# Page 2 | Affinity Designer Reviews 2026. Verified Reviews, Pros & Cons | Capterra

> Page 2 - Is Affinity Designer the right Graphic Design solution for you? Explore 454 verified user reviews from people in industries like yours to make a confident choice.

Source: https://www.capterra.com/p/110533/WebPlus-X4/reviews

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Affinity Designer

4.7 (454)

[View alternatives](https://www.capterra.com/p/110533/WebPlus-X4/alternatives/)

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Last updated March 13th, 2026

# Page 2 - Reviews of Affinity Designer

## Showing most helpful reviews

Showing 26-50 of 454 Reviews

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Reviewer's Role

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Frequency of Use

Stephen E.  
Graphic Design  
Design  
Used the software for: 2+ years

### "Affinity Designer Review"

March 8, 2025

5.0

The software makes graphic desight effortless for me.

Pros

Its user-friendly features and its a affordability.

Cons

Its a great software, I love everything about it.

Review Source

VR

Verified Reviewer  
Developper  
Internet  
Used the software for: 2+ years

### "Une excellente proposition pour la création graphique"

April 23, 2025

5.0

Utilisateur depuis de nombreuses années, Affinity Designer dispose de toutes les fonctionnalités nécessaires pour réaliser mes compositions graphiques : icônes, illustrations, logos

Pros

Affinity Designer est une excellente alternative à Photoshop/Illustrator pour créer des visuels.

Cons

Je ne vois pas d'aspects négatifs à reporter concernant Affinity Designer.

Review Source

CS

Christian S.  
Web Producer  
Translation and Localization  
Used the software for: Less than 6 months

### "Great cheap alternative "

December 14, 2025

5.0

Pros

I had some experience with affinity before it's canva's. I love the several images editing features it's offering. Compared to big mane, it's easier.

Cons

I feel many lacks using Affinity Designer. Maybe some options aren't where I had habits to find on other tools.

Review Source

VR

Verified Reviewer  
Director  
Staffing and Recruiting  
Used the software for: 6-12 months

### "Affinity Designer - love it, and grab the 50% offs they do "

November 30, 2024

5.0

Required some playing with to learn the features, but the control on elements is so precise.

Pros

I already had Affinity Photo and Publisher, purchased during the 50% off deal. 50% off came back again, and I was getting frustrated with the lack of control on precision Canva - so Affinity Designer absolutely gave me the control I need to produce my images. I could take my Canva work for example, and then continue in Affinity. The product was £26. A bargain.

Cons

Obviously, with any package like this, including MS Word, if it's not part of your job you only learn the bits you need. But, it's easier to learn than Adobe packages.

Switched from

[Canva](https://www.capterra.com/p/168956/Canva/)

I still use Canva with Affinity Designer hand in hand.

Review Source

TO

TERI O.  
Designer  
Graphic Design  
Used the software for: 1-2 years

### "Affinity Designer is more bang for your buck "

November 17, 2024

5.0

Pros

Great alternative to Adobe products for an affordable price.

Cons

The UI is a little different than Adobe so there was a learning curve

Switched from

[Adobe Creative Cloud](https://www.capterra.com/p/48969/Adobe-Creative-Cloud/)

We could not afford Adobe anymore and needed another option

Review Source

Fray Agustin G.  
Director de albergue  
Civic & Social Organization  
Used the software for: Less than 6 months

### "Excelente alternativa a Corel"

September 13, 2024

5.0

Pros

Lo descubrí hace poco, aunque es similar a otros software de diseño, es maravilloso para la maquetación de flyers y portadas.

Cons

Me resulto complicado trabajar con hojas por separado, si bien facilita tener todo el proyecto visualizado a la vez, es algo que te tienes que acostumbrar.

