Finally Rivals to Adobe

[Amy96]

The creative software industry has declared war on Adobe

https://www.theverge.com/tech/913765/adobe-rivals-free-creative-software-app-updates

 
Adobe's grip on creative professionals has been loosening for a while but 2026 is starting to feel like the year the alternatives actually caught up. The Verge rounds up the current state of the field and the momentum has clearly shifted.
 
The biggest development is what Canva has done with Affinity. After acquiring Serif for $500 million in 2024, Canva merged Affinity Photo, Designer and Publisher into a single application and made the core features free permanently. What used to be three separate paid-for apps covering photo editing, vector illustration and page layout is now one free download. AI-powered features like generative fill and background removal are locked behind a Canva Premium subscription, but the core professional toolkit costs nothing.
 
Beyond Affinity, the open source ecosystem has matured considerably. Inkscape handles vector work that would have embarrassed it five years ago. Kdenlive is a credible video editor for anyone who does not need the full DaVinci Resolve experience. Krita is genuinely excellent for illustration and digital painting. None of these are compromises for hobbyists. They are tools professionals are using in production.
 
Adobe's Creative Cloud still leads on AI integration and some specific professional workflows. But the old argument that you had no real choice but to pay the subscription has quietly stopped being true.

[Glenn_44]

I for one am very thankful. I hate their pooey software

[GhostRider]

I switched my whole video workflow to DaVinci Resolve two years ago and I do not miss Premiere at all. The pace at which the free alternatives are improving is genuinely impressive.

[RustyHawk]

The Affinity move by Canva is the one that shifts the conversation. Free and actually good is a different proposition to free and almost good enough. A lot of people who were waiting for an excuse to leave Adobe now have one.

[ProperMadlad20]

The caveat I would add is that Adobe still owns the professional print and prepress space in a way nobody else does. For anything going to a commercial printer, InDesign and Acrobat are still basically unavoidable. Everywhere else though, fair game.

[John]

The creative software industry has declared war on

That is exactly it. Happens to me all the time.

Good thread this.

Software bloat is half the problem and it gets worse with every update.

[Hollow Tiger]

That is pretty much it. Good thread this.

I always check startup items and background processes first.