Best Photo Editing Software from Free to Expensive, for Mac, PC, Kindle and More.

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Some of the best photo editing software that I’ve found on the web.  From free to expensive, for PC, Windows, Kindle or Macs, I’ve tried to cover a few of each.  There’s free software listed and the expensive  – with links and brief descriptions.  These, obviously, aren’t all that is available but, I’ve tried to provide a wide-ish variety.

No affiliate links here – well, there’s one. (There should be more!)  I have NOT used all of these programs – I’ve just done the collating for you!  You need to make the decisions!  Sorry.  Im a Photoshop girl.

Nancy LT Hamilton

Last Updated:  9/26/19, 7/13/19, 6/14/18

Photo Editing Software

Key:

  • $$$ = Expensive $75.00 +
  • $$ = Kinda Expensive  $30 – $74.99
  • $ = Cheap  $1.00 – $29.99 
  • Free

KEY 

I tried my best to figure out what type of device the following apps are used with but, amazingly, many of them made that information VERY difficult to find.  There were, obviously, exceptions!  So, bear with me if you know better.

  • Android – A
  • GNU/Linux – G
  •  iPad – I
  • iPad Touch – IT
  • iPhone – IP
  • Kindle – K
  • Mac – M
  • PC – P
  • Unknown – ???
  • Windows – W
  • Windows Mobile – WM

photoshop  M & P – Adobe Photoshop – $$$  – My go-to program for image editing and creation – mostly because I’ve been using it for 20+ years.  Finally broke down and spent $240.00 for a year’s subscription (as of 7/13/19) and retired my barely functioning CS6.

Layers, masks, rasterized images, filters, brushes, tons of photo editing, image creation tools, etc.

Adobe has many different apps to help you create.

Mac and PC.

Don’t forget:  Student and Teacher versions of Photoshop are MUCH cheaper.

M, W, IP – Affinity Photo$ – $$ – $19.99 – $49.99. For Mac, Windows, iPad.  Professional photo editing, file format compatibility for working with cross devices, PSD import/export, HDR/EDR monitor support, layers, brushes,  digital painting, pro retouch, etc. Voted Best iPad app, 2017, Apple App of the Year.

I, IP, IT –  Afterlight 2 –  “Simply easy to use, packed with an extensive list of powerful Adjustment tools, perfectly paired Filter presets, organically-created Light Overlays and much more…”

corel  W – Corel Paint Shop PRO 2019  – $$$ – 79.99 (59.99 upgrade) as of 7/13/19.

W – Corel Paint Shop Pro Ultimate 2019$$$$99.99 ($79.99 upgrade) as of 7/13/19.  Billed as the “Photoshop alternative”.

Photo animations, painting programs, cropping, photo repair, photo editing, tons more. Both version are compatible with Windows 10.

M – Mac compatible products from Corel.

G, W, MGIMPFree –  Cross-platform image editor for Windows 10, OS X, GNU/Linux, and more.  Photo manipulation, create original art,  graphic design creation, scripted image manipulation, etc.

 M, W –  PhotoDirector 10 – $$$ – $79.99 –  Motion stills, multi-exposure, video to photo face swap, 360° photo editing, face and people beautification, advanced layer editing, move, remove, copy, cloud storage, and a lot more.  5 stars from Techradar, Best photo editing software PCMAG, 2017, etc.

Cyber link has many programs to choose from:  video editing, photo editing, multimedia player, disc burning, etc. 

I, IP, IT –  Free – Darkroom Photo Editor –  “iPad support, RAW support, Portrait editing, hashtag manager, custom filter, content-aware frames, and so, so much more.”

  K – Photo Editor (for Kindle) –  Free – Adjust color, add effects, rotate, crop, resize, frame, clone, and draw on your photos, drawing mode, adding text or images, rotate, crop, resize, etc.

Kindle only. 

 photo-editor-pro W8 mobile – Photo Editor Pro for Android – Free.

I, IP – Photo Editor Pro for iPhone and iPad. Photo editor, blur, retouch, blender, 60+ filters, collage maker, etc.

For mobile devices.

IP –  Pixelmator for iPad – $ – 4.99 (as of 7/13/19).  Repair, edit RAW images, remove unwanted objects, crop, straighten, correct perspective, balance, fade, sharpen, etc.

M –   Pixelmator Pro – $$ – $39.99.  Voted:  Mac App of the Year, 2018.  Pro image editing software. Match colors, machine learning, free transform, skew, distort, perspective,  digital painting, vector graphics, etc. Pixelmator Pro requires a Metal-compatible Mac running macOS 10.13 High Sierra.

Pixlr also has (basically) three different products:

  • W, PC – Web App – Pixlr Editor –  I think it’s free? I couldn’t get a description because I refused to enable flash.  Flash is to be discontinued at the end of 2020!  Yay! Flash, in case you don’t know is one of the main targets of hackers.
  • Desktop Browser (?) – Pixlr Pro$$$5.00 (a month as of 7/13/19 – $60.00  a year).  Layers, brushes, curves, hue/saturation, blends, effects and filters, transform and warp, stock photos and templates, refine edge, etc.  Requires flash player.
  • Pixlr ExpressFree – Going to be replaced by Pixlr X after the discontinuation of flash at the end of 2020.
  • A – Pixlr X – Free – Image adjustments, draw on photos, retouch photos, filters, elements, etc.
    Requires Android 4.1 and up

IP – Procreate  – $ – $9.99 as of 7/13/19.  This is a really fun program that, I have on my iPad.  Offers layers, filters, pressure sensitive brushes and more. Requires iOS 12.0 or later. Compatible with iPad.

  I, IP, Procreate Pocket$ – $4.99 – iPhone app of the year 2018.  Pressure sensitive brushes, layering system, sketches, paintings, illustrations, smudge, etc. Optimized for iPhone X and iOS 12.  Requires iOS 12.0 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.

M – Sketch by Bohemian Coding$$$Initial year is $99.00 for licensing.  But, if you don’t renew, you can continue to use the program and you can access your files in the cloud – you just can’t upload any new stuff.   Vector editor, prototyping, hundreds of plug-ins, non-destructive editing, collaboration, code export, design with data, etc. For MacOS High Sierra (10.13.4) or newer.

M, W, PC – Luminar 3 – $$$$70 (as of 7/13/19).  RAW support, layers, custom brush, selective editing, masking, intelligent filters, brushes, blending modes, texture overlays, an editing history menu and much more.

Windows-based hardware PC with mouse or similar input device. Operating System Windows 7 (only 64-bit OS), Windows 8.1 (only 64-bit OS), Windows 10 (only 64-bit OS).

MacBook, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac, iMac Pro, Mac Pro, Mac mini. MacOS Mojave 10.14, High Sierra 10.13.1, Sierra 10.12.6, El Capitan 10.11.5

snapseed-logo A –  Snapseed Free – developed by Goggle. Compatible with all Android devices. 29 tools and filters, opens JPG and Raw, selective filter brush, crop, rotate, white balance, tuning, editing tools, text, curves, undo and redo edits, etc.  Snapseed is a photo editing software for Android mobile devices.

Requires Android 4.4 and up.
 VSCO – I, IP and Apple TV – Free and $ (annual fee) – ” Edit with a variety of mobile presets and tools while exploring original content made by creators around the world.”  Fully loaded photo editor.

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