3D Builder provides everything you need to make 3D content printable. Clean up objects by smoothing and simplifying. Automatically repair objects so you can print them. Use the 3D Scan app to scan yourself in full color. FreeCAD is a best alternative for AutoDesk Inventor 3D model software. Its an open-source and highly extensible free 3D CAD tool and its series of features and can even compare with commercial software like Inventor. Moreover, due to the modular architectures this software invaluable in many 3D modelling industries like WoodWorking. Read: Best Floor Plan Apps for Android and iOS. Best Furniture Design Software 1. SketchUp is a very user-friendly and feature-rich 3D design software. Though not a dedicated furniture design software, it is pretty good a designing the furniture. In fact, this is the software I used to design my own desk.
Artists and illustrators have a new super-tool in their arsenal - Drawing Apps. Tech-savvy creatives are making the switch from paper to digital and reaping the benefits that drawing apps and art apps offer - powerful drawing tools, special effects, the ability to create vectors or raster images, and even 3D models.
There are a ton of drawing apps, art apps, painting apps, and sketch apps available now to creatives, each with their own USP. Some excel in vector drawings, others in graphic illustrations. There are dedicated apps for image manipulation, mimicking hand drawing, and 3d modeling. While several apps come only in paid versions, there are plenty of free drawing apps available as well.
What are the best drawing apps?
Here is a list of the best drawing apps and art apps in 2020 to express your ideas as digital art.
Adobe Photoshop
No list of creative apps would be complete without listing offerings from Adobe. Adobe has led the pack for decades, and Adobe Photoshop is still the professional's choice for raster art creation. Photoshop is one of the best drawing apps for Mac and PC; they also provide accessory apps for mobile devices and tablets.
The biggest drawback of Adobe's offerings, especially for beginners, is that you now must purchase a subscription to use these apps. For established pros with stable cash flow, this presents a little problem, but for aspiring amateurs and beginners, there are plenty of apps that offer good functionality at a fraction of the cost.
Adobe Photoshop Sketch
If you're looking for an app that combines the ease and simplicity of drawing on your mobile device with the power of Adobe Photoshop, check out Photoshop Sketch. When combined with your Adobe Creative Cloud subscription, Photoshop Sketch allows you to fine-tune images created on your tablet later on your computer.
Adobe Illustrator
Just as Photoshop is the industry standard for raster pictures, Illustrator is the go-to for vector art. Illustrator is used to creating everything from basic graphic design tasks like logos to elaborate and beautiful landscapes and portrait photos. With a little practice, you can make nearly anything into a vector in Illustrator.
Adobe Illustrator Draw
Similar to Photoshop Sketch, but for vector drawing, Illustrator Draw allows you to create vector drawings on the go easily. You can then save them to your creative cloud account and fine-tune them in the full program later. Both Photoshop Sketch and Illustrator Draw are free downloads, but if you want to export the images for later editing, you'll need a Creative Cloud subscription.
Autodesk Sketchbook
Sketchbook from Autodesk is one of the most robust raster drawing programs you will find. Compared to Photoshop, Sketch is a purpose-built platform for artists on the go. It's not meant for photo editing or other tasks, so the program focuses on just what you need to draw on your tablet easily. The program is available for Macs, PCs, iOS, and Android devices. Unlike many apps that stick to proprietary or generic formats, Sketchbook conveniently has the option to export to Photoshop PSD format with layers intact. The best part? Autodesk has now released the full-featured drawing program for free.
Art Apps With 3d Model
Astropad Studio
The Astropad Studio is a different sort of app that can be a great help to folks looking to create digital drawings. For Mac and iPad users, Studio allows you to connect your iPad wirelessly to your desktop and use it as if it were a drawing tablet. The interface is pretty smooth, but make sure you have a clean system with plenty of free memory to avoid lag. You'll also want a great stylus like the Apple Pencil.
Affinity Designer
The Affinity set of art apps is poised to take a significant bite out of Adobe's market share. These programs are full-featured to the point of having things you have to buy aftermarket in Adobe. Designer is Affinity's answer to Illustrator. It is a desktop vector art program with every feature you could ever want. Designer is available for Mac desktop or iPad.
