- What Is The Best Free Image Editing Software Like Photoshop
- Photo Editing Software Reviews 2019
- Free Image Editing
- Photo Editor Free Download Windows 10
Choosing the best photo editor is something most people occasionally have to do because we live in a digitally and technologically advanced age where people are constantly sharing digital images and using them for other purposes such as blogging.
With so many photo editing applications out there, it is very important to compare different options and features in order to ensure you end up with the best photo editor for your needs.
GIMP is a free software suitable for photo editing tasks like image authorizing, photo retouching and image composition. GIMP is a very powerful software with features and capabilities you might not find in other similar software. The best free video editing software can help you take all those videos of birthday parties, soccer games, and pets doing funny things that have been sitting on your phone or camera, and turn them. With best photo editing software free application, one can easily covert their simple images into Instagram styled stills. Resizing, cropping, filter application and reconstructing the images are some of the features that a photo editing tool holds, but you can expect more from the following best 17 free photo editing software for Windows & Mac.
Best Overall- Movavi Photo Editor
Movavi photo editor is a full-featured photo editing tool which not only allows you to easily remove unwanted objects or tourists from images, but also enables you to replace image background, add watermarks and captions etc. What's more, with Movavi photo editor, you can enjoy 1-click photo quality enhancing with its Magic Enhance tool. Cropping, resizing, rotating, straightening tools will help you get more aesthetically pleasing composition. Movavi Photo Editor delivers much more than everyday photo editing apps – try the awesome object and background removal features!
Below is a list of the top 15 best free photo editor software 2018. The list is divided into three categories to make your selection easier.
1. SOFTWARE
a) PhotoScape
PhotoScape is a package deal kind of software. It includes all the major features you need to edit your pictures. Some of PhotoScape's capabilities include: blooming, red-eye removal, filters, cropping drawing pictures, text, balloons, frames, backlight correction, white balance adjustment, brightness, color, resizing, raw converter, rename, color picker, screen capture, splitter, print, animated GIF, page combine, batch editor and viewer.
- Beginner friendly
- Easy to use
- It has numerous features and capabilities
- Fast
- Flexible operation
- There are explanations for everything in order to make it easy for a beginner to understand what they are doing.
- It still needs some additional features such as background changing ability. Other than this, this software does not have any other disadvantage.
b) GIMP
GIMP is a free software suitable for photo editing tasks like image authorizing, photo retouching and image composition. GIMP is a very powerful software with features and capabilities you might not find in other similar software. GIMP can be used as a professional photo retouching program, a simple paint software, an image renderer, an image format converter or an online batch processing system among others. This software is extensible, expandable and modular. GIMP was designed to include extensions and plugins that make it possible for you to do almost everything with the software. This software also has a scripted interface that enables you to achieve anything from the simplest task to the most complicated task.
- Great alternative to Photoshop
- It is free
- Easy to use
- IT has numerous features
- Beginner friendly
c) Paint.NET
Paint.Net is one of the best full-featured photo editing software. It has a streamlined and intuitive interface and provides you with all the tools you need to edit your photos. This software supports layers, special effects and unlimited undo among others. It also has a growing active online community that is very friendly and provides plugins, tutorials and any other help you might need. It is perfect for beginners and expert photo editors.
- Fast download
- Small footprint
- Great for basic image manipulation
- Requires some additional features in order for a user to be able to do advanced photo editing.
d) Picasa
Picasa is a great software. You can use it to share, print, organize, find and transfer images. This software organizes all your pictures in one album so as to save you the hassle of going through your files to locate an image you want to edit. Picasa works with PSD, BMP, GIF, movie files and JPEG. Picasa is compatible with most digital cameras and it is able to detect your USB driver to import images into the software. The editing tools included in this software include: color switch to black and white, color enhancing, red-eye removal, custom and standard cropping among others.
