Unclaimed: Are you working at Adobe Photoshop?
Adobe Photoshop Reviews: 4.6/5 — Highly Rated
Arguably one of the best-known graphic design software tools used today, Adobe Photoshop is currently the go-to tool of many creative professionals. The software offers feature-rich tools for photo retouching, editing, and manipulation; and gives access to numerous brushes and textures. The platform is well known for having an ever-improving interface, supported by an extensive selection of tools, high customizable dashboards, collaboration options, and efficient file management options.
Adobe Photoshop is also often used as Photo Editing of choice in Marketing and UI/UX Design tech stacks.
| Capabilities |
AI
API
|
|---|---|
| Segment |
Small Business
Mid Market
Enterprise
|
| Deployment | Cloud / SaaS / Web-Based, Desktop Mac, Desktop Windows, Mobile iPad, Mobile iPhone |
| Support | 24/7 (Live rep), Chat, Email/Help Desk, FAQs/Forum, Knowledge Base, Phone Support |
| Training | Documentation |
| Languages | English |
Adobe Photoshop Pros and Cons
- Comprehensive set of tools for touch-up and retouching
- Extensive filters, brushes, and pre-sets
- Advanced color and background manipulation
- Extensive organization and image management tools
- Highly customizable
- Might present a steep learning curve for beginners
- Limited support for vector graphics
Adobe Photoshop is the industry standard for image editing, and the most useful thing a review can tell you is not whether it is good but which plan to buy. Buying Photoshop on its own costs more than buying the Photography plan, which includes Photoshop plus Lightroom and 1 TB of storage. That inversion catches people every year.
- What it is: Professional photo editing software for retouching, compositing, and digital art, available on desktop, web, and mobile.
- Best for: Photographers, designers, and retouchers who need the deepest pixel-level toolset available, and anyone working to industry file-format expectations.
- Pricing: Roughly $22.99 per month for the Photoshop single-app plan, about $19.99 for the Photography plan that includes it, and around $69.99 for Creative Cloud All Apps. See the verification note below.
- The honest catch: Adobe’s annual plans are commitments, not rolling months, and cancelling early typically incurs a fee. Buy the term you actually intend to keep.
What Is Adobe Photoshop?
Photoshop launched in 1990 and has been the default professional image editor for so long that its name became a verb. That dominance is not nostalgia. Layer-based compositing, masking, selection tooling, colour management, and non-destructive adjustment are deeper here than in any competitor, and the file format is what agencies, printers, and collaborators expect to receive.
In recent years the product has expanded well beyond the desktop application, adding web and mobile versions and a large set of generative AI tools built on Adobe Firefly. Generative fill and expand are genuinely useful for retouching work that used to take manual cloning, and Adobe’s position that Firefly is trained on licensed content matters to commercial users who need to know where their imagery came from.
The independent ratings are among the highest of any product we have reviewed, on very large samples: 4.8 out of 5 on Capterra across 2,433 reviews and 4.6 on G2 across roughly 13,210. There is no serious argument that the software is not excellent. The complaints are almost entirely about the commercial model.
How Photoshop Works
- Layers and masks. The foundation, and still the reason professionals stay. Non-destructive editing at this depth has no real equal.
- Selection tooling. Object selection, subject detection, and Select and Mask handle the hardest part of compositing, and successive AI improvements have made this dramatically faster than it was five years ago.
- Generative AI. Generative fill, generative expand, and neural filters, powered by Firefly. Useful for removal, extension, and background work.
- Camera Raw and colour management. Professional colour handling and raw processing that matters for print and commercial delivery.
- Cross-device. Desktop, web, and iPad, with cloud documents syncing between them. The web and mobile versions are capable companions rather than full replacements.
Photoshop Pricing
A verification note first. Adobe’s own pricing pages did not respond to automated requests during this review, and Adobe varies prices by region and runs frequent promotions. The figures below reflect current published US pricing as reported by multiple independent sources in July 2026, and you should confirm them on Adobe’s site for your own region before buying.
| Plan | Approximate US price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Photoshop single app | ~$22.99/month, annual plan billed monthly | Photoshop on desktop, web, and mobile, plus Adobe Express Premium |
| Photography plan | ~$19.99/month, annual plan billed monthly | Photoshop, Lightroom, Lightroom Classic, and 1 TB cloud storage |
| Creative Cloud All Apps | ~$69.99/month | Photoshop plus Illustrator, InDesign, Premiere Pro and the rest of the suite |
The things worth knowing before you choose:
- The Photography plan costs less than Photoshop alone and includes more. At roughly $19.99 against $22.99, it bundles Lightroom, Lightroom Classic, and 1 TB of storage. Unless you specifically need Adobe Express Premium instead, this is the better buy for almost everyone who wants Photoshop, and it is the single most valuable thing to know about Adobe’s pricing.
