Professional standard stop-motion software, used for feature films such as Paranorman Kubo & Two Strings and Shaun the Sheep the Movie. Available on Windows (64bit), MacOS, Ubuntu and Fedora. Student price of US $195. 30-day free trial available.

Stop Motion Pro is stop-motion software that can be easily used by young beginners. However, it has a lot of extra features for more advanced animators. Different software products start at $75, for Windows (can run on Mac with Boot Camp). Free trial version available.

Adobe Creative Cloud is a whole suite of professional design software. For animators, you have access to professional animation tools such as After Effects and Animate. Very powerful 2D software for a variety of purposes, take some time to learn all the tools. Available on Windows, Mac OS. Simplified versions on Mac iOS and Android. Subscription model: student price of $22 a month (requires education email address)/ regular price $78 a month for the whole suite.

Very powerful 3D modelling and animating software. Open-source, free to download, lots of YouTube tutorials. Available on Windows, iOS and Linux.

Pencil 2D is free open-source software that enables you to create your own hand-drawn animations. Easy to use, simple tools. Available on Windows, Mac OS, Linux, Ubuntu and other platforms.

Simple app for creating your own hand-drawn animations. Only available on iOS or Android. Free, with in-app purchases.