how to design graphics for apps

Graphic designing is an art of creating attractive graphics to use for commercials, advertisements, posters, etc. If you want to begin graphic designing, then you don't need to invest money on premium graphic designing software. There are many options to learn graphic designing on free graphic design software with ultimate features and tools.

However, it is evident that there is no substitute for the list of premium Adobe Software for graphic designing. But if you can't invest in a premium subscription of software, then you must choose the right graphic designing software that costs nothing. The top 15 best free graphic design software are described below.

1. Crello

50k+ static and animated templates
User-friendly interface
Integrated media library of video and audio files
Built-in drag-and-drop editor

Features are limited for those with free accounts

Crello is free graphic design software for those willing to create unique visual content of all kinds. Don't hesitate to use their numerous instruments for uploading extra illustrations, removing image backgrounds, resizing, adding animations, removing objects, changing fonts or colours, and more.

Luckily, Crello's massive library of professional pre-designed templates allows creating impressive graphic materials fast and easy.

2. Blender

3D modelling, visual effects, Sculpting & Animations
Skin Modifier
Camera & Object Motion Tracking
Allows Masking

Need Enough Knowledge to Draw Curves
Cluttered Menus

Blender is another open-source 3D graphic designing software with a vast range of toolset that also offers a free version. You can use this software to create visual effects, 3D models, interactive 3D apps & animations. The list of features of Blender includes rendering, high-end production path tracer, video editing, phyton scripting, simulation, modelling and much more.

3. Krita

Customizable User Interface
Drawing Aid for Your Assistance
Selection Mask Tool
Resource Manager

Krita is a commendable free & open-source graphic designing software that provides professional visual designing tools to professional graphic designers. Krita supports all operating systems including Windows, Linux & macOS.

In short, this free graphic designing software is best for designing conceptual art, textures, illustrations & comics. It provides a customizable and interactive user interface for the ease of users. The resource manager helps to import brushes and textures to extend the tools list on Krita.

4. Inkscape

Creates Praiseworthy Vector Art
Best Free & Open Source Graphic Designing Software
Cross-Platform with helpful Community
Accessible to Use Graphic Designing Software

Slow Responding Software
Control System can be Improved

Inkscape Free Graphic Designing Software

Inkscape is one of the best free graphic design software because of its exceptional features and tools. It provides a useful mechanism for designing vector imagery and helps illustrator designers to develop attractive designs and themes effectively. Inkscape provides flexible drawing tools with broad file format compatibility.

Moreover, there are a lot of features of Inkscape to draw and manipulate models using shape tools, pencil tool, transformations and many other tools.

5. SketchUp

2D Modeling
3D Modeling
Quick Customer Support Service
Ease of Use

Limited Storage for Free Services
Does Not Support iOS & Android

SketchUp is also considered as one of the best graphic designing software, and it provides free services for personal use. For professional use & extraordinary features, its starting price is 119$ per year. SketchUp offers a platform for beginners to create & design 2D and 3D designs easily. The main features of SketchUp include textures, 3D models, lighting effects, 2D models, layer manager, animations and much more. It provides 10GB cloud storage for free users.

6. Gimp

Supports Linux, Windows, macOS & Sun OpenSolaris
Digital Retouching
Wide Range of Plugins
Supports all file formats

Does Not Support Photoshop Plugins

Gimp is a well-known free graphic design software that is free & open-source for users. The remarkable features of Gimp allow the users to edit raster images quickly & effectively. Designers can also create artworks from scratch. You can also experience advance features of Gimp, i.e. curves, layer masks, animation package, etc.

It provides a customizable interface for a better user experience. Photo enhancement tool helps a lot to edit images by fixing perspective distortion, etc. On the contrary, if you want to see how GIMP compares to Photoshop, read this in-depth GIMP vs. Photoshop comparison by Anne Mirrop.

7. Adobe Spark

Adobe Product Integrations
Easy to Use Interface
A Huge Range of Templates is available
Posters and Videos can be created easily

Limited Feature Set

Adobe Spark is one of the most popular graphic designing software which provides free design features and tools to the users. This fantastic graphic designing software lets you design attractive graphics for websites and social media in minutes. Though it is not a complete alternative to Adobe Illustrator but it could be beneficial for beginners. However, if you are still interested in features that Adobe Illustrator offers but don't want to pay for its subscription then install and test one of Adobe Illustrator alternatives that are cheaper or even free.

You can also create video stories easily by using templates provided by Adobe Spark. Adobe Spark is the best software for newbies because it allows you to use templates and learn the basics of designing.

