Free Online Pixel Art Maker
Draw pixel art on a grid and export a sharp, transparent PNG.
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How to use this tool
To make pixel art online, pick a grid size, click or drag to paint squares, and download a crisp PNG. This pixel art maker gives you a 16 × 16 to 64 × 64 grid, a 16-color palette plus any custom color, fill and eyedropper tools and up to 100 undo steps, so it’s quick to design game sprites, Twitch and Discord emotes, avatars and icons. Export at true size or enlarged up to 32× with sharp edges and a transparent background.
- 01
Pick a grid size
Choose 16 × 16 for icons and emotes, 32 × 32 for characters and items, or 48 and 64 for detailed scenes. Switching the grid keeps your drawing, centred.
- 02
Draw
Click or drag with the Pencil to paint, use the Eraser to clear squares, Fill to color an area and the Eyedropper to reuse a color from the drawing. Undo and Redo, or Ctrl+Z, step back and forward.
- 03
Export
Choose a Scale: 1× gives the true pixel size; 4×, 8×, 16× and 32× enlarge it with crisp edges. Click PNG to download; empty squares are transparent.
Which grid size to use
• 16 × 16: favicons, emotes, items and tiny icons • 32 × 32: game characters, avatars and detailed icons • 48 × 48 and 64 × 64: portraits and small scenes Start small: fewer pixels lead to bold, simple shapes that read well at any size.
Pixel art tips
• Outline the shape first with a dark color, then fill it • Use two or three shades of each color for light and shadow • Keep lines clean: one pixel wide, with steps of even length • Zoom out often; the drawing area shows the real proportions
Exporting crisp pixel art for emotes and stickers
Pixel art looks best enlarged by whole numbers with hard edges, and the Scale setting does exactly that. A 32 × 32 drawing at 4× gives a 128 px file and at 8× a 256 px file, good sizes for Discord emotes, Twitch emote uploads and stickers. Files are named by grid and scale, for example pixel-art-32x32-4x.png.
Frequently asked questions
How do I make pixel art?
Choose a grid size, paint squares with the Pencil, fill areas with Fill and download a PNG.
What size should my pixel art be?
16 × 16 for icons and emotes, 32 × 32 for characters, and 48 × 48 or 64 × 64 for detailed pieces.
How do I export pixel art without blurring?
Pick a Scale of 4×, 8×, 16× or 32× before clicking PNG. Each pixel becomes a sharp block.
Is the background transparent?
Yes. Empty squares are transparent in the PNG. Fill the background with a color if you want it solid.
Can I undo?
Yes. Use Undo and Redo, or Ctrl+Z and Ctrl+Y (⌘ on a Mac). The last 100 steps are kept.
Can I use any color?
Yes. Pick one of the 16 palette colors or click the custom color box for any color.
Can I draw on a phone or tablet?
Yes. Tap and drag with your finger or a stylus; the page stays still while you draw.
How do I keep my drawing?
Click PNG to download it. Your drawing stays on the page while it’s open, so you can export at several scales.
Can I turn a photo into pixel art?
Yes, with the SocQ pixelate image tool, which gives a photo a blocky pixel look.
Is the pixel art maker free?
Yes. No signup, no watermark and no limit.
For developers
Find pixel art ideas on Pinterest
Looking for sprite and emote references? SocQ’s Pinterest API returns public pins, search results, profiles and a user’s pins, so you can collect pixel art inspiration in one place.
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