You probably know GIMP already, but now if you have a USB memory device you can take it anywhere with you thanks to Portable GIMP.

The Portable GIMP is a special version of the well-known open source image editing software that has been specifically developed for portable memory devices. The whole installation program and its plug-ins have been packaged to fit your USB stick, so that you can work on your images no matter in which computer you are.

Portable GIMP includes all the graphic editing tools any serious designer or photo editor could ask for. It's true that it takes a while to master the program's interface – especially for those who are not used to multiple-window working environments – but once you get the hang of it Portable GIMP enables you to do pretty much anything you want with your images.

With Portable GIMP you'll have the original GIMP's resources and tools always at hand.

Download Portable GIMP 2.6.1 in Softonic

The major developers might not agree with us but the rise of open source equivalents to large, expensive packages has arguably been the most exciting development in the software industry in the last few years. The GIMP and Mozilla Thunderbird are two leading lights of the open source phenomenon and have collectively saved users millions as alternatives to their big-budget rivals.

Artweaver certainly has the credentials to take on the big players and comes stacked with an ample range of brushes, which can be tweaked and customized easily to suit your designs. Just like its more illustrious rivals, the brush selection can be beefed up through plug-ins, although the range of available brushes is pitiful compared with those you can download for Adobe Illustrator. Nevertheless, it's promising to see freeware products embracing extendability in this way.

Other welcome features include a mighty effects selection, layers and transparency functionality, plus support for a range of file formats. You can also add text layers, making it great for creating logos or promotional material. However, it's when you put pen to paper that Artweaver stumbles somewhat. The fact is that the app renders certain brush strokes much slower than its major rivals, and unless you're packing heat processor-wise you're likely to be frustrated by the lag time waiting for the strokes to appear on the page. For such a polished program otherwise, this drawback threatens to stifle its attempts to win over the graphic design market. This said, for a pre-release version ArtWeaver is an impressive piece of kit.

Download Artweaver 0.5.5 in Softonic

It's really unbelievable to find free software applications as amazing as Photoscape. But as they say, truth is stranger than fiction. Here you have a really excellent photo editing tool that includes just about everything you need to view, optimize, edit, print and have fun with your photos, all for free.

Photoscape strikes us from the very beginning with an uncommon interface design from which you can choose what you want to do: view pictures, optimize those that didn't come out so well, print several photos on a single page collage-style or perhaps add any of the dozens of filters and special effects included in the program. Other extra tools featured in Photoscape are a file renamer, a color picker, a screen capture tool and even a RAW converter.

We really have nothing negative to say about Photoscape. Just download it, test it, love it and keep it forever. It's free!

Download Photoscape 3.2 in Softonic

The Gimp is the open source reference in image manipulation. This free application will allow you to retouch, author and edit your photos thanks to a wide set of tools.

Let’s quickly go through what you can do with the Gimp. The painting function has the essential clone, airbrush or pencil tools and a powerful gradient and blend tool. You can also create and save your own brushes and patterns for later use. The program lets you manipulate your photos, adding layers, doing Bezier and polygonal selections or setting text. Load and save animations in a frame-as-layer format and batch process all your photos for quick editing. The multi-windowed interface can be moved around to fit your needs and resized according to your desktop space.

What’s more, the Gimp can be expanded with over 100 different plug-ins and extensions available on the Gimp’s website. These apply in majority for layer effects such as render, distort or blur and make a great addition to the ones already present in the program.

While the Gimp is user friendly, the installation process can result a bit hairy. Because the application works under the GTK Runtime Environment, you will have to install this kit to successfully launch the program. The process is fairly lengthy and some error messages tend to pop up, however if you persist, you will be able to install the Gimp properly on your PC

Despite this fairly hazardous installation process, the Gimp is a program we recommend. Whether you’re out of dough or are looking for a free alternative to Photoshop, the Gimp is excellent image manipulation software with all the tools you’d expect. The friendly interface and expandability make this a program of choice.

Download The GIMP 2.6.1 with Softonic Toolbar in Softonic

Fedit Image Editor is an image processing tool which appears simple at first but contains a wealth of editing tools.

These include advanced image filtering options, editing tools, multilayer documents, workflow history and multiple document interface model. However, Fedit Image Editor is still very much a work in progress although it seems pretty stable and polished as far as the eye can see.

Fedit Image Editor is certainly very flexible allowing you to work with just about any format imaginable. Like all standard image editors, it can focus on one particular art of an image or take the image as a whole and work in it that way. It has selection tools ranging from rectangles to polygons and can automatically and or cut text from images allowing you to redo and undo at will. It also allows you to change its skin, resize photos and add effects to change the look of the photographs such as making them look like collages or watercolours.

