To save a transparent background in Procreate, hide the Background Color layer in the Layers panel, then tap Actions > Share > PNG and save the file. PNG is the format that keeps the alpha channel, while JPEG fills transparent areas with a solid color. If the exported file looks white or black afterward, the cause is often the app you're previewing it in (frequently Apple's Photos) rather than the export itself.

The Quick Method: Export a Transparent PNG

This is a short process, and the steps below are the same ones Procreate's own team walks through.

1. Open the Layers panel.
2. Uncheck the Background Color layer at the bottom of the stack. Procreate shows the artwork on a transparent background. The layer isn't deleted, only hidden.
3. Check every other layer for stray fills. A white layer, a paper texture, or a full-canvas shadow will export as solid pixels.
4. Tap Actions > Share.
5. Choose PNG.
6. Tap Save Image (to Photos) or pick Save to Files, AirDrop, or another destination.

The background layer is part of your artwork until you turn it off. Procreate treats it as a filled layer, not as an empty canvas behind your drawing, which is why hiding it is the step people miss.

Which Format Should You Use?

JPEG has no alpha channel, so Procreate has to fill transparent areas, usually with white. If a client or printer asks for something other than PNG, export a PSD with the background layer hidden and open it on a desktop to confirm the transparency survived. Don't assume it did.

Why Your Export Still Looks Like It Has a Background

Many "it didn't save transparent" reports come from how the file is viewed or moved, not how it was exported. Check these in order.

Photos shows transparency as white or black

Apple's Photos app renders transparent PNGs against a white background when the toolbars are visible and a black background in full-screen mode. The file may be perfectly fine. Don't judge the export from the Photos preview.

Photos can alter the file

There are also reports of Photos changing files during transfer, such as flattening PSDs or converting PNGs. If your PNG comes out opaque after a trip through Photos, stop using Photos as the transit point. Use one of these instead:

• Save to Files (iCloud Drive, local storage)
• AirDrop to a Mac
• Dropbox, Google Drive, or another cloud folder
• Drag and drop directly into another app in Split View

Other apps add a background

Some apps, such as chat apps, add a dark background to transparent images for display. If you download that preview and re-import it, you may be importing a flattened copy. Always work from the original export.

Your import is flattening the file

A reported bug has Procreate flattening PSDs when you import them through the Gallery's import flow, while dragging the same file in from Files or Photos keeps the transparency. If an imported file looks flattened, try dragging it in instead.

Test the export properly

To verify a PNG, import it back into Procreate (Gallery > Photo or Import), open the Layers panel, and hide the background layer. If the background is transparent, the alpha channel is intact. Better still, open it in the app where you'll actually use it, such as After Effects, Photoshop, or Nuke.

Saving Only One Element or Selection

You don't always want the whole canvas. Two options:

• Hide everything except the elements you want, then export PNG as above. The empty space around your element should stay transparent.
• Copy and paste. Use the three-finger swipe down to open the Copy & Paste menu, copy your element (or the full canvas), then paste into a new canvas or another app that accepts clipboard transparency. This is useful for reusing cutouts such as photo masks you spent time on.

If you want to reuse a cutout later, save the Procreate file with the background layer hidden and keep it as your source. Re-export from it whenever you need a PNG.

Exporting Animations with Transparency

Static PNGs are straightforward. Animation is where limits show up.

• Animation Assist exports: If you animate in Procreate, check whether your version can export a PNG sequence, which is the safest route for compositing since each frame would be a standalone PNG. Hide the background layer first, as with a still. Test a short export before committing to a long one, because format behavior can vary between versions.
• Time-lapse replay: Procreate's time-lapse export does not output a transparent background, so you can't overlay a replay on other footage using alpha. The workaround is to screen-record or key the replay in your editor.
• GIF and MP4: Treat these as review formats, since they may not preserve clean transparency.

For production work, export a PNG sequence if your version supports it and bring it into your compositing app as an image sequence.

