Toon Boom Harmony vs TVPaint Animation

Toon Boom Harmony9.4Visit TATVPaint Animation8.7Visit

Higher score Toon Boom Harmony #1 in 2D Character Animation Software 9.4/10 14-day trial Free trial✓ 0 of 3 features Visit Toon Boom

vs

TA TVPaint Animation #5 in 2D Character Animation Software 8.7/10 Paid ✓ 0 of 3 features Visit TVPaint

• Toon Boom Harmony fits best

  Professional 2D animation teams

• TVPaint Animation fits best

  Raster-focused animation professionals

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Side by side

Feature	Toon Boom Harmony 9.4/10 Visit ↗	TATVPaint Animation 8.7/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score	9.4	8.7
Ranking	#1 in 2D Character Animation Software	#5 in 2D Character Animation Software
Best for	Professional 2D animation teams	Raster-focused animation professionals
Pricing model	Paid	Paid
Starting price	$55.50/user/yr	—
Free plan	—	—
Free trial	14 days	—
Deployment	Desktop	Desktop
Platforms	Windows, macOS, Linux	Windows, macOS, Linux
Support	Community, Docs, Tickets · 24/7	Phone, Tickets, Docs
Built for	Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise	Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise
Features Toon Boom Harmony 0/3 · TVPaint Animation 0/3
Bone rigging	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Mesh deformation	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Lip sync	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Specs
Animation workflow	Not checked yet	Not checked yet
Supported platforms	Windows, macOS, Linux	Windows, macOS, Linux
Export formats	MOV, WMV, BMP, DPX, DTEX, JPG, EXR, PAL, PSD, PDF, PNG, SGI, SVG, TIFF, OPT, SCAN, VAR, TGA, YUV, GIF, SWF, JSX, WAV, XML, JSON, ATOM, USDA, USDZ	BMP, GIF, JPG, PNG, PSD, TGA, TIFF, AVI, MKV, MOV, MP4, WebM, OGG, JSON, CSV, FLI
Our review
Pros	Supports hand-drawn, rigged, composited, and effects-based 2D work Runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux Exports movies and images in formats including MOV, PSD, PNG, and TIFF	Bitmap brush engine supports traditional frame-by-frame workflows Professional adds rigging, smart colorization, camera, and storyboarding Runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux with extensive export support
Cons	No free plan; access is paid, with a 14-day free trial Edition capabilities vary, so selecting the right tier requires care Its broad scope may exceed the needs of simple 2D projects	Pricing requires contacting sales or requesting a quotation Trial projects cannot be saved or exported No cloud collaboration, AI features, or 3D modeling
Our verdict	Toon Boom Harmony is a desktop 2D animation suite for professional studios, freelancers, students, and enthusiasts. It brings hand-drawn and paperless animation, character rigging, cut-out workflows, drawing, painting, compositing, and… Read the review →	TVPaint Animation is bitmap-based 2D animation software for independent animators, students, animation schools, and production studios. Its workflow centers on raster brushes, light tables, timeline-based animation, storyboarding,… Read the review →

Strengths and trade-offs

• Toon Boom Harmony — where it wins

  • Supports hand-drawn, rigged, composited, and effects-based 2D work
  • Runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux
  • Exports movies and images in formats including MOV, PSD, PNG, and TIFF

  Where it doesn't

  • No free plan; access is paid, with a 14-day free trial
  • Edition capabilities vary, so selecting the right tier requires care
  • Its broad scope may exceed the needs of simple 2D projects

• TVPaint Animation — where it wins

  • Bitmap brush engine supports traditional frame-by-frame workflows
  • Professional adds rigging, smart colorization, camera, and storyboarding
  • Runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux with extensive export support

  Where it doesn't

  • Pricing requires contacting sales or requesting a quotation
  • Trial projects cannot be saved or exported
  • No cloud collaboration, AI features, or 3D modeling

• Toon Boom Harmony9.4/10 · 14-day trial

  A broad desktop suite for teams that need both drawn and rigged 2D production.

  Visit Toon BoomFull verdict →
• TATVPaint Animation8.7/10 · Paid

  A raster-first animation suite with traditional tools, rigging, camera controls, and professional exports.

  Visit TVPaintFull verdict →