Switched from

[CorelDRAW](https://www.capterra.com/p/124823/CorelDRAW/)

Facilidad de uso, y costes de licencias mas accesibles

Review Source

MM

Maysa M.  
Graphic Designer  
Design  
Used the software for: 6-12 months

### "A Serious Contender to Illustrator"

September 23, 2024

4.0

Affinity Designer is an excellent choice for freelance designers seeking a powerful and budget-friendly alternative to Illustrator

Pros

Intuitive interface, powerful tools, and an affordable one-time price

Cons

Some features are missing compared to Illustrator, and compatibility with certain files can be tricky

Review Source

GF

Gabriel F.  
Business Owner  
Consumer Services  
Used the software for: 2+ years

### "Why Affinity Earns My Loyalty: A Review of Their Customer-Centric Approach"

July 9, 2024

5.0

Pros

Affinity has always been a value-centered brand that genuinely cares about both the quality of its products and the satisfaction of its users. While many brands focus on maximizing profits and squeezing out every penny, Affinity chooses to do right by its customers with straightforward and simple purchase models. That's why their apps remain indispensable in my toolkit, and I feel a deep sense of loyalty toward their brand. Great job, team, and I think your 6-month model is brilliant. I wish you every success with it.

Cons

Learning curve takes time and help files could be better.

Switched from

[Adobe Creative Cloud](https://www.capterra.com/p/48969/Adobe-Creative-Cloud/)

Initially, price. Later, simply because they do everything Adobe does for a much better price.

Review Source

Marcus S.  
Owner  
Marketing and Advertising  
Used the software for: 1-2 years

### "Breath of fresh air for design products "

June 19, 2024

5.0

Pros

Full-featured suite that reminds me of the way Adobe products used to work prior to subscriptions and feature bloat.

Cons

Some features are still missing, but I’m hopeful they will arrive with the Canva merger.

Switched from

[Adobe Illustrator](https://www.capterra.com/p/227125/Adobe-Illustrator/)

Cost, ongoing frustration, feature requirements.

Review Source

VA

Vicia A.  
Sole Owner  
Arts and Crafts  
Used the software for: 6-12 months

### "Affinity Designer is an amazing program "

February 8, 2024

5.0

Pros

I love that you only have to pay for it once and you own it. No subscriptions, no hassles, I can learn at my own pace because there are no timelines. I love how much I’m learning I’m this program and how much it has helped me to design products I can then sell.

Cons

There is nothing I dislike about the program except the amount of time I need to have to invest in actually learning it. There are a lot of videos that even Affinity has put out to help you learn the program on all the different platforms.

Alternatives considered

[Procreate](https://www.capterra.com/p/228914/Procreate/)

Reason for choosing Affinity Designer

I actually bought both Affinity Designer and Procreate. Procreate is kind of like Affinity lite. It can do a lot, but not as much. I do like owning both programs and there are no ongoing subscription costs.

Review Source

Christian C.  
Graphiste Designer  
Graphic Design  
Used the software for: 1-2 years

### "Logiciel professionnel à petit prix"

July 11, 2023

4.0

Je travaille presque tous les jours avec pour mon travail de graphiste et mon retour est très positif dans son ensemble. Un prix très compétitif, des outils professionnels, une ergonomie idéale, une bonne polyvalence.Ce logiciels a tous les atouts pour faire de l'ombre aux autres logiciels professionnels.

Pros

Il offre quasiment toutes les options et tous les outils nécessaires à la réalisation de travaux professionnel pour un prix moindre. J'apprécie en particulier son ergonomie, et sa facilité de prise en main.

Cons

Il manque à Affinity Designer la fonction de vectorisation d'un image, qui serait la bienvenue sur une future mise à jour. Mais il faut le dire, ce logiciel est a un prix défiant toute concurrence, et un rapport qualité/prix exceptionnel.

Alternatives considered

[Linearity Curve](https://www.capterra.com/p/178239/Linearity-Curve/)

Reason for choosing Affinity Designer

Pour son prix, son ergonomie, ses outils professionnels, sa bonne polyvalence. Mais aussi le fait qu'il a un bon suivi et qu'il est mis à jour régulièrement, que la société est solide avec un service client présent et efficace.

