The Best Open Source Krita AlternativesTop Digital Painting Tools and other similar apps like Krita

The best open source alternative to Krita is GIMP. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 100 alternatives to Krita and many of them is open source so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting open source alternatives to Krita are MyPaint, Fossify Paint, enve and DrawPile.

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Krita alternatives are mainly Digital Painting Tools, but if you're looking for Image Editors or Photo Editors you can filter on that. Other popular filters include Online, iPad, Open Source, iPad + Free, Android, Mac and Windows + Free. These are just examples - use the filter bar below to find more specific alternatives to Krita.
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Alternatives list

  1. GIMP icon
     4721 likes
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    GIMP delivers powerful functionalities for photo retouching, image composition, and format conversion. As a versatile tool, it serves as both a simple paint program and a high-end retouching suite, and offers batch processing for mass image tasks in an accessible open-source platform.

    190 GIMP alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    • Snapcraft
    • Flathub
    • PortableApps.com
    • Haiku
    • Flatpak
    • AmigaOS
     
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    97
    Comments about GIMP as an Alternative to Krita
    Comment summary: Krita is widely recognized for digital painting and illustrations, whereas GIMP is mainly utilized for photo editing. Users frequently emphasize that these applications serve distinct purposes, with Krita excelling in drawing and art, and GIMP focusing on image manipulation and photo retouching. Although some indicate GIMP can be used for drawing, it is generally not considered a direct competitor to Krita for digital art creation.
    Top Positive Comment
    Paul
    2

    Lots of people use GIMP for photo editing, and it's not the best alternative to Krita for digital drawing/painting but you can definitely use GIMP for drawing and painting and not only to edit photos.

    Top Negative Comment
    Guest
    13

    Krita is for digital illustrations. GIMP is for photo editing.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    cel
    Negative
    0

    Different intended purpose: GIMP for general image editing, Krita for digital painting and animation.

    Show more comments
    3 of 14 comments
    Krita Icon
    GIMP icon
    • Most users think GIMP is a great Krita alternative.

    • GIMP is the most popular Windows, Mac & Linux alternative to Krita.

    • GIMP is the most popular Open Source & free alternative to Krita.

    • GIMP is Free and Open SourceKrita is also Free and Open Source
  2. MyPaint icon
     387 likes
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    MyPaint is a fast, distraction-free, and easy painting tool for digital artists. It supports graphics tablets made by Wacom, and many similar devices.

    126 MyPaint alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • PortableApps.com
     
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    1
    31
    Comments about MyPaint as an Alternative to Krita
    Thelle Christensen
    Positive
    2

    Both programmes aims for simplicity/usability

    Krita Icon
    MyPaint icon
    • Almost everyone thinks MyPaint is a great Krita alternative.

    • MyPaint is Free and Open SourceKrita is also Free and Open Source
  3. Fossify Paint icon
     14 likes
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    Privacy-centric digital drawing tool perfect for all skill levels. Create, customize, and share art with adjustable brushes, canvas colors, and versatile format support via PNG, JPG, and SVG without compromising your privacy—fully open-source.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Android
    • F-Droid
    • Android Tablet
     
  4. enve icon
     37 likes
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    Enve is a free and open-source 2D animation app. It can create both vector and raster animations and even use sound and video files. It has been created with flexibility and expandability in mind.

    56 enve alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Linux
     
  5. AzPainter icon
     22 likes
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    AzPainter is a full color painting program for Linux. It's a lightweight tool with tablet pressure support, and provides basic functions such as selection, layers, filters. you can use it for painting, image editing, or pixel art making.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Linux
     
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    6
  6. LazPaint icon
     45 likes
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    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.

    41 LazPaint alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    • PortableApps.com
    • Flathub
    • Flatpak
     
  7. Pocket Paint icon
     19 likes
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    Pocket Paint is a paint editor that, among others, allows setting parts of pictures to transparent and zooming up to pixel level.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Android
    • F-Droid
     
  8. Pixelitor icon
     28 likes
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    Pixelitor is an open source image editor with an intuitive interface and with a special emphasis on non-destructive editing.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
     
  9. PhotoDemon icon
     33 likes
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    PhotoDemon provides a comprehensive selection of photo editing tools in an 8 MB download. It runs on any Windows machine (XP through Win 10) and does not require installation. It can easily be run from a USB stick or SD card.

    22 PhotoDemon alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Windows
     
  10. Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    Glimpse is an open source image editor based on the GNU Image Manipulation Program. The goal is to experiment with new ideas and expand the use of free software.

    163 Glimpse Image Editor alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Linux
     
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    1
    Comments about Glimpse Image Editor as an Alternative to Krita
    Guest
    Negative
    0

    It's a GIMP fork by people who thought the name "GIMP" was one of the biggest reasons GIMP is having trouble competing with Photoshop. The same reasons apply. (GIMP is tuned for photo editing, not digital painting.)

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Krita Icon
    Glimpse Image Editor icon
    • Glimpse Image Editor is Free and Open SourceKrita is also Free and Open Source
  11. Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    GPS (aka Gimp Paint Studio) is a collection of brushes, patterns, color gradients, accompanying tool presets and dynamics. Tool presets are a simply saved tool options, highly useful feature of the GIMP.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • GIMP
     
12 of 33 Krita alternatives