Adobe InDesign Alternatives and Similar Software Though its ability to create content for Flash Player-based sites is no longer in high demand, InDesign is still a great piece of software for creating PDFs and other types of content for webpages and print. Adobe InDesign is a desktop publishing software utility developed by Adobe Systems. It can be used to produce works such as posters, flyers, brochures, magazines, newspapers and books.
When there's just not enough cash in the bank and you're in a bind, the last thing you're able to do is drop a ton of money for pricey software like Adobe Creative Suite. And sometimes, the professional-grade stuff is too much overkill for simple tasks like putting together a poster, blurring out a license plate in a photo or cropping out a shaky part of your vacation video. So that's what open source software is for. While they're sometimes not the most stable of applications, they're free and they oftentimes get the job done, just like their paid-for counterparts.
We compiled a list of some of the best open source Adobe Creative Suite alternatives. Cycle through for alternatives to Photoshop, Acrobat, InDesign, Illustrator and more!
We compiled a list of some of the best open source Adobe Creative Suite alternatives. Cycle through for alternatives to Photoshop, Acrobat, InDesign, Illustrator and more!
GIMP
Replaces: Photoshop
Replaces: Photoshop
GIMP is easily one of the most powerful pieces of open source software available on the internet today. The app gives you the same photo manipulation features as Photoshop, as well as a variety of filters to choose from. There's also incredible hardware and plug-in support. Plus, there's plenty of sites that offer
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Seashore
Replaces: Photoshop
An image editing application packed in a pretty little name, Seashore is built on OS X's Cocoa framework so it's made just for Mac users looking for an open source alternative. Though it doesn't have some of GIMP's features, Seashore is perfect for novices looking for a simple image editor.
Replaces: Photoshop
An image editing application packed in a pretty little name, Seashore is built on OS X's Cocoa framework so it's made just for Mac users looking for an open source alternative. Though it doesn't have some of GIMP's features, Seashore is perfect for novices looking for a simple image editor.
Formulate Pro
Replaces: Acrobat
Feel caught in a tizzy when you have a digital document you need to sign? Formulate Pro lets you open and write on PDF documents with a mouse and tablet, then save or print.
Replaces: Acrobat
Feel caught in a tizzy when you have a digital document you need to sign? Formulate Pro lets you open and write on PDF documents with a mouse and tablet, then save or print.
Inkscape
Replaces: Illustrator
Got a character you wanna sketch out, but don't have access to Adobe Illustrator? Inkscape's got the capabilities. Best yet, it supports advanced Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) features like markers, clones and alpha blending. And actually, it's very easy to navigate. One of the simplest open source UIs we've used yet.
Replaces: Illustrator
Got a character you wanna sketch out, but don't have access to Adobe Illustrator? Inkscape's got the capabilities. Best yet, it supports advanced Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) features like markers, clones and alpha blending. And actually, it's very easy to navigate. One of the simplest open source UIs we've used yet.
Open Office Draw
Replaces: Illustrator
Need to make a poster for your environmental club? Open Office Draw is a super easy-to-use desktop publishing application, part of the Open Office suite that's actually maintained by Sun Microsystems so it's a relatively stable build compared to the other applications featured in this article.
Replaces: Illustrator
Need to make a poster for your environmental club? Open Office Draw is a super easy-to-use desktop publishing application, part of the Open Office suite that's actually maintained by Sun Microsystems so it's a relatively stable build compared to the other applications featured in this article.
Scribus
Replaces: InDesign
For a more powerful, InDesign-like desktop publishing application, Scribus is a wonderful alternative for wannabe professionals.
Replaces: InDesign
For a more powerful, InDesign-like desktop publishing application, Scribus is a wonderful alternative for wannabe professionals.
Synfig
Replaces: Flash
If you've used Adobe Flash to animate before, Synfig is an open source alternative to making 2D animations with vectors and bitmaps. Synfig also has a pretty healthy community of contributors, so many updates are inevitably on their way.
Replaces: Flash
If you've used Adobe Flash to animate before, Synfig is an open source alternative to making 2D animations with vectors and bitmaps. Synfig also has a pretty healthy community of contributors, so many updates are inevitably on their way.
Audacity
Replaces: Soundbooth
You need to edit your homemade podcasts, so do so with Audacity. It's free, and though it's got a bit of a learning curve for new audio editors, it's the best solution for chopping up and stringing together audio files.
Replaces: Soundbooth
You need to edit your homemade podcasts, so do so with Audacity. It's free, and though it's got a bit of a learning curve for new audio editors, it's the best solution for chopping up and stringing together audio files.
Avidemux
Replaces: Premiere
Frankly, you'd be hard pressed to find a full-fledged video editor that's free. So if you just need to cut and edit a home video, Avidemux is the capable open source solution.
Replaces: Premiere
Frankly, you'd be hard pressed to find a full-fledged video editor that's free. So if you just need to cut and edit a home video, Avidemux is the capable open source solution.