Fedit Image Editor really doesn't have any outstanding features that distinguish it from the crowd but it is at least lightweight and easy to use.

Download Fedit Image Editor 1.0.0.6 Beta in Softonic

When it comes to photo editing, the undisputed king is Photoshop. But if you're looking for a cheaper alternative that can give you the same – or at least similar – functionality then Active Pixels is an excellent choice.

This photo editor resembles Photoshop in many aspects, from the way menus and windows are laid out on its interface to the keyboard shortcuts used for many actions. It also includes similar tools, like the magic wand, the gradient, the polygonal lasso and others. What's more, it supports working with layers. Active Pixels also includes some extra embedded apps, such as a red-eye fixer, a picture browser and a screen capture tool - although it only grabs full-screen images.

That said, bear in mind that this free photo editor is not as powerful as Adobe's big shot. Despite the large number of filters and effects included, some of them lack proper configuration settings. I specially disliked the way sliders are designed: they're very uncomfortable to use.

In any case, Active Pixels is an excellent photo editor that can be very useful for those cases in which you don't have Photoshop at hand or you just prefer to use a lighter app to perform the same tasks.

A great photo editor with which you can edit and optimize images, all for free.

Download Active Pixels 3.05 in Softonic

Dealing with vector graphics usually sees RAM and CPU's sucked into a void that only the toughest can make it out of.

But imagine if you could deal with vector graphics with a program of just 74KB in size. That's exactly what EVE allows you to do enabling those who are even on the slowest of PC's to enter the world of vector graphics. EVE is basically a general application for drawing vector diagrams but it's so small that you can share them quite simply by sending the program itself via e-mail or attaching it to a pen drive for sharing with others.

There is no installation required meaning the RAM and CPU footprint is remarkably small for a program of it's capabilities. However, at the same time, it's not a hugely sophisticated vector editing program. There are many limitations to it compared to heavy duty programs although for those seeking only basic vector graphic authoring, it's more than enough.

EVE is amazingly light and functional for a vector graphics program but it will still take some time to get to grips with as the instructions and FAQ are quite extensive.

Download EVE 3.56 in Softonic

Enhancing photos is an essential part of any professional photographer's day and while this is no professional tool by a long stretch, it gives amateurs a chance to add enhance their photos in a professional manner.

Pos Free Photo Editor is a very simple, free and user friendly photo editor that allows you to easily view and enhance your photos. In terms of flexibility, it accepts just about any conceivable format so no conversions are required. There's very little to pick up or learn with the program - most of the learning is done on the job via trial and error with the handy preview function. The enhancements are mainly focused around changing the focus and altering the colours of your photos although you can't shift photos on their axis which is a bit annoying if you've taken a slightly badly angled photo.

What it's really useful for though is creating collages. You can add multiple images to the same sheet meaning you can print them all out on one page. This not only allows you to create some pretty impressive designs but it saves on printing out multiple images on expensive photos and then sticking them together.

Pos Free Photo Editor is a far cry from Photoshop but it's completely free and allows beginners to add simple enhancements and effects that are sure to improve your photos.

Download Pos Free Photo Editor 1.0 in Softonic

Ambereh is a basic drawing application with the advantage of having the possibility of sharing your work while chatting with your co-workers and applying changes that everybody can see.

It's surely not Photoshop, nor even a bad copy of it, but that's not its purpose. It is not a professional photo editor but a tool to share ideas on logos, for example, or simply a kind of dashboard for creative having to work from different locations. Define a local port and connect to a computer in the relative menu at the top of the program's page and start to work on a drawing with other people.

The application can only work with bitmaps and this is really a big limitation considering that this format is not so widely used anymore. The features are just the basic ones you can find in all the other drawing editors such as anti-aliased brush, custom bitmap brushes, opacity control, smudge and blur. Furthermore this program is free and open source.

Ambreh's simplicity makes it an interesting tool for brain-storming sessions with your colleagues as you can make changes to an image that everybody can see live and chat at the same time.

Download Ambereh 1.0 in Softonic

This easy photo editor, despite its scary name, lets you apply a quick retouch to your images in just a few simple steps.

Phantasmagoria is developed in Java, which makes it compatible with all platforms and operating systems. It works in a very simple way: load the picture and select the task you want to do, focusing either on photo improvement or special effects.

As for the first group, Phantasmagoria only features color correction, contrast equalizing and red-eye removal tools, whereas the special effects category includes a wide variety of filters with which you can give your photos a totally different look in a very easy way.

That said, Phantasmagoria has also some flaws, such as the impossibility to preview effects before applying them (not even if you modify some values, which is especially annoying). Also, there's no "undo" option but only a "revert" button that brings the picture back to its original state.