Switched from

[Adobe Illustrator](https://www.capterra.com/p/227125/Adobe-Illustrator/)

Je suis passé à Affinity Designer car il est beaucoup moins cher qu'Illustrator et possède la plupart des outils nécessaires à un travail professionnel.

Review Source

Antonio F.  
Consulente Informatico  
Computer Software  
Used the software for: 2+ years

### "Software per vettoriali e raster per web e materiale pubblicitario"

March 2, 2023

5.0

Utilizzo Affinity Designer quotidianamente per realizzare immagini vettoriali e raster oltre che per modificare semplicemente le dimensioni e/o adattare immagini e foto per i miei lavori.Mi permette di risparmiare molto tempo nella realizzazione di documenti grazie alla sua leggerezza nel gestire le immagini anche di grandi dimensioni.

Pros

La leggerezza con la quale è possibile sviluppare progetti anche di grandi dimensioni.La semplicità di utilizzo degli strumenti.La possibilità di trovare online risorse utili se si ha bisogno di conoscere una funzione particolare.

Cons

Non viene fornito nessun modello per impostazione predefinita.Le immagini e le foto in stock non mi entusiasmano.

Switched from

[Inkscape](https://www.capterra.com/p/178240/Inkscape/)[GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program)](https://www.capterra.com/p/168960/GIMP/)

Perché Affinity Designer è molto più leggero. Non da alcun problema e nessun crash. Cosa che mi accadeva in precedenza con altri software.

Review Source

SS

Silvia S.  
Grafica e web designer  
Graphic Design  
Used the software for: 2+ years

### "Ottimo software per progettazione vettoriale"

July 15, 2023

5.0

Niente da invidiare ad altri software più costosi. Ho iniziato ad utilizzarlo per curiosità già alla versione beta e continuo ad utilizzarlo adesso che è alla sua seconda versione. Lo trovo molto completo e lo suggerisco a tutti.

Pros

E' un ottimo software per la progettazione vettoriale. Lo trovo molto completo e il team è sempre alla ricerca di nuove funzionalità.

Cons

Non trovo inconvenienti, forse l'unico è quello che non supporta i mockup creati con Photoshop e quindi non permette un utilizzo al suo interno. Ma oltre questo, è un ottimo software.

Switched from

[Adobe Photoshop](https://www.capterra.com/p/229092/Adobe-Photoshop/)

Per provare e testarlo e anche perché pur essendo economico, lo trovo molto completo e semplice nell'utilizzo.

Review Source

Drijen S.  
CEO  
Information Technology and Services  
Used the software for: 2+ years

### "A perfect replacement for Adobe"

November 14, 2023

5.0

I was looking for an alternative to the Adobe suite, which have been great, but obviously expensive as I needed to pay each month. I heard about Affinity range (Photo, Designer and Publisher) and thought I should try them out. Of course, as with anything there were concerns about moving to a new platform, compatability etc, so I stayed with Adobe for a few more months which I became more familiar with Affinity. After a few years of using Designer, I am not missing Illustrator The layouts are almost identical, the tools are almost the same. The one thing I miss is the vector tracing, but apart from that I'm happy to have made the switch

Pros

Feature rich, One time payment (vs subscription), easy to use (coming from Adobe Illustrator)

Cons

Missing integration with Adobe fonts, text distortion tools, vector tracing

Switched from

[Adobe Illustrator](https://www.capterra.com/p/227125/Adobe-Illustrator/)

One-time payment vs Monthly cost, recommended by others

Review Source

DN

Debbie N.  
Manager  
Health, Wellness and Fitness  
Used the software for: 6-12 months

### "Affinity Designer from a Person who is not techie"

February 2, 2023

5.0

The main problem that Affinity Designer solves is the need for a comprehensive and powerful vector graphics design solution. Affinity Designer provides users with a suite of tools and features to create sophisticated vector designs, including vector shapes and paths, complex masking, and advanced color and text manipulation.The benefits of using Affinity Designer include:1. Professional-grade design capabilities: Affinity Designer offers a robust set of tools and features that allow users to create sophisticated and professional-looking vector designs.2. Intuitive user interface: Affinity Designer has a clean and intuitive user interface, making it easy to create complex designs with ease.3. Full compatibility with Adobe Creative Suite: Affinity Designer is fully compatible with Adobe Creative Suite, allowing users to continue to work on their Adobe projects within the Affinity Designer interface.4. Cost savings: Affinity Designer is a one-time purchase, which means users don't need to pay for a subscription or purchase upgrades. This can save users money in the long run.

