Free programmes 2026 – labs by tekiela

ALL-IN-ONE

Affinity Photo / Designer — https://affinity.serif.com
Paid, but often used as “freemium-adjacent”; professional raster editing and painting with non-destructive workflows and pixel/vector hybrid tools.
PixiEditor – https://pixieditor.net/ (node-based – Mac – Pc – Linux)
Non-destructive editing – Pixel – Procedural – Image Edit – Vector – Drawing – Animation

MAC / PC

Krita — https://krita.org
Free, open-source professional painting software with a powerful brush engine, layers, and animation tools.
GIMP — https://www.gimp.org
Free open-source image editor with painting, retouching, and compositing tools (Photoshop alternative, less drawing-focused).
Pixelorama — https://www.pixelorama.org
Free open-source pixel art and animation tool with layers, tilemaps, and sprite/sheet export workflows.

Procreate (iOS only) — https://procreate.com
Paid iPad painting app widely used for professional illustration; strong brush engine and ultra-fast workflow.
ibisPaint X — https://ibispaint.com
Free mobile drawing app with brushes, layers, and recording features, widely used for illustration and manga-style work.
Pixel Studio — https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.PixelStudio
Dedicated pixel art app for mobile with animation support and sprite export tools.
Pixaki (iPad) — https://pixaki.com
Paid professional pixel art and animation tool designed for game sprites and sprite sheets.

Pixlr — https://pixlr.com
Browser-based AI-enhanced image editor with layers, effects, and quick raster editing tools.
Photopea — https://www.photopea.com
Free in-browser Photoshop-style editor with PSD support and full raster layer workflow.
Piskel — https://www.piskelapp.com
Free browser-based pixel art tool focused on sprites and frame-by-frame animation.
Pixilart — https://www.pixilart.com
Online pixel editor combined with a community platform for sharing pixel art.

Affinity (full suite) — https://affinity.studio
Professional vector design suite.
Inkscape — https://inkscape.org
Open-source SVG vector editor for illustration, logos, and advanced path-based design.
LibreOffice Draw — https://www.libreoffice.org/discover/draw/
Basic vector drawing and diagram tool for simple layout and technical graphics.

Linearity Curve — https://www.linearity.io/curve/
Vector design app for iPad/iPhone/macOS with professional bezier workflows (freemium model).
Infinite Design (Android) — https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.brakefield.idfree
Infinite canvas vector drawing tool with SVG export.

Figma (free tier) — https://www.figma.com
Collaborative vector/UI design platform for interface systems, components, and SVG workflows.
Vectr — https://vectr.com
Lightweight browser-based vector editor for simple shapes and logos.
Boxy SVG — https://boxy-svg.com
Dedicated SVG editor for clean vector graphics and icon work.
graphite — https://editor.graphite.art/
Procedural drawing app.

Tools here are primarily for editing, enhancing, filtering, and assembling images, not creating illustrations from scratch.

Canva — https://www.canva.com
Template-based design tool for layout, social media graphics, and quick image composition with drag-and-drop editing.
Photopea — https://www.photopea.com
Browser-based Photoshop-style editor with layers, masks, and PSD support for advanced image manipulation.
Pixlr — https://pixlr.com
Lightweight web image editor focused on quick edits, filters, and AI-assisted adjustments.
Adobe Express — https://www.adobe.com/express/
Template-driven image and video design tool for fast marketing and social media content creation.

Snapseed — https://snapseed.online
Free Google photo editor with precise controls, filters, RAW support, and non-destructive editing.
PicsArt — https://picsart.com
Social-driven image editor with effects, collage tools, AI enhancements, and stickers.
VSCO — https://www.vsco.co
Minimalist photo editor focused on film-style presets and color grading workflows.
Polarr — https://www.polarr.com
Advanced filter-based editor with AI enhancements and batch editing tools.