When comparing Axure vs GIMP, the Slant community recommends GIMP for most people. In the question“What are the best drawing programs?” GIMP is ranked 2nd while Axure is ranked 12th. The most important reason people chose GIMP is:
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](http://www.gimp.org/source/).
Specs
Ranked in these QuestionsQuestion Ranking
Pros
Pro Supports web and mobile prototyping
Allows creation of interactive HTML mock-ups which is accessible for both websites and mobile applications.
Pro Lots of options for sharing your work
Great web options, but you can also save your wire frames out to Word and convert the notes to annotations.
Pro Resuable components
You can create a component (widget) that you can use over and over again.
Pro Cross-platform
Available for use on Windows and Mac.
Pro Collaboration tools
You can set up a project with SVN-like check-in/out system to work with others.
Pro Offers resources to help you get proficient with the software
There is a wealth of online training including videos for getting the basics down, a great community to mine, and support team to help assist with more technical details.
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.
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.
Pro Content-aware tools with a plugin
There's a content-aware fill plugin available for GIMP.
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.
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.
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.
Pro Full channel support
Cons
Con Moderate learning curve
Con Expensive [$289-$589]
There is a free trial to work with Axure, but there is a hefty price for the standard edition at $289. Even more so, the Pro edition will cost $589.
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.
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.
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.