Best Photo Editing Software 2023

Best Photo Editing Software Overview

The best photo editing software or app can turn an ordinary photo into something splendid, making the image look spectacular. A photo editing software allows you to make subtle modifications to color or saturation to the app of filters. Also, you can remove blemishes. 

However, there’s a wide range of photo editing software on the web these days. Thus,  to save you from trying them all, this article has rounded up all of today’s best photo editing tools into one useful guide. Nonetheless, some of the photo editing software below works only on desktop, while other software works on browsers, on Android tablets, or smartphones.

To lessen professional workloads or to give rise to hobbyist photography, our top choices for the best photo editing software are worth considering. 

Best Photo Editing Software 

Adobe Photoshop

Adobe Photoshop is one of the best photo editing & manipulation programs available on the market. It is advanced photo editing software and provides an extensive variety of options & tools for photo editing or image creation. You can use Adobe Photoshop for resizing, color adjustment, layering, masking, and lots more. 

Features

• The selection & masking tools of Adobe Photoshop are the best in the business
• Amazing retouching & cloning capabilities
• It is extremely fast even with huge image sizes 
• Adobe Photoshop is available with support for 360 editing tools & HEIF files
• It supports all of the main file formats, such as GIF,  PNG, JPG, and raw files
• The photo editing software uses adjustment layers for safe editing to improve the appearance of the image

Pricing

PicMonkey

With the design & photo editing tools of PicMonkey, you can create captivating photos to advertise your brand. You may start with PicMonkey’s artist-made templates for social posts, logos, banners, ads, and many more. You may DIY (do-it-yourself) it with an empty canvas or a new page and put design building blocks, such as stock photos & videos, customizable graphics, and more. The collage & photo editing features of PicMonkey go way over the standard fare. Each effect & collage layout provides numerous options for acquiring your own distinctive look.

PicMonkey functions on a web browser of a desktop computer and as an Android or iOS app for mobile devices. All the images get automatically saved to PicMonkey’s cloud storage so users can start generating an image on one device and completing it on another. 

Features:

• It comes with great templates
• You can have advanced touch-up tools for amazing images
• Features & tools are added via constant updates
• Users can edit photos easily via the platform’s feature-rich mobile phone application for Android & iPhone
• State-of-the-art graphic design tools to generate photos for online publishing
• Users don’t have to be editing experts to utilize this photo editing software

Pricing:

PicMonkey provides a 7-day free trial that allows you to test out the photo editing software before you upgrade to a premium version. Nonetheless, the Basic plan costs $7.99 a month; its Pro plan costs $12.99 a month, and the Team plan costs $33.99.

Canva

Canva is a great online graphic design platform. Users can use Canva from basic photo editing to designing social media photos to documents. Canva comes with so many features. This platform comes at a price of $13 a month. However, it also comes with a free plan, and its customer support is great. Canva provides an amazing design experience for marketers as well as entrepreneurs.

Features

• It is extremely easy to use
• Lots of great built-in templates
• You can generate print-ready graphics
• Freemium subscription model
• It comes with a stock photo image bank
• The platform offers stunning designed templates to enhance your workflow
• Canva lets you add text to images
• It allows you to publish, download, or share your HD images
• Users can add the graph in presentations, infographics, and more
• This photo editing platform provides a speech bubble
• Users can enhance their photos with lots of effects

Pricing

Canva functions on a freemium version. Nonetheless, the Pro version is available at $12.95 a month. Additionally, it provides a quote-based variant for teams with over 20 members.

Fotor

Fotor is a cross-platform photo editing tool that helps you create eye-catching graphic design easily. It has more than 300 million users around the world. Google Play awarded this photo editing software the Top Developer designation. Nonetheless, the BBC dubbed it Photoshop Lite.

Features

• The platform’s stunning filters, such as theatre, portrait, sunset, & landscape help enhance the quality of the images
• It allows users to add borders or frames and apply great effects to enhance the image quality
• This photo editing platform comes with a smart photo collage tool to generate intuitive collages in an extremely less amount of time
• The photo editing platform supports well-known RAW formats and also provides a tilt-shift algorithm
• Its free version will not bug users with ads

Pricing

The photo editing software’s pricing starts at $8.99 a month. However, it has a free version and provides a free trial.