- Annual plans are commitments. The common “annual, billed monthly” option is a twelve-month contract paid in instalments, not a rolling subscription. Cancelling early normally triggers an early termination fee. Month-to-month plans exist at a higher rate for people who genuinely need flexibility.
- There is no perpetual licence. You rent Photoshop. Reviewers who left cite this directly, and it is a legitimate objection rather than a misunderstanding.
- Storage differs sharply between plans. The Photography plan’s 1 TB is the practical difference for photographers working with raw files.
- Prices move. Adobe adjusts pricing regularly and runs student, teacher, and seasonal discounts. Check for a current offer rather than assuming list price.
A free trial is available, and Adobe also offers a free web-based Photoshop tier with limited functionality.
Who Should Use Photoshop
- Professional photographers and retouchers. The Photography plan is close to an automatic purchase: Photoshop for pixel work, Lightroom for cataloguing and raw processing, at less than Photoshop alone.
- Designers working with agencies or print. PSD is what collaborators expect, and colour management is what printers require.
- Anyone doing serious compositing. Layer and masking depth is unmatched, and no alternative comes close for complex work.
- Teams already on Creative Cloud. If you need Illustrator or Premiere too, All Apps is the sensible route.
It is a poor fit for casual users who crop and adjust holiday photos, where free tools are entirely sufficient, for people who object to subscriptions on principle, since Affinity Photo sells a perpetual licence, and for teams whose real need is quick social graphics rather than image editing, where Canva does the job faster.
Honest Pros and Cons
Strengths
- Unmatched depth. Nothing else offers this much control over pixels, layers, masks, and colour.
- The industry standard file format. Practical value when working with clients, printers, and collaborators.
- Genuinely useful AI. Generative fill and improved selection have removed hours of manual work from routine retouching.
- Excellent ratings on huge samples. 4.8 on Capterra across 2,433 reviews and 4.6 on G2 across over 13,000.
- Cross-device workflow. Desktop, web, and iPad with cloud document syncing.
- Enormous learning ecosystem. Decades of tutorials, courses, and community answers for any problem you will hit.
Limitations
- Subscription only. No perpetual licence, and reviewers cite this as the reason they stopped upgrading.
- Annual commitment with cancellation fees. The most common source of billing complaints, and easy to agree to without noticing.
- A steep learning curve. Reviewers consistently note beginners need real time and tutorial support before becoming productive.
- Demanding on hardware. Large files and heavy filters need a capable machine.
- Confusing plan structure. The Photography plan undercutting the Photoshop plan is the clearest symptom of pricing that is harder to navigate than it should be.
- Support quality is criticized. Slow replies, long holds, and inconsistent resolution appear repeatedly in reviews.
Photoshop Alternatives and How It Compares
- Affinity Photo is the strongest alternative for people who want to own their software, with a one-off purchase and roughly 80% of Photoshop’s capability for most work.
- Canva is not a competitor for editing depth but is faster and easier for social graphics, presentations, and marketing assets.
- GIMP is free and open source, capable but with a less refined interface and weaker colour management for print.
- Pixlr and similar browser tools handle quick edits without a subscription.
- Lightroom, included in the Photography plan, is the better tool for cataloguing and batch raw processing, and pairs with rather than replaces Photoshop.
For a broader view, browse our photo editing software directory.
The Verdict
Photoshop is the best image editor available and has been for three decades, and its 4.8 Capterra rating across thousands of reviews reflects software that genuinely earns its reputation. If your work involves serious compositing, retouching, or professional delivery, there is no real debate about capability.
The decision that actually matters is which plan to buy, and here the answer is counterintuitive: the Photography plan at roughly $19.99 costs less than the Photoshop single-app plan at roughly $22.99, while adding Lightroom, Lightroom Classic, and 1 TB of storage. Unless you specifically want Adobe Express Premium, choosing the Photoshop-only plan means paying more for less. Check both before subscribing.
