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4.7 star rating
0
Design
Drawing
Creative Design
What are the best drawing programs?
17
Options
Considered
40
User
Recs.
Jul 16, 2023
Last
Updated
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14
Options
Considered
Best drawing programs
Price
Platforms
License
--
Krita
Free
Windows, Linux, Mac, Android
Open source
--
GIMP
Free
Windows 10/8/7; Linux; MacOS
GPLv3+
--
Photoshop
$9.99/mo
Windows, macOS
Hagu
--
Artweaver
Free / paid
Windows
-
--
Affinity Designer
$49.99
Windows, MacOS, IOS
-
See Full List
--
Krita
My Rec
ommendation
for
Krita
My Recommendation for
Krita
All
11
Pros
6
Cons
4
Specs
Top
Pro
•••
Free and open source
Krita is completely free and open source. They have raised a couple of successful Kickstarters in the past to get the initial financing and now they are accepting donations.
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Top
Con
•••
Working with text is not that pleasant
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Specs
Platforms:
Windows, Linux, Mac, Android
License:
Open source
Technology:
C++, Qt
Top
Pro
•••
Amazing support for displaying brushes
Krita's preset brushes are one of the default dockers. Each brush has a preview on mouseover that shows a detailed view of the type of brush involved. All the brushes also have useful and descriptive names such as "HP Pencil" or "Textured Fuzzy".
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Top
Con
•••
Documentation is lacking
Krita's official documentation is incomplete in some areas, especially for new features that are constantly added. But this is compensated with it's great design and usability which makes it easier to understand how things work.
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Top
Pro
•••
Easy to use layout
All the most used and useful tools are easy to find in Krita's UI and are often just one click away. They are not hidden behind menus or dropdowns.
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Top
Con
•••
Poor Touch Controls.
They are still pretty much a WIP. But they are getting there.
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Top
Pro
•••
Constantly updated
Krita is getting constant releases with updates and bug fixes. New features are added at a pace that far surpasses the other alternatives.
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Top
Con
•••
New features are not tested thoroughly
Since releases are so often and with little time between them, usually new features are not tested a lot and this can bring a lot of bugs with them. Which fortunately are quickly patched in the next release.
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Top
Pro
•••
Very customizable
Although the UI is rather busy, Krita is very customizable. The editing window can be themed and the sidebar can be customized extensively throw many dockers or panes.
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Top
Pro
•••
Easy editing in a tiled view
Tiled view that shows your image tiled in the editor, and permits you to edit it as you are seeing it tiled. If the brush passes out of your texture, it will just automatically wrap back the painting to the other side of the original texture, while permitting you to paint and see the results on any of the tiled "clones". (the shortcut key to activate this is w by default)
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Free
Recommend
12
--
GIMP
My Rec
ommendation
for
GIMP
My Recommendation for
GIMP
All
12
Pros
7
Cons
4
Specs
Top
Pro
•••
Free, open source and cross-platform
GIMP is completely free and open source, meaning you can use GIMP and all of its features without spending a penny. This makes it an excellent case for artists or designers who may not have the budget to spend over 700 USD on Photoshop. It is also available for free on Windows, Mac OS and Linux. It's licensed under GPL with source code available here.
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Top
Con
•••
Unintuitive interface
GIMP doesn't embrace OS X application design, thus Mac users might have a hard time wrapping their heads around GIMP's interface.
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Specs
Platforms:
Windows 10/8/7; Linux; MacOS
License:
GPLv3+
Tethered capture:
No
Non-Distructive Editing:
No, Feature in development with GEGL
See All Specs
Top
Pro
•••
Powerful
GIMP is the most feature rich free image editing tool. It has most image manipulation and workflow tools that you would expect from an image editing software and what it lacks it makes up with plugins.
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Top
Con
•••
Less features than other programs
Being a free program, it shouldn't be surprising that it has limited features. For those needing more advanced features for something more professional, GIMP just isn't for you.
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Top
Pro
•••
Modular & single-window interface options
By default GIMP splits out each window, but you can check to use the one screen mode in options if you prefer.
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Top
Con
•••
Poor performance
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Top
Pro
•••
Lightweight
Compared to to other photo editing software, GIMP is very light weight. In addition it isn't very resource-intensive, meaning you can put it on a flash drive and have it with you to load up on just about any computer.
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Top
Con
•••
Lacks adjustment layers
Adjustment layers offer a non-destructive way of combining different photo manipulations. Without adjustment layers the only way to see changes is by irreversibly editing the image. They are promised in future updates.
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Top
Pro
•••
Beginner-friendly
Gimp has less features than programs like Photoshop, but for a beginner, or someone not needing complicated options, Gimp is the perfect choice. It allows you to quickly do basic photo manipulation so you can easily get the product you need without having to worry about complicated features getting in the way.
