# Page 8 | Affinity Designer Reviews 2026. Verified Reviews, Pros & Cons | Capterra > Page 8 - 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 --- Affinity Designer 4.7 (454) [View alternatives](https://www.capterra.com/p/110533/WebPlus-X4/alternatives/) Provider data verified by our Software Research team, and reviews moderated by our Reviews Verification team. [Learn more](https://www.capterra.com/our-story/) * * * Last updated March 13th, 2026 # Page 8 - Reviews of Affinity Designer ## Showing most helpful reviews Showing 176-200 of 454 Reviews Sort by: Most Helpful Rating Company Size Reviewer's Role Length of Use Frequency of Use AS Alexandra S. Software Projektmanagerin Information Technology and Services Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Gutes Tool für wenig Geld" February 6, 2024 4.0 Bin recht zufrieden mit dem Preise/Leistungsverhältnis. Pros Sehr günstig im Vergleich zu Adobe-Produkten. Intuitiv bedienbar. Schnelle Lernkurve. Cons Batch-Verarbeitung und Konvertierung in andere Formate könnten noch ausgebaut werden. Switched from [Adobe Illustrator](https://www.capterra.com/p/227125/Adobe-Illustrator/) Der Illustrator war sehr sperrig zu bedienen, zu teuer. Review Source GS Gnankoye S. Data Engineer Internet Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Affinity Designer review" November 8, 2022 5.0 Affinity Designer is very good at creating its designs Pros I am a graphic designer and this Affinity Designer tool helps me a lot in my work, it is very simple and easy to use. Thanks to the developers Cons Sincerely, the software is good and without problems Review Source MA Milton A. Founder Design Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Full competition in the vector sector" April 15, 2021 4.0 Its price and business style makes it affordable. Their support and community is excellent and you can resolve any queries in less than a day. I have used it on all 3 platforms (Win, Mac and iPad) and it deploys quickly and efficiently on any platform. Pros It is an essential App in my work. Easy to use and intuitive, multiplatform on Win Mac iPad (no iPhone). It is constantly updated and is a reference in the current design software. Library of plugins, brushes, fonts, gradients... own and third party. Very good community to ask questions and excellent tutorial channel. Cons Compared to applications with much more time and experience, they may not have more complex tools. But with knowledge of what you are doing you can achieve the same result. Alternatives considered [Adobe Creative Cloud](https://www.capterra.com/p/48969/Adobe-Creative-Cloud/) Reason for choosing Affinity Designer Price, renewal system, evolution of another App that was not the usual benchmark. Design of the App itself. Review Source AS Augusto S. President Marketing and Advertising Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Great compentence to the monopoly" May 12, 2020 4.0 In general, it is a great software for graphic design, in my opinion, the best alternative for Photoshop without being attached to a monthly subscription. Pros Allow us to create simple or complex graphic designs without being the slave of a monthly subscription as the Adobe line of products. Plus, the price is extremely reasonable. Cons This software is the continuation of a previous software Serif developed called DrawPlus, so I feel they need to fine tune some of the funcionabilities to be more stable, and performs as the previous DrawPlus, even Affinity is more powerful and have a lot of more features, but some of them do not produce the expected final results. Review Source VR Verified Reviewer Graphic Designer Design Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Affinity Designer is a great money-saving option " November 9, 2019 5.0 Affinity Designer is a great choice for any designer looking for a cheap alternate to the most popular tools of the market. I loved that the interfaces and tools were similar to what I was used to. Pros A lot of the features I used in other softwares were present in some form here. There was a bit of a learning curve, but they kept interfaces similar enough as to not totally confuse users making the jump. Cons There were a couple of features that I used in other softwares that were missing. I did also like how different programs integrated with one another, but since this is the only one everything seemed a bit packed in. Review Source Oumarou S. CEO Internet Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "One the best tool for graphic designers " May 25, 2022 4.0 I was using this tool for almost my design project. But switched to another one easier to use. Pros The user interface and experience are awesome. Cons Affinity can be complicated for the first time but if you take the time to understand it, it’s awesome Review Source VR Verified Reviewer Writer, Researcher, Mentor & Consultant - Exercise and Strength and Conditioning E-Learning Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Over the moon with this app." February 5, 2019 5.0 Very positive - I was a pixelmator user because I like simplicity but this is several steps up. Pros