Pros

\-Affinity Designer is an intuitive and powerful vector design software that is easy to use.-It has an efficient workflow and allows for the creation of complex designs quickly and accurately.-It offers a wide range of tools to help create professional-looking designs.-It is compatible with both Mac and Windows.-It has a great user interface and is well organized.-It offers support for vector and raster images.-It can be used to create illustrations, logos, icons, diagrams, and web page layouts.

Cons

\-The learning curve can be a bit steep for those who are new to vector design.-It lacks some of the advanced features found in other vector design software.-It does not have a built-in library of templates and shapes.

Review Source

PU

Pinar U.  
Designer  
Design  
Used the software for: 1-2 years

### "My Preferred App For Vector Drawing"

November 11, 2022

5.0

Even though it has some restrictions, I love using Affinity Designer and use it instead of Illustrator about 90% of the time. I switch back to Illustrator only when I have something I can't achieve with Affinity Designer. But the app gets updates pretty regularly so I'm hoping that it will only get better and better with each update.

Pros

The interface felt so easy to handle, uncluttered, and user-friendly after Illustrator. Even though Affinity Designer lacked some features that Illustrator has, it became my favorite drawing app very quickly and is still after using it for more than a year daily.

Cons

I'm hoping that Affinity will introduce an image trace feature soon. This feature is not only important for tracing images (which I don't really do) but also for using some custom vector brushes. For example, I bought some lovely watercolor vector brushes for Affinity Designer from a website just to realize that what I draw with them in Affinity Designer doesn't become a real vector image. When I tried the Illustrator version of the same brushes in Illustrator, I could get true vector drawings. Then I realized how important image tracing actually is.

Switched from

[Adobe Illustrator](https://www.capterra.com/p/227125/Adobe-Illustrator/)

I saw reviews about Affinity Designer and was curious about how it was. When I tried it, I realized how much more I like working with it compared to Illustrator. Considering it being a one-time-off purchase, unlike Illustrator's subscription-based system, I wanted to switch to Affinity Designer altogether but couldn't entirely yet due to some missing features.

Review Source

Steve K.  
Director  
Information Technology and Services  
Used the software for: 2+ years

### "Great alternative the Adobe Illustrator"

November 30, 2021

5.0

I use a lot, especially when designing stuff for softball t-shirts or for laser engraving.

Pros

Great set of features and sensible pricing, updated regularly

Cons

Sometimes doesn't export how you'd expect in all formats

Alternatives considered

[Linearity Curve](https://www.capterra.com/p/178239/Linearity-Curve/)

Reason for choosing Affinity Designer

It works and got used to the workflow, works in the same fashion for all Affinity products (Photo, Publisher)

Switched from

[Adobe Illustrator](https://www.capterra.com/p/227125/Adobe-Illustrator/)

When they went cloud and subscription based, Affinity products are a one off fee

Review Source

DL

Destiny L.  
Owner / Graphic Designer  
Graphic Design  
Used the software for: 2+ years

### "So impressed with Affinity Designer!"

February 18, 2022

5.0

Overall, this program has been more beneficial than any other art program I've used. I create coloring books and the vectoring tools have made the process so much faster, easier, and cleaner looking than the hand-drawn rastered techniques I was using before.

Pros

This is the easiest vectoring program I've ever used for lineart and I'm amazed at its affordability compared to insanely-priced subscription services like Adobe.

