15 best free photo editing software on computer

There are many photo editing software on computers for you to download and install to use like photo editing applications on phones. Photo editing software supports features from basic to advanced, suitable for all users. The article below will summarize 15 free photo editing software on computers for you to use.

1. Adobe Photoshop

Photoshop is a photo editing and graphics creation software developed by Adobe. Photoshop offers a wide range of image editing features as well as the ability to create complex graphics. Photoshop has become an industry standard because it is so versatile and is often one of the first programs many people learn to use.

Adobe Photoshop is a photo editing application on computers that is very familiar to many people, from amateurs to those with a lot of experience in this field.

With Adobe Photoshop you have all the tools to change images as you like, and with each version of Adobe Photoshop, new features are also updated and upgraded.

Today, Adobe Photoshop is used by many artists and creative professionals in the industry. Photoshop is a software that can be used for photography, graphic design, creating digital art, etc.

Learning how to use Adobe Photoshop can be invaluable not only to those looking to build a career in the creative industry, but also to those who have a passion for creativity in general. As social media and content creation become a major part of businesses, any experience with graphics applications like Adobe Photoshop will give you an edge when applying for jobs.

Adobe Photoshop is very versatile and allows creators to accomplish a wide range of tasks. Adobe Photoshop can sometimes be the only program a creator needs in their arsenal. Learning Photoshop can open up new opportunities in a number of fields.

Once you have a solid understanding of Photoshop, it will also put you in a great position to learn and use other Adobe programs. Some of the tools and shortcuts are very similar across all Adobe programs. Learning to use other Adobe programs besides Photoshop will allow you to hone your skills and create unique works of art.

You can refer to the article on installing Photoshop on your computer at the link below.

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2. Polarr

Polarr is a cross-platform photo editing app that can be used anywhere – Android, Chromebook, iOS, Mac, web, and Windows. There are both free and paid options available, with the paid versions offering more advanced features.

You can download Polarr for Android and Mac for free from each platform's respective stores. If you want to use the paid subscription version, you can choose to use it monthly for $3.99 or annually for $29.99.

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Polarr has all the usual features one would expect. It also has a few quirks, such as the ability to add borders in different aspect ratios, allowing users to format their images in Instagram's square and 4×5 formats. Surprisingly, some of the biggest names in smartphone editing apps lack this simple feature, which allows for full compatibility with one of the world's most popular photo-sharing platforms.

Polarr's unsung hero is the Border feature, a simple but incredibly important tool that lets you format your vertical images to fit Instagram's 4×5 aspect ratio. For photos where you need to include everything from top to bottom,

The good news is that the Border feature is available in the free version. If your main focus is smartphone photography, then Polarr is probably the only app you need for editing.

Border adds a colored border of your choice around your image. Your image will appear a little bit smaller after applying the border, but the advantage is that your entire image can be displayed correctly on Instagram.

Advantage

1. Multiple light, color and tone adjustment options with elegant histogram section
2. Intuitive with an aesthetically pleasing user-friendly interface
   Polarr is ideal for editing images on the web or online platforms
3. The compact file size allows users to download and use Polarr on low-spec computers
4. The program is supported by an extensive library of technical documentation and video tutorials.
5. Polarr Pro, designed for more complex edits, is subscription-based and cheaper than other alternatives

Disadvantages

1. Polarr has limited organization and export features
2. The app does not provide a shared workspace for multiple Polarr users
3. This app does not have Bokeh or tilt shift features
4. Polarr does not support raw files

3. PhotoScape

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PhotoScape is a free photo editing program. It is available for all versions of Windows prior to Windows 10, and a separate version, PhotoScape X, is available for Windows 10 and macOS. The professional version of Photoscape X costs $39.99.

PhotoScape's goal is to make digital image editing "easy and fun". The program's key features include:

1. Batch edit multiple photos.
2. Combine multiple images to create one larger image.
3. Create animated GIFs.
4. Take a screenshot and save it.
5. Face Finder tool to find similar faces on the Internet.

Developed by MOOII Tech, PhotoScape provides all the tools you need to edit, correct, and enhance any photo in seconds. It also allows you to add filters, edit files, take screenshots, or convert images to RAW format without the need for expensive programs like Adobe Photoshop or Lightroom. Its excellent combination of advanced features and user-friendliness makes it an ideal choice for all types of users.

