Clip Studio Paint (previously marketed as Manga Studio in North America), informally known in Japan as ,A clipping of the Japanese pronunciation of its name, ''Kurippu Sutajio Peinto''. is a family of software applications developed by Japanese graphics software company Celsys. It is used for the digital creation of

comics a Media (communication), medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of Panel (comics), panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, Glo ...

, general

illustration An illustration is a decoration, interpretation, or visual explanation of a text, concept, or process, designed for integration in print and digitally published media, such as posters, flyers, magazines, books, teaching materials, animations, vi ...

, and 2D animation. The software is available in versions for

macOS macOS, previously OS X and originally Mac OS X, is a Unix, Unix-based operating system developed and marketed by Apple Inc., Apple since 2001. It is the current operating system for Apple's Mac (computer), Mac computers. With ...

Windows Windows is a Product lining, product line of Proprietary software, proprietary graphical user interface, graphical operating systems developed and marketed by Microsoft. It is grouped into families and subfamilies that cater to particular sec ...

iOS Ios, Io or Nio (, ; ; locally Nios, Νιός) is a Greek island in the Cyclades group in the Aegean Sea. Ios is a hilly island with cliffs down to the sea on most sides. It is situated halfway between Naxos and Santorini. It is about long an ...

iPadOS iPadOS is a mobile operating system developed by Apple for its iPad line of tablet computers. It was given a name distinct from iOS, the operating system used by Apple's iPhones to reflect the diverging features of the two product lines, suc ...

, Android, and

ChromeOS ChromeOS, sometimes styled as chromeOS and formerly styled as Chrome OS, is an operating system designed and developed by Google. It is derived from the open-source operating system and uses the Google Chrome web browser as its principal user ...

. The program is widely used by amateur and professional comics creators. The application is sold in editions with varying feature sets. The full-featured edition is a page-based, layered drawing program, with support for

bitmap In computing, a bitmap (also called raster) graphic is an image formed from rows of different colored pixels. A GIF is an example of a graphics image file that uses a bitmap. As a noun, the term "bitmap" is very often used to refer to a partic ...

and

vector art Vector graphics are a form of computer graphics in which visual images are created directly from geometric shapes defined on a Cartesian plane, such as points, lines, curves and polygons. The associated mechanisms may include vector display ...

, text, imported 3D models, and frame-by-frame animation. It is designed for use with a stylus and a

graphics tablet A graphics tablet (also known as a digitizer, digital graphic tablet, pen tablet, drawing tablet, external drawing pad or digital art board) is a computer input device that enables a user to hand draw or paint images, animations and graphics, w ...

tablet computer A tablet computer, commonly shortened to tablet, is a mobile device, typically with a mobile operating system and touchscreen display processing circuitry, and a rechargeable battery in a single, thin and flat package. Tablets, being computers ...

. It has drawing tools which emulate natural media such as pencils, ink pens, and brushes, as well as patterns and decorations. It is distinguished from similar programs by features designed for creating comics: tools for creating panel layouts, perspective rulers, sketching, inking, applying tones and textures, coloring, and creating word balloons and captions.

History

The original version of the program ran on macOS and Windows, and was released in Japan as "Comic Studio" in 2001. It was sold as "Manga Studio" in the Western market by E Frontier America until 2007, then by Smith Micro Software until 2017; after which it has been sold and supported by Celsys and Graphixly LLC. Early versions of the program were designed for creating black and white art with only

spot color In offset printing, a spot color or solid color is any color generated by an ink (pure or mixed) that is printed using a ''single run'', whereas a process color is produced by printing a series of dots of different colors. The widespread offset- ...