Cons

I only have two gripes with this program. 1) As of the writing of this review, you can't merge vectored strokes into one layer. You can merge multiple shapes into one shape but every vectored line/stroke has its own layer and can only be 'grouped', not merged. When I'm done with a lineart, I want it to be one layer-- not thousands. 2) Protecting/locking PDFs from editing does not seem to be possible at the moment and that's a huge security issue for a lot of artists who don't want their work edited without authorization. Would really like to see this issue fixed.

Reason for choosing Affinity Designer

I looked at a lot of free and inexpensive art programs that had positive reviews but I finally decided to go with Affinity Designer (plus Affinity Photo and Publisher) because I really wanted a vectoring program and I liked that the 'Affinity Trinity' programs effectively replace Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign when used together.

Switched from

[Adobe Photoshop](https://www.capterra.com/p/229092/Adobe-Photoshop/)[PaintTool SAI](https://www.capterra.com/p/229456/PaintTool-SAI/)

I was starting to have glitches with my very old copy of Photoshop and there was no way I could afford the subscription for the latest version of the program. I started looking for alternatives and stumbled on Affinity's products, which happened to be 50% off of their already low prices at the time and had great reviews-- so I took the plunge and am so happy I did.

Review Source

JB

Jeremy B.  
Writer  
Writing and Editing  
Used the software for: 6-12 months

### "Gotta Get Them All"

March 31, 2021

5.0

I should start by saying that I didn't think I'd need Affinity Designer when I bought it. The only reason I bought it (and its product sibling, Affinity Photo) was because the product I actually wanted (Affinity Publisher) has a component called "Studio Link" that allows owners of Designer and Photo to switch "personas," which is a fancy word for summoning the tool set for Designer or Photo, whenever they need to update an image, logo, vector, landscape photo, etc. within a print layout for magazines, books (my exact use case), posters, fliers, or any other printed publication for business. By having a copy of Designer, I can use its full feature set right inside Publisher (same with Photo). I never have to exit the program or swap the image file I need to work on. It's not just innovative, it's efficient: one of the functional reasons (outside the obvious cost benefit) to using Affinity Anything over Adobe Anything (including Illustrator, it's main competition). But the funny thing is that once I bought Designer (and Photo), I saw a need for it. It's now my go-to for designing vector images, which can help me to make a logo for my website or a character + scene or idea design for my book covers (in comedies and coming-of-age fiction). The hardest part is actually learning how to draw with vectors. Spoiler Alert: It's not hard, even if you're an amateur like me. Get the Affinity Designer textbook or watch expert tutorials, and you'll figure it out in no time.

Pros

The main reason I bought the program was because it integrates with Affinity Publisher, another tool from the same company that I needed for book design. This is probably more of a pro in Publisher's camp, but Designer's compatibility with Affinity's entire suite of products made it attractive. But it didn't take long for me to realize that I needed a program to design vector graphics, and Affinity Designer scratches that itch well. I can't compare its feature set to its competitor, Adobe Illustrator, because I don't use Adobe products, so I can't discuss what it lacks. But when it comes to essential layered shape designs and special effects (and creating patterns, and designing logos, and so on), it includes everything you need to get the job done well. It's also easy to use. The product's store page also sells a textbook that holds your hand through designing projects, so it's very learn-as-you-go. The video tutorials also offer quick tips and best practices, and you can get additional design ideas from Affinity's YouTube channel. The price is unbeatable. It charges an ownership fee, not a subscription fee, so you pay for the product once (and depending on your budget, you don't pay much) and keep it forever. The price includes all updates within that version, and it updates enough to maintain user confidence. Overall, my opinion is that if you care about graphics of any kind, this is a tool worth having. But you should get all of Affinity's products. They're worth it.

