IMG.LY vs CreateJS

The best CreateJs alternative for a modern, full-featured creative SDK that handles design, video, and automation out of the box.

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500M+

video and photo creations are powered by IMG.LY every month
HP
Shopify
Reuters
Hootsuite
Semrush
Shutterfly
Sprout Social
One.com
Constant Contact
Your partner in crime

What makes IMG.LY the best CreateJS alternative?

Turn-key Solutions

Pre-built editors for specific use cases such as print, photo editing, social media design and more.

Extensibility & Plugin System

Supports custom plugins and extensibility, allowing businesses to tailor the editor to specific use cases.

Automated Content Generation

Leverage generative AI, batch processing, and programmatic design tools to automate and scale content creation.

Cross-Platform

Our SDK is optimized across platforms ensuring consistent rendering and interoperability.

What Our Clients Say About Us

IMG.LY’s solution engineers did a deep dive on our business case and helped us implement a custom print kiosk UI.

André Albrecht
Digital Solution Manager
 @ 
Brother

Our customers create over a million personalized postcards each year choosing from over hundreds of templates with IMG.LY’s SDK. It’s the only solution that allows us to build our own specialized, on-brand UI that integrates seamlessly with our platform.

Jeanine Zaalberg
Product Manager
 @ 
Swiss Post

Our app has photo-editing at the very core of its experience and the editor has been invaluable in making that vision happen. There are no other tools on the market up to the quality of PE.SDK.

Toby Green
Lead Developer
 @ 
Elbi

IMG.LY vs. CreateJS at a Glance

Features

IMG.LY

CreateJS

Turnkey Solutions for Various Use Cases

Pre-built editors for video, social, and marketing content.

Fully custom UI has to be built from scratch.

Advanced Editing Features

Full-featured design & video editor with turnkey solutions for various use cases.

No built-in advanced editing features; requires custom development.

Multi-Layer & Media Support

Full layer control for images, videos, stickers, and text.

Limited by Canvas rendering, layering and media handling must be implemented manually.

Platform & Framework Support

Web, iOS, Android, React Native, Flutter, Electron, macOS.

Web-only; JavaScript/Canvas-based.

Extensibility

Plugin architecture allows adding custom tools and workflows.

Extensible via code, but no structured plugin system.

Templating System

Dynamic templates with placeholders, layout constraints, and automation.

No built-in templating system.

Creative Automation

Headless API for programmatic design generation and batch workflows.

Not supported; requires building logic from scratch.

Video Editing

Built-in multi-track video editor with transitions, overlays, and timeline.

No video editing capabilities.

Design File Conversion

Import PSD, INDD, AI files with editable layers.

No support for importing or editing layered design files.

Asset Libraries

Built-in integrations with Getty, Unsplash, and custom libraries.

No native asset management; must be built manually.

IMG.LY

CreateJS

Turnkey Solutions for Various Use Cases

Pre-built editors for video, social, and marketing content.

Fully custom UI has to be built from scratch.

Advanced Editing Features

Full-featured design & video editor with turnkey solutions for various use cases.

No built-in advanced editing features; requires custom development.

Multi-Layer & Media Support

Full layer control for images, videos, stickers, and text.

Limited by Canvas rendering, layering and media handling must be implemented manually.

Platform & Framework Support

Web, iOS, Android, React Native, Flutter, Electron, macOS.

Web-only; JavaScript/Canvas-based.

Extensibility

Plugin architecture allows adding custom tools and workflows.

Extensible via code, but no structured plugin system.

Templating System

Dynamic templates with placeholders, layout constraints, and automation.

No built-in templating system.

Creative Automation

Headless API for programmatic design generation and batch workflows.

Not supported; requires building logic from scratch.

Video Editing

Built-in multi-track video editor with transitions, overlays, and timeline.

No video editing capabilities.

Design File Conversion

Import PSD, INDD, AI files with editable layers.

No support for importing or editing layered design files.

Asset Libraries

Built-in integrations with Getty, Unsplash, and custom libraries.

User designs are stored on Canva’s servers; users must have a Canva account to create or edit designs.

Everything you need

Key Capabilities

Learn more about some of the functionalities of IMG.LY’s SDK

Editing

Transform

A globe
Web
Mobile

Crop, flip, and rotate with ease. Preset crop ratios to common formats.

Filters

A globe
Web
Mobile

Over 60 state-of-the-art filters allow users to control the style and mood of their creations.

Adjustments

A globe
Web
Mobile

Fine-tune designs with an exhaustive set of adjustment operations such as brightness and contrast.

Effect & Blur

A globe
Web
Mobile

Add a unique mood to designs with effects & blur.

Element Snapping

A globe
Web
Mobile

Snap stickers and text to control points for more precise placements.

Blend Modes & Grouping

A globe
Web
Mobile

Define the blending behavior and grouping.

Undo & Redo

A globe
Web
Mobile

Allow users to undo and redo all editing operations.

Printing

Cutout Lines

A globe
Web
Mobile

Create and customize cutout shapes for web-to-print.

