Photoshop alternatives: The 8 best free photo editors in 2026

Adobe Photoshop is the Kleenex of photo editing: so ubiquitous it's both a noun and a verb (and has been in the dictionary since 2008). When talking about photo editing, people say, "Just Photoshop it!" Photoshop has been the industry standard for decades, but there are plenty of great free Photoshop alternatives to help you ditch the subscription. I first used Photoshop over 25 years ago when you had to buy it on a CD-ROM in a physical store (yes, Gen Z, the lore is true). Based on my long-term