Visuals play a significant role in enticing your audience to engage with your business. In particular, using photos in your marketing campaigns is a compelling way to draw in more traffic. You can use photos to show off your products, your team, and more.
Of course, to make your images the best they can be, you’ll want a good photo editing tool—preferably a free one. The best free photo editors enable you to create appealing images and level up your visual game.
On this page, we’ll go through the following topics to help you choose the best free photo editing app for your business.
Feel free to jump into any topics you want to learn about, or you can connect with our marketing expert friends at WebFX for your photo editing and content marketing needs!
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A photo editor is a type of computer software that lets you touch up or manipulate an image. Today, photo editing tools are available on desktop computers and mobile devices.
One of the most widely used photo editors on desktops is Adobe Photoshop, a paid software.
What makes a good free photo editing software?
An excellent free photo editor must have the following features:
Intuitiveness: A good free photo editing software must be easy to use—enough so that even non-professional graphic artists will find it intuitive.
Basic editing functions: A good photo editor must include essential features that let you enhance and manipulate images, such as the following:
Brightness and contrast adjustment
Image cropping
Filters
Undo function: A good photo editing software must let you reverse changes on your edits.
Capability to add other design elements: A good free photo editor must be able to add text and other design elements. Having a variety of fonts and icons is a handy feature that helps you create infographics and social media posts.
Freeor freemium: If you want to work within a limited budget, consider Photoshop alternatives that are absolutely free. Good freemium tools must offer all the basic features in their free versions.
11 best free photo editors [for desktop and mobile]
By now, you’re probably wondering what free photo editor you should choose. Thankfully, we’re here to make that a little easier on you. We’ve rounded up the best photo editors for you and divided them into two lists: Desktop and mobile.
Keep reading to see the tools on both lists!
7 best free photo editing software for desktop
If you’re looking for a free photo editor that you can use on a desktop, you’ll probably want to choose one of the following options:
The table below summarizes some basic info about each of these free Photoshop alternatives and their best features:
Free photo editing software for desktop
Free or freemium?
Best for
GIMP
Free
Teams that need a photo editor supporting PSD files
Canva
Freemium (Starts at $15 per month or $120 per year)
Teams collaborating on image creation and editing
Pixlr Express
Freemium (Starts at $1.99 per month or $11.88 per year)
Individuals and organizations looking for an AI-powered photo editor to simplify other editing tasks
Sumopaint
Freemium (Starts at $4 per month or $29 per year)
Teams looking for extensive brush tools in free photo editors
Photodirector Essential
Free (Paid version starts at $59.99 per year)
Organizations that need a free photo editor with a tagging functionality for organizing images
Krita
Free
Individuals looking for a free photo editor with digital sketching tools
Lunapic
Free
Individuals who need simple animation features to turn photos into GIFs
Read on to learn more about each one!
1. GIMP
Pricing: Free
Device compatibility: macOS, Linux, and Windows
First on our list of the best free photo editors is GIMP (or GNU Image Manipulation Program). GIMP is a free and open-source photo editor that enables you to crop, rotate, retouch, and manipulate images.
As one of the free Photoshop alternatives you can use, GIMP supports the following file formats:
JPEG
TIFF
PNG
GIF
PSD
If you’ve previously used Photoshop, you may find GIMP’s user interface easy to use, as they share some capabilities.
2. Canva
Pricing: Freemium (Starts at $15 per month or $120 per year)
Device compatibility: Web-based, iOS, and Android
Canva is a freemium beginner-friendly photo and video editor. Its free version has the basic graphic creation and editing features that are useful for various projects, including:
Presentations
Social media posts and stories
Posters
GIFs and videos
PDFs
This freemium photo editor has thousands of templates. It also features free design elements and fonts to help you spice up your visuals.
If your team collaborates on image creation and editing, Canva is one of the best free photo editors you can consider. You can share your Canva project with colleagues and grant them editing access.
Canva also recently introduced artificial intelligence (AI) features, including a text-to-image generator and AI Photo Editor that can remove an image’s background and erase unwanted objects from a photo.
3. Pixlr Express
Pricing: Freemium (Starts at $1.99 per month or $11.88 per year)
Device compatibility: Web-based
Pixlr is a suite of web-based apps for photo editing, animating, and creating templates. Its artificial intelligence-powered (AI-powered) photo editor, Pixlr Express, is an intuitive photo editing software that can perform quick editing jobs.