Bringing Procreate PNGs into After Effects and Other Pipelines

A clean export can still cause problems downstream. A few things to check when you move Procreate assets into motion or VFX tools:

• Alpha interpretation: In After Effects, if you see dark or light fringes around soft edges, right-click the footage > Interpret Footage > Main and try Straight versus Premultiplied. A wrong guess shows up immediately on soft brushes and glows.
• Color profile: If colors shift in your comp, check that the color profile you worked in matches your project's color management settings.
• Resolution: If you plan to scale up in a comp, create the canvas larger than your delivery size, and check the canvas size before you start painting.
• Image sequences: Name frames consistently with zero-padded numbers so After Effects, Nuke, Premiere Pro, Blender, and Cinema 4D recognize them as a sequence rather than a pile of stills.
• Layered handoff: If you need to adjust parts separately in a comp, export several PNGs with different layers visible, or export a PSD and import it as a composition with layers.

Where Styleframe Fits in This Workflow

Procreate is a strong place to draw the original artwork, but a transparent PNG is usually a starting point, not the final shot. This is where Styleframe, an AI video and motion tool, can sit beside your existing pipeline.

None of this replaces the Procreate export steps above. You still need a clean PNG with the background layer hidden. Styleframe is useful once that artwork has to become motion or has to match a larger shot.

Quick Troubleshooting Checklist

• Background Color layer is unchecked in the Layers panel
• No other layer (paper, shadow, white fill) covers the canvas
• Format is PNG, or PSD with the background hidden, not JPEG
• File saved to Files, AirDrop, or cloud storage instead of Photos
• Procreate has permission to access Photos in iOS Settings, if you do save there
• Exported file re-imported or opened on desktop to confirm the alpha channel
• Not judging transparency from a chat app or Photos preview
• Imported PSDs dragged in from Files if the Gallery import flattens them

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does my transparent PNG have a white background in Photos? Photos displays transparent areas as white when toolbars are visible and black in full-screen. Open the file in Procreate or on a desktop to see its true state.

Can I export a transparent JPEG? No. JPEG doesn't support an alpha channel, so Procreate fills the transparent area.

Does hiding the background layer delete it? No. It only turns off visibility, and you can re-enable it any time.

Can I export a time-lapse with a transparent background? Not with Procreate's built-in time-lapse export. For a transparent animation, build it in Animation Assist and check whether your version can export a PNG sequence.

What if I need a print-ready file but not PNG? Export a PSD with the background layer hidden, then open it in a desktop app to confirm the layers and transparency before sending it on.

To save a transparent background in Procreate, hide the Background Color layer in the Layers panel, then tap Actions > Share > PNG and save the file. PNG is the format that keeps the alpha channel, while JPEG fills transparent areas with a solid color. If the exported file looks white or black afterward, the cause is often the app you're previewing it in (frequently Apple's Photos) rather than the export itself.

The Quick Method: Export a Transparent PNG

This is a short process, and the steps below are the same ones Procreate's own team walks through.

1. Open the Layers panel.
2. Uncheck the Background Color layer at the bottom of the stack. Procreate shows the artwork on a transparent background. The layer isn't deleted, only hidden.
3. Check every other layer for stray fills. A white layer, a paper texture, or a full-canvas shadow will export as solid pixels.
4. Tap Actions > Share.
5. Choose PNG.
6. Tap Save Image (to Photos) or pick Save to Files, AirDrop, or another destination.

The background layer is part of your artwork until you turn it off. Procreate treats it as a filled layer, not as an empty canvas behind your drawing, which is why hiding it is the step people miss.

Which Format Should You Use?

JPEG has no alpha channel, so Procreate has to fill transparent areas, usually with white. If a client or printer asks for something other than PNG, export a PSD with the background layer hidden and open it on a desktop to confirm the transparency survived. Don't assume it did.

Why Your Export Still Looks Like It Has a Background

Many "it didn't save transparent" reports come from how the file is viewed or moved, not how it was exported. Check these in order.

Photos shows transparency as white or black

Apple's Photos app renders transparent PNGs against a white background when the toolbars are visible and a black background in full-screen mode. The file may be perfectly fine. Don't judge the export from the Photos preview.

Photos can alter the file

There are also reports of Photos changing files during transfer, such as flattening PSDs or converting PNGs. If your PNG comes out opaque after a trip through Photos, stop using Photos as the transit point. Use one of these instead:

• Save to Files (iCloud Drive, local storage)
• AirDrop to a Mac
• Dropbox, Google Drive, or another cloud folder
• Drag and drop directly into another app in Split View

Other apps add a background

Some apps, such as chat apps, add a dark background to transparent images for display. If you download that preview and re-import it, you may be importing a flattened copy. Always work from the original export.

