Procreate's Animation Assist has no audio import, so the reliable way to add music is to export your animation and sync it in a video editor such as After Effects, Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, or Final Cut Pro. If you want music in the timeline while you animate, use Procreate Dreams, which accepts audio files directly on its timeline. Which route to take depends on whether you need the track as a timing reference during animation or only for the final mix.

Which Procreate are you using?

"Procreate animation" can mean two different apps, and the answer differs for each.

• Procreate (Animation Assist): a frame-by-frame mode inside the drawing app. It has no audio track, so music is added after export.
• Procreate Dreams: a separate, paid animation app with a multitrack timeline. You can import audio, trim it, split it, and keyframe its level.

If you want to scrub to a track while animating, Dreams is the Procreate-native option. If you're already delivering through a compositing or editing pipeline, exporting is usually the cleaner path, and that's where many people end up anyway.

Method 1: Export and add music in a video editor

This works for any Procreate animation and gives you the most control over the final mix.

1. Lock your frame rate before you export

Set the frame rate in Procreate to the rate of your destination project (for example 24 fps for film-style delivery, or 30 fps for social). If the frame rate changes between apps, your animation's timing drifts against the music, and a drift of even a few frames is noticeable on hits and lip sync.

2. Export a format your editor handles well

Export a video file such as MP4 for quick turnarounds. For anything that will be composited, graded, or restyled, prefer an image sequence or a format with alpha where the app offers it, since compressed video adds artifacts you can't remove later. Check the export options in your version of Procreate or Dreams, as available formats have changed between releases.

3. Import the animation and the music

In After Effects, create a composition that matches your frame rate and resolution, then drag in the animation and the audio file. In Premiere Pro, Resolve, or Final Cut Pro, place both on the timeline. Free and mobile editors such as iMovie, CapCut, and DaVinci Resolve's free version can also do the job for simple projects.

4. Sync the animation to the track

• Find the beats. In After Effects, play the audio with the waveform visible (press L twice on the layer to reveal it) and drop layer markers on hits, downbeats, or dialogue accents.
• Retime to the markers. If an action lands a few frames early or late, use time remapping or trim and slip the clip rather than redrawing, unless the timing problem is structural.
• Check on a loop. Play the section repeatedly at full speed. Sync problems that hide at half speed show up quickly on loop.

5. Mix and render

Set the music level beneath any dialogue or effects, add fades at the head and tail, and render at your delivery spec. Keep the music on its own track so you can swap it without re-exporting the animation.

Method 2: Add audio inside Procreate Dreams

Use this when you want to animate to the music instead of fitting the music afterward, which is common for lip sync, music videos, and rhythm-driven loops.

Import the audio

1. Open your Dreams project and tap Add, then Files, and choose the audio file. The clip lands at the current playhead position, so move the playhead first.
2. Alternatively, open Split View with the Files app beside Dreams and drag the audio onto the Stage to create a new track, or onto the Timeline to place it on an existing track.
3. Stick to widely supported formats. MP3 is the safest choice, since users report import errors with other file types.

Preview before you commit

If you're choosing between several tracks, preview them in the Files app through Split View before dropping any into the timeline. You can scrub the file there and find the section you want, which keeps the project from filling up with rejected options.

Trim and adjust

• Use Split to cut the audio at the playhead and delete what you don't need.
• Use trim handles to align the start of the music with your first frame.
• Use audio level keyframes for fades and ducking.

Watch the project length

Dreams projects have a set duration. If your audio runs longer than the timeline, the portion past the end can't be edited. Set the project length to cover the music, or trim the track first.

Use the audio as a drawing reference

Once the track is in, scrub frame by frame and mark where beats, syllables, or hits fall. Then draw key poses on those frames and fill in between. This is the main advantage of the in-app route, and it's why so many animators request audio in the standard Procreate timeline.

Method 3: Use a separate audio-first pass

For longer pieces, a split workflow is often more efficient:

1. Build the audio edit first in a DAW or in your editor, and export a reference MP3 or WAV.
2. Bring that reference into Dreams (or just keep it open in a second window) while you animate.
3. Export your animation without the audio and assemble the final mix in After Effects or Premiere Pro, using the original, full-quality audio files.

This keeps the music edit and the picture edit independent. If the client changes the track, you re-time in the editor instead of reopening the animation project.

Moving Procreate frames into a larger After Effects pipeline

Some Procreate artists treat the app as a sketching and key-pose tool rather than the finishing environment. One possible pipeline looks like this:

1. Draw key frames or a rough animation in Procreate or Dreams.
2. Export an image sequence.
3. Composite, add effects, and edit in After Effects.
4. Add and mix music in After Effects, Premiere Pro, or a DAW, then render.

Audio always arrives at the end of this chain, or in a temporary form as a timing guide. That's usually fine, because compositing and sound mixing are normally handled in the same stage.

Troubleshooting common problems

The music drifts out of sync. Check that the frame rate in your export, your composition, and any intermediate tool all match. Variable frame rate video from mobile apps can also cause drift, so convert to constant frame rate if you see it.

Audio won't import into Dreams. Convert the file to MP3 and try again. If you can't find the file, use Split View with the Files app and drag it in instead of browsing.

The audio is cut off. The Dreams project duration is probably shorter than the track. Extend the project length or trim the audio.

The animation feels late against the beat. Viewers tend to read visual hits that land a frame or two before the sound as tighter. Try shifting the animation one or two frames earlier against the audio and compare.

Exported video looks soft after editing. Avoid re-compressing. Export a high-quality file or an image sequence from Procreate, and render once from your final editor.

Which method should you use?

The core rule applies in all three cases. Decide your frame rate first, keep audio on its own track, and finish the sound mix in the same tool where you finish the picture.