CMYK/ Spot color support

A globe
Web
Mobile

Integrate CMYK and Pantone color spaces, customized color libraries, including your brand's colors.

Templating

Design Templates

A globe
Web
Mobile

Create role based design templates to jumpstart users’ creativity.

Text Variables

A globe
Web
Mobile

Enable mass personalization and creative automation by embedding variables.

Placeholders & Lockable Designs

A globe
Web
Mobile

Constrain templates to guide your users’ design and ensure brand consistency.

Configurable Presets

A globe
Web
Mobile

Enforce a consistent aesthetic across all creations by using preset filters, adjustments, fonts, and crop ratios.

Customizability

Build Custom UIs

A globe
Web
Mobile

Use the headless API powering all creative operations to implement an entirely custom UI.

Theming

A globe
Web
Mobile

Change the editor theme to fit seamlessly with your app.

Media Libraries

A globe
Web
Mobile

Set up custom libraries that are easily sortable.

Toolbar Customization

A globe
Web
Mobile

Reposition toolbar elements, change icons, or rename tools to fit your use case.

Internationalization

A globe
Web
Mobile

Add support for additional languages, and customize any button label.

Export Options

A globe
Web
Mobile

Export designs in JPG, PNG, or PDF with custom quality, page ranges, and dimensions.

And there’s more

Check Out Other Use Cases

Learn more about related social media solutions.
Web2Print Designer

Web2Print Designer

Elevate your Web2Print application with best-in-class Design Editor.
Learn MoreOpen Showcase
Creative Automation

Creative Automation

Automate & scale content creation with ease.
Learn MoreOpen Showcase
Variable Data Printing

Variable Data Printing

Enable mass-personalization in your design & print workflows.
Learn MoreOpen Showcase
Photo Prints

Photo Prints

Provide seamless design experience and inspire users with easily personalized templates.
Learn MoreOpen Showcase
Print Personalization

Print Personalization

Streamline personalization for your print products.
Learn MoreOpen Showcase
Apparel Designer

Apparel Designer

Whether t-shirts, hoodies or caps, build for any use case, deploy on any platform.
Learn MoreOpen Showcase

More from IMG.LY

IMG.LY for Brands & Agencies

Automate design processes and generate on-brand marketing materials with ease.
Learn More

IMG.LY for Marketing Tech

Scale and automate any creative workflow.
Learn More

Camera SDK

Make in-app recording easy with our Camera SDK.
Learn More

Photo Editor SDK

Bring beautiful photo editing to your applications.
Learn More

Creative Editor SDK

Empower your users with an easy-to-use design editor.
Learn More

IMG.LY for Social Media

Unleash your users' creativity & leverage user generated content.
Learn More

IMG.LY for DAM

Empower users to create, collaborate , and automate design tasks in your app.
Learn More

Video Editor SDK

Powerful video editor for your iOS, Android, and web applications.
Learn More

More to discover

Explore Our Demos

See how IMG.LY looks and feels.
Check out our
demos

Get in Touch

Contact our sales team to learn more about licensing options and get access to our AI plugins for CE.SDK.

Contact SalesFree Trial

FAQs

What is the best CreateJS alternative?

If you're looking for a modern toolkit that saves you from building every piece manually, IMG.LY is a great alternative to CreateJS. It combines powerful editing tools, automation, and a complete UI, letting you focus on your core product.

What are the key differences between IMG.LY and CreateJS?

CreateJS is a collection of libraries for rendering and animation. IMG.LY provides a high-level, fully-featured creative SDK with a UI, editing tools, plugin support, and cross-platform capabilities built in.

Can I use IMG.LY instead of CreateJS to build a design editor?

Yes, IMG.LY provides a complete design and video editor out of the box. You get advanced editing features, customization options, and the ability to integrate with your own backend systems, saving months of development time.

Is video editing supported on either platform?

Only IMG.LY supports video editing, with multi-track timelines, transitions, overlays, and export capabilities. CreateJS is focused on HTML5 canvas animations and does not support video.

Which platform is easier to integrate into a SaaS product?

IMG.LY was built specifically for SaaS and platform integration, offering developer-friendly SDKs, APIs, and support for white-labeling. CreateJS is more suited for highly customized, one-off web applications or interactive content.

Do both solutions support templating or creative automation?

IMG.LY supports dynamic templates, data-driven content generation, and batch processing via API. You’ll have to build those capabilities from scratch with CreateJS.

Which one supports cross-platform development beyond the web?

IMG.LY supports mobile (iOS, Android), desktop (Electron, macOS), and web platforms. CreateJS is limited to HTML5 and JavaScript environments.

What kind of asset management is included in each?

IMG.LY comes with built-in asset library integrations and custom library support. CreateJS offers no built-in asset system, you’ll need to develop one yourself.

Can I import layered design files like PSD or Illustrator?

IMG.LY supports importing PSD, INDD, and AI files with layer-level editing. CreateJS does not support layered design files.

Which tool is better for building visual content workflows (e.g., marketing or social content creation)?

IMG.LY offers purpose-built UI configurations for social, print, video, and more, making it ideal for building creative workflows. CreateJS offers none of this out of the box.