The Mac App Store is the best place to find apps for Mac. No more boxes, no more disks, no more time-consuming installation. Just like the App Store for iPhone and iPad, click once to download and install any app on your Mac. You can browse Mac apps by category, such as games, productivity, music, and more. Or do a quick search for something.
- January 01, 2020
- 18 min to read
If you need to make a few tweaks to your images, but do not want to use Photoshop, you are in luck as there are several superb solutions. Here are the 15 best alternatives in no particular order:
- If you are working on a Mac and in need of a budget-friendly alternative to Photoshop, Sketch is the answer. Sketch is a vector graphics app that has the design field.
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1. Luminar 4 (Free Trial 7 days)
When time for editing your photos is a luxury, Luminar 4 can help. Luminar 4 lets you transform your photos in a flash and synchronizes all the edits that you have made effortlessly. What makes it so great is that you can easily browse all your photos as it automatically organizes your photos which makes navigation simple. Luminar Libraries also boast a very modern interface which optimizes the viewing experience.
Luminar 4 offers many great adjustable styles, features, and tools that you will fall in love with such as its AI Sky Enhancers, Advanced Contrast, and Dehaze to mention only a few.
2. Photolemur (Free Version with watermark available)
Enhancing your images has never been easier thanks to Photolemur. By using AI, this automatic photo enhancer app enhances your images without you having to lift a finger. You simply need to import your images to Photolemur and it will get the job done automatically. This means that you do not require any prior editing experience to complete tasks like getting rid of imperfections. It is oh-so easy and available for both Mac and Windows.
3. CorelDRAW Graphics Suite (Trial 15 days or Full Paid or Monthly sub)
Windows users will love the tools that CorelDRAW has to offer. This Photoshop alternative boasts an interactive tool that will help you to straighten your image or adjust the perspective. Though, one of its most impressive features is its stylus control that reacts to a different pressure.
If you are working with Windows 10, this is the perfect fit. Windows users will also be happy to know that it supports 4K displays and multi-monitor viewing.
4. Serif PhotoPlus X8
Many people have already relied on this app for years. It is ideal for users who are only starting with image editing now as it offers great support for new users in the form of videos and tutorials. What is more, users can get great tips on their active forum for fellow users. Thanks to its latest release, Serif PhotoPlus users will be also able to work with their RAW image files much easier.
5. Adobe Photoshop Elements (Free Trial 30 days)
Do not be fooled by the name, Adobe Photoshop Elements is not the actual Photoshop. However, countless users have experienced that the Adobe Photoshop Elements app offers all the tools that they require to enhance their images. In short, this app has been reduced to the essentials.
With the help of its Adjustment and Blend layers, you can turn any photo into the most amazing image in barely any time at all. Thanks to its guided mode, it is also geared towards beginners.
When it comes to finding a Photoshop alternative, your only challenge will be to identify the software solution that works the best for your unique needs. Why not give them all a try? You might just discover that the best course of action will be to use a couple of these tools instead of just one.
6. Sketch (Free Trial 30 days)
If you are working on a Mac and in need of a budget-friendly alternative to Photoshop, Sketch is the answer. Sketch is a vector graphics app that has the design field all excited, specifically website designers. As it is so popular, you will be able to access countless plug-ins that have been created by the community that will make this app even more functional.
Its user interface is easy to understand and boasts several features such as gradients and layers that are similar to Illustrator and Photoshop. What is more, it also offers a color picker and style presets. You can use one of the basic shapes to create your own graphic or start from scratch with the help of the pencil tool. This app is really so flexible!
7. GNU Image Manipulation Program (GIMP)
GNU is an open-source cross-platform image editor. As its interface is very similar to Photoshop, it will not take you too long to familiarize yourself with GIMP. https://diaclever.weebly.com/blog/mac-laptop-app-to-take-pictures-when-someone-logs-in. Though, users who do not have any image editing experience will find the different GIMP tutorials very useful.
It offers color correction, enhancement as well as painting tools to mention only a couple of its features and is compatible with Windows, Linux, and Mac.
8. Acorn (Trial 14 days)
Mac users who are searching for image editing software need to look no further than Acorn. It is a cost-effective solution if you do not have access to Photoshop. What makes it so great is that it is quick, enjoyable to use and offers useful features.
