Free & open-source alternatives to paid design, photo, video & PDF software

Independent directory of English free and open-source alternatives to traditional paid design, photo, video, and PDF tools — tested where noted, with migration notes and pricing from official sites.

 

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Design

Design

Free Canva and Figma-style alternatives — Inkscape, Penpot, Affinity, and more.

Read guide →Photo

Photo

Free Lightroom alternatives for RAW and catalogs — darktable, RawTherapee, Affinity.

Read guide →Video

Video

Free After Effects / motion alternatives — Natron, Blender, Resolve Fusion.

Read guide →Editing

Editing

Premiere Pro and CapCut alternatives — DaVinci Resolve, Shotcut, and tested free editors.

Read guide →

Start with a guide

Canva alternatives
Inkscape, Scribus, Penpot, Affinity
Lightroom alternatives
darktable, RawTherapee, Affinity, DxO
After Effects alternatives
Natron, Blender, Fusion, Cavalry
All categories
Design, Photo, Video, PDF, CAD
Guides & blog
Migration notes and tested swaps

Latest guides

After Effects Alternative Free 2026: 4 Best Tools (Tested)

Free After Effects alternative: Natron and Blender rendered on Linux; Cavalry free for individuals and Resolve Fusion docs-only.
•3 min read

After Effects Alternatives 2026: 5 Best Free Tools (Tested)

After Effects alternatives compared: Natron and Blender tested on real renders, plus DaVinci Resolve Fusion, Cavalry and Jitter, with migration notes.
•6 min read

After Effects vs Premiere Pro 2026: Motion vs Timeline

After Effects vs Premiere Pro role split: motion graphics/compositing versus timeline NLE—Natron/Blender tested on AE-related pages; Adobe apps not installed.
•3 min read

Best AI Presentation Maker 2026: 4 Tools Compared

Best AI presentation maker compared: Gamma, Canva, Beautiful.ai, Copilot—free-vs-paid gates, PPTX export, docs + cited reviews (not our hands-on).
•7 min read

Best Free Photo Editor 2026: 3 RAW Editors (Tested)

Best free photo editors by job: darktable and RawTherapee tested on real RAW exports, plus Affinity free for individuals from the vendor site.
•5 min read

Best Free Video Editor 2026: 3 Editors, Exports Tested

Best free video editors by use case: Shotcut and Blender VSE tested with real MP4 exports, plus DaVinci Resolve Free from Blackmagic’s docs.
•6 min read