Phantasmagoria features a large variety of effects for a quick photo retouch but unfortunately lacks some basic options (like being able to preview changes or undo options.

Download Phantasmagoria 1.0 in Softonic

There are many graphic editors in the software universe. I bet you can name a few right now. But I also bet you don't know any as original as Context Free Art.

This graphic editor lets you create amazing pictures, designs and abstract art with special written instructions called grammar. Each grammar contains a bunch of lines that look like source code, which the program interprets and transforms into beautiful shapes and figures. You only have to write the appropriate commands, values and variables on the left column, and see the result on the right pane of the program's interface.

The program includes a few examples so that you get an idea of its capabilities. A couple of these examples work as lessons that teach you the basics of writing new grammar to create new designs. Also, there are direct links to the program's forums and official website, where you can find further information about this special way to draw. It may take a while to master, but it's definitely something all users interested in computer assisted design should try.

With Context Free Art you have access to a completely new and very original way of creating abstract designs and beautiful figures.

Download Context Free Art 2.1 in Softonic

Inkscape is an Open Source vector graphics editor, with capabilities similar to Illustrator, Freehand, CorelDraw, or Xara X using the W3C standard Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) file format. Supported SVG features include shapes, paths, text, markers, clones, alpha blending, transforms, gradients, patterns, and grouping. Inkscape also supports Creative Commons meta-data, node editing, layers, complex path operations, bitmap tracing, text-on-path, flowed text, direct XML editing, and more. It imports formats such as Postscript, EPS, JPEG, PNG, and TIFF and exports PNG as well as multiple vector-based formats.

Inkscape's main goal is to create a powerful and convenient drawing tool fully compliant with XML, SVG, and CSS standards. We also aim to maintain a thriving user and developer community by using open, community-oriented development process, and by making sure Inkcape is easy to learn, to use, and to extend.

Download Inkscape 0.46 in Softonic

Would you like to make a photo card but can't be bothered opening a proper graphic editor? I'm sure you are not alone. Try Photo Card Maker with which you have several templates divided into categories. Upload the photo you want and export you final card as JPG, PNG or BMP.

Let's make a point: we are not talking about fine design here. The only cute available templates are the cartoon ones. The Holiday, Travel and Sport ones are a fairly basic and I wouldn't recommend them if you are looking for something slightly cool or stylish. That said, if you are not too fussy, they will save you lots of time when you have to make an announcement to your acquaintances.

A nice feature allows you to upload a photo which you can resize and rotate so that it will fit exactly the apposite photo space in the template. The program automatically takes care of the card's layer level as sometimes your picture will be surrounded by stars and circles. It is also possible to modify the default text which is useful considering it is often miswritten. The good news is that you can download more cartoon themes!

Photo Card Maker will let you create lovely cartoon photo cards to send around in image format. It is very easy and fast to make announcements or best wishes with this free program, so if you like cartoon-style cards, don't hesitate longer and give it a try.

Download Photo Card Maker 1.0.1 in Softonic

If you're looking for a basic imaging tool that does everything you need with minimum fuss then Image is your tool.

The program includes a multitude of effects and a simple editor that includes a mix of tools and retouching options. You can do everything from simple tasks such as adjusting color, brightness and resolution to adding fairly simple layers and filters. The range of formats it supports is wide and ranging although it's true that it doesn't support every single imaging option.

The program also features options to apply image transparency, alpha channel support and an unlimited set of undo and redo commands and steps. In addition to all this, it can process multiple images at the same time via batch processing. It doesn't really offer much in the way of advanced editing such as vectorising or rendering of complex images but at the same time, it's not really designed with high end users in mind.

As a simple processing app that support a wide range of formats and no fuss editing, Image is an excellent choice.

Download Image 1.0.0.1 in Softonic

Improving your photos to make them look just perfect can be a lengthy and boring process, especially if you're not very familiar with graphic editors.

Magic Enhancer Lite helps you in these situations by providing you with a quick, easy way to optimize your pictures. This program works as a Photoshop plug-in but don't worry if you're not precisely a Photoshop expert: the plug-in is so easy to use it doesn't require any artistic abilities.

Simply open the photo you want to work with in Photoshop and select the Magic Enhancer Lite option from the plug-ins menu (it's a bit hidden, in Filter > Image Skill). The plug-in will automatically load an optimized version of the photo you just opened, but if you're no happy with it, go ahead and adjust the sliders by yourself until you obtain the result you're looking for.

The difference may not be very noticeable at first sight, but if you click on the image you'll be able to compare the original photo with the optimized one. On the downside, I must say the plug-in has a tendency to close Photoshop once it's done, which I don't know if it's the way it should behave or rather a bug.

