Inkscape
Open Sourceby Inkscape Project
Professional vector illustration — the free Illustrator alternative.
- Native SVG editing
- Full bezier and node editing
- Text on path and typography tools
Free alternatives to GIMP
5 photo & graphics programs worth considering instead of — or alongside — GIMP.
Alternatives to GIMP
Krita
Open Sourceby Krita Foundation
Digital painting software built for illustrators and concept artists.
- Exceptional customisable brush engine
- Excellent graphics tablet support
- Frame-by-frame animation tools
Paint.NET
Freeby dotPDN LLC
The sweet spot between MS Paint and Photoshop.
- Layers and adjustment effects
- Very fast to launch and learn
- Active plugin community
darktable
Open Sourceby darktable team
Non-destructive RAW photo workflow — the free Lightroom alternative.
- Non-destructive RAW processing
- Light-table for culling and organising
- Extensive colour management
RawTherapee
Open Sourceby RawTherapee development team
Precision RAW converter with exceptional detail control.
- Multiple high-quality demosaicing algorithms
- Advanced noise reduction and sharpening
- Non-destructive processing profiles
About GIMP
GIMP is a full-featured raster image editor covering photo retouching, compositing, masking, layers, channels and scriptable batch processing. For the majority of image editing tasks it is a capable Photoshop substitute at no cost.
It is open source and runs on Windows, macOS, Linux. Below are 5 photo & graphics programs that cover the same ground — some open-source, some cross-platform, each free to use.
GIMP alternatives compared
| Program | Licence | Platforms | Best known for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inkscape | Open Source | Windows, macOS, Linux | Native SVG editing |
| Krita | Open Source | Windows, macOS, Linux | Exceptional customisable brush engine |
| Paint.NET | Free | Windows | Layers and adjustment effects |
| darktable | Open Source | Windows, macOS, Linux | Non-destructive RAW processing |
| RawTherapee | Open Source | Windows, macOS, Linux | Multiple high-quality demosaicing algorithms |
The alternatives in detail
Inkscape Open Source
Inkscape is a full vector graphics editor working natively in SVG, suitable for logos, illustrations, diagrams and print-ready artwork. Notable for native svg editing and full bezier and node editing. Runs on Windows, macOS, Linux.
Krita Open Source
Krita is purpose-built for digital painting rather than photo editing, with an outstanding brush engine, excellent drawing-tablet support, and features aimed at comic and concept artists including frame-by-frame animation. Notable for exceptional customisable brush engine and excellent graphics tablet support. Runs on Windows, macOS, Linux.
Paint.NET Free
Paint.NET fills the gap between Windows Paint and a full professional editor: layers, effects and a genuinely simple interface that opens instantly. Notable for layers and adjustment effects and very fast to launch and learn. Runs on Windows.
darktable Open Source
darktable is a RAW developer and photo workflow application for photographers, offering non-destructive editing, a proper light-table for culling, and colour management aimed at serious photographic work. Notable for non-destructive raw processing and light-table for culling and organising. Runs on Windows, macOS, Linux.
RawTherapee Open Source
RawTherapee is a RAW image processor known for the quality of its demosaicing algorithms and the granularity of its controls. Notable for multiple high-quality demosaicing algorithms and advanced noise reduction and sharpening. Runs on Windows, macOS, Linux.
How to choose
4 are fully open source (Inkscape, Krita, darktable, RawTherapee) — pick one of these if you value auditable code you can self-host. For the widest platform coverage, Inkscape, Krita, darktable run on three or more operating systems. On a Mac, Inkscape, Krita, darktable support macOS natively.
All 5 are free to download from the publisher's own website, so installing two or three and testing them on your own files is the fastest way to decide — it costs nothing but a few minutes.