(a typical format for Japanese

manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

), but version 4 – released in 2007 – introduced support for creating full-color art. In 2013 a redesigned version of the program was introduced, one based on Celsys' separate Comic Studio and Illust Studio applications. Sold in different markets as "Clip Studio Paint" version 1 or "Manga Studio" version 5, the new application featured new coloring and text-handling tools, and a new file system which stored the data for each page in a single file (extension ''.lip''), rather than the multiple files used for each page by Manga Studio 4 and earlier. In 2015, Comic Studio and Illust Studio were discontinued. In 2016, the name "Manga Studio" was deprecated, with the program sold in all markets as "Clip Studio Paint". The version released under this unified branding (build 1.5.4 of the redesigned application) also introduced a new file format (extension ''.clip'') and frame-by-frame animation. In late 2017, Celsys took over direct support for the software worldwide, and ceased its relationship with Smith Micro. In July 2018, Celsys began a partnership with Graphixly for distribution in North America, South America, and Europe. Clip Studio Paint for the Apple iPad was introduced in November 2017, and for the iPhone in December 2019. Clip Studio Paint for

Samsung Galaxy Samsung Galaxy (; stylized as SΛMSUNG Galaxy since 2015 (except Japan where it omitted the Samsung branding up until 2023), previously stylized as Samsung GALAXY; abbreviated as SG) is a series of computing, Android mobile computing and wear ...

tablets and smartphones was released in August 2020 on the Galaxy Store, with versions for other Android devices and

Chromebook Chromebook (sometimes stylized in lowercase as chromebook) is a line of laptops, desktops, tablets and all-in-one computers that run ChromeOS, a proprietary operating system developed by Google. Chromebooks are optimised for web access. They al ...

s released in December. The Windows and macOS versions of the software have been sold and distributed either from the developer's web site or on DVD, and purchased either with a perpetual license or an ongoing subscription. The versions for iPhone, iPad, and Android-based devices are distributed through the corresponding app stores free of charge, but require a subscription – which includes cloud storage – for unrestricted use; without a subscription the tablet versions can be used for only a specified number of months, and the phone versions can be used for only 1 hour per day. From 2013 to 2023, regular updates for version 1 were distributed free of additional charge, to both perpetual and subscription users. With the release of version 2 in 2023, users with perpetual licenses who wished to upgrade needed to by either a new license (possibly discounted), the annual purchase of an "upgrade pass", or to switch to subscription licensing. Only limited bug fixes were offered to perpetual licenses. The "update pass" provided early access to bug fixes and features planned to be included in version 3 and its subsequent releases for 12 months, after which the software would revert to the original license (1.13 or 2.0) if not renewed. In March 2024, version 3.0 was released, with the same payment models as version 2. Version 4.0 introduced additional features in March 2025.

Editions

The application has been sold in various editions, with differing feature sets and prices. Early versions were sold in Japan as: Mini with very limited features (bundled with graphics tablets), Debut with entry-level features, Pro as the standard edition, and EX as the full-feature edition. E Frontier and Smith Micro only sold the Debut and EX editions of the original application; with the overhauled version 5, Smith Micro sold only the Pro and EX editions, as standard and advanced editions of the program. Under the Clip Studio Paint branding, the application became available in three editions: Debut (only bundled with tablets), Pro (adding support for vector-based drawing, custom textures, and comics-focused features), and EX (adding support for multi-page documents, book exporting). Companion programs include Clip Studio (for managing and sharing digital assets distributed through the Clip Studio web site, managing licenses, and getting updates and support) and Clip Studio Modeler (for setting up 3D materials to use in Clip Studio Paint).

Notes

References

External links

Manga Studio/Clip Studio Paint

* *Smith Micro Software, Inc. page
Manga Studio 5

Manga Studio/Comic Studio

*e frontier America, Inc. page
Manga Studio 3.0
*CELSYS, Inc. Comic Studio page
3.0 Japan4.0 Japan
*Smith Micro Software, Inc. Manga Studio page

{{Animation editors IOS software MacOS graphics software Windows graphics-related software 2001 software Raster graphics editors 2D animation software Proprietary cross-platform software Graphics software Android (operating system) software