Affinity Photo for iPad
Affinity is also ready to answer your raster art needs. Photo by Affinity is analogous to Photoshop. Its user interface is a bit smoother, however, with cleaver skin changes based on the type of task you're looking to complete.
Both Affinity apps are inexpensive when compared to Photoshop and Illustrator. If you're looking for a great program to learn photo editing or raster drawing with, look no further than Photo and Photo for iPad.
Inspire Pro
For all the painters out there, Inspire Pro turns your iPad into the ultimate painting canvas. This is one of those simple raster drawing apps that can produce some really fantastic artwork thanks to super realistic brushes and massive canvas sizes. You can download Inspire Pro from the Apple App Store.
MediBang Paint
A few key features make Medibang's apps the best drawing app for some artists. The app is available on any platform you can think of, from Windows and Mac desktops to Apple and Android tablets. They all have a cloud feature, which allows you to easily store, share, and open your work from any device. This is one of the free drawing apps you really should check out if you want to start drawing today easily and cheaply.
Procreate
Procreate is an iOS-only app designed to fully harness the power of Apple's popular iPad Pro and Apple Pencil combination. More than just a drawing app, Procreate combines many of the powerful tools you'd expect to find in a much more robust program like Photoshop. Layers, custom brushes, and all sorts of special effects are available on your tablet. You can export images, with intact layers, straight to PSD format to open in Photoshop. For on-the-go art, check out their iPhone version as well.
Zen Brush 2
Zen Brush is a simple ink brush app for mobile devices. Of the drawing apps for free, it's super inexpensive and fun to use, but it is pretty limited. But then, ink and paper are pretty limited too, but that hasn't stopped artists from making amazing artworks with them for the last thousand years.
Pixelmator Pro
Pixelmator Pro is a Mac OS app that combines many features and functions of other apps all into one tidy app. Pixelmator features many of the best features for drawing and the standard photo editing functions of other editors. It also features a 'layouting' mode for publishing and graphic design work. Their iOS app for mobile is really more of a photo editor rather than an art app.
Assembly
Those in the graphic design world know that there's a lot more to digital art creation beyond hand sketching. Illustrator and other vector programs use shapes to 'assemble' designs, and this is the idea beyond the Assembly app. By simplifying this process, the app allows users to create logos and design elements with ease quickly. Assembly is made for iOS devices.
Graphic
Formerly iDraw, Graphic is a full-featured vector design program for Mac, iPhone, or iPad. The program has all of the features of its more popular competitors, and it allows for the creation of anything from portraits to technical layout and CAD style drawings.
Inkist
Inkist is a super basic drawing app that is available for Mac computers and iOS devices. The mobile app is currently free. It's not flashy, but it has all the right features to make your artwork pop.
ArtStudio
Luckyclan's ArtStudio is a full-featured raster art app for iPad or iPhone. It features multiple canvas sizes, layers with masks, over 400 brushes, unlimited undo/redo, and even over 40 filters.
Pixaki
Rizer's Pixaki has a bit of a limited audience, but if you're into pixel art, you're going to love it. Export your creations to GIFs and other simple animation formations. The program can open and save to all the popular formats, including Photoshop, PNGs, and ZIP archives. Start with a sketch or photo, and soon you are rocking it retro style like it's 1990.
Infinite Painter
Available on Google Play for Android tablets, Painter is a user-friendly drawing app that you'll love. Organized workflows make navigating the screen easy and keep the workspace less cluttered. Powerful tools like 3D rendering and over 80 brushes make this one of the best full-featured art apps for Android devices.
ArtRage
If you're looking for great drawing apps that can work on nearly any computer or tablet, you've got to check out ArtRage. ArtRage is available in multiple versions, including their free drawing apps called ArtRage Lite for Windows and Mac computers. This program and a loyal following of users, with many fantastic tutorials and inspiration available from other artists.
Concepts
The Concepts App is an interesting program aimed at professional designers that work on Apple, Windows, and Google devices. It uses vector drawings to store ideas; it is very much like a pocket notebook that has gone entirely digital. From brainstorm to 'exploring happy accidents,' as the company puts it, to rendering captivating color illustrations and sharing them with the built-in presentation mode, Concepts has your creative brain covered.