Great range of functions and easy to learn and use. I purchased Affinity Designer to complement a Watcom tablet. Didn’t want to pay the big photoshop money and AD was a great deal cheaper and has the same (as far as I know) functionality. I've been using it consistently for 6 months and keep getting more proficient and learning new things. Cons Hardly a negative, but so much functionality it tends to be a bit overwhelming. The different personas were also a bit confusing at first. Minor stuff! Review Source Leslie B. Owner Marketing and Advertising Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Great Design Program" January 3, 2020 5.0 Mostly love it. I am able to do what I need to do. Pros I love that I did not have to pay ongoing for this tool. I paid once and own it for life. I am not a graphics designer and am self-taught and I find it fairly easy to use. Cons Most of the things I don't like are really my own lack of skills in design and in learning more about this program. I do wish there were some basic clip art drawings to use. Reason for choosing Affinity Designer I was going to start using Adobe but I was not crazy about the monthly fee and for some reason their online system was not accepting my payment so I went looking and found this. Happy I did! Review Source VR Verified Reviewer Head of Technology Architecture & Planning Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Affinity Designer review" January 7, 2022 4.0 Very please with the introduction into the office, we have used this affectively and reduced the need for adobe while saving money. Pros Easy to use, very similar to Adobe products and eases transition away. Great price and good quality software. Cons Could be better support from supplier for training but there are more online videos now available. Reason for choosing Affinity Designer n/a Review Source JC Jawad C. Acting Head Digital Solution chez UBA GUINEE Internet Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Affinity Designer software review" October 10, 2022 5.0 Affinity Designer is perfect for companies that want to create advertising banners Pros Affinity Designer allows me to make my advertising banners on the products to be sold with a good quality Cons In truth it is a better tool to support for any Review Source KL Kathy L. Designer Apparel & Fashion Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Great Software for Graphic and Vector Design" April 12, 2022 5.0 Pros The interface of Affinity Designer is my favorite part of the software. It is super easy to use and a great alternative to other Vector Softwares. Cons There was a learning curve getting used to all the shortcut keys. However, once I'm used to it, it was seamless to use. Switched from [Adobe Illustrator](https://www.capterra.com/p/227125/Adobe-Illustrator/) Affinity is a cheaper alternative to Illustrator. Review Source JR James R. Developer and entrepreneur Publishing Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Where to begin? So much excellence." March 26, 2019 5.0 Pros Unseating the great Adobe Illustrator is no easy task. Illustrator has been a stalwart of the design industry for decades. If there's a contender out there, this is it. I dare say, Affinity Designer may be better than AI. While there are some serious migration issues if you're an AI veteran, within a week or two, you will have forgotten about Illustrator. What's most impressive about AD is that it's blazing fast, super stable and has no monthly subscription requirement. It's also got a host of great features for app / software interface design, and reusable elements to speed up complex images. The brush tools are great, and the support for drawing tablets is well implemented. You'll also find support for loads of image formats and portability to Affinity's Photo product. Cons The learning curve is a little daunting for long-time Illlustrator users. For me it had been a long time since I had to learn a new drawing application. Fortunately YouTube is already filling up with tutorial videos and how-to's. If you can get past the awkward early-stage, there's a lot to love here. But be prepared for initial frustration. Review Source VR Verified Reviewer President Animation Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Affinity Designer - Exactly What I Need" May 16, 2019 5.0 I was searching for an escape route from Illustrator when I came across Affinity Designer. It was on sale at the time and I figured, 'how could I go wrong?' I bought it and haven't looked back since. I've also purchased Affinity Photo and I've been working with the Beta of their Publisher app. All are very impressive and I'd highly recommend them to anyone like me, looking for alternatives. Pros The interface is clean and makes good sense after watching a few of the tutorial videos. I really like how vertices adjustment handles work, they are quite intuitive for me. The non-destructive effects are great. Cons I found it a bit difficult at first to understand how layers worked, but after watching tutorials and some experimentation, it's become second nature. You can import \*.ai files but you can't export them. Not