Cons

If I were a dedicated graphic design artist, I might have an opinion here. But as a writer and sometimes game designer, my graphic needs are governed by situation, and so far my situation has not revealed any frustrations that I wouldn't extend to all Affinity products. So, the only actual negative I have right now is trivial. I'd need to use the software consistently to become excellent, and I don't need it often enough to become excellent. But if I were to use it consistently, the tools it offers would help me become excellent. So, there's no real con to buying this program, especially at its price point. Keeping track of the art boards gave me a headache the first time I used them. I think I may have used them wrong. A true graphic designer probably wouldn't have that kind of problem. It would be like a non-writer trying to learn how to use the style sheets in Microsoft Word (or Affinity Publisher, for that matter). Not hopeless, but not easy on the first try. No, the only nitpick I have is the same about all of Affinity's products. To update them, you have to manually download and install the newest version. Each product is half a gigabyte in size. Multiply that by three (because all three share the same updates), and it can get expensive on your hard drive if you don't have that delete key ready. It would be nicer if they had an auto-updating option available (for those who trust the integrity of updates). But that's about it. Oh, and Affinity likes RAM. Lots of RAM.

Reason for choosing Affinity Designer

When I saw what Affinity Designer (and Photo and Publisher) could accomplish as a complete design layout suite, and when I saw how little I had to spend to access such power, I couldn't justify leaving it behind. It was literally a case of "I don't know if I can afford to buy this, but I do know that I can't afford not buying it." So I bought it. And I could afford it.

Review Source

PK

Panagiotis K.  
Founder & Managing Director  
Media Production  
Used the software for: 2+ years

### "Vector graphics for everybody"

September 3, 2019

5.0

As the leader of a small-to-medium-enterprise and an educator in sound for media, many times I have the need to create simple graphics. From schematics and diagrams to icons and beyond. I use them for my company's internal knowledge-base, when I blog, for my presentations in classrooms, and even to create our own software graphical assets from mockups to finished product. First of all, it's no secret that working in vector is what every software developer should do, as it allows for the generation of all the graphic assets to be made in various bitmap resolutions, so your application looks clear and crisp in any device. Lately, even the Unity game engine introduced a pipeline to use vector graphic assets to create games, so that they render in any resolution, I definitely recommend checking this out if you are a game developer. Anyway, Affinity Designer always delivered a great experience for me and all my colleagues said that I became a graphic designer, which is not true, but it is a great compliment, and I really own that to Affinity Designer. The exporter feature is one huge time saver, you should check out the videos they have about this one and also the rest of Affinity team's video tutorials in Vimeo. Overall, the experience of using the application can be described as smooth, fast and easy.

Pros

What I liked most about this program, is the workflow and interface. The developers managed to create a simple to use application for vector graphics, that everybody can operate. I can't remember how many times I got frustrated trying to make a simple graphic in other programs, while in Affinity Designer, the workflow is mapped so well, that everybody can use it. From computer graphics professionals around the world, to amateurs like me, it is straight forward to open the application and start creating. The online help system is awesome and omni-present and the graphical interface is sleek and looks good in any monitor that I tried it, even small ones. I also consider a great bonus that the company keeps a straight policy about pricing, they don't use the subscription model which is very good for SMEs.

Cons

Some advanced vector tools are missing, but the software is still young and I'm sure it will develop to a great tool. After all, the developers seem to have usability, ease of use and fast workflows in mind, so they add new features very carefully, to keep Affinity Designer the great tool that it is now.

Switched from

[Adobe Illustrator](https://www.capterra.com/p/227125/Adobe-Illustrator/)

Over-complicated without making the interface and workflow intuitive, they only seem to add features to this program as they go and expect from the users to follow this progress from years ago. So I don't consider it a good onboarding process. Also subscription pricing model for a graphics creation application is only for those who make a lot of money by just making computer graphics, which many people who need graphics don't.

Review Source

RC

Richard C.  
Creative Director  
Graphic Design  
Used the software for: 2+ years

### "A powerful tool for all levels..."

October 28, 2022

5.0

It's been stress-free. If ever I get stuck trying to do something I just search for video tutorials and there's always something to help you on your way. I've never had to contact support and to be honest, I don't even think I've had to upgrade more than once, and If I have it was a free upgrade. Affinity is really a great provider and suite of tools. Like I said I used to be all Adobe, but now I haven't looked back. Best workflow decision I've ever made.

