Quick answer: No, you cannot load Procreate brushes into Photoshop directly. Photoshop does not read Procreate’s .brush or .brushset formats. You can, however, extract the shape image from a Procreate brush, define it as a Photoshop brush tip, and rebuild the behavior with Photoshop’s Brush Settings. The reverse direction is much easier: Procreate imports Photoshop .abr brushes, so many artists keep .abr files as their cross-app format.
It feels like it should work. Both apps stamp an image along a stroke, both use pressure, both have texture settings. But the two companies store brushes in entirely different ways, and Adobe has never added a Procreate importer to Photoshop.
That does not leave you stuck. This article explains why Procreate brushes do not open in Photoshop, the manual method for recreating them, what you can and cannot carry over, and smarter alternatives such as buying dual-format packs. If you mostly paint scenery on the iPad and just want great brushes there, our roundup of the best Procreate landscape brushes may save you the conversion work entirely.
Can You Use Procreate Brushes in Photoshop? Why Not Directly
A Photoshop brush (.abr) is a container Adobe designed for its own brush engine. A Procreate brush (.brush) is a different container built for Procreate’s Brush Studio. Each stores the tip image, texture and dozens of behavior values using its own structure and naming.
Procreate’s developers chose to support importing Photoshop brushes because so many artists arrive with .abr libraries. Adobe has not built the reverse. So if you try to double-click a .brush file on a computer or load it through Photoshop’s Brushes panel, nothing useful happens.
What is actually inside a Procreate brush file?
A .brush file is a compressed archive. If you copy it to a computer and change the extension to .zip, most operating systems can open it. Inside you typically find:
- A shape image (often named Shape.png) for the stamp outline.
- A grain image (often named Grain.png) for the texture inside the stamp.
- A settings file that stores Procreate’s brush parameters in a format only Procreate interprets.
- Sometimes a preview thumbnail.
A .brushset file is a larger archive containing one folder per brush, each with the same pieces. The images are standard PNG files, and those are what you can reuse in Photoshop.
How to Recreate a Procreate Brush in Photoshop
This method gives you a Photoshop brush with the same shape and texture as the original. You will rebuild the feel by hand. Before you start, check the brush license: some creators allow use only in the app they sold it for.
Step 1: Extract the source images
- Export the brush from Procreate: swipe left on it in the Brush Library and tap Share. Save to Files or AirDrop it to your computer.
- On your computer, duplicate the file, then rename the copy from .brush to .zip.
- Extract the zip. Locate the shape and grain PNG files.
Step 2: Invert the shape for Photoshop
Procreate treats white as paint and black as transparent. Photoshop’s Define Brush Preset does the opposite: black becomes fully opaque and white becomes transparent. Open the shape PNG in Photoshop, convert to grayscale, and invert (Image, Adjustments, Invert). Your stamp should now be dark on a white background.
Step 3: Define the brush tip
- Select the whole canvas or just the stamp area with a little margin.
- Choose Edit, Define Brush Preset and name it.
- The new brush appears at the bottom of your Brushes panel.
Step 4: Turn the grain into a pattern
Open the grain PNG, keep it grayscale, and choose Edit, Define Pattern. In Photoshop’s Brush Settings, the Texture option uses patterns, so this lets you apply the same grain. Whether you invert the grain depends on the look you want; compare both.
Step 5: Rebuild the behavior
Open Window, Brush Settings and work through the panels using the original Procreate brush as reference. Paint a sample stroke in Procreate first so you have something to match.