Both industry professionals and enthusiasts in the world of photo editing will find PhotoScape to be a versatile and fast photo editing program. With PhotoScape, you can edit and fix common problems such as changing the lighting, contrast or red-eye, as well as add text, filters or effects to your photos. All of this is not complicated and does not require spending hours learning how the editor works. Even if you do not use all the features offered, you will still find PhotoScape suitable for editing and managing your photo archive. Extremely impressive for a free program.

Advantage

1. Many impressive tools
2. Easy to navigate
3. RAW photo editor

Disadvantages

1. The layout is a bit confusing

4. GIMP

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GIMP is a powerful and flexible open source raster graphics editor. Serving as a powerful alternative to commercial image editing software, GIMP is known for its accessibility as it is freely available for use on a variety of operating systems.

At its core, GIMP empowers users to manipulate digital images, providing a diverse set of tools for tasks ranging from photo editing to graphic design. With features comparable to high-end software, GIMP stands out for its commitment to being free and open source, fostering community collaboration.

GIMP's user-friendly interface and extensive features make it a top choice for designers of all levels, providing a platform to unleash your creativity and bring your visual ideas to life. Whether you're enhancing photos or creating original artwork, GIMP's versatility and accessibility make it an asset in the world of digital design.

GIMP is known for its comprehensive feature set, making it a force in the digital design and image manipulation fields. GIMP places a strong emphasis on freedom and accessibility. Being free allows users of all backgrounds to access powerful image editing capabilities, fostering a global community of contributors and users.

GIMP's cross-platform compatibility ensures that users can take advantage of its capabilities across a wide range of operating systems. One of GIMP's core strengths lies in its ability to support high-quality image manipulation. From fine-tuning to complex editing, GIMP offers a wide range of precise and creative tools and features to enhance and transform images.

GIMP is more than just a photo editor; it is also a tool for creating artwork. Artists can take advantage of the software tools to create original digital artwork, exploring creativity in the digital space with layers, brushes, and many other artistic elements.

5. Paint.NET

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Paint.NET is a free photo editing software. Every feature and user interface element is designed to be learned immediately and quickly without assistance. To make it easy to work with multiple images, Paint.NET uses a tabbed document interface.

Tabs display live thumbnails of images instead of text descriptions. This makes navigation very simple and fast. Extensive work has been done to make Paint.NET the fastest image editor available. Whether you have a netbook with a power-efficient Atom CPU or a Dual Intel Xeon workstation with 16+ blazing fast processing cores, you can expect Paint.NET to launch quickly and respond quickly to every click.

Typically only found on expensive or complex professional software, layers form the basis of a rich visual composition experience. Think of them as a stack of transparent slides that, when viewed together, form an image. An active and growing online community offers friendly help, tutorials, and plug-ins.

Originally intended as a free alternative to the Microsoft Paint software that comes with Windows, Paint.NET has evolved into a powerful yet simple photo editing tool. It has been compared to other digital photo editing software packages such as Adobe Photoshop, Corel Paint Shop Pro, Microsoft Photo Editor, and GIMP.

6. Fotor

Fotor is a photo editing software that is available as an online photo editor as well as a downloadable desktop version and a mobile app for editing on the go. Being able to choose between 3 different versions is great because it allows users to choose the app that best suits them or even switch between them.

With the Fotor web version, you can access it from any computer with an Internet connection. If you want to edit photos right on your phone, the Fotor mobile app is one of the best photo editing apps available today.

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The company's heads have carefully designed each version, creating a great user experience and a seamless workflow. You'll be impressed by the range of tools available and the difference you can make to your images with this smart software. There's even a great auto-color correction feature that can work wonders on your images with just one click.

Fotor has three main functions: Edit, Collage, and Design. Not only can you edit individual images, but you can also create beautiful collages in a variety of styles quickly and easily in Fotor. You can also dig deeper into design elements and create some impressive graphic design projects.

The basic version of Fotor is completely free. The tools and features included in the free version are extensive and more than enough for light to moderate photo editing. If you're thinking about upgrading to the paid version, you'll be happy to know that Fotor is very affordable and competitively priced. Fotor costs just $39.99 for a yearly membership or $8.99 if you choose to pay monthly.

