Free Filestage Alternative — visual feedback on ad creatives
Filestage ($49/mo), Ziflow, Pastel and Markup.io are review platforms. If what your team actually needs is fast, precise feedback on ad creatives — mark up the changes, measure them in pixels, hand back a tidy report — our free Creative QA does that in your browser, and it's the only one of the bunch that annotates frames captured from a live HTML5 ad zip.
Filestage vs Pastel vs Creative QA
| Filestage | Pastel (Solo) | DigiLakshya Creative QA | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry price | $49/mo (verified June 2026) | $24/mo (verified June 2026) | $0 — unlimited annotating; 5 feedback exports/day free. Pro at $25/mo · $199/yr makes exports unlimited and adds team reviews |
| Core job | Approval workflows — versions, due dates, reviewer groups, audit trails | Comment-on-website and creative review links | Ad-creative feedback: annotate images and captured frames from live HTML5 ad zips, measure in px, export PNG/ZIP/PDF/Word reports |
| Where your files go | Uploaded to their cloud | Uploaded to their cloud | Annotation runs in your browser; upload happens only if you create a Pro share or team-review link |
| Signup required | Account required | Account required | No — open it and start marking up |
Prices verified June 2026 from each vendor's pricing page (Filestage, Pastel) — entry-tier monthly prices; Ziflow and Markup.io compete in the same category. Our $0 is the everyday free tier; Pro pricing is on the Studio-Tools pricing page.
Feedback that's pixel-precise, not "make it pop"
Live HTML5 ads too
Drop a packaged HTML5 ad .zip and it runs live inside the tool — replay the animation and capture the exact frames to mark up. Statics work too: JPG, PNG, GIF, WebP, SVG.
A full markup kit
Arrows, boxes, circles, text labels, highlight, blur/redact, freehand pen and numbered pins — each pin with its own note, plus an overall note per screen.
Auto pixel measuring
Press M and the Measure tool auto-detects the nearest edges around your cursor, shows the px span live, and stamps it onto the creative. Pixel rulers frame the canvas, and stamped measurements export in every report.
Reports people can open
Export the annotated screen as PNG, all screens as a ZIP with a notes file, or a consolidated PDF or Word report — one page per screen with the numbered notes underneath.
On Pro: team reviews — create a hosted review link your teammates open in the browser, assign screens, get notified, chat and co-annotate together. Hosted shares draw on a 50 MB account budget.
Where Filestage & Ziflow are still the better choice
If sign-off needs an audit trail, buy the platform — honestly. If your review is "move the CTA 4px and blur that price", start free below.
From creative to actionable feedback in three steps
Import the creatives
Drag images into Creative QA — several at once — or drop an HTML5 ad .zip, run it live and capture the frames you want to mark up.
Mark up the changes
Point with arrows, box the problem areas, blur what shouldn't ship, stamp real px gaps with auto-measure, and drop numbered pins with a note on each.
Export the feedback
Hand back an annotated PNG, a ZIP of every screen, or a consolidated PDF or Word report. Free covers 5 exports a day; Pro makes exports unlimited and adds hosted team reviews.
Quick answers.
Is Creative QA really free?
Are my creatives uploaded anywhere?
Can I give feedback on HTML5 banners, not just images?
Does it replace Filestage's approval workflow?
What annotation tools do I get?
Say exactly what to change — with pixels, not adjectives.
Annotate statics and live HTML5 frames, measure spacing automatically, and export feedback your production team can act on. Free, in your browser, no signup.