a huge deal since it exports very nice PDF and EPS files. Review Source Jason H. Web Designer Computer Software Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Extremely viable alternative to Photoshop and Illustrator" July 29, 2019 5.0 Pros The software is very familiar if you come from Photoshop and Illustrator, but manages to make it a smoother and more modern feeling experience. As far as I can tell all the main tools you'd need from Adobe's software is here. Best of all, you pay the price you'd pay for one month of Adobe software... and you actually own it! So if you can't or don't want to pay for the upgrade in a couple years, you aren't just up poop creek like you are with Adobe. Cons The only con I have encountered so far is the lack of a button you can hold to switch to colorpicker. This would speed up my workflow a fair bit. Alternatives considered [Sketch](https://www.capterra.com/p/171364/Sketch/) Reason for choosing Affinity Designer I love that Affinity handles both Vector and Raster, and works on Mac and Windows as well as iOS. Switched from [Adobe Illustrator](https://www.capterra.com/p/227125/Adobe-Illustrator/) Adobe is too expensive and you don't own the projects you make with it, since opening them is dependent on an ongoing license. Review Source Brian J. Chief Marketing Officer Information Technology and Services Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Affinity Designer is Best Alternative to Other Expensive Design Tools" August 12, 2018 5.0 I use Affinity Designer every day to created and edit images. One of the best purchases I've made in a long time. Pros One of the best things about Affinity Designer is the price. It's a one-time payment and the software is just as good as Adobe Illustrator. Also, all the shortcut keys you're already used to simply work. Cons Has a small learning curve, but not as much as you would think. It's very similiar to Adobe already. Review Source VR Verified Reviewer Tutor Education Management Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "Great Illustrator Competitor" May 12, 2020 5.0 My overall experience with Affinity Designer has been a great one. It's an affordable alternative to Adobe Illustrator, especially given that it's not based on a subscription. Using it is a breeze, and using it with Affinity Photo and Affinity Publisher is just as easy. Pros AD is easy to use for new users and those who have experience in Adobe Illustrator. The layout is clean, and adjustable, and the application has "workspaces" to select from that change the layout for different purposes. One of the best things about this software is its cohesion with the other Affinity applications. Need to edit a photo? There's an easy "Open in Affinity Photo" option, which opens THE WHOLE FILE in Photo, and then you can just as easily return to Designer. No headache of file formats, editing a picture, saving it, dragging it in—everything can be done with a quick click and switch. Cons Some of the tools have a learning curve to them. This is more in the sense that they function in a very specific way and not as broadly as the same tool would in something like Adobe Illustrator. Switched from [Adobe Illustrator](https://www.capterra.com/p/227125/Adobe-Illustrator/) Cost License vs. subscription Review Source GR Giuseppe R. Designer, Developer Design Used the software for: 2+ years ### "Completo, economico e intuitivo " January 23, 2023 5.0 Pros Quale programma fornisce un’interfaccia così seamless, completa ad un costo così competitivo e senza obbligo di sottoscrizione ad un abbonamento?Semplicemente nessuno. Affinity Designer, e in generale la suite Affinity, sono un fidato alleato nel lavoro.Eccellente rapidità del software e interfaccia utente pulita rendono il software non solo un valido competitor di Adobe Illustrator, quanto un possibile valido sostituito. Cons L’azienda non ha ancora investito seriamente nel dedicare risorse alla prototipazione web ai livelli di Figma. Review Source BT Boris T. Manager Information Technology and Services Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Best vector editor for a fraction of the price" March 6, 2021 5.0 We used Adobe for a long time but decided to switch to Affinity Designer when they offered the free trial and we are very happy we did! It saved us hundreds of dollars in just the few months that we were using it. If I could rate it any higher, I would! The entire Serif company is amazing at what they do and they are rolling out major updates very often. We use it for all of our graphic design needs, from logotypes to icons we use in our apps and, frankly, I will never look back to any other graphic design software. Pros It is super affordable! Affinity even lowered their prices 50% at the start of the pandemic and offered a three month free trial. It has all the options Illustrator has, and is as clean and usable as Illustrator. Cons There is nothing I could find so far that I didn't like! Affinity Designer is the way to go! Alternatives considered [Inkscape](https://www.capterra.com/p/178240/Inkscape/) Reason for choosing Affinity Designer Affinity offered a gracious trial