| Procreate Brush Studio | Closest Photoshop Brush Settings |
|---|---|
| Stroke Path: Spacing | Brush Tip Shape: Spacing |
| Stroke Path: Jitter | Scattering: Scatter amount |
| Shape: Scatter and Rotation | Shape Dynamics: Angle Jitter and Angle Control |
| Grain: Texturized vs Moving | Texture: “Texture Each Tip” on or off |
| Grain: Scale and Depth | Texture: Scale and Depth |
| Apple Pencil: Pressure to size | Shape Dynamics: Size Jitter control set to Pen Pressure |
| Apple Pencil: Pressure to opacity | Transfer: Opacity Jitter control set to Pen Pressure |
| Taper | Shape Dynamics with Fade, or Photoshop’s smoothing options |
| StreamLine | Smoothing percentage in the Options bar |
| Wet Mix | Mixer Brush tool settings (wet, load, mix) |
Step 6: Save it properly
Once it feels right, open the Brushes panel menu and create a new brush preset so the settings are stored with the tip. Then group your rebuilt brushes and use Export Selected Brushes to save an .abr backup.
What Carries Over and What Does Not
Expect the shape and grain to look identical, because they are the same images. Expect the feel to be close but not identical. Several Procreate features have no exact Photoshop counterpart:
- Wet Mix behavior in Procreate blends differently from Photoshop’s Mixer Brush.
- Rendering modes (how strokes build up at edges) are specific to Procreate.
- Taper in Procreate is applied differently than Photoshop’s Fade or smoothing.
- Dual-shape brushes made in Procreate’s newer brush features need Photoshop’s Dual Brush to approximate them.
- Material and 3D painting settings do not apply in Photoshop at all.
Simple brushes, such as a textured pencil or a hard ink pen, can come out almost indistinguishable. Complex painterly brushes that depend on wet mixing will only be approximations.
Easier Alternatives to Converting
Buy dual-format packs
Many brush creators sell packs that include both Procreate and Photoshop versions, sometimes for Clip Studio or Fresco too. Each version is tuned for its engine, which beats any manual conversion. Check the product page for “includes .abr” before buying.
Start in Photoshop and import to Procreate
Procreate imports .abr files through the Files app or drag and drop. If you need the same brush on both platforms, building or buying it as an .abr gives you a starting point everywhere. You may still tweak spacing and pressure in Procreate’s Brush Studio after import.
Use Adobe Fresco on the iPad
If you like painting on an iPad but work in Adobe apps on desktop, Adobe Fresco uses Photoshop-compatible brushes and syncs with Creative Cloud. It is not Procreate, but it removes the format problem.
Move the artwork, not the brush
Sometimes you only need to finish a Procreate painting in Photoshop. Export it as a PSD from Procreate (Actions, Share, PSD). Layers are preserved, so you can continue with Photoshop’s own brushes and nobody needs to convert anything.
Procreate Brush Formats and the Questions People Ask Next
How to install Procreate brushes (on the iPad, where they work)
Save the .brush or .brushset file to the Files app, unzip if needed, and tap it. Procreate imports it automatically into the Brush Library. Single brushes land in an Imported set; brush sets get their own set.
How to make custom brushes in Procreate that are easier to convert later
If you know you will want a brush in Photoshop too, design it with portability in mind. Keep the shape and grain as clean, high-resolution grayscale images you save separately. Rely mainly on spacing, pressure and texture rather than Procreate-only features like Wet Mix. Those settings translate well to Photoshop’s Brush Settings.
How to download Procreate brushes for landscapes
Landscape packs typically include stamp brushes for trees and clouds, scatter brushes for grass and foliage, and texture brushes for rock and water. They are designed for Procreate, so they shine there and convert poorly if they rely on heavy scattering logic. Choosing a well-built pack for Procreate is usually smarter than converting a Photoshop set. Our list of Procreate brush sets for landscapes and scenery compares options.
A Worked Example: Converting a Textured Pencil
Here is how a typical conversion plays out for a simple graphite-style brush.
- Export the brush from Procreate and extract it. The shape is a small soft white circle; the grain is a paper texture.
- In Photoshop, invert the shape so it is a soft dark circle, then Define Brush Preset.
- Define the grain as a pattern.
