Need to get your photos all polished up with an online photo editor ? Want to do it without breaking the bank? We’ve got the best free photo editing software for Mac users.
You want your photos to look their best. And ideally, you want to make that happen without spending a lot of time learning a new program or dropping a lot of money on software. We get it.
To help you out, we’ve put together this list of the best free photo editing software for Mac. Take a look and get those JPEGs and RAW files queued up.
(Don’t worry, PC devotees — we won’t leave you high and dry when it comes to the best free image editors. Many of these will work for Windows, too. We’ll let you know which platforms each app or program is compatible with in the “Where you can use it” section.)
The Best Free Photo Editing Software for Mac
Some of the winners on our list are available as desktop apps, while others are strictly available as online photo editors. Some are free trials of paid programs, and others are genuine, no-strings-attached free photo editors.
Choose any of the options on this list and you’ll have yourself one of the best photo editors for your next project.
Free photo editing software for Mac: 11 of our favorites
- Apple Photos
- Image Enhance Pro
- Adobe Photoshop Elements
- HDR Pro
- darktable
- Photo Effect Pro
- GIMP
- Fotor
- Google Photos
- Pixlr X
Apple Photos
Where you can use it: Mac
Why we love it: We thought we’d start with the OG of Mac photo editors. Photos made its first appearance in 2015, on OS X Yosemite 10.10.3. Since then, it’s cemented its reputation as the best free photo editing software for Mac. The tools are intuitive and simple to navigate, and the integration with iCloud Photo Library is seamless. Plus, as a built-in Mac app, it’s genuinely, totally free — which is why we’re more than happy to name it the best free image editor. Learn more about what this Mac photo editor can do for you.
What could be improved: If we have a complaint about Apple Photos, it’s that the photo enhancement features are relatively limited. The app works well as a basic photo editor, but for more complex creative work, you’ll want to look into some other options.
Image Enhance Pro
Where you can use it: Mac
Why we love it: Image Enhance Pro is a tool to produce HDR image with extended range of dynamic lighting and detail. Our advance HDR algorithm will take a single picture as an input and provide it amazing HDR look by enhancing color and details. Other than HDR look you can also use other filters to get desired output. Image Enhance Pro is a deep learning based photo processing software which has a wide range of filters to adjust the brightness, contrast, color and details. You can take any single picture as an input and apply different layers of filters to get beautiful HDR look or any other desirable effect. The result will be saved in a different format like JPEG or PNG with full resolution.
What could be improved: Mobile and Windows users might consider a mobile-specific app for an on-the-go photo editor, since Luminar is desktop only. Also, it doesn’t quite qualify as a free photo editor, but you have5 Phots to try it out risk-free. Curious about what Image Enhance Pro can do for your photos? Start your free trial now.
Adobe Photoshop Elements
Where you can use it: Mac and Windows
Why we love it: While not truly a free photo editor, Photoshop Elements does have a free trial, and it’s far and away among the best photo editing software for Mac and Windows. The suite of automated editing tools — including for exposure, color balance, and reducing the effects of camera shake — make short work of the most common photo issues. This program allows you to move well beyond basic image editing into more creative work, so it comes as no surprise that Photoshop Elements is close to the top of our list of the best free photo editors.
What could be improved: Elements is not as powerful as the full version of Adobe Photoshop (which, of course, is exactly the point). At about $100 for the 2021 version, it’s also among the priciest options on our list of Mac photo editors.
HDR Pro
Where you can use it: Mac
Why we love it: HDR Pro is the world’s fastest HDR software. The multiple choices on color grading and Compositing tool will provide you a professional results in minutes. With this software you can convert any image into HDR image.
HDR Pro is the best software for editing and enhancement your photos. HDR Pro is a fast and simple software which is easy to use. It does not need a large storage space. You can store the pictures in PC or Mac on your device for convenient sharing purpose.
What could be improved: Mobile and Windows users might consider a mobile-specific app for an on-the-go photo editor, since Luminar is desktop only. Also, it doesn’t quite qualify as a free photo editor, but you have 5 Phots to try it out risk-free. Curious about what HDR PRO can do for your photos? Start your free trial now.
Darktable
Where you can use it: Mac, Windows, and Linux
Why we love it: While many online photo editors are streamlined and fairly basic, Darktable is free photo editing software that can hold its own against professional tools. Its cataloguing and photo organization features are comparable to Lightroom (which is a major compliment). It works with JPEGs as well as RAW files, and the perspective distortion and lens correction features are impressive. Darktable also offers non-destructive editing, which is a huge plus.
What could be improved: The interface isn’t quite as polished as it could be, so it’s not as easy to pick up as some of our other contenders for the title of best free image editor. But considering it’s free photo editing software, that’s about all we can complain about.