DesignWizard

Design Wizard is an impressive online graphic editing platform that allows you to easily create, download, or share photos in minutes. The features of Design Wizard are free, allowing users to access a library of more than 1 million copyright-free photos as well as 15,000 templates. Thus, you can create, download, or share customized graphic designs for business or social media.

Features

• Its free features allow users to resize their designs 
• Users can upload their photos, logos, or fonts, and generate custom color palettes
• Users can share visual content immediately, easily on social media
• It has marketing templates, such as Facebook Ads templates, loyalty cards, sale posters, and lots more
• A straightforward photo editor where users can add text, add logos, resize images, and many more

Pricing 

• Starting Price: $9.99 a month
• $7.42 a month if paid yearly
• Free Version & Free Trial available

Capture One

Capture One is a robust, professional photo editing software. It offers high-quality RAW processing as well as file organization. Capture One is a stable, long-running program. 

Features:

• It has masking capabilities that eliminate the need of utilizing Photoshop
• Capture One’s performance is faster even with enormous images
• This photo editing software comes with an advanced Color Editing feature that provides greater flexibility to edit colors as well as white balance
• Users can customize the software’s interface as per their preference
• It lets users make several edits on each layer 

Pricing 

Capture One’s monthly subscription packages start at $20 a month. However, you can also purchase Capture One outright by spending $299, including more than 500 camera support. 

On1 Photo RAW

ON1 Photo RAW is among the best photo editing tools. It combines the features of other photo editing software. This photo editing software comes with quite robust tools. It allows you to do color correction, do photo retouching, as well as correct image defects. ON1 Photo RAW’s interface is simple and you can understand it easily.

Key Features 

• Professional-Level Photo Editing
• Powerful File Management
• The Text Tool
• 23 Different Effects
• Layer Functionality
• Resize
• High-Quality Presets
• Portrait AI
• HDR, Panorama Stitching, & Focus Stacking
• Spot Healing Brush
• Advanced Masking Options

Pricing

For new On1 Photo RAW customers, it costs $79.99. However, for people who have utilized any On1 Photo RAW  product before, it will only cost $63.99. Additionally, you may try its 30-day free trial version.

Corel PaintShop Pro

Originally, Corel PaintShop Pro rolled out in 1990 and is still the photo editor option for several digital artists. It is available with a complimentary RAW processor as well as an organizer with a fast photo browser.

Features

• It has Photoshop-like features 
• Automatic noise removal
• Extensive help & tutorials
• Robust effects & editing tools
• Great assortment of vector drawing tools

Pricing

It provides two premium versions. The Pro 2018 version costs $63.99 and The PaintShop Pro Ultimate is available for $79.99. Nonetheless, it provides a 30-day money-back guarantee.

ACDSee Photo Studio Ultimate

ACDSee Photo Studio Ultimate is a great photo editor that can be used on Windows only. However, it is an all-in-one image cataloging, editing solution, & Raw processing designed to generate a seamless workflow within one software. It has the ability to perform all editing jobs.

Features

• It comes with a facial recognition capability that aids in better image management
• Users can use the Black and White tool of the software in develop & edit modes
• Holds powerful LUTs presets for various color looks
• You don’t need to import the files – you can edit source files directly
• It distorts objects in the photo by means of its Liquify tool without damaging its quality

Pricing

You can purchase ACDSee Photo Studio Ultimate’s lifetime license for only $224.98. Also, it offers 1 year of technical support & free updates along with the subscription plan.

Adobe Lightroom

Adobe Lightroom can easily function on Android as well as iOS platforms. It is available for free. This photo editing software is popular as an advanced mobile photo editor that provides all unique features, such as color, exposure, gradient, white balance, and clarity settings.

Features:

• It comes with robust adjustments & corrections
• Support share images to social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram,  & more
• One-tap presets for quick editing
• You can save photos on Adobe Creative Cloud to access them on other Android or iOS devices via the cloud.

Pricing

The photo editing tool provides seamless editing capabilities on the web, desktop, and mobile devices via 1 subscription plan. However, the Basic plan’s annual subscription costs $119.88 and ranges up to $240 – with up to 1 TB of Cloud storage.