Then read the commitment terms. Adobe’s headline monthly prices usually describe an annual contract billed monthly, and leaving early carries a fee. That is the source of most billing complaints, and it is avoidable by choosing the term deliberately. If you object to renting software altogether, Affinity Photo is a credible one-off purchase, and for casual editing free tools will serve you perfectly well.
FAQ
How much does Photoshop cost in 2026?
US pricing is approximately $22.99 per month for the Photoshop single-app plan on an annual plan billed monthly, about $19.99 per month for the Photography plan, and around $69.99 per month for Creative Cloud All Apps. Adobe varies pricing by region and runs frequent promotions, so confirm current rates on Adobe’s site. Our automated checks could not reach Adobe’s pricing pages directly, so these figures come from current independent sources.
Is the Photography plan really cheaper than the Photoshop plan?
Yes, and it includes more. The Photography plan is typically around $19.99 per month against roughly $22.99 for Photoshop alone, and it bundles Photoshop, Lightroom, Lightroom Classic, and 1 TB of cloud storage. The single-app plan includes Adobe Express Premium instead. For most people who want Photoshop, the Photography plan is the better purchase.
Can you buy Photoshop outright instead of subscribing?
No. Adobe discontinued perpetual licences for Photoshop, and the software is subscription-only. This is the most common complaint from long-time users. If owning your software matters, Affinity Photo offers a one-off purchase that covers most of the same ground.
Can you cancel a Photoshop subscription at any time?
Not without cost on annual plans. Adobe’s common “annual, billed monthly” option is a twelve-month commitment paid in instalments, and cancelling early normally incurs an early termination fee. A genuine month-to-month plan is available at a higher rate. Choose deliberately, because this is where most billing disputes originate.
What is Photoshop best for?
Professional image editing: retouching, compositing, masking, and colour-managed output for print and commercial delivery. It is the right tool when depth of control matters, and considerable overkill for cropping holiday photos or making social media graphics.
Compare Adobe Photoshop with other popular tools in the same category.
it has so many editing features which help you to enhance the brightness, contrast , saturation and all other cropping and increasing the sharpness
That sometimes it can get so difficult with a lot of options and it can lead to confusion.
i am able to edit the photos of the pictures i take using my camera.
Incredibly powerful and versatile tool, integrates really well with the whole Adobe creative cloud suite making it great for all your creation needs.
The learning curve is pretty high and it isn't always intuitive. That's to be expected with a product this powerful. Between peers, adobe help and online classes you can get up and running without it taking forever.
We can create everything we need in house, the only limitations are on our end not on adobes end. Really helpful being able to share projects with others on our creative team.
I love how Abobe continues to make Photoshop more user friendly! A lot of the new features in CC 2019 are huge timesavers!
I’ve noticed that some images when exported are now much larger files than in previous versions.
Nearly all graphics used for advertising and social media are made with Photoshop! It’s very easy to output different versions of artwork for multiple platforms!
I love photoshop for photos and the effects and everything is really good.
There is nothing like that I don’t like about this software
No really
Photoshop is excellent at allowing you to create layered diagrams, various schemes, and crisp images.
Occasionally runs very slow and crashes.
Helps create diagrammatic floor plans and renderings for clients.
Photoshop gives the opportunity to design promotional pieves for small companies without large budgets. I enjoy being able to create a premium product at a cheap cost and please the customer quickly and professionally!
I dislike that color scheme is required, I’d love to see a dark mode.
I use Adobe Photoshop to create flyer templates that can be reused instead of paying a designer for every time a flyer is needed. This increases workflow and marketing timeframes.
Adobe Photoshop provides a combination of a wide variety of tools that you can use for your graphic involved projects, not just photos! You can start a drawing or a graphic design from scratch, you can adjust the different characteristics of your image, and you can apply different filters based on how you want to present your graphic.
It is relatively easy to learn how to work with the software and use basic to intermediate tools, however, some of the more professional tools are a little bit complicated and harder to master. Although upgrades usually change the software for the better and solve some issues, sometimes you might have a hard time finding tools that you have been using in previous versions.
