Best Photo Editors for Mac | Pixenate

You may have used photo editors for Mac before, or perhaps you know what photo editing software is but have never used it on your Mac. In this guide, we’ll not only answer the question “What is a photo editor?”, we’ll also take you through our top 10 photo editors for Mac. Photo editing software is software that’s used to enhance or manipulate digital images - like photos taken on your camera or smartphone. Basic software can help you resize images and add basic effects or filters. More advanced photo editors let you adjust things like clarity, contrast, saturation, and exposure as well as adding effects like grain to your images - you’ll also get more options when it comes to filters. If you’re only going to be editing your holiday snaps, chances are a free or basic photo editor for Mac will suit your needs. For anything else, you’re going to want something more advanced. Take a look through our list and you’re sure to find the right photo editing software for your needs.

PhotoBulk is a handy photo editor for Mac that’s great for batch image editing. Not only does it let you resize, compress, and convert images with a single click, it also helps you rename them and add watermarks in bulk. PhotoBulk lets you add text and datestamps to images, optimize JPG and PNG files, manage metadata, and rename files, keeping your image library in order. You’ll need to pay to purchase the software, but a Lite version is available for free that lets you watermark images in bulk.

Pricing

$10 for full version, Lite version is free.

Short conclusion

PhotoBulk makes it into our list of top photo editors for Mac thanks to its ease of use, advanced photo editing features, and affordable price. This software is the ideal choice for those who need to add watermarks to batches of images or edit in bulk.

Pixelmator Pro is professional image editing software for Mac that offers a free 15-day trial with access to all the Pro features. This powerful software offers a huge range of tools for retouching and editing photos as well as tools that allow you to paint, draw vector graphics, create graphic designs, and add effects to your images. With Pixelmator Pro you can blend layers with 27 blending modes, transform or align layers, and choose from a range of color adjustments - there’s also a full set of typography tools so you can add and customize text.

Pricing

Free 15-day trial, Pro costs $40.

Short conclusion

For those looking for a Photoshop alternative at a much more affordable price, Pixelmator Pro is an excellent option. We’ve added it to our list due to its extensive range of advanced photo editing features and its 15-day free trial.

GIMP, or GNU Image Manipulation Program, is one of the best free photo editors you’ll find. Used by professionals and individuals alike, this open source software offers a wide range of photo editing features as well as providing plenty of options for customization and compatibility with third-party plugins. As well as tools for high quality image manipulation, GIMP lets you create graphic design elements and transform images into highly creative original artwork.

Pricing

Free, open source software.

Short conclusion

GIMP makes it onto our list as it’s totally free, open source software that’s relatively easy to use. Not only is it a great choice for those new to image editing, it’s also trusted by pros and popular with photographers and graphic designers.

Luminar 4 is a powerful image editor for Mac that offers a wide range of features in an attractive, modern interface. Some of the app’s best features include an AI sky-replacement feature which auto-selects the sky in your image and allows you to replace it, and one-click ‘Looks’ which apply pre-set filters and effects. Luminar 4 can be purchased for a one-time fee, but there’s no free trial available.

Pricing

$69 one-time purchase fee.

Short conclusion

Although it’s a little more expensive than some other apps, Luminar 4 does offer a range of unique features like its one-click ‘Looks’ and AI sky-replacement feature - and it also has an attractive interface.

Affinity Photo is professional image editing software with versions for Mac, iPad, and Windows. The software has won many awards and includes advanced features like full RAW development, HDR merge, digital painting with a brush engine and advanced dynamics (including support for Apple Pencil), batch processing, and panoramic stitching, as well as non-destructive live filter layers and support for plug-ins like Nik Collection 2.5 by DxO.

Pricing

Free trial, then $26 for iPad version, $63 for Mac.

Short conclusion

We’ve added Affinity Photo to our list for its advanced features, although not all of them are easy to use or work as expected. For those looking for a wealth of features for editing though, Affinity Photo won’t disappoint.

Fotor is an online free photo editor - so there’s no software to download. Not all features work in Safari, so you may need to use Chrome, but the software is easy to use and designed for beginners. Choose from a wide range of effects and tools to adjust and enhance your photos, or upgrade to the Pro version for even more tools. With the free version, your photo resolution is limited to 4000px wide.

Pricing

Free, or upgrade to Pro for $40/year.

Short conclusion

Fotor makes it onto our list as it’s ideal for beginners or those looking for basic photo editing tools for work or personal use. Because it’s online, there’s no software to download, and it’s easy to use.

Google Photos is a free photo editor that allows you to securely backup photos and videos, as well as providing a range of editing tools and smart filters for your images. With its clean interface it offers a range of slides for Light, Color, Pop and vignettes, as well as skin tone and deep blue effects, although these don’t use facial or object detection. An auto button lets you quickly balance light and color, and there’s a library of instagram-like effects to choose from, while the Create+ button lets you create short movies, GIF-like animations, collages, and albums.

Pricing

Free (but may need to pay for cloud storage).

Short conclusion

Google Photos makes our list as it’s a free photo editor offering basic tools for editing, as well as unlimited cloud storage (for images within resolution limits) and image organization tools.

Apple Photos is a fun, free photo editor that comes built-in to iOS and macOS, so there’s no software to download. With its simple, clean interface it offers a range of editing tools like red-eye removal, crop/rotate, and auto-enhance, as well as one-click filters and a thumbnail slider to alter your images. The desktop version adds features like a clone tool, sharpen, and white balance, and the app is compatible with a range of Apple and third-party extensions.

Pricing

Free.

Short conclusion

Apple Photos makes it into our list as it’s already bundled with macOS and iOS, so there’s no software to download. It’s not Photoshop, but it is free to use and offers the essential editing tools you need.

Aurora HDR is an HDR photo editor and tone mapping software that’s popular with professional photographers. With exclusive tools like HDR Denoise, Smart Structure, and Clarity, the software includes over 20 tools and a slider-based interface, with a similar layout to Adobe Lightroom. The dark color scheme makes it easy to assess image brightness and color, while the handy history function enables you to quickly jump back to an earlier step in the editing process. You can purchase Aurora HDR for an affordable one-time payment, with a 30-day money back guarantee.

Pricing

$116 one-time payment, with 30-day money back guarantee.

Short conclusion

Aurora HDR makes it onto our list of the best photo editors for Mac as it’s known as the best HDR photo editor around, trusted by pros. Its wide range of tools, 30-day money back guarantee, and ease of use ensure it’s worth your money.

Adobe’s suite of photo editors are renowned as the best options for professionals, whether you opt for Photoshop, Lightroom or Elements. Photoshop is the option designed for Pros, Element is a lighter, more user-friendly version designed for beginners and amateurs, while Lightroom is designed for managing, sorting, and post-processing images in bulk. All offer advanced photo editing features, with Photoshop being the most expensive of the three and Lightroom the cheapest.

Pricing

Adobe offers Creative Cloud plans from $13/month.

Short conclusion

Adobe’s range of photo editing and post-processing software is renowned as the best around for Pros - so it deserves a place on our list, although it doesn’t come cheap.

Because everybody’s photo editing needs are different - you may be looking for a photo editing tool that lets you process images in batches, while somebody else may need a simple image editor to resize images for their blog - it’s important to think about what features you actually need. Take time to read through our list, and research any programs you think may be right for you by reading reviews online and looking at the software’s official site. Also ensure you think about your budget and whether free or paid software is best for you and your budget. We hope our list of the top ten photo editors for Mac will help you to choose the best software for your needs.