Pros

An easy-to-use layout design tool that is capable of absolutely everything I need to do. I've been in the creative industry for over 30 years and Affinity Designer can handle everything I'm throwing at it from logo design and layout to full-blown artwork, and art collections I'm developing. It integrates well with the Affinity family of products (obviously). Essentially it's easy, fast, full-featured, and straightforward to get started. I used to use Illustrator (a little) but now I use Affinity and have never looked back. The transition took me minutes rather than hours. It's very intuitive.

Cons

I haven't hit any limitations with the software yet. I always generally feel the things we don't like about the software is that we've mainly not learned how to use particular features or combinations yet, so really it's on us to work it out and innovate. Sure in any software there can be occasional bugs. But I haven't come across any yet, or anything particularly frustrating about the workflow, tool, or system as a whole.

Alternatives considered

[Adobe Illustrator](https://www.capterra.com/p/227125/Adobe-Illustrator/)[Keynote](https://www.capterra.com/p/246648/Keynote/)

Reason for choosing Affinity Designer

Affinity Designer offered the same (as far as I could tell) tools and features as Illustrator at the same price for a lifetime as a couple of months as the cost of the Adobe solution. I did wonder for a while, given the nature of my work at the time was becoming less 'accurate' and 'precise' whether I could get a long using Keynote as a hack. But no I decided to invest with Affinity and make the change. It was easy, efficient, and the right decision.

Review Source

VR

Verified Reviewer  
Director of Marketing  
Health, Wellness and Fitness  
Used the software for: I used a free trial

### "Better than I expected"

April 24, 2020

4.0

I saw ads for the Affinity suite in the past, but always dismissed them as one of those half-baked knock-offs of photoshop that like to rope you in with "free"trials that don't let you save your files or something. Turns out I was very wrong! Affinity Designer and Publisher are both legitimate and very good pieces of software. They are feature rich, have some innovative features that aren't seen in other software and have ongoing development with regular updates. Affinity Designer is quite intuitive, can do most things Illustrator can, can open and edit Illustrator files, so the transition was very smooth, with hardly any learning curve. Still had to google some to to figure out how certain operations were done in Designer that were different to Illustrator, and grapple with a few odd choices the devs made, over all I've been pretty pleased with Designer. Decided to transition from Illustrator because it didn't make sense for us to pay for the subscription model because we only need to use it several times a year for creating product labels, and starting and cancelling subscriptions constantly is just cumbersome. Plus we already have a Photoshop and Lightroom subscription. I tried to move from Illustrator to Inkscape in the past, but that was just impossible, Inkscape can't open Illustrator files properly (even PDFs) and lacks so many features that it wasn't possible to use for what I needed it.

Pros

Coming from Illustrator, it's very easy to adapt to, just minor differences in some workflows, but mostly it's intuitive. It can open and edit Illustrator files if they are pdf compatible, even deal with complex things like knockout groups correctly. It's also has some great ideas that I was pleasantly surprised by that made the workflow better and faster. Affinity devs listen to user feedback and regularly update their apps, so any features that it lacks it will probably get soon.

Cons

Lack of a good font manager, it just takes the fonts you have installed in your OS. No Google fonts integration or anything like Adobe Fonts, so if you're missing fonts you have to manually find them online and (buy or) download them the old-fashioned way. Some odd workflow choices, minor things that can slow you down. Like no native way to permanently reset the bounding box of an object after it has been rotated, they have a toggle that works for 1 operation and switches back to the (skewed or rotated) original. The align UI and the order of actions to chose what to align to what is strange and can waste time. Other minor things like that that I ran into, but all in all it works well and gets the job done.

Alternatives considered

[Adobe Illustrator](https://www.capterra.com/p/227125/Adobe-Illustrator/)[Inkscape](https://www.capterra.com/p/178240/Inkscape/)

Reason for choosing Affinity Designer

An affordable one-time fee for a product that's just as good as illustrator. Works properly, has all the necessary features and is compatible with other software unlike Inkscape.