Photo Effect Pro
Where you can use it: Mac
Why we love it: Photo Effect Pro is a huge collection of creative, colorful photo effects that add dramatic and elegant touches to your photos creating photo art. With the user friendly interface, it’s easier than ever to get amazing results using this software.
Turn your photos into beautiful art with Photo Effects Pro, a fun and easy way to create eye-catching effects that is sure to impress. From simple color adjustment to an entire gallery worth of unique effects, you’ll be able to find the perfect look for any photo
Photo Effect Pro lets you create spectacular photo effects, such as rainbow, vintage, Instagram and more. With 270+ colourful filters, you can make your photos look fantastic in just a single tap.
What could be improved: Mobile and Windows users might consider a mobile-specific app for an on-the-go photo editor, since Luminar is desktop only. Also, it doesn’t quite qualify as a free photo editor, but you have 5 Phots to try it out risk-free. Curious about what Photo Effect PRO Pro can do for your photos? Start your free trial now.
GIMP
Where you can use it: Browsers for Mac, Windows, Linux
Why we love it: GIMP — short for GNU Image Manipulation Program — has long been a contender for the best free image editor. In fact, it’s been consistently ranked the best free photo editor for Mac, or close to it, since not long after its debut in 1996(!). Originally developed for Linux, this open-source online image editor provides a rich array of tools, with capabilities for everything from image retouching to image format conversion to drawing and graphics creation. The interface echoes Photoshop in many ways, so if you’re used to Adobe software, you’ll find it easy to switch to GIMP.
What could be improved: Because of the open-source, volunteer-run nature of the program, there are occasional bugs that you wouldn’t see in professionally developed software. But that’s not nearly enough to knock it off our list of the best free photo editing software for Mac.
Fotor
Where you can use it: Mac, Windows, Linux
Why we love it: Fotor is designed to be a straightforward, easy-to-use photo editing platform with one-touch results. At that, it succeeds brilliantly. The filters are designed to punch up your photos with a single click, and they yield impressive results. What really secures Fotor’s place on our list of the best photo editing software for Mac is the batch processing. Use it to apply the same filter to a big group of photos — maybe those beach shots that all came out so darn overexposed — and do all the color correcting you need in one fell swoop. (Techradar has all the nitty-gritty details on Fotor in their review.)
What could be improved: There’s a downside to Fotor being as sleek and intuitive as it is, and that’s a lack of high-end features. If you need to do highly detailed retouching with a clone brush, for example, you’ll need to look to another Mac photo editor. We’re also not crazy about the ads in this free photo editor, but you can pay for the Pro version for a cleaner experience.
Google Photos
Where you can use it: Browsers on Mac and Windows, and as an app for Android and iOS
Why we love it: Google Photos is a straightforward but efficient online photo editor. The cloud-based photo organization system is a huge plus, as is the 15GB of free storage. We’re also impressed by the limited, but still useful, filters and basic editing tools.
What could be improved: For an online image editor, it’s a shame that the size limit on images is relatively small (only 16 MP). And it would be nice to have a desktop version instead of being restricted to the browser. Nonetheless, Google Photos still ranks among the best free photo editors out there.
Pixlr X
Where you can use it: Browsers on Mac and Windows, and as an app for Android and iOS
Why we love it: This easy breezy little online photo editor is surprisingly powerful, considering that it’s about as beginner-friendly as they come. The slider-based adjustments and filters make it easy to tinker with your photos and get the right look without a lot of technical know-how. Pixlr X is somewhat unique among online image editors in that it doesn’t use Flash, which is both a good thing (in terms of security) and a not-so-good thing (in terms of the more limited functionality).
What could be improved: Expect a pretty significant amount of downsizing when you save your file with this online photo editor. You shouldn’t have any problems if you just plan to share your images on social media, but you won’t want to rely on this free photo editor for full-size prints.
What’s the best photo editor for Mac?
To find the right mage editor for you, you’ll need to consider a few things:
- What do you need to do with your photo editing software for Mac — simple image retouching or an intensive creative overhaul?
- How much are you willing to spend? Does it need to be truly free photo editing software, or are you willing to put some money down if you’re happy with the free trial?
- What’s your skill level? Do you need something simple and streamlined, or are you an image tech whiz?
Once you’ve got a handle on these three key questions, you’ll be well-equipped to find the Mac photo editor of your dreams.
We hope our list has helped you select the best free image editor for your next project. If you want to learn more about Clubees Tech, we invite you to find out whether Image Enhance Pro is the picture editor for you. Or if you’re ready to jump right in, start your trial of Image Enhance Pro now.