- Easy file sharing
- Image import saves you the hassle of going through your files to get images
- Easy to use
- Fast download
- User-friendly interface
- Google no longer supports this software. This means there will not be any more updates for the software.
e) Photo! Editor
Photo! Editor is a basic photo editing tool that you can use to optimize and fix your digital images in just a few clicks. This photo editing software has basic tools such as clearing skin imperfections and wrinkles, red-eye removal and retouching tools such as color optimization. The software also features a cropping utility, lighting effects and a caricature tool that enables you to add hilarious effects to your pictures. Another great thing about Photo! Editor is the fact that it gives you an option to compare your original image with the edited image. This enables you to know whether or not you are moving in the right direction. This software is perfect for beginners and professional photo editors.
- Easy to use
- Numerous features
- Fast download
- Comparison feature enables you to compare your original image with the edited image
- User-friendly interface
- Beginner friendly
- It experiences crashes when used for a long period of time.
f) Raw Therapee
Raw Therapee is a software that is specialized for processing photos in their raw format. This software is more complex compared to other similar programs. Some of the features of this program include: retouching, adjusting exposure, shadows, highlights, white balance, color panels, perspective, sharpness, cropping, resizing, batch editing, raw file editing and filters among others. This software is perfect for hobbyists, professional photographers and anyone who needs a high quality editing software.
- Easy to use
- Has many features and tools
- Can be used for advanced editing
- Batch editing
- Raw file support
What Is The Best Free Image Editing Software Like Photoshop
- Complex interface
- No pre-set filters
- Harder to learn compared to other photo editing software
2. FREE ONLINE IMAGE EDITORS
a) Pixlr
Pixlr is an online photo editing tool with numerous professional features such as brushes and layering. This photo editing tool has very advanced features that make it a major rival for desktop photo editors. Therefore, if you are looking for an online photo editing tool that would offer you the same service as a desktop photo editor, Pixlr would be a perfect tool. This software is perfect for beginners as well as professional photo editors.
- Easy to use
- Advanced features
- Numerous tools
- Free
- User-friendly
- Pixlr gets very slow at times especially when you are using editing tools like smudge tool. This is caused by the complexity of the editing tool.
b) PicMonkey
PicMonkey has all the basic features you need to edit your photos like brushes, effects and filters. Apart from this PicMonkey includes a number of design features like whole themes, textures and overlays among others. If you are looking for a photo editing tool that you can use to do basic enhancements and add text to your images, PicMonkey is the best software for you.
- It is free
- It has numerous features
- Can be used for basic photo enhancement
- User-friendly interface
- Easy to use
- It cannot be used for very advanced photo editing.
c) Fotor
Fotor is a powerful online photo editing tool with great usability. With Fotor, you can achieve very good photo editing results in a very short time. This photo editing tool has a variety of functionality tools that you can use to edit your photos. These include: brushes, layering, rendering for HDR and automatic enhancement algorithms among others. Fotor also has an easy design functionality that enables you to complete editing tasks quickly. This photo editing tool can be used for both basic and professional photo editing.
- Beginner friendly
- User-friendly interface
- Easy to use
- Numerous editing features and tools
- Can be used for both advanced and basic photo editing
d) BeFunky
1. SOFTWARE
a) PhotoScape
PhotoScape is a package deal kind of software. It includes all the major features you need to edit your pictures. Some of PhotoScape's capabilities include: blooming, red-eye removal, filters, cropping drawing pictures, text, balloons, frames, backlight correction, white balance adjustment, brightness, color, resizing, raw converter, rename, color picker, screen capture, splitter, print, animated GIF, page combine, batch editor and viewer.
- Beginner friendly
- Easy to use
- It has numerous features and capabilities
- Fast
- Flexible operation
- There are explanations for everything in order to make it easy for a beginner to understand what they are doing.
- It still needs some additional features such as background changing ability. Other than this, this software does not have any other disadvantage.
b) GIMP
GIMP is a free software suitable for photo editing tasks like image authorizing, photo retouching and image composition. GIMP is a very powerful software with features and capabilities you might not find in other similar software. GIMP can be used as a professional photo retouching program, a simple paint software, an image renderer, an image format converter or an online batch processing system among others. This software is extensible, expandable and modular. GIMP was designed to include extensions and plugins that make it possible for you to do almost everything with the software. This software also has a scripted interface that enables you to achieve anything from the simplest task to the most complicated task.