Some of its features include non-destructive filters, custom brushes and layer styles to mention only a few. The software is easy to use, but, you can rest assured, there are tutorials available for both beginners as well as image editing experts.
9. Affinity Photo (Trial)
Affinity Photo is for sure one of the best Photoshop alternatives. It is ideal for professional designers and photographers as it is completely compatible with Photoshop as well as other file formats. What makes it such a great alternative is that it is not nearly as expensive as Photoshop. Though, users can rest assured as it will still deliver the same performance (if not better).
It is compatible with Mac and Windows. If you are using an iPad, you will be happy to know that Affinity Photo for iPad is also available.
10. Pixelmator Pro (Trial 30 days)
Pixelmator is not a new Photoshop alternative, but recently the Pixelmator Pro version which uses a user-friendly single-window interface has been added to the mix. On top of that, the Pixelmator Pro version also boasts non-destructive image editing and offers features that include split view and a hidden interface that allows you to view your images without any distractions.
It is only available for Mac users.
11. Pixlr (Free Version Available)
Pixlr boasts an interface that is really not much different from Photoshop. It offers hundreds of overlays, borders and other effects. If you simply want to crop your image or whiten your teeth on your iOS or Android device, Pixlr is the right tool for the job. With Pixlr, you can complete all the editing tasks that a good basic photo editor will allow.
Free Apps For Mac
12. SumoPaint (Online + Desktop)
The different standard features that you would expect in a Photoshop alternative, SumoPaint has to offer. There are shapes, brushes, gradients, text, and pencils that you can effortlessly access.
Though a word of warning to Photoshop users - a couple of its tools work differently and there are some limitations. Overall, this image editor remains very capable and can load in a flash.
13. Paint.net
Paint.net is a powerful and practical tool that Windows users can rely on instead of Photoshop. It is a capable and functional tool that concentrates less on artistic creation and more on photo editing.
It offers a decent variety of tools and special effects that include brightness/contrast and repeat selections. It might not boast all the serious editing tools, but that only means that it is not as difficult to master making it the ideal image editor tool for beginners.
14. PicMonkey (Trial 7 days)
The beauty of PicMonkey is found in its easy-to-use interface. If you need to put together a collage, this is your tool to use. All you have to do is upload your images and drag them into the right spot.
15. Canva (Free Basic Plan + Trial 30 days)
Canva is where you will find countless layouts, stock photos, fonts and other great design elements. The best part is that several of these you can use at zero cost. You can use this app to design your business card or put together a birthday card.
Think about it — all of us spend hours on our Macs every day for years. And it’s likely that we don’t always use all the apps properly, store away files in an organized manner, and timely delete everything we don’t need.
Just like any machine, your Mac needs regular maintenance, even if it’s not as regular as one for a PC. The more you use your computer the more errors start to build up, overloaded drive slows down the processor, and resources get stretched too thin. So when you finally can’t stand how slow your Mac has become, you turn to Google for answers, and it might tell you that CCleaner for Mac is the way to go. But is it?
What Is CCleaner And Is CCleaner Good For Macs?
You might initially ask, “What does CCleaner do?” CCleaner is an app originally developed by the British company Piriform and later sold to another Czech company Avast that claims to clean up and optimize your slow computer. The initial version was developed for PCs in 2004, with CCleaner Mac to follow in 2012.
So far so good. Moreover, the CCleaner app has become very popular, supporting millions of accounts and has a limited free version that could be downloaded from its website. The CCleaner professional version is available on an annual subscription basis. Let’s see how exactly CCleaner for Mac can help you bring your machine back to life.
How to use the CCleaner app for Mac
CCleaner works by scanning your Mac for cache files, browsing history logs, cookies, and more, and then running a cleanup tool to remove them all. The software generally doesn’t touch any essential parts of your macOS or any files that are integral to the apps you currently have installed. The whole idea here is to try to clean up unneeded files to help your Mac run better.
Technically, you could even do exactly the same work as the CCleaner Mac app yourself, but it would take you a lot of time to find all those files manually and, unlike CCleaner, you could potentially delete something that should’ve stayed.