Advantage

1. Opportunity to edit images in web, mobile and desktop versions.
2. Smart filters and effects
3. Convenient collage maker
4. RAW file converter
5. Fotor Social Network

Disadvantages

1. Lots of ads in mobile and web apps
2. Very little ability for deep image editing
3. Not enough functionality to replace Lightroom
4. Not suitable for creating images from scratch

7. Inkscape

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Inkscape is a powerful open source desktop application for creating scalable two-dimensional vector graphics. Although primarily an illustration tool, Inkscape is used for a wide range of computer graphics tasks.

The variety of things that can be done with Inkscape is vast and sometimes surprising. It is used to create diagrams, logos, programmatic marketing materials, web graphics, and even scrapbooks on paper. People also draw game sprites, produce banners, posters, and brochures. Others use Inkscape to sketch out web design mockups, detailed layouts for printed circuit boards, or create sketch files to send to laser cutters.

Inkscape's native file format, Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG), is a W3C open standard. Vector graphics are made up of points and the lines between them. In Inkscape, these are called nodes and guides. Most vector graphics tools provide users with the ability to create guides called shapes.

A shape is essentially just a closed normal line. Shapes such as circles, squares, triangles, and other polygons are widely used in creating vector graphics. The other main type of computer graphics is raster graphics. Instead of being made up of normal lines, raster graphics are made up of a grid of pixels. Vector graphics can be easily converted to raster graphics, but converting raster graphics to vector graphics is much more difficult.

The SVG format that Inkscape uses as its native file format can be opened by almost any other vector graphics tool and can also be viewed by all modern web browsers, which means that SVG is increasingly used on the web and in other types of digital design.

8. Artweaver Free

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Artweaver Free is a free painting program suitable for beginners as well as advanced users. You can record all your steps and play them back later or make them available to other users. There are also many tools and features such as layers and effect filters in Artweaver Free.

Save and replay the process

You can record your entire drawing process, save it, and play it back later with Artweaver Free. So you can show other users your painting style, or you can just show the process from a blank sheet of paper to a finished work of art.

Multiple brushes and individual configurability

Artweaver Free includes a large number of predefined brushes. But you can also configure individual brushes or create new custom brushes. In addition to simple round brushes, you can also use custom images as brushes.

Windows user friendly program

Artweaver Free has an intuitive and easy-to-use program window. But you can also customize it to your own needs. For example, freely arrange and assemble palettes.

Work simultaneously on the same document

You can work together with multiple artists over the network or the Internet on the same document with Artweaver Plus. In addition to viewing other artists' strokes or adding your own, you can also chat with each other using instant messaging. Create your own group at ArtweaverTeam.com for worldwide access.

Advantage

1. Multiple brush options
2. Plug-in support
3. Layers and transparency

Disadvantages

1. The free version includes limited tools for photo editing.

9. IrfanView

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First released in 1996 for Microsoft Windows 98, IrfanView is a freeware (for non-commercial use) program used to edit and view digital images. It provides tools for adding effects to photos, creating slideshows and screensavers, and supports TWAIN, making it easy to interact with scanners.

IrfanView supports a wide range of image file types, including BMP (bitmap), GIF (graphics interchange format), ICO (icon), JPG, PNG (portable network graphics), TIFF (tagged image file format), and many others. It can also open and play MP3 audio files and MPEG (Moving Picture Experts Group) video files, along with a number of media file types, including Flash and MIDI (musical instrument digital interface).

While viewing images, there are several screen-to-screen scaling options and an automatic slideshow function. Viewers can open all image and video clip files (of most formats, including AVCHD) in a folder sequentially. Slideshows can contain both still images and video clips.

IrfanView can create screensavers and slideshows from image collections with optional MP3 audio. They can be saved as standalone executables that run on Windows computers without IrfanView installed. For batch slideshow creation, screenaver creation and image translation, built-in image processing steps can be applied to selected image sets.

10. PhotoPlus 

PhotoPlus is image creation and editing software for anyone passionate and new to digital photography, whether at home, in school, an organization or a growing business.

PhotoPlus has the features you need. from importing or creating photos, color processing, image adjustments, applying filter effects, etc., to final export. Built-in support for most modern digital cameras makes it easy to open your own digital photos, either as JPGs or as unprocessed raw images.

