# Pyxel Edit review, pricing and alternatives

Source: https://listme.name/software/pyxel-edit
Website: https://pyxeledit.com/

Pixel art editor focused on tilesets, levels and animation

Pyxel Edit is a pixel art editor for making tilesets, levels and animations. It runs on Windows and macOS, and the vendor offers a free version and a beta. Tile instances stay linked to their source tile, so an edit updates every copy.

Pyxel Edit is built around tiles: drawing in one tile updates every copy of it, and tile instances can be rotated and flipped while still referencing the same tile data. It also imports existing tileset images or mock-ups and identifies the unique tiles automatically, which suits developers who work from tilesets.

For animation, Pyxel Edit offers frame-by-frame drawing with onion skinning, and it exports sprite sheets and animated GIFs. Its tilemap export covers XML, JSON and plain text. Its focus on tilesets makes it narrower than general sprite editors, so it fits best when your work is mostly tile-based.

- Free plan, paid upgrades | Windows, macOS
- Price: Free version and beta offered on the vendor site
- Checked: 2026-10-10

## Strengths

- Tile instances update everywhere they appear
- Imports tilesets and finds unique tiles
- Exports tilemaps to XML, JSON or text

## Limits

- Tile focus makes single-sprite work less central
- Runs on Windows and macOS only

## Rankings

- #4 of 8 in [best Pixel art and sprite editors](https://listme.name/best/pixel-art-and-sprite-editors), score 84.0: Tile-first editor with linked tile instances, tileset import and frame animation. It runs on Windows and macOS only and is narrower than Aseprite outside tilesets.

## Alternatives

- [Aseprite](https://listme.name/software/aseprite), score 92.5
- [Pixelorama](https://listme.name/software/pixelorama), score 90.0
- [LibreSprite](https://listme.name/software/libresprite), score 85.0
- [Piskel](https://listme.name/software/piskel), score 82.5
- [Tiled](https://listme.name/software/tiled), score 80.5
- [Pixaki](https://listme.name/software/pixaki), score 78.5
- [Krita](https://listme.name/software/krita), score 77.5