- Great alternative to Photoshop
- It is free
- Easy to use
- IT has numerous features
- Beginner friendly
c) Paint.NET
Paint.Net is one of the best full-featured photo editing software. It has a streamlined and intuitive interface and provides you with all the tools you need to edit your photos. This software supports layers, special effects and unlimited undo among others. It also has a growing active online community that is very friendly and provides plugins, tutorials and any other help you might need. It is perfect for beginners and expert photo editors.
- Fast download
- Small footprint
- Great for basic image manipulation
- Requires some additional features in order for a user to be able to do advanced photo editing.
d) Picasa
Picasa is a great software. You can use it to share, print, organize, find and transfer images. This software organizes all your pictures in one album so as to save you the hassle of going through your files to locate an image you want to edit. Picasa works with PSD, BMP, GIF, movie files and JPEG. Picasa is compatible with most digital cameras and it is able to detect your USB driver to import images into the software. The editing tools included in this software include: color switch to black and white, color enhancing, red-eye removal, custom and standard cropping among others.
- Easy file sharing
- Image import saves you the hassle of going through your files to get images
- Easy to use
- Fast download
- User-friendly interface
- Google no longer supports this software. This means there will not be any more updates for the software.
e) Photo! Editor
Photo! Editor is a basic photo editing tool that you can use to optimize and fix your digital images in just a few clicks. This photo editing software has basic tools such as clearing skin imperfections and wrinkles, red-eye removal and retouching tools such as color optimization. The software also features a cropping utility, lighting effects and a caricature tool that enables you to add hilarious effects to your pictures. Another great thing about Photo! Editor is the fact that it gives you an option to compare your original image with the edited image. This enables you to know whether or not you are moving in the right direction. This software is perfect for beginners and professional photo editors.
- Easy to use
- Numerous features
- Fast download
- Comparison feature enables you to compare your original image with the edited image
- User-friendly interface
- Beginner friendly
- It experiences crashes when used for a long period of time.
f) Raw Therapee
Raw Therapee is a software that is specialized for processing photos in their raw format. This software is more complex compared to other similar programs. Some of the features of this program include: retouching, adjusting exposure, shadows, highlights, white balance, color panels, perspective, sharpness, cropping, resizing, batch editing, raw file editing and filters among others. This software is perfect for hobbyists, professional photographers and anyone who needs a high quality editing software.
- Easy to use
- Has many features and tools
- Can be used for advanced editing
- Batch editing
- Raw file support
What Is The Best Free Image Editing Software Like Photoshop
- Complex interface
- No pre-set filters
- Harder to learn compared to other photo editing software
2. FREE ONLINE IMAGE EDITORS
a) Pixlr
Pixlr is an online photo editing tool with numerous professional features such as brushes and layering. This photo editing tool has very advanced features that make it a major rival for desktop photo editors. Therefore, if you are looking for an online photo editing tool that would offer you the same service as a desktop photo editor, Pixlr would be a perfect tool. This software is perfect for beginners as well as professional photo editors.
- Easy to use
- Advanced features
- Numerous tools
- Free
- User-friendly
- Pixlr gets very slow at times especially when you are using editing tools like smudge tool. This is caused by the complexity of the editing tool.
b) PicMonkey
PicMonkey has all the basic features you need to edit your photos like brushes, effects and filters. Apart from this PicMonkey includes a number of design features like whole themes, textures and overlays among others. If you are looking for a photo editing tool that you can use to do basic enhancements and add text to your images, PicMonkey is the best software for you.
- It is free
- It has numerous features
- Can be used for basic photo enhancement
- User-friendly interface
- Easy to use
- It cannot be used for very advanced photo editing.
c) Fotor
Fotor is a powerful online photo editing tool with great usability. With Fotor, you can achieve very good photo editing results in a very short time. This photo editing tool has a variety of functionality tools that you can use to edit your photos. These include: brushes, layering, rendering for HDR and automatic enhancement algorithms among others. Fotor also has an easy design functionality that enables you to complete editing tasks quickly. This photo editing tool can be used for both basic and professional photo editing.
