Free tool · no sign-up · no watermark
Manga screentone maker: dot tones, gradients and halftone pictures
Make the dot, line and cross-hatch tones manga uses for shadows, skies and backgrounds. Set the tone, the dot spacing and the angle, add a gradient, and download a transparent PNG to drop on a layer in Clip Studio Paint, Procreate, Krita or MediBang. Or turn any picture into halftone dots. Everything is drawn in your browser.
How to use it
- 1
Pick a pattern
Dots for classic tone, lines or cross-hatch for texture. Flat, gradient or radial fill.
- 2
Tune it
Tone sets how dark it is, spacing sets the dot size (smaller looks finer in print), and 45° is the traditional angle.
- 3
Download and layer it
Put the PNG on a layer above your inks and erase or mask where you don't want tone.
Want the background? Read the guide to making a manga.
Questions
What is screentone?
Screentone is a pattern of tiny dots or lines that reads as grey. Manga is printed in black and white, so artists use tone instead of colour for shadows, skin, clothes, skies and mood. It started as adhesive sheets cut with a knife; today it is mostly digital.
What angle should screentone be?
45° is the classic angle because the eye notices the dot rows least. When you layer two tones, rotate one by about 30° to avoid moiré, the wavy pattern two grids make.
What dot spacing should I use?
At 600 dpi, about 10 to 16 px between dots looks like the common 55 to 60 lines-per-inch tones. Finer spacing looks smoother but can fill in when printed small.
Can I use the tones commercially?
Yes. The patterns you make here are yours to use in any comic, free or paid.
Is my picture uploaded?
No. The halftone is calculated in your browser and the picture never leaves your device.
Why does my tone look grey or blurry on screen?
Screens scale the image down, which blends the dots. Zoom to 100% to see the real dots; in print they stay sharp.
Want the whole manga page toned?
Panelo draws black-and-white manga pages with screentone from your idea, reading right to left, with real lettering.