Glorify brings you the top 10 photo editing software of 2023. Some of these software are only available on a laptop, while others can be used on your mobile, tablet or web browser. Go ahead and check out the rest of this article to compare price points, required skill level and features to help you find the right photo editing apps that suit your needs.

1. Adobe Photoshop Elements 2023

Probably the best photo editing software for professionals and creative individuals, Adobe Photoshop Elements 2023 offers many features found in Photoshop but in a more user-friendly way. It is effective, fun and efficient.  Excellent design capabilities, powerful tool sets and the Guided Edits make it the strongest photo editing software available.

Adobe Sense AI will evaluate your photos intelligently and tweak them, saving you a move or two if you're in a rush. A new topic selection method enables the creation of cut-outs for individuals and animals and is ideal for eliminating wrinkles on the skin.

Pricing and compatibility

Adobe Photoshop Elements 2023 can be purchased through a one-time payment of $99.99.

Can be used on macOS or Windows. If you're using Windows, you will need at least Windows 10 since Windows 7 is no longer supported.

2. Affinity Photo

Affinity Photo is a high-end price tag-free professional photo editing software. It's quite similar to Photoshop and the two tools are constantly being compared. Affinity Photo’s impressive collection of features include digital painting, crude editing, raw editing skilled retouching and multi-layered composition. Complete control over any image is possible, including advanced lens correction and best-in-class noise reduction.

Pricing and compatibility

The pricing differs according to the device you use. Affinity Photo can be purchased with a perpetual license for $54.99 on Mac and Windows or $19.99 for the touch-controlled iPad version.

Supported on Windows, macOS and iOS (iPad only)

3. PaintShop Pro 2023

PaintShop Pro 2023 is a solid photo editing software that can be used as an alternative to Photoshop, though novice designers will find this much easier to use.  It is integrated with a touch screen and has a contextualized workspace. Users also love the wide range of brushes and flexible interface.

In-built tutorials are a great plus point here. Online support is excellent as well and you can always reach out if you get stuck.

Pricing and compatibility

Can be purchased with a one-time payment of $99.99.

Is available only for Windows operating system.

4. Adobe Lightroom

This tool is perfect for photographers who want to conveniently and easily brush up a large number of images. Adobe Lightroom is a cloud-based photo editing software that enables you to view and edit your images from anywhere, at any time. It works on practically any device, not only for PC and macs, but also on Android and iOS!

For those who want to carry out comprehensive editing such as the removal of undesired elements, working on multiple layers and adding filters or curves, Photoshop Elements is probably the best choice instead of Lightroom. However, Lightroom is not only beginner-friendly, but it is the perfect photo editing application to create powerful images with ease. 

Pricing and compatibility

There are four different pricing structures depending on the users:

For individuals the subscription plan starts at $9.99/ month.
For students and teachers, the Creative Cloud package includes Lighroom and starts at $19.99/ month.
For teams and businesses, the Creative Cloud package includes Lightroom and starts at $79.99/ month.
For schools and universities, the Creative Cloud package includes Lightroom and starts at $34.99/ month.

Can perform on Windows, macOS, iOS and Android.

5. Google Photos

Without a doubt, Google Photos provides a smarter solution than any other platform for organizing and consolidating your picture galleries. It is a cross-platform free photo editing software that integrates all your apps.

Google Photos provides you with the bare minimum in terms of editing resources. Even so, the built-in AI provides auto-edits and improvements to your uploads, making it easy to compose photos for quick sharing.

It also comes with a face detection AI and the ability to search photos with certain labels. Photos with similar depictions of the typed keyword, such as ‘Sunset’ or ‘Coffee’ can instantly be retrieved. This makes finding and categorizing images much easier. The only downside to this is that you cannot tag your photos or add custom keywords. 

This software is better used in combination with another program that has more editing capabilities like Adobe Photoshop Elements.

Pricing and compatibility

Google photo allows 15GB of free storage. Paid plans start at $1.99 per month for 100GB of storage.

Can be used on macOS, Windows, iOS and Android.

6. Apple Photos

Providing a convenient online photo editor for iPhone, iPad, and mac, Apple Photos comes with many resources. It’s easily adjustable and customizable, making it the ideal tool for sharing your photographs with family and friends. 

