7 completely free tools to know as a designer
Between your web design platform, photo editing tools and graphic design software, it can feel like there’s a mountain of costs as a designer – far from ideal when you’re starting out. But honing your design skills and building your digital toolkit doesn’t have to be expensive; there are great free, user-friendly tools out there that won't break the bank. We’ve compiled a list of the free design essentials that are an excellent fit for newbie and early-career designers.
Figma
Best for: UX and UI design and collaboration
Cost: Free
Platforms: Website, desktop and app
Figma is a collaborative interface design tool, handy for developing websites or apps. With its ability for real-time collaboration via comments and editing, you can seamlessly work with clients or colleagues on designs. Prototyping tools and vector design features are also available, making for an all-encompassing design experience.
Framer
Best for: Building websites
Cost: Free plan available
Platforms: Website, desktop and app
Framer is a user-friendly web design and prototyping tool for clean, functional design. With its capability for responsive web design, it’s a top choice for UI and UX designers. Its free tier allows the creation of portfolios, personal websites and landing pages, although there is a cap on visitors. If you're a new web designer getting to grips with the process, this plan is also useful for playing around and experimenting with new designs. You can also directly import your designs from Figma into Framer, making for a seamless design flow, no coding needed.
Canva
Best for: All-round graphic design
Cost: Free, with paid plans available for more advanced features
Platforms: Website, desktop and app
Canva is a popular, user-friendly online graphic design tool, perfect for designers with limited experience or for those seeking speedy asset creation. With thousands of design templates, you can use the platform to create social media posts, presentations, posters, videos, logos and more. The free tier has a lot to offer, but upgrade to work more efficiently with a wider team and a branding pack.
Affinity
Best for: All-in-one design platform
Cost: free
Platforms: Desktop
Made by Canva, this free graphic design software offers a step-up from the popular platform. Affinity is a versatile, user-friendly and free with your Canva account, offering tools for vector design, photo editing and page layout. Create everything from logos and interfaces to illustrations and print-ready layouts, all in one place. A great Adobe suite alternative.
Photopea
Best for: Photo editing
Cost: Free
Platforms: Website
Photopea is a free, web-based photo and graphics editor. With a similar interface and feature set to Photoshop, it’s a popular choice for designers on a budget. Edit images, create graphics and convert between different image formats all from your browser. With no downloads needed, it makes for quick, smooth editing.
GIMP
Best for: Photo editing
Cost: Free
Platforms: Desktop
GIMP is a free, open-source, raster-based software for image editing, graphic design and original artwork creation. From retouching to creating compositions with its layering system, it’s a great choice for editing and manipulating images. Its extensive features make it suitable for designers of multiple levels.
Coolors
Best for: Brand design
Cost: Free
Platforms: Website
This free online colour palette generator is a great tool for brand design, intuitively generating harmonious colour combinations. Extract colours from images, check accessibility of combinations and preview palettes on real designs. It’s user-friendly and easy to save and share your palettes.
