Services have been a big part of Apple’s business for the past few years — to the tune of tens of billions of dollars in revenue just last year. Now, with the new Apple Creator Studio bundle, the company is leaning more into the professional creative software space.

Apple Creator Studio bundles a bunch of the company’s pro apps into a subscription service that you can pay for monthly or annually. It will be officially available starting January 28, and includes a one-month free trial. The key change is that some of these apps are now subscription-only on the iPad, though Apple continues to offer one-time purchases on the Mac — albeit with slightly different feature offerings. Here’s everything you need to know about Apple Creator Studio and the programs it includes.

What is included in Apple Creator Studio

At its core, Apple Creator Studio gives subscribers access to Apple’s professional video, music and imaging apps. the The bundle includes Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro, Pixelmator Pro, Motion, Compressor and MainStage. Pixelmator Pro (which Acquired by Apple in late 2024) also comes to iPad for the first time, with a touch-optimized interface and Apple Pencil support.

A Creator Studio subscription also unlocks premium content and features within Apple’s productivity apps. Keynote, Pages and Numbers remain free, but subscribers get access to premium templates and themes, plus a new Content Hub with Apple-curated photos, graphics and illustrations. Similar paid segments will come to Freeform later this year, the company said.

Apple is also using the bundle to introduce new “intelligence” features in many apps. In Final Cut Pro, the new Beat Detection feature can analyze a music track and display a beat grid so you can line up edits to the beat. The app also gets tools like transcript search and visual search designed to make it easier to find moments throughout the footage.

Logic Pro gets new AI-assisted Session Players and workflow features on Mac and iPad. Pixelmator Pro continues to rely heavily on machine learning for tasks such as background removal, image enhancement and image enhancement. Note that some of these features require an Apple Intelligence-enabled device.

What devices are supported

Apple Creator Studio works on many Apple platforms, although not all apps are available everywhere.

On Mac, subscribers get access to all six apps: Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro, Pixelmator Pro, Motion, Compressor and MainStage.

On the iPad, Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro and Pixelmator Pro are included. Motion, Compressor and MainStage remain Mac-only.

On iPhone, Creator Studio does not include full versions of Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro or Pixelmator Pro. Instead, it unlocked premium features and content within Keynote, Pages and Numbers, and eventually Freeform.

Apple says the best experience is on macOS 26, iPadOS 26 and iOS 26 or later, with individual app requirements varying by device and chip.

Pricing and subscription options

Apple Creator Studio costs $12.99 per month or $129 per year, and new subscribers can try the service for free for one month. College students and teachers get a big discount: the education plan costs $2.99 ​​per month or $29.99 per year, and it also has a one-month free trial.

A standard subscription can be shared with up to five other people using Family Sharing, allowing six users in total. Education subscriptions are limited to individual use and may not be shared. Apple is also offering three free months of Creator Studio to customers who purchase a qualifying new Mac or iPad around launch.

But Creator Studio isn’t the only way you can access many of these apps. Apple says all major apps included in Creator Studio will continue to be available as one-time purchases in the Mac App Store.

Final Cut Pro remains priced at $299.99, Logic Pro at $199.99, Pixelmator Pro at $49.99, Motion at $49.99, Compressor at $49.99 and MainStage at $29.99. Users who already own these apps can continue using them and download them again from the App Store as usual.

On the iPad, however, things are different. Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro and Pixelmator Pro for iPad are only available with a Creator Studio subscription. There is no standalone purchase option for iPadOS apps.

Keynote, Pages, Numbers and Freeform remain free for everyone to download and use. Apple says the apps will continue to receive updates, including the upcoming visual design changes tied to iOS 26 and iPadOS 26.

Without a Creator Studio subscription, you can still create, edit and collaborate on apps. What you don’t get are paid templates, Content Hub properties and some intelligence features.

What happens to your projects if you cancel

Apple says projects and content you create with an active subscription remain licensed as part of your original work.

Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro and Pixelmator Pro projects stay on your devices and can be copied or shared elsewhere. But you need an active subscription to open or edit projects in paid apps.

Keynote, Pages, Numbers and Freeform documents remain editable without a subscription. However, you will not be able to make new edits that rely on paid features once your subscription expires.

More information about the Apple Creator Studio app bundle

Apple Creator Studio also comes with some immediate trade-offs. Along with the bundle, Apple confirmed that the older Pixelmator app for iPhone and iPad, now described as Pixelmator Classic, will no longer receive updates. Apple says it will remain available, but development has shifted to Pixelmator Pro, including the new iPad version included in Creator Studio.

But don’t expect the standalone versions of the apps to maintain feature parity with their Creator Studio counterparts. Per Apple FAQ“The Apple Creator Studio version of Pixelmator Pro includes access to the Warp Tool feature,” which means the feature is not present in the standalone version.

More broadly, the bundle puts Apple more directly in competition with Adobe and other subscription-focused creative platforms, especially for people looking for a lower monthly entry point. At the same time, Apple keeps a one-time purchase on the table for Mac users, although access to the iPad works behind a subscription.

Apple Creator Studio will be available on January 28. If it makes sense it probably comes down to which device you’re working on and if you don’t pay in advance for one or more of Apple’s pro apps.