Krita
Free, open-source painting program for digital art, with brush engines and animation.
Our verdict
What it does well
- Free and open source under the GNU GPL, with no paid tier needed
- Runs on Windows, macOS, Linux and Android
- Built for painting and drawing from scratch
Where it falls short
- Aimed at painting and drawing, not photo retouching or print layout
- Not available for iPad or iPhone, per the download page
- Windows builds are 64-bit only
Krita calls itself a professional free and open source painting program, made by artists who want creative tools to be affordable for everyone. It is built on the KDE and Qt frameworks and licensed under the GNU GPL.
The download page offers a Windows installer or portable zip, a macOS dmg, and a Linux AppImage, with community-maintained Flatpak and Snap packages. An Android version is listed on Google Play.
Krita is also sold on the Microsoft Store, Steam, Epic Games Store and Mac App Store. The download page says these purchases include automatic updates and help fund development, but it lists no prices. The free downloads from the website remain available.
Alternatives to Krita
Image editor for photo editing and compositing, with generative AI tools, sold by subscription.
- Paid
Last updated 16 October 2026. Facts checked against the official site on 16 October 2026. How we make money