Review Source

Jeremy D.  
Lead Designer  
Media Production  
Used the software for: 2+ years

### "An Affordable Champion"

May 5, 2022

5.0

I've been looking for an alternative to Adobe illustrator for years now, and Affinity Designer is the one. The interface is much faster to open and lighter in feel, and it offers pretty much all the features one could want from a vector editor. You can jump between vector and raster quite easily too.

Pros

Affinity Designer is very inexpensive, but you wouldn't know it from using it. This is a full-on, best-in-class vector graphics application for designing logos, icons, UI, mock-ups and more.

Cons

While Affinity Designer is very similar to Adobe Illustrator, it does behave quite differently in some ways, and will take a little longer to adjust coming from Illustrator. That being said, it's still very easy to use.

Alternatives considered

[GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program)](https://www.capterra.com/p/168960/GIMP/)

Reason for choosing Affinity Designer

Much more professional interface than Gimp.

Switched from

[Adobe Illustrator](https://www.capterra.com/p/227125/Adobe-Illustrator/)

Very affordable, no monthly contract.

Review Source

Kade M.  
Blender 3d Artist & UE Indie Game Developer  
Computer Games  
Used the software for: 6-12 months

### "Affinity Designer is an Excellent Must-Have Design Toolkit for any Designer/Artist/Developer"

January 27, 2022

5.0

So far I really love it, very easy to use and very fun to play with despite the confusion of trying to understand and learn this new design software which I feel is worth its value.

Pros

I really love how easy it is to just jump right in and start using it with a lot of useful creation tools, profiles, and more. There is a lot of useful functions, brushes, text, designs, shapes and such crammed into it.

Cons

Not very friendly to 3d Artists and Game Developers in my opinion. The software is somewhat confusing compared to others so I am stuck having to learn something new since it doesn't follow traditional methods which might not be such a bad thing aside from the confusion of trying to use it more due to the different toolset profiles. It also appears to lack filters and affects so that means I would have to use, create, or go get another software to use alongside it and I was really hoping to have an all-in-one tool. This has left me with a design of getting Affinity Photo or going back to Krita.

Switched from

[Krita](https://www.capterra.com/p/209859/Krita/)

Krita is good but I kept running into random crashing/lagging issues which left me with no choice but to use other software at times and I found it to be rather annoying for that reason after dealing with it constantly.

Review Source

DB

Deborah B.  
Artist  
Graphic Design  
Used the software for: 6-12 months

### "Versatility and Easy to Learn"

July 1, 2022

5.0

Time saving: - Repetitive tasks: There are some intuitive features I'm learning about, while I was creating a template for printable stickers, I discovered after one 'duplicate' was dragged under the last, the next one would go to the space under that one (with just using the duplicate again). Saving time as I learn more and more.

Pros

This is the easiest to learn in graphic design software. I like that I can edit parts of a design and link or embed the update. I have created book covers (for print), e-book templates, and recently a sticker series (convention logo sticker items for event items). It has helped me save time (revising templates instead of building from scratch with each one), and I was able to create exactly what the client wanted. I've also created marketing graphics for social and launches of books and media (for clients). I can create custom templates to save time with each project (and there are a lot of built in custom templates already).

Cons

The main thing I like the least is that the Affinity software is not 'one' integration. It is three different programs. This is not my favorite thing for a few reasons, but, mostly I wish they were one, because I have started at least three projects in the wrong one (of the three I have).

Alternatives considered

[Krita](https://www.capterra.com/p/209859/Krita/)[Adobe Illustrator](https://www.capterra.com/p/227125/Adobe-Illustrator/)

Reason for choosing Affinity Designer

I chose Affinity over Adobe because of price, and over Krita because it seems to work best when I would drop a finished design into it and then adjust the CMYK (so I basically used GIMP and Krita together). It is easier to just use Affinity Designer (for designing and CMYK).

Switched from

[Adobe InDesign](https://www.capterra.com/p/233314/Adobe-InDesign/)[GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program)](https://www.capterra.com/p/168960/GIMP/)

GIMP does not have true CMYK option (for printing services who still use CMYK Printers), and Adobe is expensive in comparison (Affinity has NO monthly fee ).

Review Source

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