Comic Draw
If drawing comics is your beat, Comic Draw is worth checking out. The app is tailor-made for creating single-panel cartoons on your mobile device. You can pair it with the company's Comic Life app for desktop on either Windows or Mac. Put your frames together into a full-featured comic spread with these art apps.
Paper by Wetransfer
If you're looking for a doodle and sketchbook app to collate your ideas and let your creativity go on a walkabout, you'll love this app. One of the best free drawing apps we know of, it's super simple and yet powerful. With a simple toolset and a blank page, let your mind go creative on Paper.
Tayasui Sketches
Available for Mac desktop, iOS mobile devices, and Android, Tayasui's Sketches app is an artist favorite for many reasons. The user interface and app functions are some of the smoothest on the list. The clean look of the sketch space can't be beaten. Color blending and gradient tools, along with patterns and the most realistic brushes you can find, round out this fantastic app. Not many free drawing apps offer so many great features. If you really like what you see inside of Sketches, there is an upgraded Pro version available with even more brushes and tools. The community is an excellent source of both advice and examples.
Sketch Club
As the name suggests, one of the best parts of Sketch Club is the club. The first rule of sketch club: everyone talks about Sketch Club. Combining social media inside the app, you can share your creations and comment on others. Who doesn't love browsing an art gallery on your tablet? The community features daily themed challenges and lots of featured artists whose works you can browse for inspiration. The Sketch Club app is available for Apple iOS in the App Store.
Artflow
If your Android tablet isn't feeling the love with all of these iPad apps in the running, don't lose heart. Artflow is a beautiful drawing app for Android that features a clean user interface and lots of pro features like layers and custom brushes. It is the perfect drawing and painting app to create paint your dream.
Art Set 4
Art Set app for Ipad features tools that look very similar to ones in real life. Art Set 4 is the redesigned and upgraded version of Art Set with more advanced tools for digital painting. This paint program now also has a 3D paint feature along with a workspace that adjusts according to your needs. Although it is a free drawing app for iPad, the pro version gives a ton of features that are essential like setting canvas size of any resolution, auto backup, layers, and 150 more brushes than the free version.
iPastels
This app also features pastel tools which give the feel of real pastels. You can also blend colors on the app using your fingers. iPastels is a free drawing app which is especially useful when you want something to improve your skills when you are in the early stages of your learning. This iPad Pro drawing app has features like layers, apple pencil support, high accuracy which is done by 'floating point accuracy.' The blending of pastels also can be done without much effort in this art drawing app. One unique feature of this easy drawing app is that you can show the pictures as tiles alongside each other; this feature is called the seamless pattern editing mode. Don't have an iPad? Don't worry, iPastels is also a drawing app for the iPhone.
Brushes Redux
Brushes Redux is a free open source painting app which is used both on iPad and iPhone and the work syncs between the two. Other features of this iOS app are the ability to autosave, unlimited undo and redo, adding layers among others. This digital drawing app is quick and easy to use with OpenGL based painting engine and offers 64-bit paint. On their 3.2 version of the app, they are now providing experimental apple pencil support and started the iTunes file sharing option.
Clip Studio Paint EX
If you are looking for an iPad drawing app that has dedicated tools to create manga and comics, this might be the perfect app for you. Not only this, but you can also do illustration, drawing, and painting on this art app. To get six months free subscription a user has to sign up for the EX version of the app. This online drawing app is specially designed for professionals as it has a different exporting option like a movie or animated GIF's, it supports apple pencil, and Wacom bamboo sketch. One can draw moving illustrations as well in this drawing app for iPad.
uMake
An award-winning app, uMake is an iPad Pro drawing app for 3D design. Its website claims that uMake is the first 3D design app created for iPad. This 3D modeling and design app gives the features of desktop CAD software on the iPad. An excellent tool for those who are learning 3D modeling and the ability to do so on iPad opens the door for more creative work on the go. They also provide video tutorials on different topics so that it gets easier to learn how to use the app and to create desired results. Some of their best features are 3D tools to pull and push, augmented reality features, and complex surface creation making it one of the best drawing apps for iPad pro. They offer a 14-day trial and then you can subscribe monthly, quarterly, or yearly based on your requirement.