- Beginner friendly
- User-friendly interface
- Easy to use
- Numerous editing features and tools
- Can be used for both advanced and basic photo editing
d) BeFunky
BeFunky is probably the easiest online photo editor you can use. This online photo editing tool has a very intuitive and simple interface which makes it perfect for beginners who might not have any experience in editing. It has all the basic features you need to perfect your pictures. Some of these features include: layering, brushes and preset filters among others. Apart from this, BeFunky also gives you the option of adding graphics, texts and overlays to your pictures.
- It is very easy to use
- Intuitive interface
- Numerous features
- Fast
- Beginner friendly
- BeFunky can only be used for basic photo editing. This is is because it lacks advanced features which are required for professional photo editing. Therefore, if you are looking for a professional photo editor, BeFunky is not the photo editor for you.
e) Adobe PhotoShop Express
Adobe Photoshop Express is an online photo editing tool offered by Adobe. The funny thing about this online photo editing tool is the fact that it looks nothing like PhotoShop. This is odd considering that both editors are offered by Adobe. Nonetheless, Adobe PhotoShop Express has a very intuitive interface and covers all the basics very well. One of the best features of this online editing tool is the film strip view that is provided at the bottom of the editor page when you are using a number of adjustment tools. Instead of using a slider to adjust the white balance, saturation and other subjective tweaks, this photo editing tool displays the changes incrementally allowing you to choose your favorite from the different options provided. Adobe PhotoShop Express also has advanced tools like distortion, sketching and tinting.
- Free
- Great for advanced and basic editing
- Easy to use
- Great PhotoShop alternative
- Numerous tools and features
- You have to create an account to use this online editing tool.
3. MOBILE
a) Adobe PhotoShop Mix ( Available on Android and iOS)
Adobe PhotoShop Mix is perfect for cutting out, combining and seamlessly blending different pictures to create high-end multi-layered images. This application has numerous features and tools that you can use to transform your basic images to look like professional images. Adobe PhotoShop Mix is only compatible with android, iPhones and iPads and it is free.
- This app can be downloaded for free
- It is very easy to use
- Fast
- Numerous tools and features
- Can be used for basic and advanced photo editing.
- Great PhotoShop alternative
b) AirBrush Easy Photo Editor(Available on both Android & iOS)
Airbrush Easy Photo Editor is the best application if you want to make your pictures perfect. This app has all the features you need to achieve perfect results. Some of the features include: blemish and pimple remover, perfect skin, teeth whitening, eye brightening, retouching effects, photo lengthening, real-time editing and radiant filters among others. With this application, you can transform a very basic and dull picture to look like a professional picture. It is free and it is compatible with both android and iOS.
- Very easy to use
- Constantly being updated
- Numerous features
- Free
- Compatible with both android and iOS
- Saves edited images in separate folders
c) Cupslice (Android only)
Cupslice is among the most trending apps on social media. This app has numerous powerful features that enable you to transform your pictures. This app features numerous filters that you can use to tweak your photos to make them appear brighter and unique. The best thing about the filters is the fact that they leave your picture looking very natural. This way, it is very hard to tell that you have edited your picture. The app is very easy to use and it is only available for Android phones.
- Easy to use
- Free
- Powerful features
- Natural filters
- Doesn't take up too much space
d) Fotor Photo Editor (Available on Android and iOS)
Fotor Photo Editor is a one stop app for editing, sharing and selling pictures. Fotor has evolved from being one of the most user-friendly photo editing applications to a growing photography community platform. Apart from editing pictures on this app, you get the opportunity to connect with numerous photographers around the world. This enables you to get inspiration, make new friends and learn new photography skills. It is a great platform for photography enthusiasts, hobbyists and professional photographers. This application provides you with all the photo editing tools you need to transform your pictures. Whether you want to edit your picture to post on social media or use it for professional projects, Fotor will work very well for you.
- It is free
- Photography community platform
- User-friendly
- Fun
- Numerous editing tools
- Perfect for beginners and professionals
- It does not have a delete option for pictures. This leads to a lot of memory use up which is not great if you have a limited amount of space on your phone.
