Design Pickle Review and Alternatives in 2026

Design Pickle is one of the original unlimited design services, operating since the early days of the subscription design model. This review examines what Design Pickle offers, who it serves best, and alternative options for businesses with different needs or budgets.

What is Design Pickle?

Design Pickle is a Scottsdale, Arizona-based unlimited design service that has served thousands of clients since its founding. The company operates on a subscription model where clients pay for reserved daily hours from dedicated design teams rather than traditional project-based pricing.

Their platform combines human designers with AI tools to handle design requests, project tracking, and file delivery. The service focuses primarily on graphic design, custom illustrations, presentation design, and motion graphics. Clients include Yahoo!, Amazon, McGraw Hill, and 7-Eleven.

Design Pickle service model

Design Pickle operates on a daily hours system where clients purchase reserved time from dedicated design teams. Their base offering includes 2 hours of daily work from professional designers, with options to scale up to 12 hours per day for larger organizations.

The service uses an AI-powered platform for project submissions and communications, with designers working through requests in queue order.

Projects include:

• Brand identity work

• Marketing materials

• Presentations and slide decks

• Digital graphics

• Motion design (depending on tier)

The service assigns dedicated design teams to each client rather than individual project assignments. This approach aims to provide consistency in brand understanding and communication style across multiple projects over time.

Design Pickle pricing

Design Pickle's pricing starts at $1,918 per month for their base package, which breaks down as:

• Platform access: $119/month

• 2 hours daily creative services: $1,799/month

Base Plan (2 hours daily): $1,918/month

• Dedicated design team

• Platform access

• Typical weekly output: ~9 presentation slides, 1 sales sheet, 1 flyer OR 1 trademarked logo, 1 animated logo, 2 email signatures

• 24-hour first drafts

Higher Tiers: Increased daily hours

• Plans scale from 2 to 12 hours daily

• Pricing increases based on hours purchased

• Additional features like Slack integration on premium plans

• Dedicated customer success managers on higher tiers

Power Plans: Enterprise pricing available upon request for larger organizations with extensive daily design needs.

The hours-based model focuses on consistent daily output rather than unlimited concurrent projects. Output depends on project complexity and time needs within allocated daily hours.

Delivery and communication

Design Pickle targets 24-hour first drafts for most projects, with delivery times varying based on project complexity and current queue length. Their platform handles all project communication, though Slack integration is available on premium plans.

Projects are worked in queue order within the allocated daily hours. More complex projects consuming more time may affect delivery of additional requests within the same day.

What Design Pickle does well

Established track record

As one of the original unlimited design services, Design Pickle has demonstrated consistent service delivery over many years. The extensive client base including major brands indicates reliable operations and satisfactory service.

Dedicated team approach

Assigning dedicated design teams to clients provides consistency in brand understanding. The same team working on multiple projects develops familiarity with brand guidelines and preferences over time.

Clear daily capacity model

The hours-based system provides transparent expectations about daily design capacity. Businesses can plan work around allocated hours and understand what output to expect within their reserved time.

Scalable capacity

The ability to scale from 2 to 12 daily hours accommodates businesses with growing design needs. Organizations can adjust capacity without changing service providers as their needs evolve.

Potential limitations

Premium pricing structure

Starting at $1,918 monthly represents a significant investment compared to alternatives. The hours-based model with separate platform fees ($119) adds to base service costs.

Hours-based output constraints

Daily hour allocations limit output based on project complexity. Complex projects consuming more hours reduce capacity for additional work within the same day's allocation.

No website development

Design Pickle focuses on graphic design without functional website development. Businesses needing website implementation on platforms like Webflow or WordPress must use additional services.

Queue-based workflow

Projects work through queues within daily hours. Multiple urgent requests may compete for the same day's allocated time, potentially delaying some deliverables.

Design Pickle alternatives

Renlar

Renlar provides unlimited design and development services through team-based delivery across multiple concurrent projects. The service combines graphic design and video editing in single plans without hours-based limitations.

Services include both visual design and functional website development on Webflow and Framer. This provides complete website solutions rather than just graphic design work.

