Top 12 Best Free Alternatives to Photoshop in 2023

Hey readers! Do you want to know what are the best free alternatives to Photoshop in the market right now? Well, here’s the blog that will make you aware of the Top 12 Free Alternatives to Photoshop in 2022.

Photoshop, formally known as Adobe Photoshop is a widely famous software solution in the world of graphic editing. This master software was created in 1988 by Thomas Knoll and John Knoll. Their creation was developed by Adobe Inc. as Adobe Photoshop.

Top 12 Free Alternatives to Photoshop

Photoshop is an amazing and popular software solution around the globe. It is used in various backgrounds of artists, designers, social media artists, web developers, filmmakers, etc. because of its features, flexibility, and accuracy. Although, Photoshop can be quite pricey for low-level designers, or small businesses.

That is one of the most important reasons why free alternatives to Photoshop are needed. These alternatives have almost similar features to Photoshop and some even have ultra-modern tools. So, here is the list of the Top 12 Free alternatives to Photoshop which are famous in the market nowadays!

12. Photoscape X

This software is considered a free alternative to Photoshop but has different layouts than Photoshop. It’s a bit confusing at the start but eventually, it becomes user-friendly. The features of this software have a gradient map for exact color changes, light leaks, spot healing brush, filters, stickers, merge/crop/combine, and many more.

However, there are a couple of cons to this application. It has been noticed that Photoscape X freezes while handling multiple raw files. Also after saving the files the quality decreases from its original. But overall it is one of the best free alternatives to Photoshop.

11. PicMonkey

This free alternative to Photoshop is simple and easy to use. It has plenty of tools to design and edit. This software creates stunning posts and ads for social media. PicMonkey comes with over 6000 built textures and graphics, templates design, collages, and numerous attractive fonts.

For creating multi-photo designs this software possesses 70 pre-set blank canvases and more than 2400 customizable templates. Users can include variations of touch-ups in their photos. The cloud storage system of this software helps in organizing images with folders making it accessible from either mobile or desktop. This software is best for the team that prefers collaboration tools.

10. Pixelmator Pro

This software is one of the best free alternatives to Photoshop. The editing tools are easy to operate especially for Mac platform users. Pixelmator Pro is designed for Mac users. Users can edit their pictures with stunning layouts and various color adjustments.

It features image size algorithms, portrait masks support, ABR support, mac OS Mojave support, batch processing, improved painting performance, etc. This free alternative to Photoshop has over 40 image editing tools for reshaping. For users who have extensive hands-on photo editing experience, works best with Pixelmator Pro.

9. Sumo Paint

This is an online photo, video, audio, and pixel editor. This tool has an almost similar feature to Photoshop but is more suited to heavy editing. This software has advanced tools to make pro-level editing. This free alternative to Photoshop has over 30 million active users currently.

Its features comprise over 300 brushes, a gradient editor, shape tools, offline creativity and automatically fix bugs! This software is best suited for advanced-level photo editing and digital artists. The settings like auto smoothing, filter controls, profile statistics, mosaic, and sphere designer are very advanced.

There are so much more features in this than Photoshop including its common features. Sumo paint is free and enables you to have an amazing quick editing experience.

8. Paint.net

This is an image and photo editing software for the Windows operating system. This free alternative of Photoshop is a raster graphics editing program for MS Windows that is developed on the .NET structure. It features a wide range of important and powerful tools.

Its support for layers user interface, special effects, and unlimited undo are innovative and innate. It was said to be an enhanced version of MS Paint as it has many similar features but it’s more advanced than that. Along with many pros, there are a few cons too.

The lack of guide support, raw options, and slice or spot healing tools with an outdated UI has made this software not as powerful as Photoshop. This software aims at providing a cost-effective solution to expensive commercial software.

7. Pixlr

It is one of the best online image editors to gain high-quality editing. The wide variety of tools, various formats, and easy-to-understand user-friendly interface makes it one of the best free alternatives to Photoshop. It instantly edits photos into Dropbox and saves the files automatically.

