What is the best free anime filter app?

For a phone app with a free allowance that refreshes, PixVerse (30 daily credits on the free plan) and Viggle (5 free videos per day) are the strongest free options on this list as of September 2026. Both restrict free output: Viggle's free videos are watermarked, and PixVerse lists watermark removal only on paid plans and caps free video at 540P.

What's the difference between a "filter" and a real-time anime morph?

A traditional filter overlays a fixed effect on a photo or video after the fact. A real-time anime morph, like LiveGen's, redraws you continuously from your live camera as you move, so it updates as you do, not after you upload something.

Can any of these restyle my whole background, not just my face?

Live, LiveGen's Style Morph restyles the whole frame, background included. Among the upload tools, a generator like PixVerse can produce a fully anime-styled clip, but as a rendered file rather than a live feed. Akool's live feature and Viggle's live mode are focused on the face or the character.

Do I need a powerful computer or GPU to use these?

Not for the web and mobile versions of any of the four. Processing happens on the vendor's servers. The one desktop install on this list is Akool Live Camera for Windows and macOS.

Which of these work for livestreaming?

LiveGen, Viggle's Real-Time Swap, and Akool's Live Face Swap all run on a live webcam. Check the live time limits first: Viggle's free plan includes 5 min and its Live plan 6 hours, and Akool lists 5 min on its free and Starter plans. PixVerse is an upload and prompt tool, so it suits standalone clips rather than a live stream.

Can I use an anime filter on a video call like Zoom or Discord?

You need a live tool, since calls are live. How you route the result into a specific call app depends on your setup (for example, a virtual camera or an OBS browser source), so check each tool's streaming support before a meeting.

Does an anime filter work on my phone, or do I need a desktop?

PixVerse and Viggle have native iOS and Android apps. LiveGen runs in a mobile browser as well as on a laptop, because the heavy processing happens remotely. Akool's live feature runs on the web, and its Live Camera app is desktop only.

How do I turn myself into a specific anime character?

With reference-driven tools, you supply an image of the character you want and the tool maps your expressions or motion onto it. Picking a clear, well-lit reference makes a big difference to the result. See turn yourself into an anime character for a full walkthrough.

Best Anime Filter App in 2026: 4 Tools, Real Prices

Where we stand: LiveGen is our product. We did not rank it first. Most people who type "anime filter app" want something to install on a phone and run on a selfie or a short clip for free, and LiveGen is a browser tool for live camera video with no native app, so two other tools fit that intent better. LiveGen fits when you want the anime look live on camera, for a stream, a call, or a clip recorded in one take. It does not fit when you want an App Store download, an offline render with maximum per-frame polish, or a finished video generated from a text prompt.

How we picked

We included tools that redraw a face, a scene, or a video in an anime style, not a color grade or a sticker overlay. Then we ordered them by how well they match the most common intent behind "anime filter app", using four criteria in this order:

Is it actually an app on your phone? A native iOS or Android app with anime looks you can apply to a selfie or clip ranks above a browser tool or a desktop program, because that is what most searchers mean.

What does the free tier really give you? We read each vendor's own pricing page and wrote down the free allowance, the watermark terms, and the cheapest paid plan. Numbers below are as of September 2026 and the source URL is written next to each one.

How directly does it do anime? A tool with anime styles or anime characters as a first-class option ranks above a general tool where anime is only what happens if you supply an anime reference.

Live camera or upload? Neither is better. They are different jobs, and the next section explains which one you are doing. We flag the side each tool falls on instead of pretending one replaces the other.

That ordering puts PixVerse first, Viggle second, LiveGen third, and Akool fourth. If your intent is live camera rather than "an app for my selfie", read the list from the live column of the comparison table instead of from the top.

How we verified pricing: we opened each vendor's pricing page on September 21, 2026 and copied the numbers shown. We did not use review sites or resellers. Prices change and promotions rotate, so treat every figure as a snapshot and confirm on the vendor page before you pay.

Live anime filter vs generated anime video

Before you pick a tool, it helps to know which of two jobs you're actually doing, because the best anime filter app for one is the wrong choice for the other.

A live anime filter transforms your camera feed as it happens. You point a webcam or phone at yourself, and the tool redraws you, or your whole scene, as anime while you talk, blink, and move. Frames are generated as a continuous stream while the input is still happening, so you see the result immediately and can fix framing or lighting on the spot. The output is something you can stream, take on a call, or record in one take. The real-time anime filter explainer walks through how that works, and the behavior itself is what we call live morph.

An upload or prompt tool works in batches. You hand over a photo, a clip, or a prompt, a server renders every frame offline, and you get a file back afterward. Any change means another render. The trade is honest in both directions: batch rendering can spend more time per frame, so fine detail such as hands, small text, and fast motion usually comes out cleaner, while live generation favors responsiveness over per-frame polish.

On this list, PixVerse sits on the upload and prompt side, LiveGen sits on the live side, and Viggle and Akool do both: uploads as their core product, plus a live webcam feature. And if all you need is a single still, LiveGen's photo to anime converter handles that middle case.