You can crop, resize, and rotate images using Pixlr Express. It also lets you adjust an image’s colors and lighting.
Adding text is a breeze—add a new layer and type in your text. You can select from its built-in effects and filters to change the mood of your image.
Its suite of AI features is pretty impressive, even for its free version. Pixlr Express’s AI cutout feature lets you remove an image’s background with a click of a button. You can also transform part of an image, enabling you to enlarge, rotate, or move your subject.
4. Sumopaint
Price:Freemium (Starts at $4 per month or $29 per year)
Device compatibility: Web-based (a downloadable app is available for Mac, Windows, and Linux devices)
Sumopaint is part of Sumo’s suite of drawing and painting apps. It enables you to draw on your images using its extensive collection of brushes.
You can also adjust your image’s colors and add an overlay of text. Rotate and flip your photos with ease, too!
Its AI features, such as background remover and image enhancer, are available when you have credits. Free and paying account users get 10 and 30 daily credits, respectively.
5. PhotoDirector Essential
Price: Free (Paid version starts at $59.99 per year)
Device compatibility: Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android devices
PhotoDirector Essential is another free AI-powered Photoshop alternative. Basic features are free for slide, and this tool also comes with a 30-day trial of the paid version of PhotoDirector, so you can try out advanced features too.
With PhotoDirector, you can resize, crop, rotate, or flip your images, as well as adjust your image’s brightness, contrast, and colors. It also has light effects to change your image’s mood.
You can create tags and apply them to your images, making it easy to organize your visual assets through this photo editor.
Only paying users can use its AI features, such as background and image removal.
6. Krita
Pricing: Free
Device compatibility: Windows, Linux, and MacOS devices
Krita is a free Photoshop alternative for beginners. This photo editing software lets you crop, rotate, and flip images.
It lets you create multiple layers on an image, enabling you to adjust every layer without affecting other elements or layers on your image. It has over 100 brushes, offering you flexibility with digital sketching.
7. Lunapic
Pricing: Free
Device compatibility:Web-based
Lunapic is a web-based free photo editing program. It has filters, effects, and animation features that make it easy to adjust and animate your images.
Basic editing features such as cropping and resizing are available in Lunapic, too. This online tool also lets you adjust an image’s color temperature, brightness, saturation, and sharpness.
Lunapic is a free tool supported by ads.
4 best free photo editing apps for mobile devices
Do you want to edit images from your mobile device? Here are the best photo editors you can use:
This table summarizes some basic info about each of those tools:
Free photo editing software for mobile
Free, freemium, or free trial?
Best for
Snapseed
Free
Teams looking for a completely free tool
VSCO
Freemium (Starts at $7.99 per month or $29.99 per year)
Individuals looking for various presets and effects
PhotoRoom
Freemium (Starts at $12.99 per month or $89.99 per year)
E-commerce companies
BeFunky
Freemium (Starts at $14.99 per month or $83.88 per year)
Teams or individuals looking for a tool to turn their photos into art-like pieces.
Keep reading to find out more about each of those tools!
1. Snapseed
Pricing: Free
Device compatibility: Android and iOS devices
Snapseed is a free photo editing app packed with features. It’s an easy-to-use mobile software that lets you see how the image transforms as you edit it. You can even compare a “before” and “after” with a long tap on the image!
Use preset styles and dramatic effects on your images for a quick and easy edit. Want to have more control? This free photo editing app lets you manually tune your photo to adjust brightness, contrast, saturation, and more!
You can also crop, rotate, and change the perspective of an image. Emphasize your image’s subject by using its vignette tool.
You can then save the image with your changes (which you can still undo), save a new copy while preserving the original photo, or export the edited version with permanent changes.
2. VSCO
Pricing: Freemium (Starts at $7.99 per month or $29.99 per year)
Device compatibility: Android, iOS, and desktop devices
VSCO is another photo editing app with features enabling you to change your photo’s brightness, contrast, and tone, among others. It also has editing presets to make tweaking your images easy.
The free version lets you adjust an image’s:
Saturation
Contrast
Exposure
White balance
You can sharpen the image and add a vignette, too!