While not as comprehensive as paid systems, this software has the ability to recognize faces and allows you to browse through pictorial images based on topics like concerts and weddings. However, this feature is not as detailed as that of Google Photos.

In terms of the editing features, they are more complex than the ones on Google Photos. The built-in editor provides fixes on filters and adjustments in a more flexible way since the tools are ready at your fingertips. 

Apple Photos can be used to collate your images based on the subject, theme, venue and more. Since you have to synchronize Apple Images with the cloud, you can also link your picture and video library across several devices.

Pricing and compatibility

This is a free software.

Supported on macOS and iOS.

7. GIMP

GIMP is an open-sourced photo editor which many enjoy because of the user's ability to modify the app’s source code to better their needs. 

GIMP also brings a strong range of editing tools, similar to many paid apps. Some of these features include layer building and editing, special effect filters, exposure tests, and more.

Due to GIMP being an open-source software, a very active member network has developed plug-ins to add more flexibility to the application. Although GIMP is more easily accessible than other software, it does not provide much in the way of instructions. This makes learning the ins and outs of this app a lot harder than other photo editing tools.

Pricing and compatibility

This is a free software.

Supported on Windows, macOS and Linux.

8. Pixlr X

Being accessible through a web browser, Pixlr X is a quick and easy way to touch up photos on the go. You can edit images in a highly structured way that allows each edit to be changed and perfected at any time. Moreover, it can be used within Dropbox, making it a useful complement to your working toolkit. 

It contains the regular photo editing tools that most other software have. The biggest plus points of Pixlr X is its accessibility from all devices and the fact that it does not need physical storage since it works from the cloud. This handy tool gives all other desktop software a run for their money. 

Pricing and compatibility

This is a free software.

Can be accessed on all devices through a web browser.

9. Luminar 4

Luminar 4 is worth trying out as an affordable photo editing software. It is loaded with resources for quick and convenient picture adjustments including instant automatic lens distortion improvement, chromatic aberration and fringe elimination.

In addition to over 40 non-destructive filters for your images, Luminar 4 has a long list of popular functions including a new sky editing app, face recognition functions, and face shine removal features.

This software is a no-nonsense, easy-to-use tool with an organized and decluttered interface. However, it retains the value of manual processing. Whilst this lack of automation makes it difficult for beginners, it is a good tool to help you add your own touch.

Pricing and compatibility

Luminar 4 can be purchased in 3 different packages priced at $79.95, $129.90 and $168.90. The difference between these 3 packages is the additonal apps and features that are available as part of a bundle offer.

Runs on Windows and macOS.

10. inPixio Photo Studio 12

This software is simple to use and has some interesting features to offer. Their background removal tool and cut-out tools are quite effective and produce high-quality results. They also offer a sky replacement tool which is fun to use despite the slightly unrealistic effects.

inPixio Photo Studio 12 is super easy to learn, especially for those with no prior design experience. You can also create amazing photomontages and collages by seamlessly incorporating cut-outs into other images.

Pricing and compatibility

You can purchase the Regular plan for $49 or the Pro plan for $79.

Runs on macOS and Windows.

Glorify as an easy alternative to other photo editing software

While the tools mentioned above can work wonders, there is quite a learning curve that is required before users can create stunning photos. Beginners may be intimidated by the complex features and feel inclined to give up altogether. In addition, some users may not be looking for such complex edits and require simple yet effective adjustments.

In such situations, Glorify presents the ideal solution for beginners who want to make quick and simple edits to photos. It's balanced UI and simple editor make the process easy and straightforward to those not familiar with design tools. To top it all, Glorify has some great features that are fun to use and allow you to create professional images. Let's take a look at some of Glorify's main features.

1. A balanced editor

To make design accessible to both beginners and professionals, Glorify's editor provides a balanced UI. A combination of simple and advanced features makes the design process quick, efficient and effective. The editor also provides maximum creative control so that you can easily customize your designs.

2. AI-powered background removal tool

This simple yet powerful feature is useful in nearly every design process, especially those involving product images. Once an image is uploaded, the AI automatically detects and removes the unwanted background. For more complicated images, you can manually select the areas you want removed.

