Paid tools for digital painting have set the industry standard for what is possible with these programs, right? Not necessary. There is so much great free drawing software available today. Tired of subscription slavery and the epidemic of bloatware, professional artists are even switching from the paid apps they’ve been using for years.
The question is – where can we find these tools? Travel no further. We have handpicked the best free drawing programs that you can use to create compelling artworks without paying a single penny.
Platforms: Linux, Windows, macOS
Download link: krita.org
Krita’s UI
Krita is an open-source painting program made by artists for artists. The tool is completely free and the only way you can support its creator is by donating. Its main focus is on the artistic painting for cartoons, anime or canvas art, meaning that some features that you may need for photo editing or image manipulation were not prioritized in development.
One of the main strengths of Krita is its brush engine. You can tweak and create brushes for ages, and Krita comes with more than nine brush engines. The customization process is versatile and one can create an almost infinite amount of brushes specific to the task. However, the default set of brushes is more than enough to start creating art – and you can always find more packs on the internet, free of charge.
Another advantage that Krita offers is its layers mechanics. The layering system resembles that of Photoshop and allows all standard operations: merging, blending, grouping etc. There is a variety of layer types that you can create: paint layers, vector layers, fill & file layers.
Krita supports layered PSD files, so you can open Photoshop files or export your work using that format.
Artwork made with Krita by David Revoy
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Platform: Linux, macOS, Windows
Download link: gimp.org
Gimp is one of the oldest raster graphic editors that’s free to use since it’s early release in 1996. It has a wide and devoted user base with many tutorials and documentation available online.
Up until the last year many new users were skeptical towards adopting the program, since for years it has had issues such as outdated UI, jagged brush work and poor performance on new PC’s. However, the recent big April update addressed all of these, being the result of six years of work (the previous version of Gimp was released in 2012).
GIMP’s UI
Gimp was always more of an image editing program than a drawing one. With all the latest updates, its functionality is almost on par with Photoshop’s. Gimp has filters, adjustments modes, color management, and all the tools professional photo editors (photographers, designers etc.) might use in their daily work. Developers also polished PSD import, and added new image formats (OpenEXR, RGBE, WebP, HGT).
However, Gimp has a lot to offer digital painters as well. The newest version includes long-awaited updates for the brush work (symmetry painting, hardware pixel processing) and canvas management (rotating, flipping, previewing).
One particular advantage of Gimp is the highly customizable UI. With all the features it offers, Gimp is the closest alternative to Photoshop in terms of the number of things you are able to do with it, and the latest update brought it even closer.
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Platform: macOS, Windows, Android, iOS
Download link: sketchbook.com
In April 2018, Autodesk made the SketchBook Pro drawing program absolutely free. No hidden costs, no subscription fees — all you have to do in order to use this drawing software with all its premium features is simply create an Autodesk account. But even then, you don’t have to do it for the first seven days.
This has completely changed the dynamic of the free drawing software market because the number of features this program offers for free is simply amazing.
Here’s a video with commentary and some valuable SketchBook Pro tips for artists:
Sketchbook is a part of the Autodesk software suite, a heavily engineering-oriented company. Engineers and industrial designers have been using Sketchbook for years in order to create accurate, yet simple and visually appealing sketches.
That’s why sketchbook offers wonderful perspective features: grids, dynamic vanishing point alignment, vanishing point managements, etc. It allows you to quickly build perspective grids for your art, which is valuable for concept artists, industrial designers, and architects.
French curves is another feature you won’t find in many painting programs. They allow you to trace smooth curves, a feature that is also widely used in industrial design.
The UI is simple, yet very effective. You can easily turn on only those sections of UI that you’re currently using, so that your work area is not swamped by a large amount of tools.
You can download additional brushes without having to browse the Internet — whole packs can be downloaded from the main menu of the program. This drawing program supports PSD files and all the common graphic formats you might need.
SketchBook also has a mobile version available on Android and iOS. So you can, for example, take a photo of something and then instantly start drawing over it.
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Animation Mode
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Platform: Linux, Windows
Download link: mypaint.org
MyPaint has been around since 2008 and its development model is contribution-based, with the latest stable version released in 2016. The app is open-source, simple, and stable.
It’s well-optimized for working with tablets, so the brush flow is smooth and glitch-free, which is great given that the program is not developed by a corporation, but by a number of volunteer developers.
Unlike trying to install heavier drawing solutions, MyPaint is easy on computer resources, so using it on old laptops and PC’s is a great option.
The UI is pretty up-to-date and feels more modern than, for example, Paint.net.
MyPaint supports layers and basic color adjustments. It also has cool features, like symmetry mode, connected lines, and curves. It comes with a set of brushes that have this almost organic feel to them. However, some advanced features are not there, e.g it has no animation tools.
