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InRef / Your visual workspace

Reference boards.
Project plans.
One workspace.

Bring your references, ideas and next steps together. A Windows workspace for moodboards, visual project management and creative work.

One app. One purchase. · Windows 10 / 11, 64-bit · Currently in beta

Inside InRefReferences / Ideas / Direction
A reference board in InRefA place to collect, compare and make connections. Keep the brief and visual references together as a direction takes shape.

Different objects. Shared context.

Every part of your idea.
One canvas.

A reference, a thought, a sketch, a new perspective. Bring them together and see how the pieces connect.

  • Images & referencesCollect a visual direction.
  • Notes & plansKeep the thinking beside the work.
  • Shapes & drawingSketch, connect and annotate.
  • Video & audioKeep movement and sound in context.
  • 3D modelsExplore form from another angle.

Scroll to take the board apart — and bring it together.

Continue to the overview
Inside a boardOne connected workspaceMaking room for each ideaDifferent objects. Different possibilities.Better together

Illustrated board · All desktop tools are included.

From the first reference to the next idea

The whole project.
In view. In reach.

Images, notes, drawings, video and 3D, beside your brief and your next steps. Give your creative thinking room to take shape.

01 / Collect

Bring it together.

Import files, paste images or send references from your browser with the optional bridge.

02 / Explore

See what matters.

Arrange, crop and compare images. Use greyscale and the reference overlay to study the details.

03 / Organise

Keep the context.

Add notes beside the images, then use groups and frames to organise related material.

Start with what you are making

A blank canvas. Plenty of possibilities.

01 / Think visually

Visual project management, beside your references.

Keep the brief, decisions and actions on the same board. Mark up a detail, connect dependencies and use checkboxes and status indicators to show what needs attention.

  • Write notes and sketch directly on the board.
  • Connect shapes and flow boxes with arrows.
  • Add checkboxes, status indicators and rating gauges.
  • Use tables, formulas and charts.
Explore visual project management
Planning with notes and connectionsMake the relationships visible. A visual plan keeps the ideas, decisions and next steps in the same place.

02 / Try a new direction

Work on the image itself.

Try a different atmosphere or paint over a reference while the rest of your project stays in view. Keep your changes on layers so you can compare and refine them.

  • Paint and erase with pressure-sensitive brush dynamics.
  • Build up layers, clipping masks and blend modes.
  • Adjust opacity and add effects such as glow and shadow.
  • Reorder, duplicate and merge layers as the idea develops.
Explore image editing

Included with Inref

Painting with layers in InRefAn image treatment made with InRef’s raster tools. Separate layers let you experiment without losing the starting point.

03 / Keep your bearings

More ideas. Still easy to find.

A project rarely stays small. Give related material a home, move between boards and find one detail without losing the whole picture.

  • Arrange your work with groups, frames and board tabs.
  • Search, filter and rename objects in the Outliner.
  • Use group layouts to bring order to a collection.
  • Add projects, live image folders and repeatable Modifiers.
Explore board organisation
An organised project in InRefGive each part of the project a place. Named groups and the Outliner keep a growing reference collection readable.

Beyond still images

Bring the rest of your idea with you.

Keep motion in the picture

Place video and audio beside stills and notes. Study a sequence, compare a movement or assemble the references for your next scene.

Local video and audio · supported online video

Explore mixed media

Look at it from another angle

Inspect supported 3D models on the board. Explore their materials and lighting, use built-in primitives and work with supported poses and animation.

Interactive models · materials · posing

Explore 3D in InRef

Part of your workflow

Keep the work moving.

From the first reference to something you can take with you.

Your boards, in your files

Save locally and pack supported media into a portable .inref file. Export a board, a viewport, a selection or individual images.

Portable boards

Alongside your other tools

Use optional Chrome, Brave, Windows Explorer and Blender bridges. View supported packed boards offline in the Android preview viewer.

Bringing references in

Choose your workspace

Looking for a PureRef or Miro alternative?

Compare the workflows that matter to you: focused image references, creative project planning or a visual board. See where InRef fits and what to check before switching.

The full picture

There is more in the toolbox.

See what’s included

Explore every category, from canvas tools to custom workspaces. All desktop tools are included; supported formats and capabilities may vary by platform and version.

A canvas for ideas and plans

Make relationships visible instead of keeping them in separate documents.

  • Notes, text and icons alongside images and sketches.
  • Shapes, flow boxes and connecting arrows for mind maps, processes and visual plans.
  • Tables with formulas and charts, plus code text with syntax highlighting.
  • Checkboxes, sliders, status indicators and rating gauges for interactive boards.

Tables, interactive widgets and code blocks are included with Inref.

Notes, drawing and connections
Drawing and visual annotation

Explain a detail or explore a direction directly on the board.

  • Pen, highlighter and eraser tools, with configurable stroke appearance.
  • Editable stroke appearance and drawing settings for clear annotation.
  • Move, rotate, scale and mirror board objects; use alignment, grids and snapping to arrange them.
  • Crop images, compare them in greyscale and use the reference overlay while working.
Explore drawing tools
Layered image editing

Try an image treatment while the rest of the project stays in view.