Paper Colour (Paint Draw Sketchbook, Paint Draw)
This android drawing app is suitable for those who want to learn drawing or painting. It has a feature called basemap which helps a user to set a photo as translucent and draw over it. This Android painting app is very similar to someone tracing on a paper and drawing over the original. This free app is suitable is more amateurs and has additional features on the pro version which can is through in-app purchases.
ibisPaint X
ibis Paint is the of the best drawing apps for Android out there. It has some unique features like recording your drawing as video, and SNS features where you can see and learn from videos other users have made. Other features like fast open GL technology, 142 brushes, 37 filters, and 700 fonts makes it an obvious choice for people looking for an android drawing app with lots of plus points. Apart from this, there are separate features for those artists who are interested in creating manga. To get more features like lesser ads, additional fonts, and materials, gradation map filter, etc. one has to purchase through in-app purchases.
Dotpict
Dotpict drawing free app is available on Android, iPhone, and iPad. This drawing app is only designed to create pixel art. Some features of the dotpict app are different sharing and exporting options, zoom of canvas to see fine details, and display of grids among others.
RoughAnimator
As the name says, RoughAnimator is used to create animations. RoughAnimator drawing app lets you create hand-drawn frame by frame animations on multiple kinds of devices like Android, iOS, and desktop as well. Art apps for pc. This animation app offers essential features like unlimited layers, onion skinning, audio, and video import, apple pencil and Wacom stylus support, and more but at a price. What better way to start learning animation on your mobile?
Sketch by Sony
Sketch by Sony is a simple Android and iOS sketching app in which brushes and other tools are used to create digital art. The drawing can be done using a finger or a stylus, and the user can create layers in this application. Sony has provided a big community in this app where people can explore other works and showcase their work as well. One can also personalize their feed and collaborate with other artists to create new work. The in-app purchases can access some additional features.
If drawing comics is your beat, Comic Draw is worth checking out. The app is tailor-made for creating single-panel cartoons on your mobile device. You can pair it with the company's Comic Life app for desktop on either Windows or Mac. Put your frames together into a full-featured comic spread with these art apps.
Paper by Wetransfer
If you're looking for a doodle and sketchbook app to collate your ideas and let your creativity go on a walkabout, you'll love this app. One of the best free drawing apps we know of, it's super simple and yet powerful. With a simple toolset and a blank page, let your mind go creative on Paper.
Tayasui Sketches
Available for Mac desktop, iOS mobile devices, and Android, Tayasui's Sketches app is an artist favorite for many reasons. The user interface and app functions are some of the smoothest on the list. The clean look of the sketch space can't be beaten. Color blending and gradient tools, along with patterns and the most realistic brushes you can find, round out this fantastic app. Not many free drawing apps offer so many great features. If you really like what you see inside of Sketches, there is an upgraded Pro version available with even more brushes and tools. The community is an excellent source of both advice and examples.
Sketch Club
As the name suggests, one of the best parts of Sketch Club is the club. The first rule of sketch club: everyone talks about Sketch Club. Combining social media inside the app, you can share your creations and comment on others. Who doesn't love browsing an art gallery on your tablet? The community features daily themed challenges and lots of featured artists whose works you can browse for inspiration. The Sketch Club app is available for Apple iOS in the App Store.
Artflow
If your Android tablet isn't feeling the love with all of these iPad apps in the running, don't lose heart. Artflow is a beautiful drawing app for Android that features a clean user interface and lots of pro features like layers and custom brushes. It is the perfect drawing and painting app to create paint your dream.
Art Set 4
Art Set app for Ipad features tools that look very similar to ones in real life. Art Set 4 is the redesigned and upgraded version of Art Set with more advanced tools for digital painting. This paint program now also has a 3D paint feature along with a workspace that adjusts according to your needs. Although it is a free drawing app for iPad, the pro version gives a ton of features that are essential like setting canvas size of any resolution, auto backup, layers, and 150 more brushes than the free version.
iPastels
This app also features pastel tools which give the feel of real pastels. You can also blend colors on the app using your fingers. iPastels is a free drawing app which is especially useful when you want something to improve your skills when you are in the early stages of your learning. This iPad Pro drawing app has features like layers, apple pencil support, high accuracy which is done by 'floating point accuracy.' The blending of pastels also can be done without much effort in this art drawing app. One unique feature of this easy drawing app is that you can show the pictures as tiles alongside each other; this feature is called the seamless pattern editing mode. Don't have an iPad? Don't worry, iPastels is also a drawing app for the iPhone.