SeaMonkey
Replaces: Dreamweaver
SeaMonkey is a community-developed internet application suite that helps you code and develop websites for the Mozilla browser. It comes with its own browser, an email and newsgroup client and an HTML editor. It's also got IRC chat and added on web development tools.
Replaces: Dreamweaver
SeaMonkey is a community-developed internet application suite that helps you code and develop websites for the Mozilla browser. It comes with its own browser, an email and newsgroup client and an HTML editor. It's also got IRC chat and added on web development tools.
Adobe InDesign is the first name that comes to mind if you are working on digital or print that involves creating publications, posters and print media. Whether you are a professional graphic designer or a production artist or if you are working on an image related projects, Adobe InDesign is the most popular desktop publishing and typesetting software. It is used to create works such as flyers, posters, brochures, magazines, newspapers, books, presentation, and the list goes on. In this article, we round up some of the best free alternative programs to Adobe InDesign that can be used to get your work done on your Windows 10/8/7 computer.
Adobe InDesign Alternatives for Windows
Adobe Indesign comes with a broad range of stunning features that help in creating distinctive designs. However, the InDesign costs you a high subscription fee, and it is going to be expensive if you are bound to a tight budget. While Adobe InDesign is the most dominated software when it comes to desktop publishing tool, users can opt for free alternatives to Adobe InDesign if you want to keep the expenses low.
Scribus
Scribus is an open source publication software and is the most popular among graphic designer and product artists. This software is one of the best free alternatives to Adobe InDesign that offers an easy user interface and includes all the features required by professional designers like versatile page templates, bitmap formats, spot colors, ICC color management, CMYK colors, and PDF creation. Scribus supports most kinds of files and markup languages like Latex and Lilypond. In Scribus, users can easily recover damaged design files with the help of text editor. Additionally, it supports PDF export with the format as per industrial standards and also PDF/X-3 specification. Scribus is compatible with Windows, Linux, and MacOS.
Vivadesigner
Vivadesigner is arguably one of the easy to use desktop publishing app that allows users to create work that involves creating brochures, magazines, flyers, etc. It can be used as both in-browser apps or can be downloaded directly to your desktop. It offers a wide range of templates, design layouts for desktop and browsers. It supports a variety of image formats like EPS, BMP, TIFF, JPEG and free access to versatile color models like RGB, HSV, and CMYK. Vivadesigner offers both the free version and premium version. It is compatible with Windows, Linux, and MacOS
Lucidpress
Lucidpress is a web-based publishing tool that offers a wide range of features and tools to create flyers, posters, brochures, magazines, newsletters, books and presentation. It offers a simple drag and drop interface which is best suitable for beginners. Lucidpress includes history tracking for your designs that allows you to easily keep track of all the previous changes made to the designs. Additionally, Lucidpress provides a user-friendly platform for collaboration among the graphic designers. This web-based publishing tool makes use of AES-256 encryption, and it is completely secured to create your design work. LucidPress is available in both free as well as premium versions.
Canva
![Software Software](/uploads/1/2/5/2/125256133/701230190.png)
Canva is the most popular graphic design tool for beginners and non-designers. Canva provides an easy to use interface for its users to choose from a variety of design visuals, fonts, graphics, and document templates. The users can create an eye-catching infographic for their clients with simple drag and drop user interface. The Canva helps its user to create and save a web-ready version of a design product. It is a platform that offers a variety of icons and adders. The Canva graphic design tool is available to use for free to create graphic design for your work. While most of the features and design templates are available for free, users can still purchase the premium features.
SpringPublisher
![Free Free](https://screenshots.en.sftcdn.net/en/scrn/10000/10096/adobe-indesign-18-700x435.jpg)
SpringPublisher is a free desktop publishing software used for creating flyers, posters, brochures, magazines, newsletters, books and presentation. As compares to Adobe InDesign, SpringPublisher is easy to use as compared to InDesign and is excellent for the entry-level designers. SpringPublisher can be used to create simple designs, add texts, codes, including vector shapes as well as work with layouts and layers.SpringPublisher can also be used to edit the images with the broad range of available templates. The free version allows you to save the design to a maximum of 180 DPI output. It is no longer being developed, and users can’t gain access to the premium version anymore. However, SpringPubliher still serves as the best alternative to Indesign if the features available in the free version is sufficient for creating your design project.
Microsoft Office Publisher
Microsoft Office Publisher is a publishing tool handled by InDesign for creating presentations, flyers, brochures, posters, newsletters, calendar, business card, magazines layouts, leaflet and so on. It is available in bundled app version included in the higher-end editions of Microsoft Office and is available as a standalone app version as well. The tool is exclusively available in Windows and MacOS. Although it is not free as such, since most of us use Microsoft Office, I have included it in this list.
Let us know which one you prefer.
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