Switched from [Adobe Illustrator](https://www.capterra.com/p/227125/Adobe-Illustrator/)[Inkscape](https://www.capterra.com/p/178240/Inkscape/) To avoid high fees that come with software as a service. It is unfair to pay for software on a subscription basis. Review Source VR Verified Reviewer CTO Computer Software Used the software for: Less than 6 months ### "Excellent pour les designer" November 30, 2023 4.0 Pros Excellent si on veut découvrir d'autre univers autres qu'Adobe Cons Pas d'inconvénients trouvés lors de l'utilisation Review Source ISC Ibrahima Sory C. Consultant SAS - Conformité RGPD Internet Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Affinity Designer review" November 10, 2022 5.0 Affinity Designer has very good design qualities Pros Two years of use in the creation of my graphic design, it is very good qualities Cons Personally I still don't have a problem first Review Source Michael C. Associate Manager, Instructional Development Consumer Goods Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "The adobe KILLER! Finally a vector graphics software that doesn't require a subscription" August 9, 2018 5.0 Affinity Designer is a powerful tool that is easy to use, even for beginners. Pros Affinity Designer is the best vector graphics authoring platform I have used. I have used Illustrator for years and even tried open source options like GIMP and Inkscape. Affinity allows me to take existing .ai files, import them, edit and export in a variety of formats. Best of all, its a one time fee . Cons The ONLY feature this program is missing is Live Trace, and frankly, live trace is the only reason I still have Illustrator installed Review Source Rachel R. Owner/Blogger Online Media Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Vector Design Without Monthly Fees" April 8, 2021 5.0 While it's "missing" a few features here and there that Illustrator users will be familiar with, overall, this is a pretty comparable program (in terms of capabilities), with high compatibility for Adobe files. It has a relatively steep learning curve -- as is, in my experience, pretty typical for all vector illustration programs -- but it's one of the more intuitive ones I've seen, especially for those who already have Illustrator experience. And the price point is radically lower, making it a great option for those who make moderate use of such a program, rather than having it as the core of their business. Pros This is compatible with Adobe files, opening .ai, .pdf, etc. and editing pretty smoothly -- without the ongoing monthly fees. Cons Although powerful overall, this is lacking a few of the features found in Illustrator. Most of these will probably be non-issues for all but "power users," but a couple persistently annoying absences include the inability to copy and paste formatting from one element to another, and (significantly), the lack of an image trace option. Review Source VR Verified Reviewer Art Teacher Education Management Used the software for: 1-2 years ### "Designer Review " January 24, 2020 5.0 Overall Affinity products are amazing and what I would encourage anyone looking for a lot of features for a good price to go with. Pros Honestly this is such an amazing alternative to Photoshop and Illustrator. It is a one time buy that is updated frequently and is what I suggest to all of my students who take themselves and the things they make seriously but not serious enought to pay a car payment to get it each month like the Adobe Creative cloud. Functions great and amazing price for what you get. Cons I think that there are frequent updates which is amazing, I am sure it is just a setting but it would be nice if the updates just happened in the background and I didn't have to actually download and install them. Review Source Khawja S. CEO Information Technology and Services Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Best Graphic Design Software Ever Used" October 4, 2019 5.0 I am using this software to design graphics for website, facebook page banner & covers. Pros I have been using graphic design softwares for last 18 years now. I have used Photoshop, PhotoImpact, Corel Draw but I find this one very best and very easy to use. Any new user can also start using it without any prior knowledge of Graphic Designing. As compared to other softwares available in the market its very light weight hardly a 400MB installer. Cons I would like to see more file format support in it like CDR, AI etc Review Source Irina D. Director Used the software for: 6-12 months ### "Affordable alternative to expensive office suites " June 29, 2018 5.0 Alternative to more expensive grpahic suites. Pros Not everybody works as a full-time graphic designer. Some people need to develop infograpics or illustration from time to time, Affinity Designer was developed with these people in mind. It has the same features as competing suites but is 10x time less expensive. Cons Up to recenlty I had a problem when this software would crash sporadically. Support was not very helpful. The problem was solved when I switched rendering from default to "videcard". Review Source Similar Products Featured