try before you buy.

Have a favorite animation software for beginners that are not listed on this page? It would be awesome if you share it with us in the comments below.

You may also be interested to continue with:

•   The Best YouTube Thumbnail Makers For Great Video Thumbnails
• Animation Trends in 2022
• How to Learn Animation At Home: Beginner’s Guide

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Iveta Pavlova

Iveta is a passionate writer at GraphicMama who has been writing for the brand ever since the blog was launched. She keeps her focus on inspiring people and giving insight on topics like graphic design, illustrations, education, business, marketing, and more.

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