
However, not all Adobe Illustrator alternatives are created equal, some only support some file formats, while others are crammed with additional unwanted software. Whether you are a professional designer or simply exercising your graphic design skills, the software you use can have a direct impact on the flow of your creative process and the quality of your work. Using alternative Adobe Illustrator software can save you money while also providing a practical tool for the job. Adobe software may still be the industry standard, but there are other options that are completely workable if you want to try something new. Note though that you can't save back to AI, with files only exportable to Photoshop.Īs of 2020, Affinity Designer adds a new stock panel to instantly search and drag and drop stock imagery into your work.Ĭurious iPad users can check out our review of Affinity Designer for the iPad from Tobias Hall.The best Illustrator alternatives are turning things around and beginning to break Adobe’s long hold on digital art, illustration, and graphic design. Its upgrades also mean Mac users now have end-to-end Metal compute acceleration to take full advantage of the Mac’s discrete GPU, making all raster layer and brush operations up to 10 times faster than ever before.Įxisting Illustrator users should know they can open AI and EPS files in Affinity. Vector shapes now possess an unlimited number of strokes and fills, with more freedom to interleave different attributes and control how they are blended together.

Say 'Illustrator alternative' to the creative community and most will think of Affinity Designer, Serif's flagship vector app approaching four years of age and counting.Ī highly respected app for all those of years, it latest update impressed us with its optimisation for iPad, Windows and Mac.