Service structure:

• Graphics: Brand design, marketing materials, social media content, and video editing combined

• Websites: Design in Figma or PSD converted to functional Webflow or Framer sites

• Combined services available in bundle plans

Pricing:

• Graphics: $1,295/month (2 concurrent projects - includes both design and video)

• Bundle: $1,995/month (3 concurrent projects including website development)

• Agency: $2,495/month (4 concurrent projects with white-label capabilities)

Platforms: Webflow and Framer for website development

Best for: Businesses needing website development capabilities alongside design and video, or those preferring concurrent project models over hours-based allocation

ManyPixels

ManyPixels provides unlimited graphic design through monthly subscriptions with team-based delivery. The service covers graphic design, illustrations, and presentation work but doesn't include video editing or development services.

Pricing ranges from $549 to $1,199 monthly depending on features and delivery speed. ManyPixels suits businesses focused primarily on graphic design without video or website development needs.

Best for: Businesses prioritizing graphic design without video or development capabilities

Penji

Penji offers unlimited graphic design services through team-based delivery with focus on marketing materials and digital graphics. The service includes brand design, marketing materials, and digital assets with tiered pricing based on features.

Pricing starts at $499 monthly for basic services with higher tiers ($995-$1,497) for advanced features like presentations, web design (Figma), and motion graphics.

Best for: Budget-conscious businesses with basic to intermediate graphic design needs

Kimp

Kimp is a Toronto-based unlimited design service offering both graphic design and video services. The service separates graphics ($599) and video ($699) into different subscription tiers, or combines them ($995) for businesses needing both.

Kimp works with design teams in India and Sri Lanka, providing overnight delivery for North American clients. The service covers over 100 design categories.

Best for: Businesses comfortable with overnight delivery cycles and needing extensive category coverage

Designjoy

Designjoy is a premium design subscription service operated by founder Brett Williams as a single-designer model. The service covers comprehensive design work including basic Webflow development as an add-on.

Pricing starts at $4,995 monthly for the Standard plan with one project at a time, or $7,995 monthly for two concurrent projects. Designjoy's premium positioning attracts established businesses with substantial design budgets.

Best for: Established businesses valuing direct founder access and willing to pay premium rates

Choosing between design subscription services

For businesses with predictable daily design needs

Design Pickle's hours-based model works well for businesses with consistent daily output needs who can plan work around allocated time slots. The model provides clear capacity expectations.

For businesses with variable project volumes

Services using concurrent project models like Renlar, ManyPixels, or Penji may better accommodate businesses with fluctuating design needs or project-based workflows rather than consistent daily output.

For businesses needing video capabilities

Compare Design Pickle against services including video editing like Renlar (included in Graphics plans) or Kimp (separate video tier) based on pricing and integration preferences.

For businesses needing website development

Design Pickle focuses on graphic design without development. Services like Renlar with actual Webflow/Framer development provide functional websites rather than just visual design work.

For budget-conscious businesses

Services priced under $1,500 monthly including ManyPixels ($549-$1,199), Penji ($499-$1,497), Kimp ($599-$995), and Renlar ($1,295) provide professional design work at lower entry points than Design Pickle's $1,918 base pricing.

Making your decision

Design subscription services vary significantly in pricing models, service scope, and delivery approaches. The right choice depends on your specific business situation:

Evaluate based on:

• Monthly budget available for design services

• Design workflow preference (hours-based vs project-based)

• Service scope needed (graphics only vs video vs development)

• Predictability of design needs (consistent daily vs variable project-based)

• Number of concurrent projects typically needed

• Business stage and growth trajectory

Most services allow monthly cancellation, making it feasible to test options and switch if needs change. Consider starting with the service that best matches your workflow preferences and budget while remaining open to adjusting as your business grows.

Design Pickle's established track record and hours-based model serve businesses with predictable daily design needs effectively. Alternative services address different market segments with varying approaches to service scope, pricing models, and capacity allocation.

Choose based on your actual workflow preferences rather than brand recognition alone. Hours-based models provide clear daily capacity but may not suit businesses with variable or project-based design needs. Concurrent project models offer flexibility but require understanding active project limits versus daily output expectations.