Quick comparison

Pricing as of September 2026, from each vendor's own pricing page (URLs in the tool sections below).

Tool	Live camera or upload	Platforms	Free tier	Starting price
PixVerse	Uploads and prompts (live camera input could not be verified)	Web, iOS, Android	Yes: 60 initial credits plus 30 daily credits, up to 540P, watermark removal listed only on paid plans	$10/month, or $8/month billed yearly ($96)
Viggle	Both: uploads, plus Real-Time Swap on a webcam	Web, iOS, Android	Yes: 5 free videos per day, watermarked, 5 min of Real-Time Swap	$9.99/month, or $7.99/month billed yearly
LiveGen	Live camera (plus one uploaded photo in Bring to Life)	Browser on desktop and mobile, no native app	Free to try, free exports carry a watermark	Metered in credits, see pricing
Akool	Both: uploads, plus Live Face Swap on a webcam	Web, plus the Akool Live Camera desktop app for Windows and macOS	Yes: $0 plan, full-screen watermark, 5 min of Live Face Swap	$12 per seat per month (200 credits)

The tools

1. PixVerse

PixVerse is an AI video generator with a web app and native iOS and Android apps. You give it a photo, a clip, or a text prompt and it renders a finished video, and anime is one of the looks it offers among many stylized effects and templates. It ranks first here because it is the closest match to what "anime filter app" usually means: an app you install, a free daily allowance, and a result you can post.

PixVerse also has a newer real-time mode, R1, built on a world-model approach where the video keeps generating and responds to input during a session. We could not confirm from PixVerse's public pages that R1 takes a live camera feed, so we treat PixVerse as an upload and prompt tool in this comparison.

Pricing (as of September 2026, source: app.pixverse.ai/subscribe): The free Basic plan is $0 with 60 initial credits and 30 daily credits, and video up to 540P. Standard is $10 per month, or $8 per month billed yearly ($96 per year), with 1,200 credits every 30 days, 60 daily credits, up to 720P, and "no watermark and no ads". Pro is $30 per month, or $24 per month billed yearly ($288), with 6,000 credits and up to 4K. Watermark removal is listed only on the paid plans. Credit packs start at $5 for 500 credits. Pros: Real native apps on both iOS and Android; the free plan refreshes credits every day instead of being a one-time trial; the lowest yearly-billed entry price on this list; strong general video generation quality for stylized looks. Cons: Not a live camera tool, so it cannot help on a stream or a call; free output tops out at 540P; anime is one style among many, not the product's focus; credits are spent per generation, so retrying a render you don't like costs again. Best for: Turning a selfie, a photo, or a prompt into a short anime-style clip on your phone, with a free daily allowance.

2. Viggle

Viggle is a character animation tool with a web app and iOS and Android apps. Its core job is mapping motion onto a character: you upload one character image, pick a motion template or a source video, and it renders that character performing the motion. Anime characters are a common choice. It also has a live webcam feature, which Viggle's pricing page calls Real-Time Swap and its product page calls Viggle LIVE, that animates a character image from your webcam and, per Viggle, tracks facial expressions and whole-body movement.

Viggle is strongest when you want a full-body anime character in motion, dancing or acting out a meme, rather than a filter over your own face and room. For a side-by-side, see LiveGen vs Viggle.

Pricing (as of September 2026, source: viggle.ai/pricing): The Free plan is $0 with 5 free videos per day, one generation at a time, 7-day storage, a 1 minute maximum upload, a watermark, and 5 min of Real-Time Swap. Pro is $9.99 per month, or $7.99 per month billed yearly, with 80 credits per month, no watermark, and 30 min of Real-Time Swap. The Live plan is $19.99 per month, or $15.99 billed yearly, with 200 credits and 6 hours of Real-Time Swap. Max is $79.99 per month, or $63.99 billed yearly, with unlimited Real-Time Swap sessions. Monthly plan credits expire on the billing date. Pros: Native iOS and Android apps plus web; a genuinely usable free tier with a daily video allowance; full-body motion, not only the face; a live webcam mode that Viggle says works with OBS, Twitch, Zoom, and Discord. Cons: Free videos are watermarked and free live time is only 5 min; meaningful live use needs the $19.99 Live plan; Viggle's own page notes a delay between your motion and the live output; it animates a character you supply rather than restyling you and your room, so it is not a "filter" in the strict sense. Best for: Full-body anime character clips and memes from a phone, with live character streaming if you pay for the Live plan.

3. LiveGen

LiveGen is real-time interactive AI video that runs in a browser tab on desktop or mobile, with nothing to install. Your camera streams to LiveGen's real-time engine and the transformed video streams back while you move. For anime there are two routes. Style Morph repaints the whole frame, you and the room, in an anime style, which is the AI video style transfer mode. Live Morph makes you appear as one specific anime character from a single reference image, with your expressions and movement carried over; that is Live Morph. In Studio you pick the mode chip, pick a preset or upload your own reference (JPG, PNG, or WebP, up to 10 MB), and press Start. The camera stays off until you do.

