Adobe Animate vs Cavalry
Adobe Animate and Cavalry side by side, as of September 2026: what each one costs, what it's made for, and when smooth.video, a free animation tool that runs in your browser with no account, does the job instead.
- Free
- No signup
- No watermark
Adobe Animate vs Cavalry at a glance
| Adobe Animate | Cavalry | smooth.video | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | US$22.99 a month on an annual plan, 7-day free trial | Free for individuals | Free, no paid plan |
| Install | Desktop app for Windows and macOS | Desktop app for Mac and Windows | Nothing, runs in the browser |
| Account | Adobe account required | Canva account required | Not needed |
| How you animate | Frame-by-frame drawing, tweens, bone rigging | Keyframes plus procedural tools: duplicators, falloffs, behaviors | Presets and keyframes on one timeline |
- Price
- Adobe AnimateUS$22.99 a month on an annual plan, 7-day free trial
- CavalryFree for individuals
- smooth.videoFree, no paid plan
- Install
- Adobe AnimateDesktop app for Windows and macOS
- CavalryDesktop app for Mac and Windows
- smooth.videoNothing, runs in the browser
- Account
- Adobe AnimateAdobe account required
- CavalryCanva account required
- smooth.videoNot needed
- How you animate
- Adobe AnimateFrame-by-frame drawing, tweens, bone rigging
- CavalryKeyframes plus procedural tools: duplicators, falloffs, behaviors
- smooth.videoPresets and keyframes on one timeline
As of September 2026. Plans change, so check those of Adobe Animate and Cavalry before you decide.
Adobe Animate
- Development
- Maintenance mode: fixes, no new features
- Interactive output
- HTML5 Canvas, WebGL, SVG, sprite sheets
- Photoshop files
- PSD and Illustrator layers imported
When Adobe Animate fits better
You draw frame by frame, rig characters with bones, or deliver interactive HTML5 Canvas content, games or sprite sheets. smooth.video has no frame-by-frame drawing, no bones and no HTML5 output.
Adobe Animate vs smooth.videoCavalry
- Transparent video
- WebM, ProRes 4444, plus APNG, GIF and WebP
- Animation driven by spreadsheets
- Yes
- Rigging, dynamics, scripting
- Yes
- Lottie and SVG export
- Yes
When Cavalry fits better
You build complex motion design: hundreds of shapes driven by one rig, charts animated from a spreadsheet, dynamics, scripts, or Lottie and ProRes deliverables. smooth.video has none of that.
Cavalry vs smooth.videoWhen smooth.video fits better
You used Animate for banners, animated logos or social posts, you'd rather not pay for a tool that no longer gets new features, and your animation is made of text, images and shapes that move rather than drawings.
You need an animated title, a logo reveal or a social post today, on any computer, including one where you can't install software, and you don't need procedural systems to get there.
Open the editor- Free, full stop
- No plan, no trial, no credits, no export limit.
- No account
- Open the page and the editor is already there.
- Nothing is uploaded
- Your files are read and rendered by your own browser.
- No watermark
- Every export is clean, at any size, 4K included.
Start from a template
See all 203 templatesOpen one, change the words, export. Every element stays editable.
Questions
Is Adobe Animate discontinued?
No. Adobe announced its end in February 2026 and reversed the decision the next day: Animate stays available, with security and bug fixes but no new features.
Can I open .fla files?
No. Export your artwork from Animate as PNG images, then animate them in smooth.video.
Can I make HTML5 banner ads?
Not as HTML5: smooth.video exports video, GIF and images. Where an ad slot takes a GIF or an MP4, a banner made here works.
Can I animate a chart from a spreadsheet?
No. In smooth.video a chart is built from shapes, and its numbers are texts you type, which can count up as they appear. That suits a handful of figures; for charts built from real data, Cavalry is the better fit.
Can I open Cavalry projects?
No. smooth.video opens its own .smooth files and imports images, video, audio and layered PSD files.
Do I need to install anything?
No. The editor and every export run in your browser.
Or skip the decision.
smooth.video is free, opens in a tab and exports without a watermark. Try it while you compare.
Open the editor- Free
- No signup
- No watermark