The smart healing tools, stock photos as well as templates with a suite of expert tools help in creating professional images easily. This software is compatible with all types of devices whether mobile or PCs.

This software features easy drawing or scribbling on the images, removes spots and unwanted objects hassle-free, enhance photos according to the user’s preference, consists of enormous layer masks, etc. This next-generation online editor offers great features in minimal value for pro mode, otherwise free.

6. Photopea

Photopea is a web-based image editor that supports a wide range of file formats, including PSD (Photoshop) files. This free alternative of Photoshop offers a comprehensive set of tools for editing, retouching, and design, similar to Photoshop. Photopea’s interface is quite similar to Photoshop, making it easier for users to transition from Adobe’s software.

5. Affinity Photo

This wonderful software is among one the best free alternatives to Photoshop. This software is known best for layer editing. The low learning curve in Affinity Photo is praised by professional designers and photographers.

The extensive library of magic wands and brushes, lasso tools or marquee makes it admirable amongst professionals. The blemish removal and skin retouches like portrait retouching tools are stunning. In comparison with Photoshop, it offers fewer tools but the tools it has is worth vouching for.

4. Photo Pos Pro

It is a complete photo editing software that will help in enhancing the pictures and create stunning results. It can create collages, and business cards have great retouching tools that will allow the user to edit and create projects. The advanced editing tools are more than capable to give a professional finesse.

It is known to be one of the best free alternatives to Photoshop because of its almost similar features. However, it has a limited size of exported files and it is difficult to learn. But the match editing and options for scripts in this software enhance the user’s effective edit experience.

The Top 3 Free Alternatives to Photoshop

3. PhotoDirector Essential

This software has a range of powerful modern photo editing tools and features. It is one of the most user-friendly free alternatives to Photoshop. Along with many common features, this software has several ultra-modern features that you won’t find in Photoshop.

The new users can edit using 27 layer-blending models as per their needs. It also has a wide range of templates and simple selection tools. The users can get hypercritical details with its advanced masking, filtering, and layering tools. This is an all-in-one user-friendly app to edit photos, stylize and animate them.

2. Canva

This online graphic designing app is a great tool for non-designers who want to create quick designs in a short time. While the use of Photoshop is an overwhelming process, Canva is comparatively user-friendly. This software is best for marketing and branding purposes.

It has over 250,000 free templates from which you can choose your preferred design. Users can create their logos, and customize all they want. In terms of photo editing tools, it is not as advanced as Photoshop but with its range of features and designing tools, it is said to be one of the best free alternatives of Photoshop.

1. GIMP

GIMP stands for GNU Image Manipulation Program. It is known to be the best free alternative to Photoshop. The retouching and restoring tools produce high picture quality. Its features consist of noise reduction, cropping, color adjustments, gradients, and filter tools.

But the advanced features of this software are much cooler and are preferred by professionals. The advanced features include layer masks, animation tools, and bezier curves. Some of its cons are that it has a steep learning curve and a cluttered interface.

However, its ability to outshine its other competitors through its plug-in support has made GIMP one of the best open-source editors. Another one of its pros is that it’s constantly in check like its bugs are immediately caught and dealt with.

Conclusion of the Free Alternatives to Photoshop

Many hobbyists and amateurs are unable to pay for Photoshop as it’s expensive. But the free alternatives are a great platform for these creative minds to explore and create art with the best possible features. They can design, edit, and create digital art with their skill set.

Some of these free alternatives also provide a good learning curve in the world of digital art. Most of these free alternatives to Photoshop are easy to use and help in developing more and more creativity in the digital world.

Topic Summary

Here is a quick list of the Top 12 Free Alternatives to Photoshop.

1. GIMP
2. Canva
3. PhotoDirector Essential
4. Photo Pos Pro
5. Affinity Photo
6. Photopea
7. Pixlr
8. Paint.net
9. Sumo Paint
10. Pixelmator Pro
11. PicMonkey
12. Photoscape X

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