Key takeaways
A quick summary of what a types of explainer videos is, how to make one, and why it works:
- Whiteboard animation: Whiteboard animation shows hand-drawn illustrations appearing on a white surface while a voiceover explains.
- Doodle video: A close cousin of whiteboard animation, doodle videos use looser, friendlier, often colourful sketches.
- Animated (2D character) explainer: 2D animated explainers use illustrated characters and scenes with motion.
- Motion graphics: Motion-graphics explainers animate text, icons, shapes and data.
- Live action and screencast: Live-action explainers use real footage and people, which builds trust and authenticity — but they are expensive to shoot and hard to edit after the fact.
- Which type should you choose?: For most product, education and marketing needs, whiteboard or doodle animation is the highest-ROI choice: engaging, affordable, easy to update, and quick to produce with
Whiteboard animation
Whiteboard animation shows hand-drawn illustrations appearing on a white surface while a voiceover explains. It is the retention champion — the drawing motion keeps viewers watching — and it is cheap to produce and update. Best for education, product explainers, onboarding and anything that needs genuine understanding.
It is also the most forgiving style: simple line art always looks intentional, so you never need a big design budget to look professional.
Doodle video
A close cousin of whiteboard animation, doodle videos use looser, friendlier, often colourful sketches. The tone is warmer and more playful, which suits friendly brands, courses, nonprofits and social content. Same high retention, slightly more personality.
Animated (2D character) explainer
2D animated explainers use illustrated characters and scenes with motion. They are great for storytelling and showing people or situations, and they feel polished. The trade-off is that fully custom character animation traditionally needs a designer and more production time — though AI now makes an illustrated animated style accessible.
Motion graphics
Motion-graphics explainers animate text, icons, shapes and data. They look modern and sleek and are ideal for data-heavy or tech messages. The downside is that they date faster than hand-drawn styles and usually require a motion designer.
Live action and screencast
Live-action explainers use real footage and people, which builds trust and authenticity — but they are expensive to shoot and hard to edit after the fact. Screencasts (recording a product on screen) are cheap and clear for software walkthroughs, though less engaging on their own without good narration.
Which type should you choose?
For most product, education and marketing needs, whiteboard or doodle animation is the highest-ROI choice: engaging, affordable, easy to update, and quick to produce with AI. Reserve motion graphics for data-led messages, live action for trust-led brand stories, and screencasts for detailed software how-tos.
If you want the two most versatile styles fast, Whiteboard Video generates whiteboard and doodle explainers from a prompt or document in minutes — script, illustrations and voiceover included, free to start.