PhotoPlus also offers powerful post-production capabilities on your computer, using Raw Import, where you have full control over the exposure and white balance of your raw images, and can perform over-corrected highlight recovery. For editing, adjustments, filter effects (including stunning artistic effects) or image layering, try Lens Correction, PhotoFix, Filter Gallery and Cutout Studio respectively.

PhotoPlus's outstanding features include:

1. High HDR Support : Supports Windows screen scaling with automatic selection of appropriately sized, sharp buttons, controls, and menus, so for very high resolution displays, displays at a distance, or for those with visual impairments,
2. Ultra-fast multi-threaded filter previews : The new filter engine delivers superior performance when previewing and applying filters.
3. Excellent Color Sampler Tool : This tool now allows adding and positioning color samplers at different locations on the image.
4. Info Tab : This tab reports the color values ​​at the current cursor position and at one or more set samplers. The X/Y coordinates of the cursor are also reported.
5. Crop photo : Crop photo by removing transparent areas at the edges of the photo.
6. Add additional images to the document directly into the filter layer non-destructively . This gives complete flexibility in the way the applied adjustments are used, and effects can be replaced while preserving the adjustment/effect. With the option to scale the image, this feature is great for introducing additional image content such as transparent overlays, textures, etc.
7. Adjustability and professional controls : Pixel-based cropping, gradient adjustment, HSL Dropper tool, 16 Bits/Channel plugin support
8. Creative Effects : Additional blending modes, Defringe to remove pixel borders, more effects in Lab mode 8 or 16 Bits/Channel

11. Pixia

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Pixia is the English version of the popular Japanese photo editing software. It is available in many other languages. Pixia works well on Windows. This painting and editing software offers users a lot of tricks with brushes, layers, masks, vector and bitmap drawing tools, color, sound, lighting adjustments, and lots of undo and redo steps. However, it does not provide support for saving files in GIF format.

All standard image file formats can be opened with Pixia, including Photoshop PSD extensions. Images can even be opened directly from the clipboard, camera, or scanner.

12. PhotoFiltre

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PhotoFiltre is a free photo editing software that offers a small user base but has a very elegant interface. The software offers a lot of easy and convenient adjustments with just one click which is very suitable for new users. PhotoFiltre provides a built-in drawing exploration panel that ensures easy navigation, painting, editing and selection tools.

13. Krita Desktop

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Krita Desktop is easy to use and it is definitely an advanced image editor. Like some other software, you can work with layers and many other tools that are located in the floating toolbox on the side of the program. It has many features such as brushes, blending modes, selection tools, advanced masks, drawing support, filters, symmetry tools, effects.

One thing users love about Krita Desktop is that with a single press of a key (Tab), you can zoom the space to fit the entire screen, removing all menus and tools for a distraction-free workspace. Krita Desktop works on Windows, Linux, Mac, and Windows-based tablets.

14. inPixio Photo Editor

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This free photo editor from inPixio is designed to be simple, but that doesn't mean it's lacking in useful features. You'll find it easy to use and navigate, doing everything from adding frames and designs to cropping, changing brightness, and more.

With one-click frame and preset features, before and after previews, and easily accessible editing tools, you can complete edits quickly and even share photos directly to Facebook or Flickr from the Share menu.

If you want to apply the same edit to other photos, you can do it easily with this image editing software. You can open many image file types in this software such as JPG, PNG, RIFF, JXR, and WDP.

15. EasyComic

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EasyComic is not a high-end photo editing software like some other free software but if you just need simple editing then it is very suitable for you because you will not be overwhelmed by unnecessary features.

It has some useful objects and effects like speech bubbles, nature photos, animated effects, etc… that you can easily drag and drop into your photos.

In addition, this photo editor also has line drawing tools, rotation and resizing functions, and the ability to create text and shapes. However, it does not have a brush or pen tool like other software. EasyComic supports tabbed windows and simple layering so that you can organize things better and move objects and images in front of and behind other objects.

So you have enough information about free photo editing software. Choose the most suitable software that meets all your requirements. A little editing will make the photo brighter, sharper to save more beautiful memories!

If you are afraid of installing software on your computer, you can try Photoshop Online on TipsMake to edit photos right on your browser.

Kareem Winters

Update 30 October 2024