Skylum Aurora HDR

Aurora HDR is a highly specialized editing tool that lets you create top-quality HDR (High Dynamic Range) images. It is developed by Skylum – who masterminds Luminar 4 photo-editing tool and 6 other photo processing applications. Skylum collaborated with Trey Ratcliff (a popular HDR photographer) to combine its program-building knowledge with his expertise in High Dynamic Range. Nonetheless, it turns out to be a winning fusion.

Features

• Awesome HDR (High Dynamic Range) photos
• It comes with an intuitive interface
• Smart Artificial intelligence (AI) features
• Easy to use for newbies & pros
• Amazing additional photo editing features

Pricing

Aurora HDR costs around $99. It offers a 60-day money-back guarantee.

Skylum Luminar

Skylum Luminar is a photo editing software that provides effective automatic improvement and several unique filters as well as adjustment tools. However, this photo editing software still lacks some capabilities that competitors have, such as focus effects & import options.

Features

• Great automatic image fixes
• Tons of filters
• Pleasing interface
• Adjustment layers & masks
• Local adjustments with gradients & brush 
• Fast editing controls with a lesser lag time
• Offers 24/7 Technical Support

Price

The Skylum Luminar photo editing software costs $69.00

Stencil

Stencil is an easy-to-use image editing tool for social media marketers, business owners, as well as bloggers. This photo editing software helps create impressive images utilizing premium templates. Also, it allows users to create compelling ads, social media graphics, stunning blog headers, and many more.

Features:

• It provides more than 5,000,000 royalty-free photos
• This photo editing software lets users upload & store every logo variation
• The image editing tool is equipped with optimal sizes for social ads, media posts, blog posts, and lots more
• Users can upload their own fonts
• It provides easy-to-use addons for Chrome, Safari, & Firefox,

Pricing:

Stencil is available with 3 subscription plans:

• Free: $0 a month 
• Pro Plan: $9 a month (when you pay yearly)
• Unlimited Plan: $12 a month (when you pay yearly)

Alien Skin Exposure X4

Alien Skin Exposure X4 is a great prosumer application aimed at photo enthusiasts who want to level up their photographic output. The photo editing software, which functions as a standalone or plug into the Photoshop app, is particularised in raw photos. Also, it works with tons of formats, such as JPEG, PSD, TIFF, and more. The Alien Skin Exposure X4 provides enhanced shadow as well as highlight recovery. Nonetheless, its customizable light effects add color to compositions. The photo editing software’s new transform tools allow you to correct keystone tilt as well as skewed perspectives.

Features

• It comes with a user-friendly interface
• This photo editing software has several one-click presets & filters
• Provides a well-organized printing option
• Facilitates faster image transfer
• This photo editing software offers Smart Collection features 
• Amazing light effects for great exposure

Pricing

You can purchase Alien Skin Exposure X4 for $119. However, the entire Bundle costs about $149.

Gimp

GIMP is one of the most powerful free photo editing tools that can totally ditch Photoshop or Pixlr. One of GIMP’s main advantages is that it supports RAW files. Nonetheless, it is an open-source photo editing tool. Users can change the program themselves, fix various errors & bugs, as well as add their own tools.

GIMP is available with customizable brushes, layers, automatic actions, & filters to enhance the quality of the image faster. This photo editor lets you launch PSD files and improve or edit them. However, users will have access to tons of training videos, so they can easily become an expert on this photo editor.

Features

• It is an open-source software
• Many graphic designers love it
• This photo editing software is full of amazing features, such as tons of brushes
• It comes with an extremely friendly interface
• You can customize it easily
• This photo editing software offers the ability to generate and add filters, allowing users to create almost anything

Price

It is entirely free of cost.

Snappa

Snappa is an extremely useful graphics editor. You can use it easily and it has lots of features that can help generate or edit professional advertisements for the business. Nonetheless, Snappa functions very fast.

Features

• Edit photos using its robust drag & drop editor
• You can start editing quickly on photo dimension templates intended for blog, social media, as well as other online postings
• Custom font uploads
• Leverage tons of free stock images to generate stunning designs
• Crisp & fast editing
• Share images directly on social media

Pricing

You can purchase Snappa’s one-user monthly subscription for only $10. However, a subscription for teams costs $20 – this allows five users.

