Choosing the best graphic design software is essential to maximize your skills and meet all project criteria. With the versatility and capabilities to elevate your drawings, the best graphic design software should not have a high learning curve. Finding a graphics program that fits your goals in terms of style, expertise, and price range can be challenging.
This article provides an overview of the top 5 graphic design software for beginner designers. It should help you select a tool to fulfill your needs and support you as you progress through the graphic design learning process.
Adobe Photoshop
These days, graphic design is synonymous with Photoshop. Adobe is the market leader in the photo and design software market, and it did not earn that name without reason.
If you analyze this design tool, you will discover it has the best color management, layer handling, and selection tools. It also uses AI to automate tasks such as object removal and image cleaning.
After using the new Photoshop, you can see that Adobe’s Firefly and Sensei models provide remarkable performance, from subject selection to object removal. Even though the outcomes aren’t always flawless, Photoshop is still fantastic.
It is also easily integrated with other programs like Lightroom and Illustrator. Adobe Photoshop can be purchased separately or as part of the Creative Cloud All Apps subscription plan.
Affinity Designer 2
Although it has robust raster-type capabilities, Serif Affinity Designer 2 is primarily a vector-based graphic design program for Mac and Windows.
Among many other strong features in this tool, the most recent update to the application focuses mostly on the vector side of the designer. It got a new Shape Builder and a variety of Warp tools.
You will be astonished by how simple and natural it was to use such potent capabilities, which gave an already amazing software more adaptability and versatility.
Its value-for-money price tag and lack of a subscription could lead you to believe otherwise. But, you can contend that Designer has enough features in its toolbox to be taken seriously as an alternative to Adobe Illustrator.
Canva
Canva is an excellent choice for designers and non-designers who are developing branded assets. It is a visual design application that mostly uses dragging and dropping vector graphics to resize.
You have the skills to produce highly professional-looking graphics to increase your online presence, market your company, and more, regardless of your artistic ability or experience with Photoshop. Many templates for quick development may be completely altered to match your identity.
However, this is also a website builder, PDF editor, and basic video creator, all bundled into a design program that serves as a content marketing tool.
Brand-aware businesses could consider the Canva Pro subscription, which unlocks the Brand Kit and guarantees consistency in design throughout all designs.
Adobe Illustrator
This tool has been around forever and will continue to be. Adobe Illustrator is a strong, intricate, and incredibly adaptable vector-based graphics design tool that is rising to fame.
It adds intriguing new features like Intertwine, which lets you adjust the layer order at particular image regions to create intricate overlaps between objects.
Although they still feel like a work in progress, collaboration tools are also welcome. Thanks to Quick Actions, you can make many step modifications with only one click. This has a lot of potential—that is, once you have more than five of them.
A monthly or yearly subscription will also give you access to new collaborative features and several performance-boosting improvements.
CorelDRAW
CorelDRAW is a component of the CorelDRAW Graphics Suite. It comes as a software bundle instead of a single application.
Among the tools in the bundle are Photo-Paint for editing photos, AfterShot for working with RAW files, PowerTRACE for converting bitmap pictures to vectors, and FontManager for managing the text styles you use.
Of course, the biggest attraction is CorelDRAW itself. This desktop publishing tool is also a vector drawing program, allowing you to build projects with multiple-page layouts.
The company has made numerous improvements to the most recent version. These include a simpler template menu, improved handling of web graphics, and vector effect modification. You now have the option to quickly browse through your thumbnails of photographs.
The fact that it has returned to the Mac with an operational version is an additional bonus.
Final thoughts
These are the top 5 design software programs for 2025. When selecting a design program, choose one that balances simplicity and professionalism.