Conclusion
In conclusion, if you love sharing pictures on social media or you are a professional photographer, you will really benefit from these photo editing tools. They are easy to use and you can find one for all your devices. Test them out to find out which one works best for you.
You may also like:
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10 Best iPhone Photo Printers Review
- January 02, 2020
- 18 min to read
Most free photo editors available on the App Store are quite basic, offering just a limited number of filters and allowing you to easily and quickly liven up your photos before posting them on social media.
But if you're an aspiring or professional photographer, you probably need a more powerful app with a broader set of tools to use your creativity to the fullest. Besides, you probably use your Mac for photo editing because working on a large screen makes it possible to adjust the slightest details.
1. Apple's Photos (Built-in app)
Apple's Photos app is included for free on all recently released Macs. It does a good job at organizing your photos, but its collection of photo enhancement tools leaves much to be desired. Hopefully, our selection of the best free programs for photo editing on Mac will help you choose the right app to suit all your creative needs.
2. Luminar (7 days trial)
Luminar is another full-featured photo editor that's popular with both Mac and Windows users. It can work as a standalone app as well as a plugin for such popular programs as Apple Photos.
Luminar uses Artificial Intelligence to enable sophisticated yet quick photo enhancements. Among these AI features are Sky Enhancer, which adds more depth and detail to the sky in your photos while leaving other areas untouched; Accent AI, which analyzes a photo and automatically applies the best combination of different effects to enhance your image; and Sun Rays, which allows you to place an artificial sun and adjust the lighting to your liking or make the sun rays already in your photo look even more incredible.
Luminar has over 60 filters you can apply to your photos to enhance them in a moment. Luminar also provides a set of powerful tools for cropping, transforming, cloning, erasing, and stamping, along with layers, brushes, and many more incredible features. Luminar supports the Touch Bar on the latest MacBook Pro, making photo editing even more effortless and pleasing.
3. Photolemur 3 (Free Version with watermark)
Photolemur is a relative newcomer on the photo editing market but it has all the chances to win the favor of beginner photographers and hobbyists. Running on Artificial Intelligence, Photolemur is a completely automatic photo enhancer, meaning that it does all the editing for you in no time. It has the simplest interface, with only a few buttons and sliders to adjust the enhancement to your liking and view the before and after results.
All you need to do is choose a photo (or a few) that you want to improve, drag and drop or import them using the Import button, and let the program make enhancements. After it's done, you can compare the edited version with the original image by using the before–after slider and, if you want, adjust the skin tone or even enlarge the eyes using additional sliders. Pretty easy, huh?
Photolemur also offers a number of impressive styles to touch up your photos and give them a sophisticated and professional look. With this app, you don't need to stuff your head with photo editing nuances and terms. Just run Photolemur and watch the magic happen!
4. Aurora HDR (14 days trial)
As you probably can tell from the name, Aurora HDR is designed to help photographers enhance their HDR photos, making them even more detailed and beautiful. It's an ideal tool for editing your photos, with an extensive collection of more than 20 tools including details, tone, mapping, color, glow, and vignette. Each tool has its unique selection of controls to adjust its effects.
Aurora HDR enables you to work with brushes, layers, and masks, and provides a number of automatic AI tools for recognizing and removing noise, enhancing colors, lighting, and details, improving clarity, and adding contrast to dull areas while leaving other areas untouched.
Aurora HDR does a great job dealing with difficult lighting situations and creating full-of-life images while being easy to use.
5. Pixelmator (Trial 30 Days)
Pixelmator is a photo enhancer beloved by many Mac users, as it offers a good combination of a modern and simple interface, the ability to work on multiple layers, and powerful features that take photo editing to a whole new level. With so many editing tools, brushes, and effects, you can enhance your photos to your liking. You can choose between two versions of Pixelmator – standard and pro – depending on your needs. The standard version is great for basic photo editing with its selection of essential tools and filters, while the pro version is packed with extra brushes, tools, and effects that let you push your creativity to new boundaries. You can decide which version is suitable for you according to what features you're looking for in a photo editing app.
