# Pencil alternatives > Six Pencil alternatives for making and testing ad creative with AI, with what each does best and prices read off their own sites on 20 Oct 2026. - **Author**: Marxx - **Published**: 2026-11-08 - **Category**: AI creative tools - **URL**: https://marxx.ai/library-alternatives/pencil-alternatives --- The main Pencil alternatives are AdCreative.ai and Predis.ai for low-cost ad creative, Creatify for video ads with AI actors, Madgicx for Meta ad automation, and Smartly for creative and media in one platform. Pencil lists Core at $14 a month and Growth at $55 a month on monthly billing, with 50 and 250 generations (checked 2026-10-20). ## Why teams look for an alternative Pencil makes text, images, video and ad creatives with AI agents. It shows AI scores and insights, and it can launch and track ads on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Google Display, DV360 and LinkedIn. Pro, its enterprise plan, adds unlimited generations and terms such as IP assignment. Teams look elsewhere for a few reasons. The self-serve plans cap generations. Pro pricing is custom. Some teams want video with AI actors, or a tool that reads the results from their own ad account. Say you need 200 generations a month. Core's 50 fall short. Growth's 250 cover you. Core works out at $14 / 50 = $0.28 a generation, and Growth at $55 / 250 = $0.22. ## Quick comparison | Tool | Best for | Starting price | |---|---|---| | Pencil | Ad creative with AI scores and launch | Core $14/month; Growth $55/month | | AdCreative.ai | Ad images, copy and scoring | Starter $39/month | | Predis.ai | Ads, videos and posts with competitor runs | Core $19/month, billed yearly | | Creatify | Video ads with AI actors | Standard $15/month; free plan | | Madgicx | Meta ad automation and analytics | From $45/month, priced by ad spend | | Smartly | Creative, media and reporting in one hub | Not listed publicly | | Marxx | Reading your Meta account, then making the next ad | See [pricing](/pricing) | Prices read on each company's own site on 20 October 2026, in dollars. ## AdCreative.ai Generates ad creatives and copy, scores creatives before you advertise, and analyses competitors. Its homepage lists Starter at $39 a month, or $20 a month billed yearly, for 1 brand. Read more on [creative scoring](/glossary/ai-creative-scoring) before you trust any score. ## Predis.ai Makes ads, videos and posts. Core is $19 a month billed yearly ($230 a year), with 1,300 credits, 1 brand and 60 competitor runs a month. Rise is $40 a month billed yearly for up to 4 brands. See [AdCreative.ai vs Predis.ai](/compare/adcreative-vs-predis). ## Creatify Standard is $15 a month, or $12 billed yearly, for 55 credits and 300 AI actors. Pro is $55 a month, or $44 billed yearly, for 280 credits. Pro lists 1,500 AI actors, an Ad Agent, a Competitor Ad Tracker covering 10M+ Meta ads, and Ad Clone. It also has a free plan with 10 credits a month and watermarked exports. ## Madgicx Calls itself an Ecom Ad Cloud for automation, targeting, analytics and ad management. Pro Complete starts at $45 a month on monthly billing, and the price depends on your ad spend. It has a 7-day free trial. ## Smartly An AI advertising platform with Creative, Media and Intelligence products, sold through a demo. No price is listed. It describes itself as a central hub for platforms, creative, channels and metrics. See [Smartly alternatives](/alternatives/smartly-alternatives). ## Marxx We make Marxx, so weigh this. It reads your connected Meta ad account in full, with creative tagged by hook, angle, format and offer, and shows fatigue now and within 7 days. Its production canvas makes the next ad and publishes it to Meta. See the [production canvas](/features/production-canvas). ## How to choose 1. Count the ads you test each month, then compare it with each plan's credits. 2. Try the tool on one product with your real brand assets. 3. Check which ad platforms it can launch to. 4. For a wider list, read [the best AI ad generators](/best/best-ai-ad-generators). ## FAQ ### What is the cheapest Pencil alternative? Creatify has a free plan with 10 credits a month and watermarked exports. Among paid plans, Creatify Standard is $15 a month ($12 billed yearly) and Predis.ai Core is $19 a month billed yearly. ### Does Pencil have a free plan? Its pricing page lists Core at $14 a month, Growth at $55 a month and a custom Pro plan. It lists no free plan. Its FAQ says you can sign up and create six ads in a guided experience for free, and the full platform needs a paid plan. ### Which alternative is best for large brands? Pencil's Pro plan is made for enterprises. Smartly sells through demos. Neither lists a price, so compare them in a demo. --- - [More AI creative tools articles](https://marxx.ai/library-alternatives/category/ai-creative-tools) - [All articles](https://marxx.ai/library-alternatives)