If you’re a marketer that uses, or wants to use a lot of graphics, you’ve probably heard that Photoshop is the best graphics program. And yes, Photoshop is superior to all else out there (when time and money are not an issue). But do you really need Photoshop if you’re not a professional artist? Can you find cheaper or easier-to-use alternatives? Chances are that unless you do graphics for a living, buying and learning Photoshop is probably overkill. What follows are some great online Photoshop alternatives that will meet your marketing graphic needs and save you both time and money.
The online Photoshop alternative list
We’ve created this list with short explanations of the essentials on the Photoshop alternatives, so you can spot the core advantages and disadvantages of each program.
1. Pixlr
Pixlr is certainly one of the best online Photoshop alternatives. It is free and fast enough to satisfy the user’s needs and expectations in the process of creating images from scratch. It is a genuine GIMP (General Image Manipulation Program) that supports PXD, JPG, TIFF, BMP and PNG formats.
When users create a new image, they can’t set a resolution, but can choose the image size according to their needs. Pixlr’s interface is simple and easy to follow, with floating windows on the left side, a toolbox on the right side and menus at the top. The toolbox offers tools that are common to almost any desktop graphics program. Pixlr includes filters, various options for image adjustment and the ability to work with layers.
The great thing about Pixlr is that there is also a mobile version and the interface can be displayed in multiple languages. However, this online Photoshop alternative has its shortcomings. While it is a valuable tool for creating web images or banners, it is certainly not the best choice when it comes to print. If you do just online marketing, this might not bother you as much, but most marketers utilize both online and offline (print) marketing.
2. Pixelmator
According to a large number of photo editor users, Pixelmator is one of the top three online Photoshop alternatives. This is a photo editor that offers an outstanding heal tool that can fill in detail and handles large photos with ease. It is an excellent editor for quick improvements to your favorite photos.
Pixelmator offers almost all the photographic tools and processes made popular by Photoshop. Its regular interface is black, but it allows users to change it into grey or white, according to their preferences. Most of the tools will be familiar to those who have used a photo editor before. Overall, this editor offers a lot of photo editing options at a fair price.
3. Polarr
Polarr is another valuable online Photoshop alternative which offers various opportunities to its users. It is widely known for the huge color selection and control over photo effects. It allows users to create filters, providing advanced image clarity. Lens physics and artificial distortions are certainly some of the more popular editing options available with Polarr.
From a large selection of colors and high-precision light, to the ability to create your own filters, Polarr makes for a great photo editor. It is used by students, bloggers, and photo professionals worldwide. It is one of the smallest full-featured photo editing apps. This online Photoshop alternative is designed for mouse-and-touch control, offering advanced HSL and RGB Curve tools. It enables persistent edit history tracking, keyboard shortcuts and a watermark tool.
4. PicMonkey
PicMonkey is an online photo editor that allows you to edit your images without downloading any software. It offers powerful, yet simple editing tools and options which can help you create impressive photos.
PicMonkey focuses on three major functions: edit/touch up, design and collage. The edit/touch up function lets you manipulate your images. It allows users to re-size photos, change colors, crop, add text, and much more. The photo editor has a special set of tools for making simple changes to images of people. Such changes include whitening teeth, removing skin blemishes and covering discoloration or dark spots.
The Design function enables the opportunity to start from scratch, with a blank canvas. With this function, users can create their own images, instead of editing already existing ones. The Collage function opens up the opportunity to combine and edit a few photo images, resulting in a single, large photo. Users can choose the layout and start manipulating their photos within seconds.
With all of its features, PicMonkey is definitely a great and useful online Photoshop alternative. However, it has its flaws, too. One of the biggest flaws is certainly the lack of various options for text. Unless your background is a solid color, you won’t be impressed by the very limited number of text options at disposal.
Notice the emphasis on “photos” and not graphics
You might have noticed that all of the alternatives up until this point put an emphasis on photo-editing. They are all good photo-editing alternatives to Photoshop, but not all around Photoshop replacements. If you’re a marketer you might find these photos editors useful when you want to improve the photos you use in your marketing. However, if you’re specifically looking to create graphics, you really need to look at the revolution being created by youzign.
5. Youzign
If you are looking for the best online Photoshop alternative, consider something a bit more revolutionary. How about an online graphics creator that guides you every step in the way to creating professional graphics, without having to be a designer. If you like having things easy, Youzign is the right choice for you. It is a web-based platform that offers premade templates (examples) for countless scenarios. These templates are starting points that include the right settings for video graphics, social media covers and more. Youzign can help you create various kinds of graphics with custom sizes, and this includes headers, flyers, banners, infographics, guarantee boxes, memes, sales pages, etc. With Youzign, there are no limits – if you can imagine it, you can create it!
The thing that makes Youzign so special is the variety of great features that photo editing software apps just don’t have. These features include Pixabay/Iconfinder integration, premade one-click preview templates, optimization for different social media uses and so much more.
Youzign the perfect solution for graphic design beginners and pros alike because it allows you to create high quality graphics with ease. Users can create an outstanding graphic in a very short time period, and this includes promotional material, eye-catchy social media covers, business cards, and a lot more.
Due to its integrated templates and image/icon library, Youzign will save you a lot of time and energy. 🙂 Feel free to visit the site here.
So here goes our ultimate online Photoshop alternative list. Now, it’s time to share your thoughts on the comments below. We’d love to know your personal pick of graphic tool/s you use for your business.
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