LiveGen Studio with the Style mode selected and the style preset rail, before the camera starts

It ranks third because it is not what most people mean by "anime filter app": there is no App Store or Google Play app, and it is built around live camera video rather than uploading an existing clip. If live is what you want, it moves to the top of your list, and the quickest way in is the anime filter online page.

Pricing: Free to try. Generation is metered in credits, one credit per second of live video. Free exports carry a watermark, and paid plans remove it and add HD. See pricing for current plans. Pros: Genuinely live, so you see and correct the result while you move; covers both whole-scene anime restyling and a specific anime character in one tool; runs in a browser on a laptop or phone with no GPU on your side; you can record a clip and download or share it. Cons: No native mobile app; it needs a steady connection, because video streams to the engine and back; live generation trades per-frame polish for responsiveness, so hands, small text, and fast motion can look softer than an offline render; recorded clips have no generated audio and are capped at 64 MB; it is a newer product with a shorter track record than the others here; per-second metering means long sessions use credits faster than occasional renders. Best for: Appearing as an anime character, or in an anime-styled room, live on camera for a stream, a call, or a one-take clip.

4. Akool

Akool is a broad AI video suite aimed at marketers and professional creators: avatars, video translation, image and video generation, and face-swap tools. The part relevant here is Live Face Swap, which Akool describes as swapping your face with another face in real time using your device's camera, from the web app. Akool also ships a separate desktop app, Akool Live Camera, for Windows and macOS, which replaces your feed with an avatar in Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams.

It ranks last for this query because anime is not a mode in Akool. You get an anime result only by supplying an anime-style face as the reference, the effect covers the face rather than the whole frame, and the pricing is built for teams. If you're weighing it specifically against LiveGen, see LiveGen vs Akool.

Pricing (as of September 2026, source: akool.com/pricing): The Free plan is $0 with a full-screen watermark, slow processing, 5 GB of storage, and 5 min of free Live Face Swap time. Starter is $12 per seat per month (the same rate monthly or billed yearly at $144) with 200 credits per month, up to 1080P, no watermark, and Live Face Swap listed as "up to 5 mins". Pro is $30 per seat per month, or $21 billed yearly ($252) under a 30% off promotion shown on the page, with 600 credits and Live Face Swap "up to 60 mins". The page does not say whether those live limits are per session or per month. Pros: A real live webcam feature in the browser, not only uploads; a desktop virtual-camera app for video calls; a large toolkit beyond the live feature if you also need avatars or translation; a $0 plan to test with. Cons: No dedicated anime mode, so results depend entirely on the reference face you supply; face only, no whole-scene restyling; the free plan's watermark is full-screen; live time is tightly capped below the Pro plan; per-seat pricing is aimed at teams rather than someone who wants a fun filter. Best for: Professionals who already need Akool's video suite and want a live face effect on calls as a side feature.

What to look for in an anime filter app

✓App, browser, or desktop: If you want a home-screen app, only PixVerse and Viggle on this list have one. Browser tools work on any laptop or phone with no install; desktop apps tie you to one machine.
✓Live vs after-the-fact: If you'll be streaming or on video calls, confirm the tool transforms a live camera, not just a saved photo or clip. Plenty of apps marketed as an anime filter only restyle a still image.
✓Character-only vs full-scene: Decide whether you want to become an anime character while your real room stays put, or the whole frame, you and your background, repainted in an anime style. LiveGen's Style Morph is the full-scene live option on this list.
✓Reference control: The anime look usually depends on a reference character or preset. Tools that let you supply your own reference image give you far more say over which anime style you land on.
✓What "free" means: Check three things on the pricing page: whether free credits refresh or are one-time, whether free output is watermarked, and the resolution cap. All four tools here watermark or restrict free output in some way.
✓How usage is metered: Per-generation credits (PixVerse, Viggle, Akool) reward getting it right the first time. Per-second metering (LiveGen) rewards short sessions.
✓Consent and likeness: If you'll base a character on a real person, choose a tool with clear consent and content rules. Responsible use of a real person's likeness needs permission, and reputable tools moderate uploads for exactly this reason.

How to choose

✓Want an app on your phone that turns a selfie or photo into an anime clip for free: PixVerse.
✓Want a full-body anime character dancing or acting out a meme: Viggle.
✓Want to be an anime character live on your own camera, in a browser, right now: LiveGen, with Live Morph for a specific character or Style Morph for the whole scene.
✓Want a live face effect inside a larger professional video toolkit: Akool.
✓Want the most polished single clip and don't mind waiting for a render: an upload tool (PixVerse or Viggle), not a live one.
✓Making short-form clips for TikTok or Reels: either side works. A live tool records the transformed feed in one take, which suits AI video effects for TikTok; a generator suits a scripted scene.
✓Adding an anime look to an existing broadcast setup: read how to add effects to your live stream for the routing side, then pick a live tool from this list.

If you're still torn, start with the job, not the brand: a live transformation for anything you'll stream, call, or record on the spot; an upload tool for a polished clip you'll post later. For live avatar and character tools more broadly, our best live streaming avatar tools roundup goes deeper on that category.

Which anime filter app should you use? 4 tools compared, with verified pricing