Photoshop Alternatives

Adobe Photoshop serves as a professional raster graphics editor for Windows and macOS, handling advanced image editing, retouching, and digital art. Users praise its extensive feature set for graphics and design, though many complain about high pricing compared to other editors.

GIMP tops the rankings as the leading Photoshop alternative, offering broad image-editing and retouching tools completely free and open-source. Many users switch to GIMP specifically to escape Photoshop's cloud licensing and subscription model. Affinity Photo ranks second with its polished interface and one-time purchase model, repeatedly highlighted as a cost advantage over subscription pricing. Luminar Neo brings AI tools like GenErase and GenExpand plus focus stacking and HDR merging for photographer-centric workflows.

Krita ranks third, focusing on digital painting with advanced brush control and animation support for artists. The alternatives landscape splits between pro photo editors and art-first painting apps, with Photopea standing out as a free, install-free option with PSD support and a familiar interface.

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For open source transparency, GIMP and Krita lead with community-driven development and no proprietary licensing restrictions. Linux users have native options in GIMP, Krita, and MyPaint without relying on Windows or macOS-only tools. Windows-only picks include Paint.NET and Corel PaintShop Pro for desktop editing with layers, effects, and selection tools.

Web-based editors like Photopea, Pixlr, and Sumo Paint work in browsers when you can't install software on school or locked-down computers. Users avoiding subscriptions can choose Affinity Photo and Affinity Designer for predictable one-time licensing. For PSD workflows, Photopea, Affinity Photo, and Pixelmator open Photoshop-format documents to maintain collaboration compatibility. iPad workflows benefit from Affinity Photo, Pixelmator, and Pixlr for editing on tablets rather than desktop-only setups.

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Alternatives list

  1. PhotoFiltre icon
     109 likes

    PhotoFiltre 7 is a complete image retouching program. It allows you to do simple or advanced adjustments to an image and apply a vast range of filters on it. It is simple and intuitive to use, and has an easy learning curve.

    124 PhotoFiltre alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • PortableApps.com
     
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  2. Polarr icon
     120 likes

    Offers advanced filters, high-precision color and light tools, clarity, dehaze, batch export, watermarking, custom filter creation, touch and mouse access, infinite undo, HSL/RGB curves, blending, and workspace customization for versatile editing needs.

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Proprietary

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Chrome OS
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
     
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  3. PaintTool SAI icon
     142 likes

    PaintTool SAI is high quality and lightweight painting software, fully digitizer support, amazing anti-aliased paintings, provide easy and stable operation, this software make digital art more enjoyable and comfortable.

    93 PaintTool SAI alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Paid
    • Proprietary

    Platforms

    • Windows
     
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  4. QuickEdit icon
     22 likes

    Lightweight tool offering cropping, drawing, text editing with formatting options, GPUImage filters, smooth Jetpack Compose-based animations, quick saving, and direct sharing to social media apps, designed for fast, simple photo enhancements on any device.

    Cost / License

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Android
    • Android Tablet
    • F-Droid
     
  5. PixiEditor icon
     21 likes

    Create pixel-perfect sprites, raster paintings, and scalable vector graphics with a unified open-source editor featuring frame-by-frame animation, a node-based workflow, custom shaders, procedural art tools, anti-aliased brushes, and versatile export options.

    40 PixiEditor alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Flathub
    • Steam
    • Flatpak
     
  6. Luminar Neo icon
     85 likes

    Advanced RAW photo editing software equipped with AI-driven features like GenErase, GenExpand, and GenSwap. Enhances portraits and landscapes using Sky AI and Atmosphere AI. Compatible with Adobe and Apple products, supports multiple formats, and offers panorama stitching, noise reduction, and more.

    90 Luminar Neo alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Paid
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Chrome OS
    • iPad
    • Apple Photos
    • Adobe Photoshop
    • visionOS
    • Adobe Lightroom
     
  7. FireAlpaca icon
     90 likes

    FireAlpaca is the image editor that can be used readily and easily. We made it possible to provide the completely free download, in order for our products to be experienced by more users from all over the world. It is available for both Mac and Windows users!

    124 FireAlpaca alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
     
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  8. PhotoGIMP icon
     24 likes

    A Patch for GIMP 3+ for Photoshop Users.

    15 PhotoGIMP alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
     
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  9. Adobe Elements icon
     84 likes

    Comprehensive photo editing tool with AI-powered automation and easy step-by-step guidance. It includes unique creation tools, layer support, facial recognition, and organizes your photos seamlessly. Available as a one-time purchase, no subscription required, with cloud sync for flexibility.

    150 Adobe Elements alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Paid
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
     
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  10. Snapseed icon
     88 likes

    Snapseed is a photo enhancement and sharing app with a powerful suite of imaging filters and tools for anyone, anywhere, to transform any image into an extraordinary photo.

    73 Snapseed alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
     
  11. LazPaint icon
     46 likes

    Raster & vector graphic editor with many tools and filters, written in Lazarus. Portable, 32bit & 64bit versions, ORA format & 16384x16384 image support. In app 3D import & rendering.

    Cost / License

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    • PortableApps.com
    • Flathub
    • Flatpak
     
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  12. MediBang Paint icon
     119 likes

    MediBang Paint is a lightweight software for illustration and making comic books on Windows and Mac OS.

    77 MediBang Paint alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Proprietary

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    • Steam
     
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