GIMP has been the free Photoshop in the room for decades, and it is still the one people install first. It does retouching, compositing, colour work, text and painting, and it runs on every desktop platform without an account or a credit system.
Its scripting story is worth knowing: GIMP can be automated with Python and Script-Fu, which makes batch processing — resizing, watermarking, format conversion — a scripted task rather than an afternoon of clicking.
Official image from the https://www.gimp.org website. (https://www.gimp.org/images/frontpage/wilber-big.png)
What it covers
- Layer-based raster editing with masks, channels and paths
- Photo retouching including healing, curves and levels
- Scripting and batch processing with Python and Script-Fu
- Plugin ecosystem with a large community library
What to know before you switch
The complaints are real: the interface and shortcuts are not Photoshop’s, and features like adjustment layers feel bolted on compared with modern editors. There is no built-in image generation either, so if you want AI inpainting you will add a plugin or use a separate tool — which is exactly why Photopea and browser tools have become popular alongside it.
Who it fits
Anyone who needs serious editing without a subscription, Linux users, and people who prefer an offline, local-first tool.