Photoshop has long been touted as the best photo editor on the market. For years, photo enthusiasts have scraped their pennies together in order to buy one version of the famed program. While Photoshop has its perks, there are a few other photo editing options available. Some of those options are even free, and what could be better than a free photo editor?

Some Free Photo Editing Options

Splashup is, quite possibly, the best free alternative to Photoshop. This program includes many different features, its interface is based upon Photoshop’s, and it even has layers that you can play with. Another great free tool is Photoshop Express. Photoshop Express is a slimmer version of Photoshop, and it’s also free.

While Photoshop Express doesn’t have any layers or other Photoshop tools, it is a quick and hassle-free program that many will find useful. FlauntR is a program that many people may not know yet, but it is a fun program all the same. With FlauntR, you can create a multitude of photo effects.

Photoshop Drawbacks

Aside from the fact that there are plenty of free photo editing tools available, Photoshop has a few drawbacks that may turn some people off. The first, and most obvious, drawback is that Photoshop includes many different features and tools. Yes; it is possible for a large set of features and tools to be classified as a “drawback.”

Many users will find Photoshop simply overwhelming. With so many features and tools available, it’s hard to figure out what to do with all those extra options. This brings us to the other Photoshop drawback: a confused interface. Photoshop takes some getting used to. After hours of exploring this program, many users will only be able to use a handful of the features that Photoshop offers.

Why Photoshop Reigns Supreme

If Photoshop includes annoying drawbacks and there are free photo editors, why is Photoshop so popular? Photoshop still includes more tools than any other program. You may not use all of those tools, but just in case you want them, Photoshop will deliver. This is the sole reason why more people cough up more than $500 for a version of Photoshop.

Here’s some sound advice: if you are a professional photographer, you may want to consider Photoshop (and write it off as a business expense). If not, check out some of the free programs listed above. You’ll find that many of these programs offer some amazing features, and, more importantly, all of the aforementioned programs are simple to use.