You have the images. Now build something with them.
Simple overlay tools let you stack two images. Desktop software lets you do everything — if you have the license, the install, and the time. This is the space between: a multi-layer compositor with shapes, opacity control, snap guides, undo/redo, a playback timeline, and direct export to PNG, GIF, or MP4. Drop your images. Arrange them. Animate. Export.
Online overlay tools let you put one image on top of another. That's it. If you want layers, shapes, animation, or export — you're told to install Photoshop. There's nothing in the middle for people who need more than a slider but less than a $600 desktop suite.
Upload two images. Move one on top of the other. Adjust opacity. Download. That's the ceiling. Need a third layer? A shape? An animation? A different export format? You're out of luck — or out of the tool.
Unlimited image layers. Seven shape types as masks or standalone elements. Per-layer opacity, drag-to-reorder, snap guides, zoom from 25% to 400%, full undo/redo. A timeline that plays your composition back. Record directly to GIF or MP4. Export individual layers or the full canvas as PNG.
Drop images. Arrange layers. Export the result.
Drag files onto the canvas — each one becomes a layer. Batch import an entire folder at once. Every layer gets its own position, size, and opacity. Reorder by dragging in the layer panel.
Resize and position layers on the canvas. Add shape overlays — rectangle, circle, triangle, star, hexagon, diamond, arrow. Adjust per-layer opacity. Use snap guides for alignment. Zoom in to inspect details.
Play back your composition on the timeline. Adjust duration and easing. Record to GIF or MP4 with custom built-in encoders. Or export the canvas as a single PNG. Your composition, your format.
Every image is an independent layer with its own position, size, and opacity. Drag to reorder. Drag to reposition. Resize from any edge. Snap guides help you align layers to the canvas center and to each other.
Seven shape types: rectangle, circle, triangle, star, hexagon, diamond, and arrow. Use them as standalone color layers or as clipping masks to crop images into shapes. Each shape has independent opacity and positioning.
The playback timeline lets you preview your composition as an animation. Adjust the total duration, set easing curves, and scrub through the timeline. What you see in playback is exactly what gets exported.
Record your composition directly to GIF or MP4 using custom built-in encoders. Choose frame rate and duration. The output is exactly what you saw in the timeline preview.
Zoom from 25% to 400%. Fit-to-view with a single key. Snap guides for horizontal and vertical center alignment. Pixel-precise positioning when you need it, freeform dragging when you don't.
Every action is undoable — layer additions, removals, reordering, opacity changes, position moves, shape edits. Ctrl+Z to step back, Ctrl+Y to step forward. History survives mode switches.
Drag an entire folder of images onto the canvas. Each file becomes its own layer, automatically positioned and ready to arrange. Importing 20 images takes the same effort as importing one.
Export the full canvas as PNG. Capture individual layers. Shape-clipped captures — crop to circle, star, hexagon, or any shape and export just that region. Projects auto-save to IndexedDB so you can resume later.
You compared 20 generations, found the best three. Now layer them — your favorite face on one, the best background on another, a shape mask to frame the composition. Export the reference sheet or animate the iteration progress as a GIF to share on social. See also: compare AI generated images →
Quick layered mockups for client review. Stack your hero image, overlay the logo, add a shape frame, export as PNG. When you need a rough comp in two minutes instead of opening Photoshop for an hour. Moodboards with your actual project images — not stock photography from a template library.
Build animated before/after comparisons. Layer product shots for carousel posts. Create visual changelogs — stack the old and new versions, animate through the timeline, export as GIF. The format that gets engagement on social is motion, and the compositor builds it from your images. See also: before & after comparison →
Quick composite checks. Layer your plates, verify integration, check cleanup passes. When you need to see how two elements sit together before committing to a full composite in Nuke or After Effects. See also: retouching QA tool →
Animated visual changelogs — layer the old UI on the new UI, play back on the timeline, record to GIF. Ship the visual diff in your pull request. Stack screenshots across breakpoints for responsive QA. See also: pixel diff tool →
Layer your selects from a shoot into a contact sheet. Stack edit variations to compare processing approaches. Export shape-clipped versions — circle crops for profile photos, custom shapes for creative framing — directly from the compositor without a separate cropping step.
| Tool type | Layers | Shapes | Timeline | GIF/MP4 | Tradeoff |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simple overlay tools PineTools, overlayimages.com |
2 | — | — | — | One image on another. That's it. |
| Design platforms Canva, Pixlr, Adobe Express |
✓ | ✓ | Basic | ✓ | Template-driven. Built for branded content, not your own image compositing. |
| GIF/animation converters ezgif, imgflip, Kapwing |
— | — | — | ✓ | Convert finished frames. Don't build the composition. |
| Desktop software Photoshop, After Effects |
✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Can do everything. Requires install, license, and expertise. |
| Compix compositor | ✓ Unlimited | ✓ 7 types | ✓ Playback | ✓ Built-in | Focused. No templates, no filters. Layer your images, compose, animate, export. |
Select a shape layer — circle, star, hexagon — and capture. The export crops to the shape bounds with the shape as a clip path. A star-shaped export from a single click, without masking tools or path editing.
The compositor isn't isolated. Images loaded into Compix's comparison modes — blink test, pixel diff, split wipe — can be sent directly to the scene as layers. Compare first, composite the winners. One workflow, not two tools.
Compositions auto-save to IndexedDB. Close your tab, come back tomorrow — your layers, positions, and opacity settings are exactly where you left them.
The full platform overview — blink, diff, split, compositing, and animation in one workspace. Open →
Compare AI upscaler outputs with blink testing and pixel diff heatmap. Open →