The Best Open Source Microsoft Photos AlternativesTop Image Viewers & Photo Managers like Microsoft Photos

The best open source alternative to Microsoft Photos is ImageGlass. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 100 alternatives to Microsoft Photos and loads of them is open source so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting open source alternatives to Microsoft Photos are nomacs, Fossify Gallery, qView and Gwenview.

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Microsoft Photos alternatives are mainly Image Viewers, but if you're looking for Photo Managers or Image Editors you can filter on that. Other popular filters include Linux + Open Source, Windows + Open Source, Windows, Open Source and Photo Organization. You can also filter by region, for example EU-based alternatives if you prefer software developed in the European Union. These are just examples - use the filter bar below to find more specific alternatives to Microsoft Photos.

More about Microsoft Photos

Get a badge for your siteMicrosoft Photos alternatives page was last updated May 22, 2025

ImageGlass
266 likes
A feature-rich, simple-to-use app seamlessly integrated with a clean, minimal and modern user interface.
90 ImageGlass alternatives
Cost / License
Free
Open Source
Application typeApplication types
Image Viewer
Image Editor
Origin
Vietnam
Platforms
Mac
Windows
Linux
Vietnam
+1
Good alternative?Is ImageGlass a good alternative to Microsoft Photos?

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2comments
ImageGlass vs Microsoft Photos Comments
Positive comment by Guest · May 18, 2020
ImageGlass is lightweight, simple and beautiful. There are themes which can make the in-app icons look like Windows 10. The settings are really customisable too.
Negative comment by Adam Piggott · May 19, 2024
Does not have full-fledged library/album support.
2 of 2 comments
ImageGlass is Free and Open SourceMicrosoft Photos is Free and Proprietary
ImageGlass is Lightweight, Customizable and Privacy focusedMicrosoft Photos is not according to our users
nomacs
255 likes
nomacs is a free, open source image viewer, which supports multiple platforms. You can use it for viewing all common image formats including RAW and psd images.
108 nomacs alternatives
Cost / License
Free
Open Source (GPL-3.0)
Application typeApplication types
Image Viewer
Image Editor
Origin
Germany
EU
Platforms
Mac
Windows
Linux
FreeBSD
Flathub
Germany
EU
+1
Good alternative?Is nomacs a good alternative to Microsoft Photos?

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2comments
nomacs vs Microsoft Photos Comments
Positive comment by Guest · Oct 29, 2024
It's FOSS, supports multiple platforms & has a portable version.
Positive comment by mohas · Oct 28, 2020
I just want a photo viewer that is simple and fast without extra luggage, nomacs is just that
2 of 2 comments
nomacs is Free and Open SourceMicrosoft Photos is Free and Proprietary
nomacs is Lightweight, Customizable and Privacy focusedMicrosoft Photos is not according to our users
Fossify Gallery
116 likes
Privacy-focused offline gallery offers photo and video management, editing tools, secure locking by pin or fingerprint, EXIF metadata removal, recycle bin support for recovery, universal format compatibility, customizable material design themes, and no ads or trackers.
74 Fossify Gallery alternatives
Cost / License
Free
Open Source (GPL-3.0)
Application typeApplication types
Photo Manager
Image Viewer
Origin
India
Platforms
Android
Android Tablet
F-Droid
OpenAPK
India
Good alternative?Is Fossify Gallery a good alternative to Microsoft Photos?
qView
90 likes
Fast and lightweight Qt-based image viewer with support for Windows, macOS, and Linux. Features include multiple format support, customizable interface, GIF playback, high-resolution display compatibility, and efficient navigation through keyboard shortcuts.
122 qView alternatives
Cost / License
Free
Open Source (GPL-3.0)
Application type
Image Viewer
Origin
United States
Platforms
Mac
Windows
Linux
Flathub
United States
+1
Good alternative?Is qView a good alternative to Microsoft Photos?