  • Raster painting, pressure-sensitive brush dynamics, erasing and image adjustments with undo and redo.
  • Editable layers, opacity and blend modes, plus image import and clipboard paste into layers.
  • Clipping masks, layer reordering, duplication and merging.
  • Layer styles including stroke, inner and outer glow, drop shadow and colour overlay.

Raster image editing is included with Inref.

Explore raster editing
Interactive 3D and materials

Work out the form from the angle that matters to you.

  • Import supported 3D models and interact with their view on the board.
  • Explore materials, textures and lighting beside images and notes.
  • Built-in primitive models and a poseable figure with male and female styles.
  • Pose supported skeletal models, preview supported animation and apply a pose.

Adding and editing supported 3D models is included with Inref.

Explore 3D models
Still images, video and audio

Keep motion and sound in the same context as your visual work.

  • Images, local video and audio on the same canvas.
  • Supported online-video sources, including YouTube.
  • Playback controls and media previews inside the workspace.
  • Arrange frames, drawings and notes into a storyboard or study sequence.
Explore mixed media
Organisation that grows with the work

Move between the overall project and the individual detail.

  • Multiple boards and tabs, groups, frames and nested hierarchies.
  • Outliner search, filters, sorting and bulk renaming.
  • Group layouts and segmentation for arranging related material.
  • Project organisation and live image folders that follow source-folder changes.
  • Modifiers repeat supported objects in rows and columns, with editable spacing and an Apply action.

Project creation, live folders and modifiers are included with Inref.

Explore board organisation
Bring material into the workspace

Spend less time moving files between the places you work.

  • Import files, paste images and append or pack image folders into board groups.
  • Optional Windows Explorer Send to InRef integration.
  • A bundled Chrome and Brave bridge sends an image to a chosen open board.
  • An optional Blender bridge brings reference images into Blender and packs them into the scene.
Get started with a board
Files, export and continuity

Keep a usable result when the session ends.

  • Local .inref boards and packed media for portable projects.
  • Undo and redo, autosave and recovery workflows.
  • Export a board, viewport, selection or individual images.
  • Offline viewing of supported packed boards in the Android preview.

Windows provides the editor. Android is currently a viewer, with simplified support for some content.

Explore portable boards
A workspace you can make your own

Arrange the interface around the way you work.

  • Dockable and floating panels with saved workspace layouts.
  • Themes, editable colours, UI scaling and auto-hiding controls.
  • Searchable keyboard shortcuts with import, export and reset.
  • Board backgrounds, grid and snapping settings, plus configurable editing defaults.
Open the user manual
A licence for your creative work

All product features in one paid app.

  • Purchase Inref through Microsoft Store.
  • All creative tools are included, with no licence-based board-item limit.
  • Use Inref for personal and commercial work.
  • Paid version licences include their covered major-version updates. Future major upgrades are optional.
See what’s included

Before you begin

A few useful answers.

Get to know the app, your licence and the ways you can work.

Read all FAQs
Can I use InRef for project management?

Yes. Inref supports visual project management for creative work: keep the brief, reference images, action notes and review decisions on one board. Checkboxes, status indicators, shapes, connections, projects, tables, formulas and charts are all included.

Explore visual project management
Is InRef an alternative to PureRef?

InRef is an option for Windows users who want reference boards alongside visual planning, mixed media and creative tools. Start with your own images, add notes and sketches, and save the result as an .inref board. Compare the tools and platforms that matter to your workflow.

Compare InRef and PureRef
Is InRef an alternative to Miro?

InRef is worth considering for creative project planning with local Windows boards, visual references, notes and connections. Compare platform support and workflow requirements before choosing: InRef does not promise every Miro integration or automatic Miro board migration.

Compare InRef and Miro
How do I get Inref?

Inref is one paid app on Microsoft Store. One purchase includes all product features, with no subscription or automatic renewal.

Microsoft Store shows the current price and availability before purchase. There is no licence-based board-item limit.

See what’s included
Which platforms does InRef support?

The InRef editor runs on 64-bit Windows 10 and 11. The Android preview is a viewer for supported packed boards, with simplified support for some content. It does not provide board editing.

View downloads and requirements
Is InRef a subscription?

No. Inref is a one-time purchase with no automatic renewal. The initial purchase covers the beta and all Inref 1.x updates.

Future major-version upgrades are optional separate purchases. They do not remove the rights to versions covered by your existing purchase.

Read the licence details
Can I use Inref for commercial work?

Yes. Use the same Inref app for personal, freelance or company work. Each person needs their own app licence.

Your software purchase does not grant rights to other people's images, models or assets; their individual licence terms still apply.

Read the purchase details

Start with Inref

What will you put on your first board?

Get Inref through Microsoft Store and start collecting. All local desktop tools are included, with no board-item limit. No Inref account or in-app activation is required for the desktop tools.

InRef is in active development.