Adobe Illustrator is a widely famous graphic art software. It is a tool most used by graphic designers and artists to carve out their creativity in a digital form. The user interface of Adobe Illustrator can be complex for new individuals.
Year Founded: 1987
Headquarters: San Jose, California, United States
You are free to use numerous features and filters on Adobe Illustrator. Even for beginners, Illustrator demands a top-notch price. Below are some budget-friendly Adobe Illustrator alternatives you can use to produce designs.
Pros– extremely versatile, endless file exporting options
Cons– takes up a lot of disc space, requires a lot of software training
Best Paid and Free Adobe Illustrator Alternatives:
Inkscape
Year Founded: 2003
Headquarters: Brooklyn, New York
Inkscape is operable on Mac, Windows, and Linux. An editor can create vector images with Scalable Vector Graphics.
SVGs are the most used format in Inkscape. You can input texts and make basic vector shapes in Inkscape.
Patterns, colors, graphics, and gradients are included in the software. An editor can form vector graphics using raster sources. Transformation is a major requirement in graphic design.
Inkscape offers various tools like object creation, object manipulation, operations on the path, file formats, editing of resource description framework, more than sixty interface languages, mathematical diagramming, etc. It’s free-to-use software and a good alternative for pro and semi-pro graphic designers.
Pros– Free to use, versatile features
Cons– a little slow to start, don’t offer a free trial.
GIMP
Year Founded: 1998
Headquarters: Charlotte, North Carolina, United States
A free tool used explicitly by designers, GIMP is a faster graphics editing option that stands for GNU Image Manipulation Programme.
GIMP is supported on Linux, macOS, and Microsoft Windows. It offers image manipulation, free-style drawing, image editing, different image file formats, etc.
GIMP provides various editing features like color selections and paths, layers, layer masks and channels, automation, scripts, GEGL, CTX, etc.
GIMP has limited vector options but provides third-party plug-ins. The software has incorporated tutorials for beginners. Check out the GIMP if you want to work in the stream of photoshopping.
Pros– contains a lot of essential tools.
Cons– not very user-friendly; layers and typography need improvement.
Boxysvg
Year Founded: 2013
Headquarters: Santa Monica, California
It is a quality tool that supports a low volume of designs. Many platforms like Windows, chrome and web apps support BoxySVG. The user interface is easy to navigate.
Most actions are directly taken on canvas. You get a live demo of the software if you are a newcomer. It is a vector graphics editor and is used to create logos, icons, and other graphic designs.
The software’s features include markup inspection, object manipulation, shapes, path drawing tools, filters, and bitmap tracing. BoxySVG is simpler than Illustrator and is used by designers to create good graphic designs.
Pros– user-friendly interface supports CSS style editing
Cons– weak zooming features, no pro version available
Pixlr
Year Founded: 2008
Headquarters: Stockholm, Sweden
Pixlr E is for photo editing, and Pixlr X is for graphic design. You can use Pixlr on Windows, Mac, and the Web.
The software easily accommodates people who want to work from different devices to create graphics. It is less advanced than Illustrator but is famously used for image and photo editing. You will find simple to advanced editing options on Pixlr.
The software supports various file formats. In 2021 new tools were included in Pixlr. The new tools like brushes, heal tools, animation, and batch upload enhanced the creativity of Pixlr.
You can inculcate hand-drawn effects using the brush tool. Use the “heal” tool to remove unwanted objects from their images. Using batch upload, you can edit up to 50 images simultaneously.
Pros– versatile features, can be used for professional use
Cons– more fonts need to be added, user experience can be made simpler
Gravit
Year Founded: 2015
Headquarters: Ottawa Canada
It is a great graphic design tool, especially for freelancers. The software is operable on most browsers and supports multiple file formats.
Gravit has a user-friendly interface and displays video tutorials for new graphic designers. It is a free, full-featured vector design app.
On Gravit, you can design marketing materials, icons, logos, UI designs, presentations, cool art, and much more. Its SVG editing tools are supported with Boolean operations and a knife tool. Quick prototyping and advanced responsive styles make Gravit unique as graphic design software.
Pros– user-friendly interface, easy to use
Cons– lacks regular updates.
Designevo
Year Founded: 2006
Headquarters: Connecticut, US
A special graphic design software best used for logo designs. On this software, you will find thousands of templates to match your style and portfolio.
DesignEvo is operable on Mac as well. The software interface is fast and easy to use. You will find millions of free vector icons, font styles, and color schemes.
Building your brand becomes easy with high-quality SVG, pdf files, and copyright ownership that DesignEvo provides its users.
With this software, you can make social media profile logos, software and app logos, business logos, brand logos, websites, and blog logos.
Pros– versatile logo designing features, thousands of free samples available
Cons– lacks customizations and does not support custom elements.
Affinity Designer
Year Founded: 2014
Headquarters: Nottingham, UK
This software is another vector graphics editor. It is usually run on macOS, iPad, and Microsoft Windows.
You can buy Affinity Designer from Microsoft Store, Mac App Store, or iOS App Store. Affinity Designer is a recommended alternative to Illustrator, and it is compatible with file formats like AI, SVG, PSD, PDF, EPS, etc. The designer’s core tools are easy to use and are not very complex.
Its best-used tools are vector pen and shape drawing tools, vector and raster brushes, ABR brushes, symbols, text management, and pixel export options.
Affinity Designer has a 90 days trial version, but you can have the full version for $50.00. It is one of the best available tools for vector and raster designs.
Pros– easy to use, supports a variety of file formats
Cons– comparatively fewer unique features, needs regular updates
Figma
Year Founded: 2016
Headquarters: San Francisco
Designers aspiring to design automated graphics, prototypes, and shapes would find Figma a great match. It is a free Illustrator alternative.
Figma accepts every plug-in type and offers a wide range of decorative fonts. Users are free to export files in multiple file formats. Figma is supported on Mac, Linux, Chrome, and Windows operating systems.
Figma focuses on building a smart and easy-to-handle user interface. The software best suits vector graphics editing and offers effective prototyping tools.
Pros– simple interface, responsive designs
Cons– has limited customization options and lacks collaboration features.
Vectr
Year Founded: 2014
Headquarters: Lviv, Ukraine And Oslo, Norway
Vectr is fit for beginners who are new to the graphic design field. It is a lightweight, less storage occupying, free graphic designing software.
It has fewer components than Adobe Illustrator, but it is a top tool for designers who are just starting.
Vectr’s main focus was to create an easy, usable, quick-to-learn graphic designing tool. Vectr is best to run on Windows and Linux operating systems.
You will get to access in-build tutorials along with quick import and export of various file formats on Vectr.
Pros– built-in tutorials, offers a lot of free tools
Cons– doesn’t support offline editing, needs regular updates
FAQS-
What is the best Adobe Illustrator alternative?
Inkscape is one of the top Adobe Illustrator alternatives.
How much does the Adobe Illustrator plan cost?
Adobe Illustrator plans start from about $20.99/month.
Which Adobe Illustrator alternative is appropriate for beginners?
Inkscape is a very useful Adobe Illustrator alternative fit for beginners.
Is GIMP as good as Adobe Illustrator?
GIMP is almost equal to Illustrator in terms of image graphics functionality, but it slightly lacks the polish and user-experience benefits that Adobe Illustrator offers.
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