Best of Linux

Best Photoshop Alternatives You Can Run on Linux

Adobe Photoshop is a widely used photo editing software as it offers various features to the users. If you learn to use photoshop, then you can create incredible creations with multiple tools.

Many people use this tool for photo editing, daily designing, digital drawings, etc. However, if you are a Linux enthusiast and don’t want to go for Windows or Mac, you may face disappointment because Adobe Photoshop doesn’t have so many Linux options. This article will give you the complete details on the best photoshop alternatives you can run on Linux for photo editing and designing job.

Best Photoshop Alternatives You Can Run on Linux

Darktable

Darktable is an open-sourced tool and one of the best photoshop alternatives you can run on Linux. This tool offers an excellent option for editing images professionally and works on negative and raw photos. Darktable is compatible with various platforms such as macOS, Windows, and Linux. This tool offers multiple features such as zero-latency, color management, different image formats, etc. This photo editing tool is free, and it is released under the administration of GNU General Public License.

Features of Darktable

  • Darktable offers flexibility to edit raw photos.
  • This software supports various image formats.
  • Darktable has a cross-platform support
  • It has GPU accelerated image processing.

DigiKam

DigiKam is an advanced photoshop alternative developed for KDE but works well on other desktop environments. This tool consists of multiple features, like EXIF editing, built-in lightroom, picture editing, etc. You can easily import and organize images by using DigiKam. There is a fantastic feature called the image enhancement option by KIPI (KDE Image Plugins Interface). DigiKam is one of the best photoshop alternatives in terms of advanced operations and working.

Features of DigiKam

  • This photoshop alternative has multiple features to organize huge libraries of images. It helps users manage albums, metadata, sub-albums, tags, and comments on your pictures.
  • DigiKam supports various image formats like JPEG, PSD, TIFF, PNG, and more.
  • Users can edit various editing operations and upload their images to many web platforms (Facebook, Flickr, etc.)
  • DigiKam has a GPS editor, IPTC metadata viewer, and editor.
  • You can easily import and export your images from one folder to another.

Krita

Krita is a free and open-sourced tool with cross-platform compatibility of multiple platforms such as Linux, Windows, and macOS. This Linux photoshop alternative was primarily designed for animations and digital paintings.

It is a unique and affordable tool that offers various features such as color management, minimalist UI, advanced brush system, HQ OpenGL acceleration canvas, vector art option, layers and mask options, customizable profile switching, and many more. This photoshop alternative offers a clean and incredible interface. Krita can be used to create concept art, illustrations, textures, and comics.

Features of Krita

  • This tool consists of brush engines and a color palette.
  • Krita has layer management and PSD support.
  • It offers drawing assistant and mirroring tools.
  • There are good HDR support and training resources.
  • Krita supports different image formats and settings.
  • It has an OpenGL enhancement and a wide range of filters and effects.

GIMP

This Linux photoshop alternative is a free and open-source tool that provides various options for image management, editing, different image format support, draw on images, and so on. GIMP offers flexibility as an image editor because it is compatible with various platforms such as Linux, Windows, and other operating systems.

GNU Image Manipulation Program or GIMP was released under the GPLv3+ license. This tool supports multiple programming languages like Perl, Python, C, Scheme, and C++ for programmers working on scripted image manipulation. GIMP has multiple features for illustrators, graphic designers, scientists, and photographers.

Features of GIMP

  • The interface of this tool is completely customizable.
  • GIMP has multiple options for image editing, and it supports various formats of image.
  • Users can perform digital retouching and graphic design elements.
  • GIMP has hardware support.

Pinta

This Linux photoshop alternative is an open-sourced tool with almost similar features as Windows paint, so it is also known as the Linux version of windows paint. Pinta consists of more features than MS paint. However, it is easier and offers lesser features compared to other open-source photo editing tools. Pinta consists of a flexible toolbar arrangement as well as a good layering system.

Features of Pinta

  • Pint offers multiple platform support in various operating systems such as Windows, macOS, and Linux.
  • Users can do unlimited undo history and Add-ins capability.
  • Users can customize this tool according to their requirements.
  • This tool supports 35 languages and has a user-friendly UI.

RawTherapee

This Linux photoshop alternative is an open-sourced tool to optimize your digital images easily. RawTherapee has different image editing options focused on improving the user’s workflow by facilitating many pictures. This tool has multiple features and provides quality images from the Raw files. You can also modify and save the raw images in the compressed format.

Features of RawTherapee

  • RawTherapee offers an exemplary user interface.
  • It supports various raw image formats such as Pentax Pixel Shift, Canon Dual-Pixel, etc.
  • RawTherapee has multiple adjustment tools and processing tools.
  • You can select different output formats such as TIFF, JPEG, PNG, etc.

Photopea

Photopea is an advanced image editor that can be used to create and edit images quickly. You can use this photoshop alternative in the browser, and all of the edited images can be stored on your computer/laptop. Photopea supports different formats like RAW, PSD, XCF, SKETCH, PSD, and XD. You will see various ads while working on it, but you can hide them by paying $20 for three months.

Features of Photopea

  • It supports various file formats.
  • Photopea consists of advanced layering.
  • There are different filters available for photo editing.
  • It is an online tool that runs in a browser.

Conclusion

We have covered the entire information about the best photoshop alternatives you can run on Linux. Photoshop is a well known and widely used photo editing tool that offers various features to perform professional editing. However, This too doesn’t provide so many options for Linux users. This article helps you complete these photoshop alternatives to choose the best one for your system.

About the author

Simran Kaur

Simran Kaur

Simran works as a technical writer. The graduate in MS Computer Science from the well known CS hub, aka Silicon Valley, is also an editor of the website. She enjoys writing about any tech topic, including programming, algorithms, cloud, data science, and AI. Travelling, sketching, and gardening are the hobbies that interest her.