6. Adobe Photoshop Elements 2020 (Trial link)
Photoshop Elements isn't as affordable as other photo enhancers for beginner photographers. But luckily there's a trial version available, so you can check it out before deciding whether this app is worthy of your money. Photoshop Elements acquired many powerful features from Photoshop, only Elements is simplified for amateur photographers and enthusiasts. It includes a good number of effects and filters, plus automated editing options for improving lighting, color balance, and exposure, and even opening closed eyes and reducing the effects of camera shake.
In addition to all of these awesome features, Photoshop also offers editing modes for beginners, intermediate users, and experts. Beginners will probably prefer Quick mode, as it focuses on essential tools to quickly enhance your photos by improving color, lighting, and other basic settings. Guided mode provides intermediate users with step-by-step guidance with more professional features like artistic effects, skin tone correction, and background replacement. Expert mode gives you full access to the app's really powerful editing features and is ideal for creating stunning images.
7. Affinity Photo (Free Trial)
Photo Editing Software Reviews 2019
Affinity Photo's interface may seem overwhelming at first, especially for novices, but when you come to grips with it you'll find that the app is just what you've been looking for. Its numerous professional tools, effects, and filters encourage you to get creative with your photos. Among the coolest features Affinity Photo has to offer is a before and after view to compare the original photo with its edited version.
Affinity Photo works with 15 file types, including common ones like PDF, PSD, JPG, and GIF as well as some less popular ones. The app amazes with its abundance of basic and top-notch editing tools, allowing you to tweak your photos using all possible kinds of instruments. Affinity Photo allows you to edit HDR photos, apply artistic filters and effects, play with masks and layers, and create breathtaking compositions by combining several images in one. If you find its interface a bit much and are afraid of getting lost in all those advanced tools, you should probably look for something more suitable for your level. But Affinity Photo is worth mastering.
8. Google Photos
Google Photos is a popular cloud storage service for photos and videos. It can't boast countless masterly tools like other photo enhancers that we review in this article, but it includes some fundamental features like filters, color adjustment sliders, and transformation tools. Apple movie maker for windows.
Although Google Photos may not be that helpful when it comes to editing photos, it does a pretty good job at storing high-resolution images and videos with 15GB of free online storage, compared to iCloud's mere 5GB (which you can upgrade to 50GB for a monthly fee). If you're planning to go on a trip and take plenty of photos, then it might be smart to sign up for Google Photos to use that extra storage space when you come back.
9. PhotoScape X (Free)
Free Image Editing
A relatively new photo editing app, PhotoScape X has been gaining popularity with many Mac and PC users since its release in 2008. Its interface is simple but unconventional, with a number of tabs running along the top of the window. Each is responsible for a specific stage of editing. The Viewer tab allows you to browse and organize your photos. After you pick a photo, you can switch to the Editor tab, which includes a broad set of instruments, filters, and effects and a useful feature that enables you to compare the adjusted photo with the original.
The next tabs, including the Batch tab, mainly concentrate on editing and renaming multiple photos at once. The GIF tab allows you to easily create an animated GIF from a group of selected photos.
Photo Editor Free Download Windows 10
The downside of PhotoScape X is a lack of selection tools, so all changes are applied to the whole image rather than to a selected part.
10. Gimp (Free)
Gimp is a free open-source photo editing app that has been on the market for over 22 years and is available for Windows, Mac, and even Linux. Unlike many free apps, Gimp doesn't have any ads or in-app purchases. Its grey interface might seem a little old-fashioned and it may be a bit sluggish when it comes to complex effects, though.
Gimp offers a vast collection of advanced tools that hardly any free photo editor can boast. It has numerous enhancement options such as clone and heal brushes, layers and channels, accurate selection tools, a number of transformation instruments, and, of course, color adjustment controls. Gimp is one of the most powerful tools for enhancing photos and is beloved by so many users for its price (free) and versatility. But if you can't come to grips with Gimp's interface, it may be worth paying some cash for a more user-friendly program.