Procreate's Animation Assist has no audio import, so the reliable way to add music is to export your animation and sync it in a video editor such as After Effects, Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, or Final Cut Pro. If you want music in the timeline while you animate, use Procreate Dreams, which accepts audio files directly on its timeline. Which route to take depends on whether you need the track as a timing reference during animation or only for the final mix.

Which Procreate are you using?

"Procreate animation" can mean two different apps, and the answer differs for each.

• Procreate (Animation Assist): a frame-by-frame mode inside the drawing app. It has no audio track, so music is added after export.
• Procreate Dreams: a separate, paid animation app with a multitrack timeline. You can import audio, trim it, split it, and keyframe its level.

If you want to scrub to a track while animating, Dreams is the Procreate-native option. If you're already delivering through a compositing or editing pipeline, exporting is usually the cleaner path, and that's where many people end up anyway.

Method 1: Export and add music in a video editor

This works for any Procreate animation and gives you the most control over the final mix.

1. Lock your frame rate before you export

Set the frame rate in Procreate to the rate of your destination project (for example 24 fps for film-style delivery, or 30 fps for social). If the frame rate changes between apps, your animation's timing drifts against the music, and a drift of even a few frames is noticeable on hits and lip sync.

2. Export a format your editor handles well

Export a video file such as MP4 for quick turnarounds. For anything that will be composited, graded, or restyled, prefer an image sequence or a format with alpha where the app offers it, since compressed video adds artifacts you can't remove later. Check the export options in your version of Procreate or Dreams, as available formats have changed between releases.

3. Import the animation and the music

In After Effects, create a composition that matches your frame rate and resolution, then drag in the animation and the audio file. In Premiere Pro, Resolve, or Final Cut Pro, place both on the timeline. Free and mobile editors such as iMovie, CapCut, and DaVinci Resolve's free version can also do the job for simple projects.

4. Sync the animation to the track

• Find the beats. In After Effects, play the audio with the waveform visible (press L twice on the layer to reveal it) and drop layer markers on hits, downbeats, or dialogue accents.
• Retime to the markers. If an action lands a few frames early or late, use time remapping or trim and slip the clip rather than redrawing, unless the timing problem is structural.
• Check on a loop. Play the section repeatedly at full speed. Sync problems that hide at half speed show up quickly on loop.

5. Mix and render

Set the music level beneath any dialogue or effects, add fades at the head and tail, and render at your delivery spec. Keep the music on its own track so you can swap it without re-exporting the animation.

Method 2: Add audio inside Procreate Dreams

Use this when you want to animate to the music instead of fitting the music afterward, which is common for lip sync, music videos, and rhythm-driven loops.

Import the audio

1. Open your Dreams project and tap Add, then Files, and choose the audio file. The clip lands at the current playhead position, so move the playhead first.
2. Alternatively, open Split View with the Files app beside Dreams and drag the audio onto the Stage to create a new track, or onto the Timeline to place it on an existing track.
3. Stick to widely supported formats. MP3 is the safest choice, since users report import errors with other file types.

Preview before you commit

If you're choosing between several tracks, preview them in the Files app through Split View before dropping any into the timeline. You can scrub the file there and find the section you want, which keeps the project from filling up with rejected options.

Trim and adjust

• Use Split to cut the audio at the playhead and delete what you don't need.
• Use trim handles to align the start of the music with your first frame.
• Use audio level keyframes for fades and ducking.

Watch the project length

Dreams projects have a set duration. If your audio runs longer than the timeline, the portion past the end can't be edited. Set the project length to cover the music, or trim the track first.

Use the audio as a drawing reference

Once the track is in, scrub frame by frame and mark where beats, syllables, or hits fall. Then draw key poses on those frames and fill in between. This is the main advantage of the in-app route, and it's why so many animators request audio in the standard Procreate timeline.

Method 3: Use a separate audio-first pass

For longer pieces, a split workflow is often more efficient:

1. Build the audio edit first in a DAW or in your editor, and export a reference MP3 or WAV.
2. Bring that reference into Dreams (or just keep it open in a second window) while you animate.
3. Export your animation without the audio and assemble the final mix in After Effects or Premiere Pro, using the original, full-quality audio files.

This keeps the music edit and the picture edit independent. If the client changes the track, you re-time in the editor instead of reopening the animation project.

Moving Procreate frames into a larger After Effects pipeline

Some Procreate artists treat the app as a sketching and key-pose tool rather than the finishing environment. One possible pipeline looks like this:

1. Draw key frames or a rough animation in Procreate or Dreams.
2. Export an image sequence.
3. Composite, add effects, and edit in After Effects.
4. Add and mix music in After Effects, Premiere Pro, or a DAW, then render.

Audio always arrives at the end of this chain, or in a temporary form as a timing guide. That's usually fine, because compositing and sound mixing are normally handled in the same stage.

Troubleshooting common problems

The music drifts out of sync. Check that the frame rate in your export, your composition, and any intermediate tool all match. Variable frame rate video from mobile apps can also cause drift, so convert to constant frame rate if you see it.

Audio won't import into Dreams. Convert the file to MP3 and try again. If you can't find the file, use Split View with the Files app and drag it in instead of browsing.

The audio is cut off. The Dreams project duration is probably shorter than the track. Extend the project length or trim the audio.

The animation feels late against the beat. Viewers tend to read visual hits that land a frame or two before the sound as tighter. Try shifting the animation one or two frames earlier against the audio and compare.

Exported video looks soft after editing. Avoid re-compressing. Export a high-quality file or an image sequence from Procreate, and render once from your final editor.

Which method should you use?

The core rule applies in all three cases. Decide your frame rate first, keep audio on its own track, and finish the sound mix in the same tool where you finish the picture.