Adobe Photoshop enables businesses to customize the software to fit their purposes by adding different extensions. You can easily add brushes, plugins, color pallets, etc. to exploit the capabilities of Photoshop to get the most desirable result. Also, from the human resources side, it helps businesses to use Adobe Suite products more efficiently. Adobe offers different graphical software such as Adobe Photoshop, Adobe InDesign, and Adobe Illustrator. Since they all use similar basic tools, it would be much easier for a person who knows how to work with Photoshop to master other software; saving a business a considerable amount of time and money!
It has some one of the best photo editing tools that I have came across. Tool I liked the most is removing the layer and merging the image with the background. Can modify the photo to any extent using photoshop
Tools are difficult to find. Can provide more detailed documentation regarding each tool in photoshop
Exporting images with multiple file types. Creating logos
With this program, I am almost 24 hours a day in my profession. I have been working on it for a long time, anything will be needed Then retouch the wedding, then a poster, sometimes it happens that landscapes, subject shooting and everything is all all
I think that Photoshop should be free.. Long mastering of work in the program
You can process photos for money
I love that there are so many ways to do any one thing and they are all slightly different so that you can combine it. I love that you can play around with an image and get it to look so much more and actually change completely. I love that the console makes sense and that there are so many creative functions to play with.
There are too many features that I don't know them all!
I create pretty digital art supplies for people and also combine images to create beautiful images for people.
Photoshop is a creators dream. Everything and anything you want to do (even the things you haven't thought of yet!!) are possible. It's an ever-learning adventure with Photoshop. You can't stretch the limits far enough. You can do minimal editing of your photos, professional retouching, or go all out and make something entirely new. There are so many resources to learn new things about Photoshop and so many different ways to get the same result. It's almost like having a magic creative tool box! The layout is nice and intuitive, makes for a good creative atmosphere in-software. And the customization of the workspace is very very convenient.
What I dislike is, of course, the price. That is the biggest setback However the pros far outweigh the cons. It can also seem very overwhelming at first. There are lots of buttons and hidden features. To learn I really had to take to my own devices (YouTube tutorials) and learn as I went, project-by-project. Sometimes it crashes, which is never convenient, but it is bound to happen with any software.
I use Adobe Photoshop literally everyday for business. I am making content for clients' social media, editing portraits, and wedding photos, generating graphics for videos - it is the most useful tool that I have! the benefits are endless - but really it's given me the power to create anything my client desires.
Part of the Creatve Suite, can sync settings with Illustrator and InDesign. Options in Bridge and camera raw makes editing and viewing meta data easy and fast. No issues opening older or newer files than the version of the program I’m using.
Adobe makes constant updates, some not user friendly, they need to pay more attention to how professionals actually use the program, not how they think we should use it.
Accurate color correction and editing for multiple output, web, print and presentations. Easy tagging, flexible metadata and copyright labeling.
The ease use of the software. Multiple tools you use also. The plugins available to be activated is also a good use.
The default gui has a lot of tools to use and can be intimidating
Edit photos and teach students
is an easy program to use if you already have the knowledge and allows to have very good and immediate results in addition to Effects and results of high levels that with no other program could reach
It is heavier for the pc and the program is more expensive It is quite complex and needs knowledge to be used correctly
The problems solved with this tool were the presentations and logos designs for the company's marketin
We love using all the editing options photoshop provides.
Sometimes it is difficult to keep up with all of the things it is capable of and to stay trained in it.
I can create high quality designs to be printed or put on screen
I love the ease of use, the tools are laid out in a user-friendly manner. I also like how easy it is to export files in each format.
There is a lot to learn and some features are still complicated for me.
Photo editing for social media, deleting background images for a clean look on all of our product brochures.
For photography, I use photoshop for the final touches after I’ve done the general clean up in Lightroom
It seems that I always use Lightroom and Photoshop together. Never individually. It would be great if all the functions of both were in one program.
I use Photoshop solely for my real estate photography business which allows me to stitch different exposures together to create one great photo. There are HDR shortcut functions (even with in Lightroom and photoshop), but the result I want demands a more manual approach which photoshop allows me to do.
I like the ease of use, similar tools across Adobe creative platforms, user interface, layer folder grouping, and smoothing tool on brushes the best. Overall I like the range of tools and functionalituy available on Photoshop from vectors to text to animations. Photoshop is a workhorse you're able to configure to your needs of organization and workflow. The user interface can easily toggle from painting workspace to graphic design workspace easily. I also love the actions tool which can greatly decrease repetitive tasks to one automated computer action.