Adobe Photoshop Elements

Adobe Photoshop Elements is Adobe Photoshop’s cut-down version. To a newbie photographer, Photoshop’s full version could be daunting as it is loaded with potentially unneeded features. However, the Adobe Photoshop Elements ditches those superfluous features. It focuses on overcoming common photo issues, like deleting tints or straightening tilted horizons.  As this photo editing software provides only the important photo-fixing features, it is extremely easy to master them. 

Features

• It has lots of powerful image-manipulation tools
• Powerful search
• This photo editor comes with excellent image output options
• Robust face & geo-tagging abilities
• It has helpful guidance for advanced techniques

Price

The Adobe Photoshop Elements is available for only $99.99.

Pixlr Editor

Pixlr is a great choice for photo editors who want mobility without compromising the powerful tools. With Pixlr, users can use advanced editing tools no matter which device they use. Also, this photo editing software assures that images are stored privately. Users may launch their files straight from their PCs, phones, or tablets and the photo editing tool does not keep perpetual duplicates of the photos.

Features

• You can use this photo editing app from wherever you are and any device
• This photo editing software supports masks & layers
• It lets users choose from more than 2 million effects
• Users can download Pixlr’s desktop version or mobile application
• This photo editing software allows you to customize the user interface

Price

Pixlr provides a free version. Nonetheless, the photo editor is cluttered with advertisements – an essential distraction for all photo editing professionals. However, it is now offering considerable discounts on its pro package. The monthly subscription costs $5 and quarterly for only $12.

Photoshop Express

Photo Express is one of the best photo editing applications because of its classic user interface and state-of-the-art editing tools. Nonetheless, there are tons of basic correction features along with awesome border effects, photoshop touch ability, excellent styles, as well as localized adjustments.

Features:

• You can create a studio-caliber photo collage in just a couple of taps
• Users can upload images from device, Dropbox, Adobe CC, Google Photos, or even Facebook 
• It comes with one-touch adjustment for exposure, white balance, & contrast
• This photo editing software can color correct and resize images

Price: $19.99

PortraitPro

PortraitPro is among the top photo editing tools available today. This photo editing software is designed specifically for professional photo editors who work exclusively in portrait photography. However, the photo editing software tool is powered with all the features you would need to generate stunning portraits.

Price

Right now, PortraitPro is providing a 50% discount that brings the price down to $59. Nonetheless, the photo editing software initially offers a free trial.

PicsArt Photo Studio

PicsArt is an all-around photo editing tool for iPhone. Users can use the photo editing software’s amazing fonts, stickers, or text to generate impressive photo collages. Additionally, the photo editing software even allows users to edit videos.

Features:

• You can remix images into memes & collages
• Provides lots of preset filters
• Versatile suite with drawing tools, collage maker, photo & video editor

Price: free

Inkscape

Even though Inkscape is intended for vector graphics, the photo editor does come with some tools & features that allow users to make common image edits. The tools & features include background removal, cropping, sharpening, as well as color adjustments. It is amazing at detailed drawing – users can create arcs, circles, ellipses, 3D boxes, spirals, stars, polygons, line-specific editing, and many more. However, it might be confusing for newbies. Thus complete novices might want to kick off with other photo editing software on this list. 

Price: Inkscape is completely free of cost

FilterStorm Neue

This amazing photo editing software allows you to create state-of-the-art settings for the entire editing task. Nonetheless, some of the best interactive features are curve, tone, & level adjustments and channel mixers. Users can apply watermarking, sharpening, clarity effects, and noise reduction on this photo editing tool.

Features:

• Fast & extremely easy to use
• Color blending & masking
• It comes with FTP & IPTC metadata 

Price: $3.99

Enlight

The Enlight photo editing software is perfect for you if you want localized image editing, masking features, and additional controls on geometric adjustments. As Enlight is one of the best photo editing tools, it comes with a vast range of light leaks, preset styles, borders, collage layouts, as well as textures, frames.

