GIMP is free so that you could download it, change the source code yourself, and then redistribute it. If you suddenly find yourself in a situation where you suddenly cannot afford to pay for Photoshop, you will no longer be able to use it, and if you have lots of files specific to the software, you might not be able to access them until you resume your subscription. It’s open-source and developed by coders who simply enjoy making free software.Īdobe’s pricing model has changed in the past and customers know that they might be subjected to price rise at any point, potentially without warning. You can also be confident that GIMP will never suddenly decide to start charging you money. It doesn’t match Photoshop’s seemingly infinite tools and power, but it’s sufficient for anyone who needs to do some basic photo manipulation, such as retouching skin, resizing, or batch processing images. For anyone who’s not a hardened enthusiast or a professional, Photoshop simply isn’t an option. While Photoshop was never cheap, and although $10 a month is the cheapest option from across Adobe’s range of software, many simply cannot justify the price of the subscription, especially if they plan to use the software infrequently. Subscribing to an individual piece of software from Adobe costs a month, although, a little strangely, you can get Lightroom and Photoshop bundled together as part of Adobe’s “Creative Cloud Photography Plan” for a month. While GIMP and its tools and plug ins are created and supported by a global team of developers who do it simply for the love, Photoshop is owned by the corporate behemoth that is Adobe.Īs a result, GIMP is free to everyone and always has been, while Photoshop will cost you a monthly or yearly fee, and it’s definitely not cheap, especially for those from countries with poorer economies.Īdobe moved all of its extensive range of software over to a subscription model in 2013, making it impossible to buy a standalone copy of Photoshop for your computer. When it comes to cost, there’s no question about the winner.

Psd to gimp