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2comments
qView vs Microsoft Photos Comments
Positive comment by Barrett · May 3, 2022
It's a lightweight alternative to Microsoft's Photos app. For LTSC users like myself, it is useful to have a modern photo viewer, allowing us to skip Windows Photo Viewer. Highly recommend!
Positive comment by Guest · Oct 4, 2020
it is more simplistic, faster in loading images and doesn't come with stuff like video editor like windows photos does. it is also open source and therefore it's perfect.
2 of 2 comments
qView is Free and Open SourceMicrosoft Photos is Free and Proprietary
qView is Minimalistic, Lightweight and Privacy focusedMicrosoft Photos is not according to our users
Gwenview
97 likes
Offers quick browsing and display of various image formats, basic editing tools like crop, rotate, lossless JPEG manipulation, folder browsing as thumbnails or slideshows, supports XCF, drag-and-drop, metadata viewing, KDE integration, and plugin extensions.
100 Gwenview alternatives
Cost / License
Free
Open Source (GPL-2.0)
Application typeApplication types
Image Viewer
Image Editor
Origin
Germany
EU
Platforms
Linux
KDE Plasma
Snapcraft
Flathub
Germany
EU
Good alternative?Is Gwenview a good alternative to Microsoft Photos?
PicView
51 likes
PicView is a fast, free and fully customizable picture viewer for macOS and Windows 10/11. It supports virtually all image file types, including (animated) WEBP, (animated) GIF, SVG, AVIF, HEIC, PSD and many others.
69 PicView alternatives
Cost / License
Free
Open Source
Application typeApplication types
Image Viewer
Image Editor
Origin
Denmark
EU
Platforms
Windows
Mac
Denmark
EU
+4
Good alternative?Is PicView a good alternative to Microsoft Photos?
ReFra gallery
38 likes
ReFra is an open source Android Gallery app built with Material 3 and Jetpack Compose.
Cost / License
Free
Open Source (Apache-2.0)
Application typeApplication types
Photo Manager
Image Viewer
Origin
Romania
EU
Platforms
Android
F-Droid
Romania
EU
+9
Good alternative?Is ReFra gallery a good alternative to Microsoft Photos?
JPEGView
150 likes
Lightweight Simple Image Viewer with Slide show feature, Resize and Lossless-cut, Color correction, Rename, Multi-language and more...
150 JPEGView alternatives
Cost / License
Free
Open Source
Application typeApplication types
Image Viewer
Image Editor
Origin
International
Platforms
Windows
PortableApps.com
Global
Good alternative?Is JPEGView a good alternative to Microsoft Photos?

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1comment
JPEGView vs Microsoft Photos Comments
Positive comment by Sam Lander · May 22, 2025
Portable and much more lightweight/snappy than Microsoft Photos.
1 of 1 comments
JPEGView is Free and Open SourceMicrosoft Photos is Free and Proprietary
JPEGView is Lightweight, Minimalistic and Privacy focusedMicrosoft Photos is not according to our users
qimgv
41 likes
Qt5 image viewer with optional video support. Ability to quickly copy / move images to different folders. Can open some extra formats (JPEG-XL, AVIF, APNG, HEIF/HEIC, RAW) via third-party image plugins.
116 qimgv alternatives
Cost / License
Free
Open Source (GPL-3.0)
Application typeApplication types
Image Viewer
Photo Manager
Origin
International
Alerts
Discontinued
Platforms
Windows
Linux
Global
+1
Good alternative?Is qimgv a good alternative to Microsoft Photos?

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1comment
Discontinued
The latest alpha version is from May 2022 due to the war in Ukraine.
qimgv vs Microsoft Photos Comments
Positive comment by somecash · Jun 10, 2022
Simpe and fast. More functions. More image format support.
1 of 1 comments
qimgv is Free and Open SourceMicrosoft Photos is Free and Proprietary
qimgv is Lightweight and CustomizableMicrosoft Photos is not according to our users
gThumb
108 likes
gThumb is an image viewer and browser for the GNOME Desktop. It also includes an importer tool for transferring photos from cameras.
127 gThumb alternatives
Cost / License
Free
Open Source (GPL-2.0)
Application typeApplication types
Image Viewer
Image Editor
Origin
United States
Platforms
Linux
Flathub
GNOME
United States
+2
Good alternative?Is gThumb a good alternative to Microsoft Photos?
Lavender Photos
10 likes
A sweet looking photo app for android!.
Cost / License
Free
Open Source (GPL-3.0)
Application typeApplication types
Photo Manager
Image Viewer
Platforms
Android
F-Droid
Good alternative?Is Lavender Photos a good alternative to Microsoft Photos?
PhotoSort
10 likes
Desktop app for photo sorting on Windows & Mac, managing JPG+RAW files. Sort photos into folders using keys, providing easy navigation and clean interface without deletion, ensuring a focused experience with flexible viewing, safe storage, and no fluff.
Cost / License
Free
Open Source (AGPL-3.0)
Application typeApplication types
Photo Manager
Image Viewer
Origin
United States
Alerts
Discontinued
Platforms
Mac
Windows
United States
Good alternative?Is PhotoSort a good alternative to Microsoft Photos?

12 of 63 Microsoft Photos alternatives

The Best Open Source Microsoft Photos AlternativesTop Image Viewers & Photo Managers like Microsoft Photos

Alternatives list

ImageGlass

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nomacs

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Fossify Gallery

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qView

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Gwenview

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PicView

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ReFra gallery

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JPEGView

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qimgv

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gThumb

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Lavender Photos

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PhotoSort

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