Among the many design tools available today, Procreate has distinguished itself as an accessible, powerful, and creative option for digital artists using the iPad. Whether you’re a professional illustrator or a hobbyist doodler, the question inevitably arises: is Procreate worth the price? In a marketplace flooded with subscription models and costly design software, understanding what you get for your money is key to making the right investment.
TLDR: Procreate is a one-time purchase app for $12.99, offering an exceptional range of professional features for digital illustration, painting, and animation. With no hidden subscriptions or extra fees, it has become a favorite among artists of all levels. It brings desktop-class tools to the iPad in a highly intuitive format. For its price point, Procreate delivers excellent value, especially when compared to subscription-based alternatives.
How Much Does Procreate Cost?
One of Procreate’s most appealing qualities is its affordable, one-time price of $12.99 (as of 2024) on the Apple App Store. This cost covers all features, tools, updates, and future enhancements. Once you purchase the app, there are no in-app purchases, subscriptions, or hidden fees.
In comparison, competitors like Adobe Photoshop or Adobe Fresco operate under a monthly subscription plan, often costing anywhere from $9.99 to $20.99 per month. Over a year, this adds up to well over $100—significantly more than Procreate’s one-time price.
What Do You Get for $12.99?
Procreate packs a surprising amount of power into its compact and affordable package. Here’s what your $12.99 buys you:
- Full range of brushes and tools: Hundreds of pre-installed brushes, with the ability to create and import your own.
- High-resolution canvases: Create detailed artwork with customizable canvas sizes up to 16k by 4k pixels.
- Animation Assist: Simple but powerful tools for creating animation frame-by-frame.
- Layer support: Unlimited layers limited only by your device’s RAM, along with blending modes, clipping masks, and groups.
- Advanced features: Includes perspective guides, symmetry, time-lapse recording, 3D painting, and more.
- Regular updates: Ongoing feature additions and optimizations without extra payment.
Who Is Procreate For?
One of Procreate’s biggest strengths is its accessibility to a wide audience of creators:
- Professional Illustrators: Thanks to fine control over brushes, file formats (like PSD export), and high-resolution outputs.
- Hobbyists and Beginners: Procreate’s intuitive user interface and quick onboarding experience make it beginner-friendly.
- Animators: With its built-in animation tools, Procreate allows for basic frame-by-frame animation workflows.
- Designers and Concept Artists: The wide brush library, layer system, and blending tools appeal to a vast range of digital designers.
If you own an iPad and enjoy creating visual content, it’s likely that Procreate can meet your needs, regardless of your skill level. Moreover, its lack of subscription fees makes it a low-risk, high-reward investment.
System Requirements and Compatibility
To use Procreate, you’ll need:
- An iPad running iPadOS 15.4.1 or later.
- An Apple Pencil (1st or 2nd generation) for precise input and full functionality. While Procreate supports finger drawing, most features shine when paired with an Apple Pencil.
Not all features are available on older iPads, particularly performance-dependent features like 3D painting or larger canvas sizes. It’s recommended to use a relatively recent model (iPad 6th Gen and beyond) for the best experience.
Procreate Compared to Other Apps
To put things in context, here’s how Procreate stacks up against several popular digital art apps:
| App | Price Model | Platform | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Procreate | One-time ($12.99) | iPad (iOS) | All-level Artists |
| Adobe Fresco | Subscription ($9.99/month) | iPad, Windows | Graphic Designers |
| Clip Studio Paint | One-time or Subscription | iPad, Windows, macOS | Comic Artists, Illustrators |
| Affinity Designer | One-time ($19.99–$54.99) | iPad, macOS, Windows | Vector Designers |
Procreate is especially well-suited to painters and illustrators due to its brush engine and performance optimization. If you’re more into vector design or require desktop-level typography support, you may prefer Affinity or another platform. But in terms of raw digital drawing and painting, Procreate leads the charge on iPad.
The Learning Curve
For those new to digital art, Procreate offers a relatively gentle learning curve. The interface is clean and minimal by default, reducing the intimidation factor found in more complex software.
There are also thousands of online tutorials, free resources, and user communities dedicated to helping newcomers master the app. Whether you’re on YouTube, Skillshare, or Reddit, finding help is easy.
Built-in features like the QuickShape tool and gesture shortcuts enhance workflow efficiency once you’re comfortable with basic functions. Over time, users can explore advanced features like custom brush creation, 3D model painting, and color harmonies.
The Case For: Why Procreate Is Worth It
Given everything it includes, Procreate’s $12.99 price tag seems almost too good to be true. Here’s why many consider it a bargain:
- No subscriptions: Pay once, use forever — a welcome break from costly recurring fees.
- Highly optimized for iPad: Procreate takes full advantage of the Apple Pencil and iPad’s GPU, meaning fast rendering with little lag.
- Professional-grade results: Many industry professionals use Procreate to produce commercial-quality work.
- Consistent updates: Developers continuously roll out feature-packed updates at no additional cost.
- Offline functionality: Create without needing an internet connection—a huge plus for travel or studio work.
The Drawbacks to Consider
That said, it’s important to consider a few limitations:
- iPad-only: If you don’t own an iPad, Procreate is simply not an option.
- No vector support: Procreate is designed for raster (pixel-based) graphics—so it’s not ideal for those needing scalable vector files like in Adobe Illustrator.
- Lacks full desktop feature sets: While powerful, it may not replace dedicated software for some commercial workflows like book layout or complex typography.
If these limitations impact your specific needs, an alternative or additional app might be necessary. However, for general and artistic illustration, Procreate remains an exceptional choice.
Final Verdict
So, is Procreate worth the $12.99? Absolutely. Whether you’re just starting out or you’re a seasoned professional, the features, performance, and low cost create immense value for anyone interested in digital illustration or animation. While it may not meet every need, particularly in vector or desktop publishing workflows, it excels at what it was built for: bringing creativity to life on the iPad.
In a time where subscription fatigue is growing, Procreate stands out as a rare gem offering high functionality at a remarkably low cost — all without locking you into monthly payments.
If you already own a compatible iPad and Apple Pencil, downloading Procreate is likely one of the best investments you can make in your creative journey
