And it does have basic paint and text tools as well, so you can accomplish nearly everything here that you can in Paint - and then some.

It's been my go-to app for years I use it to tweak most of the images I share here on CNET. With it you can rotate, flip and resize images convert to grayscale, sharpen, fill backgrounds and apply a variety of effects. IrfanViewĭo you use Paint mostly for simple image-editing? Consider switching to IrfanView, a fast and compact utility that's great for quick edits. While I'm at it, Paint.NET is usually mentioned in the same breath it's similarly sophisticated, similarly challenging for novices. And, hey, you can't have a conversation about free image-manipulation tools without mentioning GIMP. Thankfully, the developers have created a handful of tutorials designed to walk you through various functions. On the other hand, it's probably overkill for users just looking to draw cat pictures.

If you're willing to learn, this is definitely a major upgrade. The old-standby, old-favorite open-source image editor, GIMP hews much closer to Photoshop than it does to Paint, and as such the learning curve is much steeper. GIMP supports layers - a killer feature if you need them, and something Paint users never dreamed of. Just doodling, though? You'll find Artweaver a fine tool. This touchscreen-friendly Windows program serves up a wealth of realistic brushes, pens, papers and more, all designed to unlock your inner artist.Īlthough the free version is quite capable, you'll need to invest in Artweaver Plus (about $40, or £30/AU$50) if you need technical support or want to use the program for commercial purposes. If you liked doing actual painting with Microsoft Paint, you'll love Artweaver. Let's take a look at some of the options. If not, no worries: There are plenty of free alternatives to Paint, and most of them offer a lot more features. Of course, this has yet to be officially confirmed by Microsoft, and there's always the possibility you'll be able to download the program separately.

Is it time to bid farewell to Microsoft Paint, a Windows staple since all the way back in version 1.0? According to a Microsoft page listing all the features to be removed from the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update, Paint is indeed going bye-bye.

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