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Top
Pro
•••
Content-aware tools with a plugin
There's a content-aware fill plugin available for GIMP.
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Top
Pro
•••
Full channel support
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Hide
See All
Free
Recommend
3
2
--
Photoshop
My Rec
ommendation
for
Photoshop
My Recommendation for
Photoshop
All
16
Pros
9
Cons
6
Specs
Top
Con
•••
Expensive
The standalone version of Photoshop costs $19.99/month, though it can be leased as part of the Creative Cloud Photography bundle that includes Lightroom for $9.99/month.
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Top
Pro
•••
Includes powerful content-aware tools
Photoshop includes content-aware tools such as content-aware fill that can fill in a select area based on what surrounds it.
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Specs
Platforms:
Windows, macOS
License:
Hagu
Tethered capture:
via Bridge
Top
Con
•••
Not good enough to be so expensive
Probably the only big advantage Photoshop has over the other free software is the adjustment layers. But still too expensive for just one feature.
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Top
Pro
•••
Industry standard
Photoshop is used by professionals everywhere in a wide variety of fields including photography, graphic design and digital art. It is the de facto standard for image manipulation. If you've seen a magazine ad featuring a model, you've probably seen the effects of Photoshop. You won't be alone when using Photoshop.
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Top
Con
•••
Learning it can take some time
While you can relatively quickly learn how to perform a few basic image editing tasks, understanding Photoshop's ins and outs can be difficult. It's partially due to the sheer amount of functionality that Photoshop packs (and understanding that some of the advanced functionality can take a while to understand on its own), and partially due to it being aimed at professionals with little hand-holding for novice users.
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Top
Pro
•••
Trove of plugins that extend functionality are available
A wide variety of plugins that add new effects, improve existing functionality and simplify workflow are available.
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Top
Con
•••
Asset management capabilities are lacking
In Photoshop asset management is done through a separate program called Bridge. As Bridge is supposed to be a file management tool for not just Photoshop's files, but for files generated by all of Adobe's applications it covers a breadth of capabilities, but not depth.
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Top
Pro
•••
Lots of tutorials
There's a huge number of both free and paid tutorials available online. Websites like Lynda.com offer premium high-quality, in-depth tutorials, but there are plenty of free alternatives to be found on YouTube, blogs and specialized sites on the Internet.
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Top
Con
•••
Latest versions of Photoshop are subscription-only
While you can still buy CS6 from 2012 without needing a subscription by contacting Adobe support or the cut-down Photoshop Elements, any full-version version of Photoshop past CS6 requires a subscription.
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Top
Pro
•••
Packs a staggering amount of functionality
Photoshop is the most fully featured image editing software available today allowing you to perform highly advanced image manipulation. It has tools for RAW image adjustments, lens correction, retouching, image stitching, HDR, fixing framing. It supports most professional color modes and file formats. It includes extensive lists of filters, styles, effects, fonts as well as tools for painting, sketching and typography work. It understands both raster and vector graphics. It even includes tools for video editing, working with 3D objects and support for 3D printing.
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Top
Con
•••
Batch editing of images is not straightforward
Photoshop is designed to work extensively on one image at a time and while batch editing support exists, it's not that intuitive to use.
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Top
Pro
•••
Creative Cloud Photography subscription includes Lightroom
Lightroom is another image editing software from Adobe that's specifically designed for photo editing and managing of large quantities of digital images.
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Top
Pro
•••
Integrates with Creative Cloud
You can save all projects directly to the Creative Cloud allowing you to access them from any device and with any relevant Adobe software.
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Top
Pro
•••
Mobile companion apps available
There's a free mobile app available for iOS, Android & Windows Phone.
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Top
Pro
•••
A cheaper, standalone version called Photoshop Elements is available
A stripped down version of Photoshop, called Photoshop Elements can be bought as a standalone application for $100.
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Hide
See All
$9.99/mo
Recommend
2
1
--
Artweaver
My Rec
ommendation
for
Artweaver
My Recommendation for
Artweaver
All
4
Pros
3
Specs
Top
Pro
•••
Free
Free version available.
See More
Specs
Platforms:
Windows
Top
Pro
•••
Plugins
See More
Top
Pro
•••
Teamwork option
Work together on the same painting via internet.
See More
Hide
See All
Free / paid
Recommend
2
--
Affinity Designer
My Rec
ommendation
for
Affinity Designer
My Recommendation for
Affinity Designer
All
4
Pros
3
Specs
Top
Pro
•••
One-time purchase
Rather than a monthly subscription based model, Affinity Designer instead has a one-time fee ($49.99).
See More
Specs
Platforms:
Windows, MacOS, IOS
Export image formats:
PNG, JPEG, GIF, TIFF, PSD, PDF, SVG, EPS, EPS, EXR, HDR
Top
Pro
•••
Cross platform
Available on both Windows and MacOS.