Features:

• It comes with precise control over tone, details, & color
• The masking tool lets users blend effects seamlessly
• Users can draw, doodle, or write directly on their image
• Users can add & customize borders, text, & frames
• You can instantly make a photo montage 

Price

You can choose to purchase for full access to all the photo editing tool’s new features for only $3.99 a month, or you may pay $19.99 a year

Google Snapseed (Android/iOS)

If you want the best photo editing tool on Android & iOS, Google Snapseed is your best choice. It usually possesses a wide range of editing tools that can help in contrast adjustments, color, brightness, as well as follow different geometric correction features. The Google Snapseed has advanced filters allowing easy corrections for lens blur, glamour glow, HDR scape, grunge, frames, & Noir.

Features:

• Powerful photo editing software
• An easy-to-use photo editing tool
• Flexible color, sharpening, exposure, adjustments
• It comes with editing features such as crop, straightens, rotates, etc.
• Healing, Structure, Brush, Perspective, HDR

Price: free

Facetune

Facetune is more like a selfie and portrait photo editor. This photo editing software is designed for Android device & iPhone users. The photo editing software’s interactive editing features have gained popularity on Flickr, Instagram, and lots more. With this photo editing software, you do not need to download & install Photoshop to enhance your selfies. Nonetheless, Facetune is extremely easy to use.

Features:

• Robust selfie & portrait photo editor
• Face reshape
• Deletes blemishes & dark circles, it brightens teeth and adds natural makeup
• You can blur the background or add textures

Price: It is free

Paint Net

PaintNET is a free graphics editing tool for Windows. This image editing software is a semi-professional photo editor. It lets users perform basic photo retouching, color correction, and create banners & logos. Additionally, it has tons of tools for painting.

Nonetheless, users can utilize layers and a huge selection of tools. The functions of these features are not as comprehensive. This photo editing software might remind you of Photoshop’s earlier versions.

Features

• Easy and convenient to use
• Well-organized user interface
• Tons of handy functions and effects

Price: Free

iPiccy

iPiccy is a free and straightforward photo editing tool. It is among the most well-known on the internet. It comes with a basic set of Collage, Designer, & Editor. Despite its slightly outdated & straightforward interface design, this photo editing software is free. The photo editor provides a wide range of editing tools. However, it can function as a watermark remover.

Features

• All tools are free
• Dodge & Burn
• Clone tool
• Tons of tools for color correction

Price: Free

PhotoDirector

PhotoDirector is one of the best photo editing software tools which offer advanced color controls and intuitive layer editing. It also offers world-class stock images and music tracks to make creative GIFs. This photo editing software allows access to stock catalogs of different categories.

Features:

• It allows users to turn their images into digital art
• The photo editor takes the complexity out of compound photo editing
• Users can polish their projects with frame packs
• It helps users to envision their designs with an extensive collection of stock photos
• Limitless access to Getty Images & Shutterstock
• It supports Windows & macOS platforms

Price

The starting price of PhotoDirector is $3.67 a month. With PhotoDirector 365 $54.99-per-year subscription, you get the photo program, frequent updates as well as content packs.

FAQs About Best Photo Editors

Which Photo Editing Tool Is Best for Newbies?

Adobe Lightroom is an ideal photo editing software for newbies. While Adobe Photoshop is excessively advanced for newbies, Adobe Lightroom comes with a simple and user-friendly interface. Some of Adobe Lightroom’s editing features are gradient & brush adjustments, customizable sliders, blurring tools presets, as well as other professional filters. Additionally, you can use Adobe Lightroom on numerous devices. The photo editing software’s face detection feature organizes your images. The huge advantage Lightroom provides for beginners is that it offers a straightforward but capable editor for newbies to master before starting using advanced platforms like Adobe Photoshop.

What Applications Do Photographers Utilize to Edit Images?

Photoshop, is the most typical photo editing software utilized by photographers. However, one app is not enough for professional photo editing. Usually, Photographers utilize workflow software such as Lightroom or PhotoDirector. Some photographers may use the Capture One software for tethered shooting. The Inkscape is another ubiquitous photo editing tool in a pros toolkit.

Conclusion 

In this article, we have provided information on the Best Photo Editing Software. The information above should really help you boost your photo editing skills. 

Nonetheless, if you have any thoughts about the Photo Editing Software, don’t hesitate to let us know in the comments section.