3. PhotoRoom
Pricing: Freemium (Starts at $12.99 per month or $89.99 per year)
Device compatibility: Android, iOS, and web-based
PhotoRoom is one of the best Photoshop alternatives that e-commerce businesses can use.
Like most photo editors, PhotoRoom can tweak your photo’s brightness, contrast, and color. Its best feature is removing and changing your photo’s backgrounds so you can present your product in various scenarios.
Making images for your online shop is easy with PhotoRoom. It has built-in size templates for major e-commerce sites like eBay, Amazon, and Etsy.
Its other templates let you manipulate your images for themes like family, sports, and pets. PhotoRoom also has seasonal templates for Christmas and other holidays.
4. BeFunky
Pricing: Freemium (Starts at $14.99 per month or $83.88 per year)
Device compatibility: Android, iOS, and web-based
BeFunky is a freemium photo editing software that can perform standard image enhancements and more. It features an AI-powered enhancer that can isolate your photo’s subject from the background in paid accounts.
You can touch up images or use effects. You can also add other visual elements to pictures for your brand’s social media posts.
Turn a photo into a cartoon or a watercolor-like artwork with a tap using this photo editor’s free version.
How to choose the best photo editor for your needs
Picking the right photo editor can make a huge difference in how easy it is to achieve the look you want with your pictures. With so many free options out there, it’s important to think about a few key things to find the best one for you.
Identify your primary use case
First up, figure out what you’ll mostly be using the photo editor for. Are you editing photos for social media, where quick and easy tweaks are all you need? Or are you into professional photography, requiring advanced tools like RAW file support and precise editing features?
Knowing your main use case will help narrow down your choices. For social media, a simple, user-friendly editor like Pixlr Express or Snapseed is perfect. But if you need more professional features, GIMP or Krita might be what you’re looking for.
Consider ease of use vs. advanced features
Think about whether you want something super easy to use or packed with advanced features—or maybe a bit of both. If you’re new to photo editing, you’ll probably want an editor with an intuitive interface that lets you quickly apply filters, crop images, and adjust brightness without having to learn a bunch of stuff first. Editors like Canva are great for their simplicity and ease of use.
On the other hand, if you need more powerful editing capabilities—like layers, masks, and detailed color correction—GIMP offers a full suite of tools similar to Adobe Photoshop, though it does come with a bit of a learning curve.
Compatibility with your operating system
Make sure the photo editor works with your operating system. Most free editors support both Windows and macOS, but some might have limitations. Of course, if you’re using a free photo editor on mobile, you’ll need an app that works with the system you use, whether that’s Android or iOS. And it’s a nice bonus if your mobile photo editor also works on your laptop!
Community support and tutorials
Having a strong community and plenty of tutorials can make your editing experience much smoother. Look for photo editors with active user communities, as they often provide helpful resources, tips, and troubleshooting advice. GIMP, for example, has a large community and tons of tutorials online that can help you learn its more complex features. Similarly, Canva has a lot of guides and a supportive user base to help you get the most out of its tools.
Frequently asked questions about free photo editing tools
Should I choose a free or paid photo editing software?
Whether you should use a free or paid photo editing tool depends on how you plan to use it. For simple tasks like editing photos for social media, a free tool works just fine. If you want professional-level editing or advanced features, a paid tool may be the better option. Many paid tools offer free trials, so you can test them out before buying them.
What is the best free photo editor?
The best tool for you depends on your needs, so try several tools that match what you’re looking for to find the perfect fit. The 11 tools in this blog post are some of the best free photo editors available, so one of them is sure to work for you. That being said, GIMP is one of the most popular free photo tools with advanced features, while Canva is one of the most popular beginner-friendly tools.
What is the most user-friendly free photo editor?
Canva is one of the best free, user-friendly photo editing tools. It offers an intuitive interface and easy-to-use tools, plus lots of resources to help you along the way.
What is the most advanced free photo editing tool?
GIMP is one of the most advanced free photo editing software tools available. While this tool is less beginner-friendly, it offers more options and advanced features than many other tools on this list. You’ll also find plenty of resources online to help you learn how to use GIMP.
Discover more valuable digital tools for your business
Having a great free photo editor in your digital tool arsenal certainly makes cropping and adjusting images easy and cost-effective. Adding more essential tools to your collection can help you streamline processes and boost productivity, which translates to business growth.
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