It’s been almost three years since Procreate’s last major release, and the long-awaited Procreate 5.4 update is finally here. After being rumored and delayed a couple of times, version 5.4 has arrived, and it’s packed with features that will change the way artists, designers, and lettering enthusiasts use the app.
If you’d like a visual reference, including a complete visual directory of the nearly 200 new brushes, you can grab my free Procreate 5.4 Cheat Sheet below. Then, we can walk through the highlights of this exciting release!
Back Up Before Updating
Before installing the update, please make sure to back up your canvases, custom brushes, and color palettes! Procreate doesn’t automatically store these outside the app (well, prior to 5.4 that is), so if something goes wrong during installation you could lose all your hard work.
If you need some help doing that, check out this post for a step-by-step guide.
The good news is that this might be the last time you need to do it manually, as Procreate 5.4 introduces automatic brush storage with iCloud syncing!
Automatic Brush Storage
One of the biggest game-changers in Procreate 5.4 is the ability to store brushes automatically, and externally. When updating, you’ll be asked whether to store brushes locally or in iCloud. Choosing iCloud means your brushes will always be backed up and synced seamlessly across devices. Brushes are now organized in a clear folder structure, making it easier to manage your collection.
Nearly 200 New Brushes
Procreate teamed up with Kyle T. Webster, who joined the team in 2024, to create 18 brand-new brush sets. Each set contains around 10 brushes, which adds up to nearly 200 new tools. The variety is incredible – lettering brushes, pencils, inks, markers, pastels, oils, watercolors, charcoal, digital textures, and more experimental brushes.
A few of the brush names come with creative nods to Australian culture (ie. ‘Huntsman’ and ‘Bandicoot’), showing the team’s Tasmanian roots.
For lettering artists, the dedicated lettering brush set is a standout addition.
Smarter Brush Organization
To manage this explosion of new brushes, Procreate 5.4 has redesigned the brush library. You’ll now see two main sections:
- Procreate Library : where all the new brushes live.
- Classic Library : containing original default brushes and any you’ve imported.
You can pinch out to view all libraries at once, create your own, or import multiple sets in one go. Custom icons (yes, even emojis) can now be applied to libraries for quick identification.
Brush Search, at LAST!
Each library also saves a history of recently used brushes, and the long-requested Brush Search feature makes finding any brush instant. Just pull down, type the name, and Procreate will locate it across all libraries. The results will show individual brushes, brush sets as well as Libraries.
Powerful Brush Studio Updates
Brush Studio also received a major upgrade in this release. Some of the most useful changes include:
- New Jitter Controls: Lateral and linear jitter in the stroke panel, plus vertical and horizontal roundness jitter in the shape panel, give artists precise control over randomness and scatter.
- Alpha Threshold Slider: Found in the rendering tab, this lets you fine-tune texture sharpness for more control over brush behavior.
- Per-Brush Pressure Curves: Instead of one global Apple Pencil pressure setting, you can now customize the pressure curve for each brush individually, perfect for calligraphy and lettering.
- Preview Tab: Live preview lets you customize how your brush appears with settings like size, pressure, wet mix etc.
These aren’t just technical tweaks, they’re already being put to use in the new default brushes, some of which include dual-color blending, instant outline effects, and realistic layering. (Check out the Phoenix & Buttercup brushes in the ‘Lettering’ set.)
A Word on Brush Duplication
If you’ve tested the beta version, you might notice duplicate libraries after updating. In my case, I ended up with both “Procreate Library” and “Procreate Library 1”, plus the same for Classic. Thankfully, the new ability to export and share entire brush libraries makes cleanup easy. Just back up the one you want to keep, delete the duplicate, and re-import the saved version. You can see more on my advice for handling this issue here.
Why Procreate 5.4 Matters
Between the automatic iCloud backup, the redesigned brush organization, the powerful new Brush Studio features, and nearly 200 new brushes, Procreate 5.4 feels like an upgrade that equips artists with a fully stocked, better organized digital art studio. Whether you’re a lettering artist, illustrator, or digital painter, this release brings tools that are practical, powerful, and inspiring.
To explore everything new in Procreate 5.4 and browse a complete brush directory, download the free cheat sheet.