Brushes Redux
Brushes Redux is a free open source painting app which is used both on iPad and iPhone and the work syncs between the two. Other features of this iOS app are the ability to autosave, unlimited undo and redo, adding layers among others. This digital drawing app is quick and easy to use with OpenGL based painting engine and offers 64-bit paint. On their 3.2 version of the app, they are now providing experimental apple pencil support and started the iTunes file sharing option.
Clip Studio Paint EX
If you are looking for an iPad drawing app that has dedicated tools to create manga and comics, this might be the perfect app for you. Not only this, but you can also do illustration, drawing, and painting on this art app. To get six months free subscription a user has to sign up for the EX version of the app. This online drawing app is specially designed for professionals as it has a different exporting option like a movie or animated GIF's, it supports apple pencil, and Wacom bamboo sketch. One can draw moving illustrations as well in this drawing app for iPad.
uMake
An award-winning app, uMake is an iPad Pro drawing app for 3D design. Its website claims that uMake is the first 3D design app created for iPad. This 3D modeling and design app gives the features of desktop CAD software on the iPad. An excellent tool for those who are learning 3D modeling and the ability to do so on iPad opens the door for more creative work on the go. They also provide video tutorials on different topics so that it gets easier to learn how to use the app and to create desired results. Some of their best features are 3D tools to pull and push, augmented reality features, and complex surface creation making it one of the best drawing apps for iPad pro. They offer a 14-day trial and then you can subscribe monthly, quarterly, or yearly based on your requirement.
Paper Colour (Paint Draw Sketchbook, Paint Draw)
This android drawing app is suitable for those who want to learn drawing or painting. It has a feature called basemap which helps a user to set a photo as translucent and draw over it. This Android painting app is very similar to someone tracing on a paper and drawing over the original. This free app is suitable is more amateurs and has additional features on the pro version which can is through in-app purchases.
ibisPaint X
ibis Paint is the of the best drawing apps for Android out there. It has some unique features like recording your drawing as video, and SNS features where you can see and learn from videos other users have made. Other features like fast open GL technology, 142 brushes, 37 filters, and 700 fonts makes it an obvious choice for people looking for an android drawing app with lots of plus points. Apart from this, there are separate features for those artists who are interested in creating manga. To get more features like lesser ads, additional fonts, and materials, gradation map filter, etc. one has to purchase through in-app purchases.
Dotpict
Dotpict drawing free app is available on Android, iPhone, and iPad. This drawing app is only designed to create pixel art. Some features of the dotpict app are different sharing and exporting options, zoom of canvas to see fine details, and display of grids among others.
RoughAnimator
As the name says, RoughAnimator is used to create animations. RoughAnimator drawing app lets you create hand-drawn frame by frame animations on multiple kinds of devices like Android, iOS, and desktop as well. Art apps for pc. This animation app offers essential features like unlimited layers, onion skinning, audio, and video import, apple pencil and Wacom stylus support, and more but at a price. What better way to start learning animation on your mobile?
Sketch by Sony
Sketch by Sony is a simple Android and iOS sketching app in which brushes and other tools are used to create digital art. The drawing can be done using a finger or a stylus, and the user can create layers in this application. Sony has provided a big community in this app where people can explore other works and showcase their work as well. One can also personalize their feed and collaborate with other artists to create new work. The in-app purchases can access some additional features.
Pigment
Pigment describes itself as adult coloring app, but it looks like kids will also have a lot of fun with it. It is an app to color already drawn pages by professionals and many exclusively by Disney. There are more than 4000 pages to choose from and its drawing tools like pencils, markers, and paintbrushes give you the feeling like you are using natural colors and tools. There are unlimited colors to choose from the color wheel, sounds fun right? To get features like premium brushes and the entire library you have to subscribe to the premium version.
