Nine free alternatives to Adobe Creative Cloud

When it comes to video editing or graphic illustration, Adobe easily comes to mind. Adobe offers Creative Cloud, a collection of applications and software that allow users to create and design multimedia assets. With Adobe Creative Cloud, both students and professionals have access to software used for photography, graphic design, video editing, web development, animation, and more. It also helps users build their brands and businesses. However, the suite of tools Adobe Creative Cloud offers requires a monthly or annual subscription which not everyone can afford. A subscription to over 20 Creative Cloud applications like Photoshop, Illustrator, and Premiere Pro costs almost P3,000.00 a month. Meanwhile, purchasing most Creative Cloud software individually costs more than P1,000.00 monthly. In this article, we will feature nine free Adobe Creative Cloud alternatives that provide the same help minus the need to pay a huge sum of money. 

 

Alternative for Premiere Pro 

DaVinci Resolve

 

Don’t have the budget for Premiere Pro? DaVinci Resolve is your best friend. This professional video editing tool boasts impressive features such as color correction and facial recognition tracking used by film and television professionals. 

DaVinci Resolve also combines motion graphics, visual effects, editing, and audio post-production all in one software package. It can also be run on Windows, Mac, and Linux. And the best part? You don’t have to spend anything to access its high-end features. DaVinci Resolve is free!

Don’t worry because DaVinci Resolve’s modern interface allows beginners to quickly navigate their way around the software. It lets you work easier because you don’t need to learn or switch software for different tasks. With DaVinci Resolve, you can work with camera original quality images throughout the post-production process. Best of all, you can collaborate with multiple users at the same time.

 

Alternative for Photoshop

Pixlr

 

Looking for a free version of Photoshop? Pixlr is your go-to. Pixlr is an AI-powered photo editing and design software that also allows you to animate. It includes advanced features like red-eye removal and teeth whitening. Pixlr offers a wide range of filters and supports layers and masks for advanced editing. You can also customize the colors, exposure levels, brushes, and other tools according to your liking.

Of course, Pixlr has relatively limited functionality compared to Photoshop. Nevertheless, it offers more image-editing options than pre-installed editing programs on Mac and Windows. Suitable for iOS and Android, Pixlr is available on desktops, tablets, and smartphones. It can also be used as a web application.

 

GIMP

 

Have you ever wondered if there’s a free photo-editing alternative that’s similar to Photoshop? GIMP might be the answer to your question. It is compatible with common file formats. It also has numerous pre-installed filters, templates, layers, customizable brushes, and tools for image enhancement. What’s more, this software supports a large number of plug-ins—some are pre-installed; others are available for separate downloads. 

GIMP doesn’t allow you to perform accurate image manipulation like Photoshop. However, it’s still a reliable companion if you want to do basic photo enhancements. It also comes with a beginner-friendly user interface and advanced features like animation packages and layer masks.

Alternative for Lightroom

RawTherapee

 

As its name suggests, RawTherapee allows you to edit raw image files in various formats. This Lightroom alternative is free. It also offers an extensive range of editing tools for tone and distortion correction, noise removal, exposure control, white balance adjustments, detail recovering, and color boosting.

Because of its advanced options, RawTherapee allows users to tweak their photos exactly how they want. It also offers interesting filters, crop tools, and adjustment brushes. What’s more, RawTherapee is an open-source software and users can download it on Windows, Mac, and Linux.

Alternative for InDesign

Scribus

 

Want to use InDesign but you’re budget-conscious? Check out Scribus. This professional page layout program has a wide range of press-ready output you can use. Scribus also offers ICC color management and versatile PDF creation tools. 

Underneath a user-friendly interface, Scribus supports vector drawing tools, emulation of color blindness, and markup language rendering. It also allows you to work on a large number of file types via import and export filters. This powerful software also helps recover damaged documents with a simple text editor. What’s more, Scribus is suitable for Windows, Mac, and Linux users.

 

Alternative for Illustrator

Inkscape

 

Looking for a free program that slightly mimics the features of Adobe Illustrator? Inkscape might be your new best friend. This tool has advanced features like alpha blending, cloned objects, and markers. It also offers drag-and-drop rendering, Node tool, Trace Bitmap tool, and customizable fonts. Not only that, but it also has full support for different color modes.

Because of its user-friendly interface and free functionality, many beginners opt for Inkscape. Despite its simple interface, users are still able to create detailed illustrations with Inkscape.

 

Alternative for After Effects 

Blender

 

If you think looking for an alternative to After Effects is a challenge, you’re wrong. Blender is a free-to-use software program that can help you create ultra-realistic 3D computer-animated graphics, 3D visual effects, virtual reality, and interactive 3D applications. With its texturing, particle simulation, and compositing tools, both beginners and professionals can create extraordinary work with Blender.

This After Effects alternative is equipped with comprehensive modeling tools. It enables you to create, edit, and transform models faster. You can also combine 2D with 3D graphics with Blender. On top of that, Blender also has a fluid simulator, allowing you to imitate the effects of flowing bodies.

Natron

 

Video-editing software Natron allows you to work with an unlimited number of video and audio tracks. With Natron, you can add various special effects and apply all kinds of filters for free. This open-source tool incorporates advanced features for professional film production, minus the subscription fee. Users can also combine multiple graphic and audio objects into one. It’s time to level up your editing and rendering skills and make promising storyboards using Natron.

 

Alternative for Stock 

Shutterstock

 

Adobe Stock offers a wide range of stock images. However, its monthly subscription is obviously pricey. Good thing, Shutterstock exists. This tool boasts a large collection of images, music, video, and editorial assets free of charge. It also features intuitive search and filter functions that make image searching easier. Shutterstock also enables users to quickly customize and crop an image, as well as incorporate filters.