Comparison of raster graphics editors
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Name | Current Version | Platforms | Licensing | Price (US$) | Features | Notes | Icon |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ability Photopaint | 4 | File:Windows icon.png | Proprietary | $29.99 | |||
ACD Canvas | X | File:Windows icon.png![]() |
Proprietary | $349.99 | Also supports vector graphics, GIS and other scientific imaging | ||
Adobe Photoshop | CS2 / 9 | File:Windows icon.png![]() |
Proprietary | $599.00 | File:Adobe Photoshop CS2.png | ||
Alias SketchBook Pro | 2 | File:Windows icon.png![]() |
Proprietary | $179.00 | |||
ArtRage | 2.0 | File:Windows icon.png![]() |
Proprietary | $19.95 (Full Edition)/$0 (Free Edition) | Realistic paint simulation | ||
Brush Strokes Image Editor | 2 | File:Windows icon.png | Proprietary | $20.00 for full version/$0 for version 1 | GIF animations | ||
CinePaint | 0.18 | File:Windows icon.png![]() ![]() |
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$0 | Layers, transparency, 8/16/32-bit, HDR creation, color management | Requires X11 on Mac OS X | |
CodedColor PhotoStudio Pro | 4.3 | File:Windows icon.png | Proprietary | $39.00 | |||
Corel Painter | 9.1 | ![]() |
Proprietary | Real media simulation. | |||
Corel Paint Shop Pro | 10 | File:Windows icon.png | Proprietary | $99.00 | |||
Corel Photo-Paint | 9 | File:Windows icon.png | Proprietary | $289.00 / $299.00 | Part of the Corel DRAW suite (not sold separately). | File:Cpp.jpg | |
Deluxe Paint | 5 | AmigaOS, Atari ST, MS-DOS | Proprietary | Palette-based modes, color ranges, advanced brush capture, manipulation features, different painting methods, cel-based animator | Historical | ||
GIMP | 2.2.10 | File:Windows icon.png![]() ![]() |
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$0 | Layers, transparency, scripting | ||
GIMPshop | 2.2.8 | File:Windows icon.png![]() ![]() |
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$0 | Layers, transparency, scripting | GIMP made to look like Adobe Photoshop | |
GraphicConverter | 5.7.3 | ![]() |
Proprietary | $30.00 | |||
Kolourpaint | 1.4.1 | ![]() |
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Krita | 1.4.2 | ![]() |
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$0 | Is part of KOffice | ||
MacPaint | 2.0 | ![]() |
Historical | ||||
Macromedia Fireworks | 8 | File:Windows icon.png![]() |
Proprietary | $299 | Import of QuickTime Image, MacPaint, SGI, and JPEG 2000 file formats | Included in Studio 8 | |
Microsoft Office Picture Manager | 2003 | File:Windows icon.png![]() |
Proprietary | Included in Microsoft Office | |||
Microsoft Paint | File:Windows icon.png | Proprietary | $0 | Included with Microsoft Windows | |||
Microsoft Photo Editor | File:Windows icon.png | Proprietary | Provided with some versions of Microsoft Office | ||||
mtPaint | 2.10 | ![]() |
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$0 | |||
OpenCanvas | 4 | Proprietary | $54.55 / $72.73 | ||||
QFX | 8 | File:Windows icon.png | Proprietary | $399.00 | |||
Paint.NET | 2.6 | File:Windows icon.png | File:Opensource keyhole.png | $0 | Unofficial successor of Microsoft Paint | ||
Picasa | 2.1 | File:Windows icon.png | Proprietary | $0 | |||
PicMaster | 3.95 | File:Windows icon.png | Proprietary | $29.90 | Image Editing, 300 Filters, DigiCam, WebCam, Slide Show, Morphing, 3D Images | ||
Pixel image editor | 1.0 | File:Windows icon.png![]() ![]() ![]() |
Proprietary | $32 | Layers, layer effects, adjustment layers, CMYK, HDR, color management | ||
Pixia | 3.3 | File:Windows icon.png | ![]() |
$0 | |||
Tux Paint | 0.9.15 | File:Windows icon.png![]() ![]() ![]() |
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$0 | Designed for young children. Includes lock-down and simplification options. | ||
Ulead PhotoImpact | 11 | File:Windows icon.png | Proprietary | $89.99 | Pro version available from Nova Development. | ||
Ultimate Paint | 2.88 | File:Windows icon.png | Proprietary | $34.95 | Modeled after Deluxe Paint | ||
WinImages | 7.5 | File:Windows icon.png | Proprietary | $99.95 | supports animation, raytracing, heightfield, texture generator, |
Additional Information
All prices are in USD for full versions.
Key to icons
Platforms, etc.