Hexagon
Hexagon is a software for creating 3D models. It has all the tools a graphic artist would need. Some of the outstanding features are DAZ Studio Bridge, freehand modeling brushes, micro displacement modeling tools, comprehensive UV mapping modules, and more. In Hexagon, you can see real-time shadows and instant ambient occlusion. With this modeling software, you can create 3D models for game development in high quality.
Sculptris
An excellent platform for someone who wants to make a foray into the world of 3D drawing. With Sculptris, you can create base models which can then be refined in other software like ZBrush. The 3D software can locally redefine the internal structure of the model you are working with. Sculptris has tools that will make you feel like you are working with real clay. You can also paint a wrapped texture on the mesh surface with this software. (Please note that sculptris was last updated in 2011 and may not function in newer systems) Roblox game app.
Blender
Blender is an open-source, free 3D software, which supports modeling, rigging, animation, simulation, rendering, composition, and motion tracking, editing video, and 2D animation pipeline. Developed by experts from multiple fields around the world, Blender has a built-in powerful path-trace engine that offers real results. It has advanced sculpting and other tools through which you can create and transform the models with ease. Blender has a flexible interface in which you can adjust the layout, colors, fonts, etc. There are a lot of add-ons created by users that can be used by anyone using the software.
ZBrush
ZBrush is one of the best software for digital sculpting. With the customizable brushes, you can create shapes, textures, and paint virtual clay. The advanced tools offered by ZBrush is the same as the tools used by designers and artists worldwide. The software has a Non-Photorealistic Rendering (NPR), which enables you to see the artwork in a whole new way. You can convert the 3D artwork into 2D drawing and transfer the sculpted artwork into a comic book. Through ZBrush, you can add overlaying textures, draw outlines, and apply various effects from built-in presets.
Krita
Krita is an open-source painting program, made by artists to provide affordable art tools. This free painting app can be used to create conceptual art, texture and matte, illustration, and comics. Krita, designed for both amateurs and professionals, provides an intuitive interface. This interface can be customized according to your workflow. The dynamic brush tool in Krita can be used to create drag and mass and you can smoothen and stabilize your brush strokes. There are more than nine different brush engines like color smudge engine, shape engine and more through which you can customize your brushes, to suit specific requirements.
Aseprite
Aseprite is a program through which you can create 2D animations. Through this program, you can also create sprites, pixel art, retro-style graphics, and everything related to the 8-bit and 16-bit era. Aseptrite can work on Windows, Mac, and Ubuntu. The program can organize layers, create animations, and custom brushes. The work can be saved in GIF, PNG, and JSON format.
Marmoset Hexels 3
Hexels is a grid-based painting, animation, and design program. With Hexels, you can create complex designs and stunning drawings. With the combination of digital art tools and geometric grid, through which you can paint in free form with the precision of vector art. Powerful software for a pixel artist who can keep track of the colors and gradients with the palette. The canvas can be turned into animation, and a sprite sheet can also be exported easily. This program can be used on Windows as well as Mac devices.
Things to consider when choosing a drawing app:
Platform Matters
If you're serious about taking up digital drawing, consider your hardware choices carefully. Ideally, you'll want to sample the exact tablet and computer setup with the stylus of your choice. In short, some are glitchier than others, and creating art requires more finesse than some can deliver.
If possible, consider a tablet with a stylus made by the same manufacturer, for example, the Apple iPad Pro with the Apple Pencil. This ensures the two pair perfectly for the smoothest possible drawing experience. Do check out our list of the best Drawing tablets for Graphics, Art, and Illustration.
Also, look for pressure sensitivity. Different styluses handle the task differently. The feedback provided with pressure sensitivity adds an extra realism that makes drawing on your tablet as close to analog pencil and paper as you can imagine.
As with all apps, be sure to check the operating system used by the app of your choice. The most popular platforms are Windows, macOS, Apple iOS, and Android, and unfortunately, very few apps work on all of them.
