Perpetual subscriptions mean paying a lot of money over time for essential tools, and the Adobe subscription for Creative Cloud apps has been quietly increasing in price.
The good news is there are great free alternatives to the apps included in Creative Cloud. If you’re looking to save a bit of money and finally cancel Adobe, these programs are well worth checking out.
Affinity by Canva: Photo, layout, publishing
Affinity was originally a set of free apps called Photo, Designer, and Publisher. Canva relaunched the set as a single unified app for free in late 2025. This app is the one that got me to cancel Creative Cloud.
If you need a free alternative to Photoshop, Illustrator, or Indesign, Affinity is the one to look at. It’s completely free to use, and only generative AI features are gated behind a paid plan.
Affinity is just as powerful as Photoshop for general use. It doesn’t have quite as much access to plugins, but I have personally found it’s excellent for editing images, developing RAW photos, and digital art.
Canva Online: Quick graphic design
Canva is an online tool with a streamlined workflow for general design and editing. The free tier provides access to a lot of templates with no time limit.
Canva is a great choice if you want to create visual content without a learning curve. It’s an intuitive drag-and-drop interface that helps you create posters, logos, presentations, documents, and more.
As a web-based tool, there’s no need to install anything on your PC – just browse to the website and you can get started right away after signing up a free account.
DaVinci Resolve: Video editing
DaVinci Resolve is a fully-featured video editor that’s used for both independent cinema and professional productions. Australian company Blackmagic Design provides the software for free.
There’s a one-off fee for access to AI tools, but the free version offers comprehensive video editing, colour grading, and VFX tools with no time limit.
It’s got a bit of a learning curve, but there’s plenty of online resources to help you get started with learning the software and its capabilities.
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