Switching from Photoshop: pick the alternative that matches your work

There is no single Photoshop alternative

Photoshop is used for retouching photographs, compositing images, painting, mocking up layouts and preparing web graphics. Because one product covers all of those, people who say they want an alternative usually want a replacement for one or two of those jobs. Naming the job first saves you from testing five tools that were never built for it.

Everything below comes from the official pages recorded in our catalogue. We have not tested these programs hands-on, so treat the notes as a starting point for your own trial, and check each vendor's current plans before you commit.

Retouching photos and combining images

If you edit photographs and build composites with layers and masks, the closest match in our catalogue is GIMP. It is a community-developed image editor distributed under the GNU General Public License, and it runs on Windows, macOS and Linux without a subscription. Photoshop's own record notes that selections, masks and adjustment layers allow controlled edits, so test exactly those steps in GIMP.

Three checks matter before you move. First, exchange a layered document with a collaborator who still uses Photoshop and see what survives. Second, confirm that the plug-ins you rely on exist for the GIMP version you would install. Third, run your print or colour-managed output through the real workflow, because two tools can look identical on screen and differ in the file your printer receives.

Digital painting and illustration

If your Photoshop time is mostly drawing, Krita is built around that workflow. Its record highlights customisable brushes, stroke stabilisers, comic-layout tools and a 2D animation workspace, and the core application is free. Test it with your own tablet and brush presets, because pen behaviour and imported brush resources are where painters notice differences first.

Krita is not the answer to photo editing. Our catalogue entry itself advises testing your specific photo-editing tasks before treating it as a Photoshop replacement. Choose it because you paint, not because it is free.

Vector artwork: Illustrator and Inkscape

Logos, icons and diagrams are usually vector work, and Photoshop is not the right tool for them anyway. The catalogue pairs Illustrator with Inkscape. Inkscape is free and open source and uses SVG as its native format, which is useful when you want editable artwork that many programs can open. Illustrator is Adobe's vector application, and the advertised monthly price requires an annual commitment.

Compatibility is the risk. If clients, agencies or printers send you Illustrator files, test them in Inkscape first, paying attention to text, effects and layout. Ask your supplier which formats they need instead of assuming that identical-looking output means identical files.

Templates and quick social graphics

Some Photoshop use is really template work: presentations, social posts and branded documents produced repeatedly. Canva is aimed at that pattern, with templates, stock content and brand tools. It has a free plan and a paid Pro plan, and premium assets and larger AI allowances need the paid tier.

Two cautions apply. Templates speed things up but tie your look to the platform's asset library, so review the content licence for whatever appears in your deliverables. And Canva is not a substitute for pixel-level retouching, so use it for the layout job, not the photo job.

Interface design: Figma and Penpot

Teams that use Photoshop to mock up screens should look at dedicated interface tools. Figma offers shared files, comments, components and developer handoff, with a free Starter plan and paid seats that differ in capability and price. Penpot is an open-source alternative that you can use as a hosted service or run yourself, and its layout tools follow web concepts such as CSS Grid and Flex.

Self-hosting Penpot gives control over where designs live, but it also means maintaining servers and backups. Try a real project with your developers before deciding, and test migration of existing files and any integrations you depend on.

Compare costs and commitments honestly

Price is often the reason people leave Photoshop, so put numbers side by side. As recorded from official pages, Photoshop’s desktop and web plan for individuals in the United States is listed at 22.99 USD per month on an annual commitment billed monthly, and a free mobile edition exists that does not replace the desktop app. Canva lists a free plan and a Pro plan at 144 USD per year. Figma lists a free Starter plan and a Professional full seat at 16 USD per month. Penpot lists a free hosted plan and an Unlimited plan at 7 USD per month.

Treat these as orientation, not quotes. They are US prices at the time of our editorial review, taxes and regional pricing differ, and plans change. The number that matters is your own yearly total, including extra seats, add-ons and the hours you will spend learning a new tool. A free program that costs you a week of lost work is not necessarily cheaper than a subscription.

A short trial you can run this week

Choose one recent project and repeat it in the candidate tool, keeping notes on every step that felt slower or impossible. Then answer four questions honestly.

• Could I finish the deliverable to the same standard?
• Did files round-trip with the people who need them?
• What did I miss that I would use every week?
• What is the total yearly cost, including extra seats and add-ons?