File:BSD-daemon-rendering.png BSD
File:GnomeFoot.png GNOME
KDE
Linux
Mac OS X
File:Windows icon.png Microsoft Windows
File:XOrg swoosh.jpg X Window System
Licensing
File:Opensource keyhole.png Open source software
Free software
General information
Basic general information about the editors: creator/company, license/price etc.
Operating system support
The operating systems on which the editors can run natively (without emulation), meaning which operating systems have which editors specifically coded for them (not, for example, Adobe Photoshop for Windows running on Linux with Wine).
Windows | Mac OS X | GNU/Linux | BSD | Unix | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ability Photopaint | Yes | No | No | No | No |
ACD Canvas | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
Adobe Photoshop | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
Alias SketchBook Pro | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
ArtRage | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
Brush Strokes Image Editor | Yes | No | No | No | No |
CinePaint | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
CodedColor PhotoStudio Pro | Yes | No | No | No | No |
Corel Painter | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
Corel Paint Shop Pro | Yes | No | No | No | No |
Corel Photo-Paint | Yes | No | No | No | No |
Deluxe Paint 1 | No | No | No | No | No |
GIMP 2 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
GIMPshop | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
GraphicConverter | No | Yes | No | No | No |
Kolourpaint | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Krita | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
MacPaint | No | Yes | No | No | No |
Macromedia Fireworks | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
Microsoft Office Picture Manager | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
Microsoft Paint | Yes | No | No | No | No |
Microsoft Photo Editor | Yes | No | No | No | No |
mtPaint | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
OpenCanvas | Yes | No | No | No | No |
QFX | Yes | No | No | No | No |
Paint.NET | Yes | No | No | No | No |
Picasa | Yes | No | No | No | No |
PicMaster | Yes | No | No | No | No |
Pixel image editor 3 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Pixia | Yes | No | No | No | No |
Tux Paint | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Ulead PhotoImpact | Yes | No | No | No | No |
Ultimate Paint | Yes | No | No | No | No |
WinImages | Yes | No | No | No | No |
Windows | Mac OS X | Linux | BSD | Unix |
Note 1: Deluxe Paint only runs on AmigaOS, Atari ST and MS-DOS.
Note 2: GIMP also supports SkyOS.
Note 3: Pixel image editor also supports OS/2, MorphOS, BeOS, and QNX.
Bitmap file formats: Import
BMP | GIF | JPEG | JPEG 2000 | MNG | PNG | TIFF | PSD | PSP | XCF | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ability Photopaint | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
ACD Canvas | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
Adobe Photoshop | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes 4 | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
Alias SketchBook Pro | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
ArtRage | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Brush Strokes Image Editor | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | No |
CinePaint | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | ? | ? | Yes |
CodedColor PhotoStudio Pro | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Corel Painter | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Corel Paint Shop Pro | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Corel Photo-Paint | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Deluxe Paint 1 | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
GIMP 2 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
GIMPshop | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
GraphicConverter | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Kolourpaint | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Krita | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
MacPaint | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Macromedia Fireworks | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Microsoft Office Picture Manager | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Microsoft Paint | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Microsoft Photo Editor | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
mtPaint | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
OpenCanvas | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
QFX | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Paint.NET | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Picasa | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
PicMaster | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Pixel image editor 3 | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Pixia | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Tux Paint | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Ulead PhotoImpact | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Ultimate Paint | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
WinImages | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
BMP | GIF | JPEG | JPEG 2000 | MNG | PNG | TIFF | PSD | PSP | XCF |
Note 4: Requires an optional plug-in from the installation disc.
Bitmap file formats: Export
BMP | GIF | JPEG | JPEG 2000 | MNG | PNG | TIFF | PSD | PSP | XCF | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ability Photopaint | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
ACD Canvas | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
Adobe Photoshop | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes 4 | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
Alias SketchBook Pro | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
ArtRage | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Brush Strokes Image Editor | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | No | No | No |
CinePaint | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | ? | ? | Yes |
CodedColor PhotoStudio Pro | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Corel Painter | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Corel Paint Shop Pro | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Corel Photo-Paint | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Deluxe Paint 1 | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
GIMP 2 | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
GIMPshop | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
GraphicConverter | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Kolourpaint | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Krita | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
MacPaint | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Macromedia Fireworks | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Microsoft Office Picture Manager | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Microsoft Paint | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Microsoft Photo Editor | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
mtPaint | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
OpenCanvas | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
QFX | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Paint.NET | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Picasa | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
PicMaster | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Pixel image editor 3 | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Pixia | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Tux Paint | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Ulead PhotoImpact | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Ultimate Paint | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
WinImages | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
BMP | GIF | JPEG | JPEG 2000 | MNG | PNG | TIFF | PSD | PSP | XCF |