With this Photoshop plug-in you don't need to be an expert photo editor to obtain really high quality shots in just a couple of clicks.

Download Magic Enhancer Lite in Softonic

Image Analyzer is a simple but surprisingly effective utility for the advanced analysis, editing, and optimization of images.

It supports many many formats and it's remarkably easy to use for an imaging software of such sophistication, not to mention it's completely free. In particular, it's very good with handling formats of all conceivable types including support for the new standard JPG 2000 image compression format. Professional designers will probably find the interface way too limited however but for novices its absolutely perfect because it really does not require any prior knowledge. In terms of image editing, the program features options for resizing, cropping and image rotation among several others. There's also simple adjustments like levels of brightness, contrast and saturation available. Other key features include automatic brightness, contrast, gamma and saturation adjustment, a Retinex filter for reducing shadows and increasing local contrast and the all important red eye remover. It also supports most types of scanner, cameras and printers although not all.

A deceptively simple program that is rich in features and powerful enough for those beginners that need a bit more image processing power.

Download Image Analyzer 1.29 in Softonic

CEKLi PhotoLab is a very small, free photo editor which is useful to have on a USB pen-drive to adjust the size and contrast of your images any time you need to; whether it's before a press conference or at a friend's home after you have just downloaded the photos you took that day.

Apart from than the contrast and the brightness settings, also useful is the white balance function which can make portraits a bit smoother. Other than this the only advantage of the program is its portability as it consists of just one small .EXE file. In order to be more interesting it should really have had a few more features to retouch photos, like quick ways to eliminate red-eye, change color of objects or attaching two photos to make a poster.

CEKLi PhotoLab is an interesting application for people looking to carry out very basic photo editing jobs on the move but it's lacking anything in the way of advanced features.

Download CEKLi PhotoLab 0.4 in Softonic

Diagram Designer is an easy-to-use tool to create all kinds of diagrams, charts and other schematic designs that you can use for different purposes: school lessons, work presentations, design, etc.

The program's interface is very intuitive. Simply drag and drop onto the main working area all the elements you'd like to add to your diagram. You can select them from the menu on the right side of the window, which may vary according to the template you're using – or if you're just starting from scratch. On the left side of the window the program displays a tree-like structure including all the elements added so far to the diagram.

These elements feature basic polygonal shapes, arrows, text fields and the likes, all of them completely resizeable and customizable. There are no bells and whistles here such as animation effects or shadows. On the downside, I found that text is not that easy to change, as you have to use special code variables instead of the standard Windows text customization menu. ¡

With Diagram Designer you can easily create any kind of chart or diagram, as long as you don't need more than polygonal shapes, lines and arrows.

Download Diagram Designer 1.19 in Softonic

Most of the editing an average user does on digital photos includes color and light adjustments, resizing, cropping and other small tasks. Then why should you use a huge graphic editor when you can use a simple tool like PhotoPad?

With this simple application you can easily apply all those little changes and effects to your pictures. Simply load any image on the program's interface and choose the desired function from a quite varied menu: resize, crop, and adjust light and color, sepia effect, black and white effect, red eye removal and a lot more. All the changes you apply are saved on the window's left pane, which lets you compare the original image to the one you obtain after applying all those effects.

In all, PhotoPad is a nice alternative tool to heavier graphic apps when it comes to do some basic editing, but it needs improvement. The program seemed a bit unstable during our tests and showed strange artifacts. Also, some of its functions are not very well implemented, like the red-eye removal tool.

PhotoPad is a simpler, lighter graphic editing tool that lets you apply basic changes and effects to your photos. On the downside, it still requires further development, especially regarding stability and usability.

Download PhotoPad 1.02 in Softonic

Don’t be fooled by mtPaint's basic appearance. In fact, this is an excellent graphic editor that offers much more than a simple Paint replacement.

mtPaint enables you to both open images in several popular formats and create your own drawings and graphic compositions from scratch. Regarding the latter, it seems that mtPaint is mainly focused on pixel art, as it allows you to draw with high precision thanks to a very powerful zoom tool. Drawing tools, in any case, may not be the strength of this program – my personal opinion is that it should include more of them.

On the upside, mPaint really stands out as a graphic editor with which you can perform many daily tasks. It's simple in design and usage, but at the same time it includes advanced features such as layer support, filters, special effects and more. Of course, this is no equivalent to Photoshop but it will work fine for most of your graphic needs.

Despite its basic appearance and simplicity of use, mtPaint is certainly a great alternative to the standard Microsoft Paint, featuring advanced functions and tools.

Download mtPaint 3.20 in Softonic