You can also choose to replace your background or customize the colors any way you like.

3. Brand kit

From text styles to color palettes and logos, you can center all your brand assets in one convenient place. This useful feature is ideal for keeping all your designs on-brand especially across marketing campaigns and social media designs.

4. Smart Shapes

If you can imagine it, you can design it. With extremely flexible controls, Smart Shapes give you complete freedom to create any shape you like. Besides being super fun to play around with, you can also customize unique shapes for brochures, badges, ads, educational purposes and more!

5. Floating assets panel

To provide more flexibility to your design process, Glorify's assets panel has a unique feature that allows it to be moved around anywhere you like. You can place this floating panel right next to the canvas to speed up your design process by adding elements much more efficiently.

6. 3D Mockups

Glorify's hyper-realistic mockups are designed by expert 3D modelers to bring your designs to life. These mockup templates and scenes are fully customizable, though you do have the option to start from scratch as well.

The mockups library has designs from a variety of niches and industries with Ecommerce being the main focus. New mockups are consistently added to keep up with the needs of Ecommerce users from around the globe.

7. Ever-growing template library

This is one of the most prominent features of Glorify. The template library consists of thousands of fully customizable, niche based templates that can be used for just about any design purpose.

Each template has been designed by professionals to ensure aesthetic and dimensional accuracy. Templates can easily be resized according to custom dimensions. However, if you want pre-sized templates for a specific platform such as Instagram, you can easily filter your options using the search bar.

The template library is ever-growing, with new templates being added every week. The cool thing is that if you require specific templates that cannot be found in the library, you can always send in your requests and the design team will get it done for you.

8. Logo library

An ideal feature for start-up businesses and new entrepreneurs, the logo library offers over 1000 hand crafted logos. Each one has been designed by expert logo creators to ensure the perfect balance and aesthetic appeal.

9. Icons library

One of the more interesting features on offer, this unique icons library has been fully customized to fit the retro-futuristic style of Glorify's branding. You can have a great time scrolling through millions of precise images that can be used in any design.

10. Image library

You will never run out of ideas with this full-stocked image library. You can choose from among thousands of images to complement your designs by adding a professional touch. ‍

Conclusion

You've seen a variety of photo editing app with some great features. But not every software will suit your needs. Here are some of the features you need to check off your list before deciding what's best for you:

• Coordination, synchronization and connectivity to your library

• Flexibility and scope of photo editing

• Range of features and effects

• Share options

• Built-in support for system and file format

• Creative freedom

• Ease of use

• Prior experience/learning curve required

If a software ticks all or most of the boxes, go for it!

Of course you may be tempted to try out Adobe features since their end results always look stunning. But if all you need is a few quick fixes, Glorify will do the job. After all, when you've given photo editing a go, you can always explore the rest of the features and try your hand at design.

If you're ready to bring out your creative side, get started with Glorify!

10 Best photo editing software for beginners in 2023: FAQs

1. Which photo editing software is best for beginners?

Glorify is an easy-to-use design tool that is ideal for beginners. With a balanced UI, this tool allows anyone to easily edit photos for all your design needs. While it cannot perform complex edits like Photoshop, Glorify takes care of the majority of photo edits in a few clicks.

2. Is it difficult to learn Photoshop?

If you are familiar with the fundamentals of design, Photoshop will not be difficult to master. However, if you are starting from scratch it is better to opt for a more balanced tool such as Glorify which is ideal for beginners.

3. When editing pictures, where do I begin?

Here are a few basic edits you can make to improve your photos.   
•        Crop out unwanted areas
•        Adjust the contrast and brightness
•        Set the saturation and clarity of the color
•        Organize images    
•        Modify the white balance

4. What do professional photographers use to edit photos?

Adobe Lightroom is the top choice among professional photographers. This app allows users to view, edit and organize a large number of photos.

5. Is there a better photo editor than Photoshop?

Most professional photographers opt for Adobe Lightroom to carry out complex edits on bulk images. If you're on a tight schedule and need to make simple edits fast, Glorify is the best tool to use.