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Create Character Art for iOS Onboarding

iOS onboarding flows are 3–6 screens. Each screen needs a different illustration tied to the feature it introduces — yet the character must read as the same entity from screen 1 to screen 6 or the onboarding feels disjointed. Apple’s Human Interface Guidelines favor simple, friendly illustrations over photographic art; multi-angle AI generation gives you the consistency across screens that hand-illustration takes weeks to produce. Render the character once at maximum resolution, generate the multi-angle pack, then crop pose-specific renders for each onboarding step.

Last updated By the EZ Character team

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Step-by-step
  1. 01

    Map onboarding to character poses

    Screen 1 (welcome) = waving / hero pose. Screen 2 (feature intro) = pointing / presenting. Screen 3 (permission) = trustworthy / open. Screen 4 (account creation) = working / setting up. Screen 5 (success) = celebratory. Plan poses before generating.

  2. 02

    Generate the model sheet

    Run the 8-angle pack on your hero. The front + three-quarter angles cover most onboarding poses; reserve profile and back for specific permission or "behind the scenes" screens.

  3. 03

    Re-render per pose

    For each onboarding screen, re-run the generator with the model sheet locked and a pose-specific prompt. Five screens = five generations; on the free tier (40 credits every month) plan a week, on a subscription do it in one afternoon.

  4. 04

    Export at @1x / @2x / @3x

    iOS uses point-based layout: 100pt = 100px @1x, 200px @2x, 300px @3x. Most modern devices want @2x and @3x. Render at AI max (~1MP), export at exact pixel sizes for each density — never let UIImage scale at runtime.

  5. 05

    Test dark mode and reduced motion

    iOS users toggle dark mode mid-flow. Render on transparent background and verify silhouette on both light and dark UI. For Reduce Motion users, ensure the onboarding works as a static slide deck (no character animation required for comprehension).

Pro tips
  • Apple HIG (2026) favors simple, flat or lightly-shaded character illustration over heavy-rendered 3D — match the system aesthetic.
  • Keep accessory and clothing detail minimal — onboarding illustrations display at ~300–400pt; fine detail wastes pixels.
  • Onboarding screens are tappable; the character should not block CTAs. Generate offset compositions (character on left or top) leaving CTA real estate clear.
  • For SwiftUI, use PDF asset catalog or SVG-traced versions for vector-perfect scaling — raster onboarding art shows pixel artifacts on iPads.
  • Test on iPhone SE (smallest device) before the larger Pro Max — onboarding that works on SE works everywhere; the reverse is not true.
  • Apple App Review rejects onboarding that feels like a paywall or excessive ad — keep character art light, no aggressive upsell visuals.
  • For animated SwiftUI transitions, export the character as separate PNG layers (head, body, arms) so you can spring-animate parts independently without re-rendering.

Frequently asked questions

What size should iOS onboarding illustrations be?
Onboarding illustrations typically occupy 300–400 points (the upper third or half of the screen). For an iPhone Pro Max display at @3x, that is 900–1200 pixels. Render the character at full resolution (~1MP), then export @1x (300px), @2x (600px), and @3x (900px) PNGs — or use a PDF/SVG asset for vector scaling.

Does iOS onboarding need a different character per screen?
No — one character in different poses across 3–6 screens reads as continuity and brand cohesion. Five different characters across five screens reads as disjointed stock-art onboarding. Generate a multi-angle reference pack once and assign each pose to a specific screen — welcome, feature intro, permission, account creation, success.

How do I handle dark mode for iOS character art?
Render the character on a transparent background and ensure silhouette and color contrast work against both light and dark system backgrounds. For high-contrast characters (dark outlines), test on iOS Light + Dark + High Contrast modes. Some designs ship a dark-mode variant — typically just adjusting outline color, not redrawing the entire character.

Will Apple reject an app for using AI-generated onboarding art?
No — Apple App Review does not currently restrict AI-generated illustrations in onboarding or marketing assets. Apple's guidelines focus on functionality, security, and content appropriateness, not authorship of decorative art. Disclose AI use in metadata only if your category requires it (e.g. some education and medical apps).
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