pencil2d/pencil
Pencil2D is an easy, intuitive tool to make 2D hand-drawn animations. Pencil2D is open source and cross-platform. observed · 2026-08-28
Health v2 · maintenance only
89/100
- Activity 96
- Release rhythm 74
- Longevity 100
How is this computed?
round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10) — computed 2026-09-03. Adoption (stars, forks) is never an input.
- gap_med: 5
- age_days: 4816
- days_rel: 174
- days_push: 28
- n_releases_24m: 2
Adoption not part of the score
1791 stars · 312 forks observed · 2026-08-28
What it is AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, 2026-08-30, confidence not recorded
Pencil2D is a free, open-source desktop application for creating traditional 2D hand-drawn animations using both bitmap and vector graphics. It features a minimal, lightweight design with tools like onion skinning and a timeline, and runs on Windows, macOS, Linux, and FreeBSD.
Use cases
- make 2d hand-drawn cartoon animations
- draw frame-by-frame animation with onion skinning
- sketch and ink animations in raster and vector
- free alternative to paid 2d animation software
- create traditional animation on linux mac or windows
- teach animation basics to beginners
When to choose
- you want a lightweight, minimal tool focused on traditional frame-by-frame 2D animation
- you need free, open-source software usable even commercially
- you want to switch between bitmap and vector workflows in one app
- you need a cross-platform tool that runs on Windows, macOS, Linux, and FreeBSD
When to avoid
- you need advanced cut-out/rigged character animation like dedicated 2D rigging tools
- you require built-in 3D capabilities or compositing/VFX pipelines
- you need collaborative or cloud-based animation workflows
Facets
application · maturity active
graphics animation image-processing graphics media cross-platform desktop-applications windows bsd cross-platform cpp 2d-animation hand-drawn onion-skinning raster vector drawing cartoon qt5 traditional-animation macos linux desktop
6 sources
- readme: https://github.com/pencil2d/pencil · fetched 2026-08-28 · 9eae3d7d9619
- homepage: http://pencil2d.org · fetched 2026-08-29 · f726c462f528
- site_page: https://www.pencil2d.org/2025/12/windows-installer-available.html · fetched 2026-08-29 · 470c63e63adb
- site_page: https://www.pencil2d.org/doc/faq.html · fetched 2026-08-29 · 5d6d527e8917
- site_page: https://www.pencil2d.org/doc · fetched 2026-08-29 · c78a654cc792
- site_page: https://www.pencil2d.org/2024/10/pencil2d-0.7.0-release.html · fetched 2026-08-29 · 6437c8229212
Member repositories
| Repository | Role | Health v2 |
|---|---|---|
| pencil2d/pencil | main | 89 |
For agents
Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00 · Report a problem