- In Brush Settings: spacing around the low end, Shape Dynamics size controlled by Pen Pressure with a modest minimum diameter, Texture on with the paper pattern and Texture Each Tip off so grain stays fixed like paper tooth.
- Transfer: Opacity controlled by Pen Pressure.
- Compare test strokes side by side. Adjust texture depth until the grain matches.
Total time is usually 10 to 20 minutes per brush once you have done one. That is reasonable for a handful of favorites and impractical for a 200-brush library.
Converting Landscape and Stamp Brushes
Landscape brushes are some of the most popular Procreate downloads, and they convert differently from pencils or inkers. A tree, cloud or rock stamp is usually one detailed shape image with very wide spacing, so a single tap places one element. In Photoshop, define that shape as a brush and set spacing high enough (often well above 100 percent) that a tap gives one clean stamp. Add Angle Jitter and a little Size Jitter in Shape Dynamics so repeated stamps do not look identical.
Scatter brushes for grass, leaves and stars rely on Procreate’s jitter and shape scatter. Photoshop’s Scattering panel, with “Both Axes” enabled and a moderate Count, gets you close. Expect to spend more time matching density than on any other setting, because the two apps distribute stamps differently.
Texture brushes for rock faces or water ripples usually depend on the grain image. Here the Texture panel in Photoshop does most of the work. Try Texture Each Tip on and off: on gives a texture that moves with each stamp, while off locks it to the canvas like paper tooth.
Should You Convert at All? A Quick Decision Guide
| Situation | Best option |
|---|---|
| One or two favorite brushes you made yourself | Convert manually using the steps above |
| A purchased pack with an .abr version available | Download the .abr version instead |
| A large library of 50 or more brushes | Rebuild only the essentials; buy dual-format packs for the rest |
| Painterly brushes that depend on Wet Mix | Use Photoshop’s Mixer Brush or keep that work in Procreate |
| You only need to finish a painting in Photoshop | Export a layered PSD and use Photoshop’s own brushes |
Common Conversion Mistakes
- Forgetting to invert. The brush paints a dark square. Invert the shape before defining it.
- Using a tiny shape image. Photoshop brush tips go soft when enlarged past their native size. Keep sources large.
- Matching sliders numerically. A Procreate spacing value and a Photoshop spacing percentage are not the same scale. Match by eye.
- Ignoring licensing. Converting a brush does not change its terms of use.
FAQs
Is there a converter that turns Procreate brushes into Photoshop brushes?
There is no official converter from Adobe or Procreate. Some third-party tools and scripts claim to do it, but results vary and they still cannot translate Procreate-only features. The manual method gives you more control.
Can Procreate use Photoshop brushes?
Yes. Procreate imports .abr files. Brush tips usually transfer well, while advanced Photoshop dynamics may be simplified and need tuning in the Brush Studio.
Do Procreate brushes work in Photoshop on iPad?
No. Photoshop on iPad also uses Adobe’s brush system and does not read Procreate files.
How do I make brushes in Procreate that also work in Photoshop?
You cannot make one file that works in both. Save the shape and grain images separately, build the brush in each app, and keep the core settings (spacing, pressure, texture) similar.
Is it legal to convert brushes I bought?
It depends on the license. Many creators permit personal conversion for your own use, while others restrict use to a specific app. Read the license or contact the creator.
Why does my converted brush feel stiffer in Photoshop?
Pressure curves differ. Adjust Photoshop’s minimum diameter and opacity jitter, and check your tablet driver’s pressure settings. Smoothing in the Options bar can also make strokes feel more like Procreate’s StreamLine.
Final Thoughts
You cannot drop Procreate brushes straight into Photoshop, but you can rebuild them: extract the PNGs, invert the shape, define a brush and pattern, then tune the settings by eye. For a few favorite brushes, that is worth it. For a whole library, dual-format packs or keeping .abr as your master format will save hours. And if your painting stays on the iPad, choose brushes built for Procreate from the start; our guide to the best landscape brushes for Procreate is a good shortlist.
