And don’t forget that most of these professional-level editing programs also provide a free trial – ranging from one week to a whole 90 days in some cases – so you can take your time deciding which program best suits your needs and your budget. Rivals such as Pixelmator Pro and Affinity Photo can provide impressive editing tools for less than £50, and while they may not match the sheer scope of Photoshop they will be more than adequate for many professional users and more serious amateur photographers.

However, Adobe’s decision to move its professional software products to a subscription payment system a few years ago antagonized many users, and opened the door to rival photo-editors that still just require a simple one-off payment, without committing you to a long-term

The sheer depth and range of Photoshop’s editing tools is still unrivalled, with the latest version boasting a new artificial intelligence features that can actually change the expression on a person’s face, or even make them look older (and balder). Photoshop has always been the king of the photo-editing market – a position reinforced once more by Adobe’s release of a native version of Photoshop designed for the new generation of Macs with Apple’s own processor in March 2021 (see That’s not to say we won’t be considering some excellent alternatives to Photoshop here.

Pixelmator pro vs affinity photo