See More
Top
Pro
•••
Powerful artistic tools
Extensively tweakable brush types, color options...
See More
Hide
See All
$49.99
Recommend
3
--
Pencil2D
My Rec
ommendation
for
Pencil2D
My Recommendation for
Pencil2D
All
3
Pros
2
Specs
Top
Pro
•••
Easy to use
See More
Specs
Platforms:
Windows, Linux, Mac, FreeBSD
Top
Pro
•••
Easy to learn
See More
Hide
See All
Free
Recommend
1
--
MyPaint
My Rec
ommendation
for
MyPaint
My Recommendation for
MyPaint
All
4
Pros
2
Cons
1
Specs
Top
Pro
•••
Good support for pressure sensitive graphics tablets
MyPaint was designed specifically with pressure sensitive graphics tablets in mind.
See More
Top
Con
•••
Not a lot in terms of image manipulation
MyPaint focuses only on drawing. It has very little in terms of post processing or image manipulation features.
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Specs
Platforms:
Windows, Linux, Mac
Top
Pro
•••
Interface gets out of the way
MyPaint mostly consists of the canvas. The interface to select different brushes can be brought up if needed, but it generally stays out of the way of getting things done.
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Hide
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Free
Recommend
1
--
FireAlpaca
My Rec
ommendation
for
FireAlpaca
My Recommendation for
FireAlpaca
All
6
Experiences
1
Pros
3
Cons
1
Specs
Top
Pro
•••
Completely Free
See More
Top
Con
•••
Lacks some features
It is advised to keep Gimp or Krita installed to complement it.
See More
RickZeeland's Experience
Free, simple and easy drawing program.
See More
Specs
Platforms:
Windows Mac
Top
Pro
•••
Doesn't require a lot of memory to run
See More
Top
Pro
•••
Easy to use
See More
Hide
See All
Free
Recommend
3
--
Rebelle 5
My Rec
ommendation
for
Rebelle 5
My Recommendation for
Rebelle 5
Hide
89.99
Recommend
1
--
Adobe Illustrator Draw
My Rec
ommendation
for
Adobe Illustrator Draw
My Recommendation for
Adobe Illustrator Draw
All
2
Pros
2
Top
Pro
•••
Works well with drawing tablets
Supports/supported by most tablets out there.
See More
Top
Pro
•••
Works really well with Illustrator CC or Photoshop
With this app, you can draw vectors on your smartphone or tablet then export them to your computer's Photoshop or Illustrator for more advanced image editing/manipulation.
See More
Hide
Get it
here
Recommend
2
--
PhotoDemon
My Rec
ommendation
for
PhotoDemon
My Recommendation for
PhotoDemon
All
4
Experiences
1
Pros
2
Specs
Top
Pro
•••
Free
See More
RickZeeland's Experience
Free, portable, open-source photo editor for Windows.
See More
Specs
Platforms:
Windows
Technology:
VBA
Top
Pro
•••
Macro recorder
See More
Hide
See All
Free
Recommend
1
--
Axure
My Rec
ommendation
for
Axure
My Recommendation for
Axure
All
1
Specs
Specs
Platforms:
Windows, Mac
Hide
Get it
here
Recommend
1
--
Microsoft Expression Design
My Rec
ommendation
for
Microsoft Expression Design
My Recommendation for
Microsoft Expression Design
All
4
Pros
1
Cons
2
Specs
Top
Pro
•••
XAML support
One of the few drawing programs that supports the XAML vector format, used by .NET WPF applications.
See More
Top
Con
•••
Discontinued
Not supported by Microsoft anymore.
See More
Specs
Platforms:
Windows
Top
Con
•••
Windows only
See More
Hide
See All
Free
Recommend
1
--
Real Draw 5
My Rec
ommendation
for
Real Draw 5
My Recommendation for
Real Draw 5
All
3
Experiences
1
Pros
1
Cons
1
Top
Con
•••
Crashes every once in a while
See More
Top
Pro
•••
Very strong content creation tool
See More
Zoidberg's Experience
I saved a ton of time by using RealDraw. Its so effortless to make great content.
See More
Hide
See All
25.00
Recommend
1
Don't see your favorite option? Add it.
--
TwistedBrush Pro Studio
My Rec
ommendation
for
TwistedBrush Pro Studio
My Recommendation for
TwistedBrush Pro Studio
99
Recommend
1
--
Sketch.IO
My Rec
ommendation
for
Sketch.IO
My Recommendation for
Sketch.IO
-
Recommend
1
--
AzPainter
My Rec
ommendation
for
AzPainter
My Recommendation for
AzPainter
FREE
Recommend
1
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