Adobe Animate vs FlipaClip

Adobe Animate and FlipaClip 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.

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Adobe Animate vs FlipaClip at a glance

Price
Adobe AnimateUS$22.99 a month on an annual plan, 7-day free trial
FlipaClipFree with ads, FlipaClip Plus to remove them
smooth.videoFree, no paid plan
Account
Adobe AnimateAdobe account required
FlipaClipNot needed
smooth.videoNot needed
How you animate
Adobe AnimateFrame-by-frame drawing, tweens, bone rigging
FlipaClipFrame by frame: draw every frame, with onion skin
smooth.videoPresets and keyframes on one timeline

As of September 2026. Plans change, so check those of Adobe Animate and FlipaClip before you decide.

Adobe Animate

Install
Desktop app for Windows and macOS
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.video

FlipaClip

Watermark
On the free version
Platform
iPhone, iPad, Android, Chromebook and Apple silicon Macs
Drawing
Brushes, layers and stylus support
Export size
Up to 1920×1920 with Plus
Transparent export
GIF and PNG sequence

When FlipaClip fits better

You want to draw: a character that walks, a flipbook, a rotoscoped clip, frame after frame with a stylus and onion skin. smooth.video has no frame-by-frame drawing.

FlipaClip vs smooth.video

When 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're on a computer, and your animation is things that move rather than drawings that change: a title, a logo, a sticker, a photo, a character cut into pieces that slide and turn.

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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 templates

Open one, change the words, export. Every element stays editable.

Logo reveal

1080×1080

A name that pops into place

Bold statement

1080×1920

Three lines, one point

Count-up stat

1080×1080

A number that climbs

Lower third

1920×1080

Name and title, on cue

Quote card

1200×630

A line worth sharing

Product drop

1080×1350

An announcement that lands

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.

Is there a FlipaClip for PC?

FlipaClip is made for phones, tablets, Chromebooks and Apple silicon Macs, with no official web or Windows version. smooth.video runs in a recent browser, on Windows too.

Can I draw in smooth.video?

Yes, with a simple brush: the drawing becomes an image you can move, scale, rotate and fade. You can't draw a different picture on every frame.

Is there a watermark?

No, and there are no ads.

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