Here’s how you’d use the CCleaner app:
- Get a CCleaner download from its official website (either the free version or the professional one)
- Install and launch the app
- In the Cleaner tab, check every option you’d like CCleaner to scan
- Click Analyze
- If you’re satisfied with results ➙ Run Cleaner
If you get the CCleaner professional version, you can enjoy some additional features, such as automatically cleaning your browser history every time you quit it and monitoring low-quality, suspicious files from getting into your system.
Note: Review all files to be deleted carefully, since most of the time CCleaner will also empty Trash and it wouldn’t be possible to retrieve lost files later on.
Is CCleaner safe and other CCleaner reviews
If you’ve just tried the process above — CCleaner for Mac would sound like a great and easy way to keep your Mac optimized. That’s why millions of people have flocked to it over the years.
However, in 2017, the CCleaner app suffered a malicious hacker attack on its 5.33 version for Windows. Mac connect to server. The hackers were able to create a backdoor and install trojan software that infected around two million users, among which were such prominent companies as Samsung and Intel. The security breach was patched in the next update, but sadly the incident has damaged CCleaner’s reputation forever. After all, it’s difficult to give a company complete access to all your personal files if it has been hacked before.
It should be said that the breach has only affected the Windows version of CCleaner and not the CCleaner Mac app. But again the question comes down to trust.
Overall, CCleaner reviews have generally been positive throughout its existence, averaging at about 4.5/5 star rating. And it would seem well deserved if not for that one misstep mentioned above.
A good question now is, “What about CCleaner alternatives?”
The best CCleaner alternative today
Naturally, the CCleaner app is not the only Mac optimization utility on the market, and there are other options for everyone second-guessing, “Is CCleaner safe?” One of the most popular ones is CleanMyMac X.
CleanMyMac X is a powerful Mac optimizer used by millions of people every day that has accumulated outstanding reviews, industry recognition, and, most importantly, has never suffered a single breach.
Generally, CleanMyMac X goes much deeper in its scanning of system junk, especially when it comes to locating unnecessary app cache files. Besides, it features a separate anti-malware scan, privacy controls, file shredder, app updater, and much more.
Interface-wise, CleanMyMac X is extremely friendly and intuitive. Here’s how to use it:
![Apps for mac Apps for mac](/uploads/1/3/3/8/133898046/877260945.png)
- Launch the app and navigate to System Junk in the sidebar
- Click Scan ➙ Review Details
- Uncheck anything you’re not sure about and hit Clean
The difference between the CCleaner Mac app and CleanMyMac X is astounding. The same Mac tested in the screenshots above got around 500 MB of junk files in CCleaner against 13.4 GB in CleanMyMax X.
That said, there’s also another simple alternative to CCleaner — MacPilot.
Best free music download mac. Not a specialized Mac optimization software per se, MacPilot is a great complement to one, since it lets you tweak and configure over 1,000 Mac features, from setting up Bluetooth correctly to deciphering error codes to removing useless login items.
Among everything MacPilot has to offer, there are a few really helpful automatic scripts that can perform basic Mac optimization tasks on a regular basis:
Apps For Mac
- Launch MacPilot
- Navigate to the Maintenance tab
- Choose whether you want the scripts to run daily, weekly, or monthly
- Select databases to update
- Pick which miscellaneous tasks to complete
- How to allow software on mac. Click Run
The good news is you just have to set up MacPilot once and forget about it — while your Mac will be kept well-maintained forever. Besides, feel free to dive into the massive library of improvements MacPilot has to offer whenever you encounter a problem with your Mac.
In the end, now you know what is CCleaner and all the basics about it. If you still trust the company and want to use CCleaner for Mac — that might be a good choice. However, the combination of just two CCleaner alternatives, CleanMyMac X and MacPilot, provides true unparalleled security and the most comprehensive optimization in the industry at the same time.
Best of all, both CleanMyMac X and MacPilot are available to you for free for seven days through the trial of Setapp, a platform with over 150 Mac apps that could help you with any aspect of your digital life, from a speedier Mac to finance management to photo retouching. Sign up for Setapp today, see how much faster and cleaner can your Mac become with the help of CleanMyMac X and MacPilot, and then just try as many other apps as you like. What a deal!