Raster vs. Vector Drawing Apps
In the digital world, there are two sorts of images you can draw. Raster images, like JPG or PNG photographs, are drawn pixel by pixel. If you zoom in or enlarge the picture, it will get blurrier and blurrier if it exceeds the pixel size of the image. Think of this as drawing on paper, and you are limited by how large your paper is. You cannot expand the paper size like you cannot expand the pixels. Drawing a raster image is as simple and reasonably intuitive, depending on the app.
Vector drawings solve this problem but unfortunately, add much more complexity. Vector images, like AI or EPS formats, are the world standard in the printing industry. These pictures are made more like computer programs than photographs. In vector drawing applications, you make many paths (lines or shapes) that make up your image. It takes a bit more practice. Some vector apps make the process super simple, but the professional programs with all the bells and whistles take a bit of getting used to.
3D Programs
No discussion of online drawing apps would be complete without a word about three-dimensional drawing apps. If you're looking to create 3D modeling or going for that other-worldly feel that is everywhere, you'll want to make sure to pick the best drawing app that is capable of producing 3D images too. And don't feel left out if you got your drawing apps for free, some of these include 3D rendering also!
Conclusion
App For 3d Drawing
Photos from pc to phone. Now that you have an idea of how many free drawing apps are out there to choose from, you may feel a bit taken back. But remember, the most fun part of finding the best canvas for your project of choice is the adventure of trying them all out! So which do you think is the best drawing app?
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Top 10 (Mobile) 3D Modeling Apps to Design and 3D Print on the Go
3D printing is getting mobile. The options available to create, view or convert your 3D designs from your smartphone or tablet are growing every day with new apps and features. Today we present you with some suggestions for mobile apps that will make your life easier. For students, professionals or enthusiasts, there is a mobile 3D design app for everyone.
3DC.io
This small Estonian start-up has created an easy and extremely intuitive app for 3D design. 3DC has a very simple interface that makes it a good option for beginners or children and young people who want to start designing. This app for 3D design has a focus on education. 3DC.io offers discounts for schools and helps teachers to integrate 3D design in their curriculums.
Features in 3DC are uncomplicated and include a gallery where users can upload their designs or where newbies can get some inspiration, as well as templates to work on. This 3D Mobile app is free but you can upgrade with a monthly or yearly fee. With 3DC.io you can also export your designs to .OBJ to edit them or to .STL to print them. Once you have converted your model to this format, you can easily upload it to i.materialise to print it.
- Ideal for: Beginners, kids and young students
- Available for:Android, iOS, Web and Desktop
- Price: Free
Pro version for $2.99 per month or $14.99 per year - Languages: English, Estonian, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Finnish, Japanese, Russia
3DC.io
Morphi
A mobile app for 3D design with a focus on visualization. You can design your models for 3D printing and place them in the real world thanks to its virtual reality feature. Morphi is designed to be used on iPads. It uses templates and ready-made shapes that can be manipulated with the tools in the app. The idea behind this 3D app, released by a New York start-up called The Inventery, is to democratize 3D design. There are many tutorials and videos available to learn more.
Also focused on education, Morphi App offers licensing discounts for schools, as well as online and offline workshops about 3D printing and virtual and augmented reality.
- Ideal for: Beginners and Schools
- Available for:iPad and Mac, Windows (in beta)
- Price: Free
For a $9.99 single purchase you can access extra features (view designs in AR, export to .STL and .OBJ or import .STL). When buying more than 20 licenses there is a 50% discount. Free 15-day trial - Languages: English
Microsoft 3D Builder
3D Builder is a Microsoft app for 3D modeling and printing. The app has been a standard feature on Windows PC since 2013, and is now also available for Windows 10 Mobile and Xbox. With this app, Windows phone users can view, capture, personalize and print their models from their smartphone.
The mobile 3D Builder app is optimized for a touchscreen interface, making it easier to tweak and repair models on the go. From 3D Builder, users can send their models directly to i.materialise and get professional 3D prints in a variety of finishes and colors. 3D Builder supports many 3D file formats such as 3MF, STL, OBJ, PLY, and WRL.
