Game Development · head to head
Aseprite vs GDevelop
Aseprite
Game Development
Animated sprite editor and pixel art tool
- From
- $19.99/once
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only GDevelop has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Aseprite a one-off purchase with no free tier, only a trial; GDevelop the free tier allows 3 cloud projects and one desktop or Android build per day
- They diverge on capability: Aseprite covers Pixel art tools, GDevelop covers Visual event editor.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Aseprite and GDevelop actually diverge.
Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Game Development).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Aseprite
- Pixel art tools
- Animation timeline
- Onion skinning
- Layers
- Tilemap editor
- Color palettes
- Sprite sheets
- Scripting (Lua)
Only in GDevelop
- Visual event editor
- Drag-and-drop interface
- Physics engine
- Particle effects
- Sprite editor
- Sound editor
- Scene editor
- Extensions support
Both cover
- Local deployment
- Windows support
- Macos support
- Linux support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Aseprite
- Pixel art creation for gamesnot GDevelop
- Frame-by-frame sprite animationnot GDevelop
- Exporting sprite sheets and GIFsnot GDevelop
- Scripting repetitive export tasks through the command linenot GDevelop
GDevelop
- Building 2D games with visual event logic rather than codenot Aseprite
- Exporting one project to web, desktop, Android and iOSnot Aseprite
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Aseprite
- A one-off purchase with no free tier, only a trial
- Deliberately narrow: a pixel art and sprite animation editor rather than a general image editor
- The site does not state supported platforms or licence terms, which are on GitHub instead
GDevelop
- The free tier allows 3 cloud projects and one desktop or Android build per day
- Free accounts get one leaderboard per game
- Publishing to the iOS App Store requires the Gold plan, which caps those exports at 15 a month
- AI credits are metered per tier, from 40 a month on free to 3,000 a week on Pro
Pricing, plan by plan
Aseprite
$19.99/once- License$19.99/once
- Full feature set
- Free updates
- Commercial use
GDevelop
Free- FreeFree
- Full editor
- Cross-platform export
- Asset library
Which should you pick?
Choose Aseprite if
- You need pixel art tools.
- You work on Windows, Macos, Linux.
- You also want animation timeline.
Choose GDevelop if
- You need visual event editor.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android, Web.
- You also want drag-and-drop interface.
Questions people ask
- Is Aseprite or GDevelop better?
- Neither clearly leads. Aseprite starts at $19.99/once and GDevelop at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Aseprite or GDevelop?
- GDevelop has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $19.99/once for Aseprite and Free for GDevelop.
- Does Aseprite or GDevelop run on more platforms?
- Aseprite runs on Windows, Macos, Linux. GDevelop runs on Windows, Macos, Linux, Ios, Android, Web.
- Can I use GDevelop for free?
- Yes. GDevelop has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Aseprite starts at $19.99/once.
- What is Aseprite best used for?
- Aseprite is most often used for pixel art creation for games, frame-by-frame sprite animation, exporting sprite sheets and gifs, scripting repetitive export tasks through the command line. Of those, pixel art creation for games and frame-by-frame sprite animation are not what GDevelop is typically brought in for.
- What can Aseprite do that GDevelop cannot?
- Aseprite covers Pixel art tools, Animation timeline, Onion skinning, Layers. GDevelop covers Visual event editor, Drag-and-drop interface, Physics engine, Particle effects. Both handle Local deployment, Windows support, Macos support, Linux support.