8. DesignWizard

Easy to Create Customized Templates
Large Database of Images
10,000 Free Templates
User-friendly Interface
Efficient & Effective for Designing

Limited Options in Free Services

DesignWizard Free Graphic Design Software

With 1.2 million image database, DesignWizard is also a free platform for graphic designing. Users can find 17,000 plus templates on DesignWizard from which freebies could access 10,000. In addition, beginners can also find curated designs to get inspiration for designing attractive and elegant designs. Free services of DesignWizard allow you to resize the designs and create custom colour palettes. Moreover, you can upload your fonts, pictures & logos on DesignWizard.

In the same token, this platform gives you the option to personalise your content by creating a folder for your favourites. Font Library & a massive amount of images are available on DesignWizard for the use of designers.

9. Paint 3D

Realistic Textures
3D Doodle Tool is available
Create 2D cutouts
Simple to Use Application

No Support for Multiple Layers

Paint 3D is a newer version of Microsoft Paint which is introduced with Windows 10. As evident from the name, it allows you to design 3D designs by using practical tools and features of Paint 3D. In addition, you can create and enhance 2D and 3D models easily without spending a lot of time learning this application. This application of Microsoft Windows can be considered as an excellent start to move towards the profession of graphic designing.

10. Snapseed

User-friendly Application
Edit RAW files
Easy to use Finger Swipe Sliders
Advertisement Free

Slight Learning Process is needed

Snapseed is another photo editing application and considered one of the best photo editing applications. Graphic designers can use this free and open-source application to edit images for better use of them. This software can also be used by photographers to get exceptional photo editing results. The application offers 29 tools and filters for picture & makeup editing. Additionally, there is a double exposure tool to blend two images together as well.

11. Canva

Attractive & User-Friendly Interface
Drag & Drop features
Photo Enhancer
Design Grids
8000 Free Templates

Mobile App is less User-Friendly

Canva is a website specifically for graphic designers. It allows the designers to create extraordinary graphics through drag & drop format. Non-designers & professionals, both can use this platform to create highly attractive designs with ease and effectiveness. Indeed, this free graphic design tool can be used for web and print media design. You can easily edit images, create logos, design invitation cards and can make other graphics using templates and tools on Canva.

12. Paint.NET

Easy to Use Software
Supports fully HiDPI displays with no scaling problems
Range of Image Adjustment Tools
Effective Core Tool Set

No Adjustment Layers for non-destructive editing
Very Basic Editing Tools

Paint is a well-known and easy to use raster graphics editing tool available in Microsoft Windows for the basic editing of pictures. This software supports multiple layers, and you can undo your work unlimited times by using this underlying graphic designing software. There is a chance that most graphic designers of the 21st century started designing by using Paint in the beginning. Special effects can be created by using Paint easily.

13. Easel.ly

User-Friendly Software
Easy to Use
Free Templates are available
Tutorials are available

Limited features & themes on Free Version

Easel.ly is a simple infographic making tool, but graphic designers can use this software to begin their career in graphic designing. It actually allows the user to visualize any kind of data. The software is used by different types of people to display their data in attractive forms of graphics.

Therefore, it is effortless to design reports, flowcharts, maps & infographics easily through Easel.ly. You can use this software for all graphic designing purposes except vector designing.

14. CorelDraw

Customizable Interface
Tutorials are Available
Excellent Vectorization
Expert Tracing Software

Hard to learn for newbies
Navigation Board is not available

CorelDraw is not entirely free software but provides a free trial for the users. It is a vector graphics editor, photo editor and complete package of design tools. The features of CorelDraw include LiveSketch, enhanced vector previews, healing clone tool, touch-friendly GU interface and many others.

15. Vectr

Online Availability of Software
Easy to Use
No need for massive Curves Learning
User Guide & Online Tutorials

Collects Personal Data

Vectr is amongst the best free graphic design software for professional graphic designers. If you are a beginner in vector designing and you don't want to spend money on premium software then, Vectr software can help you a lot to begin your journey in graphic designing. It supports all kinds of devices, i.e. Windows, macOS & Linux.

In addition, Vectr also provides a web-based app for designers. It gives all excellent tools for graphic designing such as pen tool, shape tools, pathfinders and many others.

In short, the main agenda of writing this software is to help beginners who are willing to learn graphic designing. However, if you think we are missing any good software in our list, then just share your recommendations in the comments below.

On the other hand, if you recently launched a new free graphic design software to help newbies, then you are also welcome. DigitalCruch is waiting to hear from you. We would love to add your software in our list if it meets the standards.