- Ideal for: Basic modeling and changes
- Available for: Windows 10 Phone
- Price: Free
Umake
Pen and paper meet 3D design with this app for iOS. Umake allows you to turn your sketches and doodles into professional 3D models. This award-winning 3D design tool focuses its efforts on tutorials and weekly video tips. To 3D print the designs, it is possible to export them in OBJ, STEP and IGES format. The pro option offers unlimited exports and imports up to 25MB. Umake is also the most colorful app for 3D modeling! The app has an extensive community where users can share their designs, get inspired and give feedback to each other.
3d Design Apps
- Ideal for: Designers starting on 3D and anybody looking for some fun
- Available for:iOS
- Price: Free
Pro option for $9.99 per month or $99 per year - Languages: English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, Traditional Chinese
Umake
Onshape
Onshape is a complete cloud 3D CAD system that lets members of a team work simultaneously from their browser, phone or tablet. You can 3D print your models on Onshape directly from the web, downloading the i.materialise 3D printing plugin, available on the Onshape browser.
Learn how to install the i.materialise plugin and 3D print with Onshape.
- Ideal for: Professional designers and engineers who work in teams
- Available for:Android, iOS and web
- Price: Free for educative purposes. $125 per month for professional use. Free trial available
- Languages: English, German, Korean, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese
Shapr3D
This is a professional 3D CAD app for iPad, especially created for iPad Pro, which works with an Apple Pencil. On other iIPads Shapr3D works as a CAD file viewer but it's not possible to edit the files.
This mobile app is useful for the first ideation stages of 3D designs. The professional option offers unlimited workspaces, image export and import, export to CAP apps and colors.
- Ideal for: Industrial designers, engineers and creatives.
- Available for: iOS. For iPad Pro
- Pricing: Free
Pro version $8.25 per month when billed yearly
- Language: English
Shapr3D
SketchUp Viewer for Mobile
The mobile app for SketchUp is not here yet, but with this viewer app you can view your 3D models on your phone and tablet.
This app is focused on accessibility, so you can connect the app to storage services like 3D Warehouse, Dropbox, Google Drive, Trimble Connect or email inboxes. With SketchUp Viewer, users can access many different views with section planes, perspective cameras, layer visibility and even an x-ray mode. Beginners who have never worked with this software, can read these tips and tricks for 3D printing with SketchUp.
If you feel generous, it might be good to know that SketchUp goes a step further in its visualization, with a feature for HoloLens. For $1499 you can use the mixed reality feature on your device.
- Ideal for: Professionals who work with SketchUp
- Available for:Android, iOS and Desktop
- Languages: English, Czech, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, Swedish, Traditional Chinese, Turkish
- Price: $9.99
eDrawings
Another option for viewing and sharing 3D files is eDrawings from Solid Works. eDrawings is a professional 2D and 3D CAD collaboration for smartphones and tablets. It's possible to view models in a real context with AR, as well as opening files from cloud storage services. Users can zoom, pan and rotate files with the multi-touch feature.
- Ideal for: Professionals who work with Solid Works
- Available for: Android, iOS, Windows and Mac
- Languages: English
- Price: $9.99
Thingiverse
This is not a 3D design mobile app, but one that can help you turn your ideas into 3D models. Thingiverse is a database for 3D models and designs, perfect for those who don't have the time or skills to create their own 3D designs. Thingiverse has a very active community that offers free .STL files that you can just download and easily print on our platform. With this 3D app for Android you can browse and choose your favorite design from your sofa.
- Ideal for: People who want to 3D print but don't want to design from scratch
- Platform: Android
- Price: Free
- Languages: English
Best 3d Drawing App In Mac
Qlone
We recently explained all you need to know about this 3D scanning mobile app. With Qlone you can easily scan small objects and turn them into 3D models to edit and print. With the integration of i.materialise on the app, you can print your models from your phone. Learn more on how Qlone works and start 3D scanning today.
- Ideal for: Getting inspiration from the real world and turning objects into 3D models to print
- Platform: iOS
- Language: English
- Price: Free
Some payment features on a credit-based system
As you can see, the future of mobile apps for 3D design and 3D printing looks bright, as many apps are still improving and evolving their features.
Creating and editing your models on the go is a great option for curious and creative minds or busy professionals. Once you have tweaked your models, you can export them in .STL or any other compatible file format with i.materialise and upload them to our platform to 3D print.
