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Jordan Peterson
5,134 PointsIs there another good program I can use besides Adobe Illustrator?
My free trial to Adobe Illustrator has expired. Are there any free programs like Illustrator I can use instead?
Wayne Priestley
19,579 PointsHi Jordan,
I'd second Affinity, like Becky has said it has some very nice features and the team behind it seem really committed to it. I was using the beta for a while and was very impressed.
Jordan Peterson
5,134 PointsI'm learning this as a high school student and I don't have a mac. But that program sounds good for the future.
Aurelian Spodarec
7,369 PointsWell i don't know if its allowed here to say it how etc.. but you can crack all the adobe programs . Not sure though if i can tell how here and probably its illegal .
Gemma Weirs
15,054 PointsAurelian Spodarec It is illegal.
Aurelian Spodarec
7,369 Pointsaha :p i found it by mistake on internet
5 Answers
Gemma Weirs
15,054 PointsTry Inkscape if you're after a free alternative.
Mat Cooksey
2,349 PointsHear, hear! Inkscape is really amazing for being free. Plenty of tutorials for everything you might want to know.
Phil Pickering
1,343 PointsHi Jordan,
As a high school student it's very likely that your school has an institutional Creative Cloud license for the computer labs or library. Have you asked?
If you're looking to install it on your own laptop or desktop PC at home, then there is a $19.99 monthly subscription option for all students (including high school students). This is not only for Illustrator CC but all the Creative Cloud apps and services, including Photoshop and TypeKit.
There are an increasing number of low-cost, excellent alternatives to Adobe applications, but they tend to be Mac-only, such as Sketch & Affinity Designer.
If you are serious about becoming a web designer, you might want to ask your parent(s) if they can help you out for not much more than the price of a weekly cup of coffee from Starbucks ;)
I don't mean to come across as a huge fan of Adobe applications, it's just that as a beginner and being on a Windows PC, you're pretty limited when it comes to well-documented alternatives (i.e. plenty of tutorials to get you up to scratch). The only other ones that come to mind are CorelDRAW ($129.99), Serif DrawPlus ($100 or free starter edition), and Xara Photo & Graphic Designer ($54).
Nicklas Lind
3,619 PointsI personally love Sketch 3, but I'm not sure it's what you're looking for. You should definitely check it out though!
Aurelian Spodarec
7,369 Pointsagree, depends whats the goal and point in all , sketch 3 would be good for developer . Its like photoshop and illustrator but a bit different and it costs 60 pound , 99 dollars and depens where you live. I guess.
Nicklas Lind
3,619 PointsOccasionally, Sketch 3 is on sale for 50% off, so you may be lucky to get it cheaper :-)
Aurelian Spodarec
7,369 PointsThat's great ! I was watching last night the mobile game design with the lady and I will buy it today I guess :) As what I learned , I would recommend it. But it also depends what's the goal of the designer.
Jeff Busch
19,287 Pointsgimp GNU Image Manipulation Program
Some claim it does everything Photoshop does. It's been around a long time, so there's a lot of documentation and tutorials.
Becky Castle
15,294 PointsBecky Castle
15,294 PointsHi Jordan, How serious are you about doing more graphic design work? If this is something you're going to be getting into, I'd suggest investing in a good program. I really like Serif Affinity. It has many of the same features as Illustrator, and then some. Although it's not free, it's MUCH less expensive than Adobe. (For Adobe Illustrator, you'd have to pay $20/mo. which = $240/yr. Serif Affinity is a one-time payment of $50, and then it's yours forever. And no, I don't work for Serif, lol.) But check out Affinity here.