Your import is flattening the file

A reported bug has Procreate flattening PSDs when you import them through the Gallery's import flow, while dragging the same file in from Files or Photos keeps the transparency. If an imported file looks flattened, try dragging it in instead.

Test the export properly

To verify a PNG, import it back into Procreate (Gallery > Photo or Import), open the Layers panel, and hide the background layer. If the background is transparent, the alpha channel is intact. Better still, open it in the app where you'll actually use it, such as After Effects, Photoshop, or Nuke.

Saving Only One Element or Selection

You don't always want the whole canvas. Two options:

• Hide everything except the elements you want, then export PNG as above. The empty space around your element should stay transparent.
• Copy and paste. Use the three-finger swipe down to open the Copy & Paste menu, copy your element (or the full canvas), then paste into a new canvas or another app that accepts clipboard transparency. This is useful for reusing cutouts such as photo masks you spent time on.

If you want to reuse a cutout later, save the Procreate file with the background layer hidden and keep it as your source. Re-export from it whenever you need a PNG.

Exporting Animations with Transparency

Static PNGs are straightforward. Animation is where limits show up.

• Animation Assist exports: If you animate in Procreate, check whether your version can export a PNG sequence, which is the safest route for compositing since each frame would be a standalone PNG. Hide the background layer first, as with a still. Test a short export before committing to a long one, because format behavior can vary between versions.
• Time-lapse replay: Procreate's time-lapse export does not output a transparent background, so you can't overlay a replay on other footage using alpha. The workaround is to screen-record or key the replay in your editor.
• GIF and MP4: Treat these as review formats, since they may not preserve clean transparency.

For production work, export a PNG sequence if your version supports it and bring it into your compositing app as an image sequence.

Bringing Procreate PNGs into After Effects and Other Pipelines

A clean export can still cause problems downstream. A few things to check when you move Procreate assets into motion or VFX tools:

• Alpha interpretation: In After Effects, if you see dark or light fringes around soft edges, right-click the footage > Interpret Footage > Main and try Straight versus Premultiplied. A wrong guess shows up immediately on soft brushes and glows.
• Color profile: If colors shift in your comp, check that the color profile you worked in matches your project's color management settings.
• Resolution: If you plan to scale up in a comp, create the canvas larger than your delivery size, and check the canvas size before you start painting.
• Image sequences: Name frames consistently with zero-padded numbers so After Effects, Nuke, Premiere Pro, Blender, and Cinema 4D recognize them as a sequence rather than a pile of stills.
• Layered handoff: If you need to adjust parts separately in a comp, export several PNGs with different layers visible, or export a PSD and import it as a composition with layers.

Where Styleframe Fits in This Workflow

Procreate is a strong place to draw the original artwork, but a transparent PNG is usually a starting point, not the final shot. This is where Styleframe, an AI video and motion tool, can sit beside your existing pipeline.

None of this replaces the Procreate export steps above. You still need a clean PNG with the background layer hidden. Styleframe is useful once that artwork has to become motion or has to match a larger shot.

Quick Troubleshooting Checklist

• Background Color layer is unchecked in the Layers panel
• No other layer (paper, shadow, white fill) covers the canvas
• Format is PNG, or PSD with the background hidden, not JPEG
• File saved to Files, AirDrop, or cloud storage instead of Photos
• Procreate has permission to access Photos in iOS Settings, if you do save there
• Exported file re-imported or opened on desktop to confirm the alpha channel
• Not judging transparency from a chat app or Photos preview
• Imported PSDs dragged in from Files if the Gallery import flattens them

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does my transparent PNG have a white background in Photos? Photos displays transparent areas as white when toolbars are visible and black in full-screen. Open the file in Procreate or on a desktop to see its true state.

Can I export a transparent JPEG? No. JPEG doesn't support an alpha channel, so Procreate fills the transparent area.

Does hiding the background layer delete it? No. It only turns off visibility, and you can re-enable it any time.

Can I export a time-lapse with a transparent background? Not with Procreate's built-in time-lapse export. For a transparent animation, build it in Animation Assist and check whether your version can export a PNG sequence.

What if I need a print-ready file but not PNG? Export a PSD with the background layer hidden, then open it in a desktop app to confirm the layers and transparency before sending it on.