Drawpile is a free, open-source collaborative drawing and painting program that lets multiple users work on the same canvas simultaneously in real time.
The project, dating from 2014 under its current branding and rooted in earlier work by developer Calle Laakkonen, is legally organized under a German non-profit, Drawpile gemeinnützige UG, to keep the software permanently public and free.
Key Features
It includes over 200 built-in brushes, a custom brush editor, layers and blend modes, shape and selection tools, and support for OpenRaster and PSD file formats.
Animators get a timeline with onion-skinning, and every user benefits from a crash-recovery feature that restores a session almost exactly where it left off, plus a built-in timelapse recorder.
Pricing
Drawpile is entirely free under the GPLv3 license, with no subscription, paid tier, or company behind it.
Users can self-host a session server or connect to free official community servers, and password-protect sessions to keep them private.
Key Features
Real-time collaborative canvas — Multiple users see each other's cursors and brushstrokes live as they draw on the same canvas.
200+ built-in brushes and a brush editor — Comes with a large brush library across multiple brush engines, plus tools to build fully custom brushes.
Layers, blend modes, and selections — Supports layers, layer groups, blending modes, shape tools, transforms, and flood fill for standard painting workflows.
Animation with onion skinning — A timeline and onion-skin feature enable rudimentary frame-by-frame animation.
Crash and session recovery — Recovers an interrupted drawing session almost exactly where it left off after a crash, forced reboot, or app termination.
Built-in timelapse recorder — Generates a video of the entire drawing or animation process, optionally cropped to a chosen canvas area.
OpenRaster and PSD support — Imports and exports files in the OpenRaster (ORA) format and Photoshop's PSD format for interoperability.
Password-protected private sessions — Sessions can be made public or locked with a password so only invited collaborators can join.
Pros & Cons
Pros
Completely free and open source under the GPLv3 license
Genuine real-time multi-user drawing with no per-seat cost or account requirement
Available on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and via a browser-based version
Governed by a non-profit structure explicitly designed to keep the software public and free permanently
Cons
Development is driven by a small team, so feature velocity can be slower than well-funded commercial tools
Lacks some advanced digital-painting features found in dedicated commercial apps like Photoshop or Clip Studio Paint
Real-time collaboration performance depends on the server used, whether self-hosted or a community server
Animation tools are described as rudimentary rather than a full animation production suite
Pricing
Free (Open Source) Free N/A
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Drawpile free?
Yes. Drawpile is completely free, open-source software licensed under the GPLv3, with no subscription or paid tier.
What platforms does Drawpile support?
Drawpile runs natively on Windows, macOS, Linux, and Android, and has a browser-based version usable on devices like iPad and iPhone.
Who maintains Drawpile?
Drawpile is maintained by a small core team under Drawpile gemeinnützige UG, a German non-profit organization, with contributions from a wider community.
Can I host my own Drawpile server?
Yes. Users can self-host a session server or connect to Drawpile's free official community servers.
Does Drawpile support animation?
Yes, Drawpile includes a timeline with onion-skinning for basic frame-by-frame animation.
What happens if Drawpile crashes mid-session?
Drawpile can recover an interrupted session almost exactly where it left off, functioning as a replacement for traditional autosave.