Pinta vs Affinity by Canva
Both are alternatives to Adobe Photoshop. Here's how they stack up — verified facts, no spin.
Also searched as Affinity by Canva vs Pinta — same comparison, one verdict.
Pinta is open source (MIT) and Affinity by Canva is not (Proprietary (free)) — so the real question is whether you want to own the image editing stack or rent it.
Pinta
A lightweight, open-source editor for quick everyday image edits.
Pinta is a simple, MIT-licensed image editor modeled on Paint.NET, for the large group of people who pay for Photoshop but mostly crop, resize, annotate, and make quick adjustments. It offers layers, a solid set of adjustments and effects, and an interface you can learn in minutes, on Linux, Windows, and macOS. It is deliberately not a professional tool: there is no PSD support and nothing like Photoshop-depth retouching — but if your needs are genuinely simple, it may be all the editor you need.
Affinity by Canva
The full pro suite — pixel, vector, and layout — now genuinely free.
Affinity was the classic one-time-purchase Photoshop rival; after Canva's acquisition it was relaunched in late 2025 as a single free desktop app combining what used to be Affinity Photo, Designer, and Publisher — full pixel, vector, and layout studios with no feature limits or subscription. It's closed-source and needs a Canva account to activate (it works offline afterwards), and Canva's AI extras are the paid upsell. For someone who wants professional-grade Photoshop power without a subscription and without open-source trade-offs, this is now the strongest commercial answer.
Side by side
10 points of comparison, every one read from a verified field. Green marks the side that wins a row outright. A dash means we do not hold that fact — never that it is zero.
| Pinta | Affinity by Canva | |
|---|---|---|
| Sovereignty ScoreOur transparent 0–100 composite for data ownership and exit cost. | 92 | 42 |
| Open source | Yes | No |
| Self-hostable | Yes | No |
| Local-first data | Yes | Yes |
| License | MIT | Proprietary (free) |
| Pricing | Free and open-source | Free (all pixel/vector/layout tools); Canva premium plans unlock the AI features |
| RAM to run it wellThe figure that actually matters, not the vendor's minimum. | Depends on your images. Every layer is a full uncompressed canvas at 4 bytes per pixel, so a 24-megapixel photo costs about 96 MB per layer, before undo history | — |
| Realistic running costWhat the box costs each month if you run it yourself. | $0 — it runs on the machine you already own | — |
| Setup timeHonest first-install estimate, not the marketing quickstart. | 5 minutes | — |
| Ongoing maintenanceThe part nobody budgets for. | Install new versions when they ship, which is a few times a year (3.0.4 through 3.1.2 in the last twelve months). No account, no server, nothing to back up but your own files. | — |
Pinta edges it on the Sovereignty Score, but the right pick depends on the trade-offs below.
Weighing both against staying on Adobe Photoshop? Is Adobe Photoshop free? What it actually costs →
Pinta
Strengths
- +Simple and fast for everyday edits — crop, resize, annotate, adjust
- +MIT-licensed and cross-platform (Linux, Windows, macOS)
- +Layers and useful adjustments/effects without a learning curve
- +Small footprint; runs well on older hardware
Trade-offs
- −Nowhere near Photoshop's depth — no advanced retouching, masking, or prepress tools
- −No PSD support (native format plus OpenRaster and standard image formats)
- −Small maintainer team and a modest development pace
- −Far smaller ecosystem and fewer tutorials than GIMP or Krita
Affinity by Canva
Strengths
- +Professional-grade suite, genuinely free — no feature gates
- +Pixel, vector, and page layout in one app
- +Works offline after activation; native macOS and Windows
Trade-offs
- −Closed-source; requires a Canva account to activate
- −Long-term direction now depends on Canva
- −iPad version still catching up
Which one fits you
The trade-offs above, turned into a decision. Find the line that describes your team.
Choose Pinta
if you want the source and the option to fork it, and you would rather run it on your own hardware, and simple and fast for everyday edits — crop, resize, annotate, adjust.
Choose Affinity by Canva
if professional-grade suite, genuinely free — no feature gates.
Neither, yet
if both carry a real cost you should weigh first — nowhere near Photoshop's depth — no advanced retouching, masking, or prepress tools, and closed-source; requires a Canva account to activate. If either of those is a dealbreaker for your team, the shortlist is wrong rather than the choice.
What it takes to run these yourself
Real requirements and honest running costs, not the vendor quickstart.
Pinta vs Affinity by Canva — common questions
Is Pinta a better fit than Affinity by Canva for image editing?
It depends on what you are optimising for, and the honest split is this: Pinta scores 92 to Affinity by Canva's 42 on data ownership and exit cost, so it is the safer choice if you care about being able to leave. Affinity by Canva earns its place on a different axis — professional-grade suite, genuinely free — no feature gates. Neither is a wrong answer for every team; the table above is the actual comparison.
What happens if we want to switch later?
Pinta keeps its data local or in open formats, so leaving is an export rather than a negotiation. Affinity by Canva keeps your data on its own infrastructure, which is the part to plan for: confirm the export path before you commit, not when you are already trying to leave.
Can I self-host Pinta?
Pinta can be self-hosted; Affinity by Canva cannot, so it stays on the vendor's infrastructure whatever you do.
Are Pinta and Affinity by Canva both alternatives to Adobe Photoshop?
Yes — both appear in our Adobe Photoshop comparison, which is why they are worth putting side by side. People usually arrive here already having decided to move off Adobe Photoshop and now choosing between the two replacements, which is a narrower and much easier question.
Related alternative guides
Facts verified 2026-07-06. Licenses and pricing change — spotted something out of date? That's a correction we want.