Affinity Designer vs Photopea

What Affinity Designer is

Affinity Designer is vector and raster design software sold as a one-off purchase rather than a subscription. The distinguishing feature is switching between vector and pixel work on the same document without exporting: a logo can be drawn as vectors and textured with raster brushes in one file. It handles very large documents smoothly and reads Illustrator and Photoshop files, which makes it a realistic route out of a subscription for designers who own their tools rather than rent them.

What Photopea is

Photopea is a browser-based image editor that opens PSD, XCF and Sketch files without installing anything. It reproduces a large part of the Photoshop interface — layers, masks, adjustment layers, blend modes and the familiar keyboard shortcuts — so anyone who has used a desktop editor can work immediately. Everything runs locally in the browser tab, which means files are not uploaded to a server, and the free version is funded by a sidebar advert rather than a trial limit.

What Affinity Designer is built to do

Vector and raster together

Switch between vector drawing and pixel brushes in the same document.

One-off purchase

Bought outright per major version instead of rented monthly.

Adobe file support

Opens Illustrator and Photoshop files, easing a move away from a subscription.

Artboards

Many canvases in one document for exporting a set of sizes at once.

What Photopea is built to do

PSD and Sketch support

Opens layered files from Photoshop, GIMP, Sketch and Figma, and exports back to PSD.

Runs in the browser

Nothing is installed and nothing is uploaded — the editor works on the file locally in the tab.

Familiar shortcuts

Layer, mask and selection shortcuts largely match Photoshop, so existing habits carry over.

Non-destructive editing

Adjustment layers, smart objects and layer masks let you revise choices rather than repeat work.

Choose Affinity Designer if

• Vector, pixel and layout work in one app at no cost — Canva made Affinity free for individuals with no restrictions
• Anyone leaving a monthly creative subscription who still wants professional output and export control
• Designers who do not need generative AI inside the app

Skip Affinity Designer if

• You want the built-in AI tools — generative fill, background removal and image or vector generation require a Canva premium plan
• Your clients and collaborators expect native Adobe files as the working format
• You depend on a large tutorial and template market; Adobe's is far bigger

Choose Photopea if

• Opening and editing PSD and other layered files in a browser with nothing installed
• One-off image work where a Photoshop subscription is not worth it
• Machines where you are not allowed to install software

Skip Photopea if

• You expect the $5/month Premium to unlock features — the vendor's own Premium post says it currently gives no extra features and is a way to support development
• You work with very large files; the editor runs in your browser and performance depends on it
• Ads on the free version are a problem in your environment

Affinity Designer: pros & cons

• One-off price instead of a monthly fee
• Vector and raster in one document
• Fast on modest hardware
• Smaller ecosystem than Adobe
• Some agency workflows still expect Adobe files
• Fewer tutorials and templates

Photopea: pros & cons

• Opens PSD files in a browser tab
• Free, funded by ads
• No installation on any machine
• Ads on the free version
• Performance depends on your browser
• Not suited to very large files