Overall, MyPaint is a perfect choice for light sketching work, if you don’t need advanced features and want to rationally use system resources.
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Platforms: macOS, Windows
Download link: firealpaca.com
Despite the simple-looking interface, FireAlpaca is a surprisingly workable free tool beloved by many artists. It supports all the core features digital artists need: brushes, layers, multiple image tabs, and editing tools.
FireAlpaca’s UI
A simple UI allows you to focus on the primary goal: painting, and it makes this program very intuitive from the start. The brush control is no worse than paid software analogs; FireAlpaca supports multiple pressure levels and has an adjustable smoothing feature that aids the linework.
Unexpectedly elaborated are FireAlpaca’s perspective tools. Snap feature allows you to easily create perspective grids with multiple vanishing points, both linear and radial. This is especially useful for creating comics and storyboards with often uncommon perspective angles.
Artwork made in FireAlpaca by Manga-omega. Watch Speedpaint video here.
It’s also worth mentioning that FireAlpaca has a built-in basic animation toolset (though you might want to find a tutorial for that) and supports PSD file format.
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Platforms: Windows, macOS, iPad, iPhone, Android
Download link: medibangpaint.com
The key advantage of MediBang Paint Pro is its ubiquity – the program has a counterpart for almost every device you might have. With cloud storage you can effortlessly transfer your art between different devices. For example, you might start drawing something on your Kindle, and then later finish the drawing on your Mac.
MediBang Paint’s UI
The trick is, MediBang Paint and FireAlpaca are made by the same company. That explains why many features between these programs are quite similar, and why the brush workflow is great in both of them. It’s hard to point out differences between them, except for Medi’s cross-platformity and cloud tools. This, in turn, leads to MediBang Pro being compatible with a larger number of tablets, while FireAlpaca is mostly optimized for brand names like Wacom.
Artwork made with MediBang Paint by たく
Some specific features (e.g. materials) that are available in desktop versions may not be available on mobile versions, but then again, cloud sharing addresses that.
Overall, MediBang Paint Pro is one of these good free drawing programs that are surprisingly resourceful.
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Platform: Windows
Download link: getpaint.net
Paint.Net is a simple alternative to GIMP. It is a perfect match for those looking for quick photo and image editing, without skimming through pages of tutorials and additional menus.
But don’t let its simplicity fool you – the tool supports all the features one may need for all-around editing of images: layers, adjustment modes, and special effects. You can get rid of red eyes, blend images or adjust color as effectively as with any other feature-loaded analogue. Paint.NET also supports extensions, if you want to expand its capabilities.
Paint.NET’s UI
The user interface resembles that of a Photoshop, so if you have had any experience with the program, using Paint.NET will feel even more intuitive. The app also features automatic updates, including bug fixes and new features.
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Platform: online
Link: flipsnack.com
Flipsnack is a graphic design software that allows users to create and share interactive publications with a 3D page-flip effect. It has been around for more than 10 years now and it is well-known for being a super fast flipbook maker, due to the fact that they own the fastest PDF converter on the market at the moment. Due to its’ intuitive interface this platform is suitable for all type of users, whether you are or not a professional designer, you can create your content in three simple ways.
You can either create it from top to bottom, thoroughly guided by the design studio; you can upload a PDF document and customize it according to your own taste and needs; or you can just choose one of the many fully-customizable templates available in the integrated library and brand it with your own logo.
Flipsnack’s design studio offers a wide range of text and image editing options, and interactive features like photo-slideshows; GIFS; audio and video elements; social media buttons and even map embedding. Moreover it offers multiple options when it comes to downloading your publications, so you can download as HTML5; web PDF; PDF for print; GIF; PNG; JPEG and MP4 or you can just share it online with your target audience.
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Drawing is not just drawing. Creating the right color combinations also makes the picture-perfect. Take a look at Pollack. He created such beautiful color combinations that he did not even bother to draw.
If you’re looking for inspiration with color combinations, you should definitely check out Eggradients.
Just a decade ago we didn’t really have a choice: There was one paid program and one free. Nowadays there are so many great apps, it’s hard to pick one even among the free ones available.
There are no clear winners, and the only question that can really narrow down the choice is whether you are planning to use these programs for digital painting (Krita, FireAlpaca, MebiBang Paint Pro), or for photo & image editing (GIMP, Paint.NET).
Fascinating art can be created with any of these programs (yes, even with Paint.NET). So the question is how comfortable you are with the tools you are using, and there’s only one person who can answer that question.
Check a selection of our partnerships: softwareworld.co
Check the handy list of free software for vector drawing
Read useful tips on how to become a graphic designer and check 6 temptations of a graphic designer creating icons.
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