I dislike the recent the update with the transform tool switching the proportional lock. Why change something that has been a constant across platforms? I also dislike that the product is a monthly subscription. I wish there was a more interface-friendly module to store references while working on a .psd document (maybe something that utilizes a two monitor display) I wish PS let you hide certain tools sometimes, customize your tools to what you use the most perhaps. I often click on the wrong icon (ones I don't use often.)
Most of my design work is done in Photoshop--advertising, web design, ux/ui design
Even the most inexperienced computer user can use photoshop to manipulate an image to give us a more useful piece for our publications, newsletter and flyers.
almost nothing! - this product can be used by people of all skill levels
We can use this app to crop, rotate, highlight, merge and create unique publications to market our products - whether it is an event or activity we are promoting or something we are selling for a fundraiser, photoshop helps our promotional materials look professional.
Very user friendly interface. All of the tools are quite easy to navigate, and to learn as you go. There is little you cannot accomplish with Photoshop, everything from touching up blemishes, to laying out book pages, to graphic design, to making GIFs. All of these are things I have done with great ease and success with Photoshop, it’s really my go-to option for any creative needs on my laptop.
I dislike the drastic changes sometimes made between updates. Granted this is not a major issue by any means, just a minor inconvenience as one must relearn how to navigate and use certain features of the program after updates sometimes.
This has accomplished literally all of my graphics needs, design needs, photo editing needs, everything! I even used photoshop to make my business cards.
I really like this program to edit photos and create unique finishes.
This program does take some getting used to and some training/time to get to know.
We can edit photos to add to our website to show client's our work. The photos are appealing and have brought in more business.
The versatility and detail that Photoshop allows users to create is what sets it apart from any other editing program out there.
Given the detail given, it is not user friendly.
Resizing photos in a heartbeat, color-correction, quick graphic design. Besides just design, Photoshop does well with any type of editing purposes that would take you days otherwise.
I like that I can use PS to edit photos, create art from scratch, create animation, etc. It's so easy to use and it has so many resources. I can't say enough good things about it.
I disliked when they made it a monthly subscription product instead of a one time buy. I probably won't be updating until they offer other one time buy options.
I am creating all the social media content and editing the company's photos in this program.
the ability to create things from scratch or work with images to develop an new style
some of the tools take time to learn and if you don't have patience, you will fail
graphic design and creating a style guide
Photoshop included lot of features and it is easy to use. I use photoshop for create gif. It helps to create perfect gif for our e- learning products.
There are no special dislikes. Some photo editing tools are complex for beginners. But it is no problem because all are easy to learn.
Photoshop can use to increase quality of the images and it helps to create best gif. Gif creations are complex with other tools but photoshop is not complex to use.
I love the interface and the usability of Photoshop. The tools are easy to find, but not overly grabby for attention. Finding settings is also very easy. I think I like the ability to lay out my canvas how I choose the most.
There isn't much that I dislike about Photoshop.
Editing images that need to meet branding guidelines - it helps greatly.
Photoshop does everything and anything you can think of!! It’s truest amazing.
No complaints! If you need to find a tutorial they are all on YouTube
You can make anything for your business, flyers, business cards, gift cards
I love all options and the ability to edit pictures. I use it from editing my personal pics for social media to editing pictures for my job marketing needs. I am able to make gifs and "moving" pictures as well that is really useful for my website.
it is not really easy to learn how to use its features may be because they are a lot. I can be a bit complicated with the new windows that are opening every time when you make a change at the picture. Also, it is expensive even the monthly rental version. There is not a trail option.
You can edit the logo of the company to any picture. You can save money using photoshoot at work for the marketing needs instead of paying a developer.
All the tools that you need in one program. An all around graphics and image tool.
Does not offer file management like Lightroom or other products.
Excellent tool for graphics and presentation.
Can get Editing done on the Go. There is support always available. Faster Export and the customer toolbars are extremely helpful. Artboards. Adobe Stock Templates.
There aren't any aspects about Adobe Photoshop that I do not like. Which is rare to find a program that has nothing that you would want to change or alter.
Ability to produce the best final documents and love the haze control. Since I can edit on the go we are able to assist customers more quickly and efficiently.
