Photopea

KEEP IT

The value is the network, the data or the infrastructure. Keep paying.

A full image editor in a browser that opens Photoshop files, with layers, masks and filters, free with advertising.

Promptfree, for everyone, and the only version there is

Do not rebuild an image editor. Choose what you actually need.

BE REALISTIC
- This is one developer's decade of work, and it is free with advertising

IF YOU NEED PSD FILES
- psd.js or similar libraries read layers, but support is partial and always will be
- For anything important, keep a tool that opens the format properly

IF YOU NEED SIMPLE EDITING
- Crop, resize, rotate and format conversion are sharp in Node or canvas in the browser
- That covers most of what people open an editor for

IF YOU NEED A DESKTOP EDITOR
- GIMP and Krita are free and complete. Neither costs anything and both open more formats than a browser tool

Include the sharp pipeline for the simple cases and a note on which formats you can safely support.

What you lose

Reading and writing PSD, XCF and Sketch files, which is reverse-engineering work measured in years
A complete raster editor in a browser tab
A free tier that already covers most of what people need

If you would rather not build

sharp, for programmatic image work
Photopea itself, which costs almost nothing

The escape hatch

open source · no votes, no paid placement

GIMP

A complete free raster editor that opens most formats.

GNOME/gimpfree · open source

Krita

A free painting and image editor with strong brush and layer support.

KDE/kritafree · open source

Why this verdict

our own opinion · changed only by a person

26/100

Verdict no at 26. Not because it is expensive — it is nearly free — but because reading proprietary formats is years of work with no shortcut.

History

tracked since 10 Aug 2026 · nothing is ever overwritten

Interest · last 30 days

Nothing recorded yet. This chart fills in once the page has visitors, votes or prompt copies — it will not draw a flat line to look busy.

Questions about Photopea

answered from the record above

Is Photopea free?

No — the plan we track is $5 a month. Around $5/month billed monthly to remove advertising; the editor itself is free.

Can you replace Photopea by building your own?

KEEP IT. The value is the network, the data or the infrastructure. Keep paying. Replacement score 26 out of 100, build time longer than it saves. Read what you lose before you decide.

How much does Photopea cost?

$5 a month on Premium — $60 a year. Recorded 10 Aug 2026.

What do you lose by replacing Photopea?

Reading and writing PSD, XCF and Sketch files, which is reverse-engineering work measured in years; A complete raster editor in a browser tab; A free tier that already covers most of what people need. If any of those carry weight for you, keep paying.

Is there an open-source alternative to Photopea?

Yes: GIMP, Krita. The prompt on this page is for when you want it your way instead.

Related entries

same category first, most replaced first

All 21 in Design & website builders

Coming soon

Every week, something stops being worth paying for.

New verdicts, prices that moved, entries added. One email a week. Unsubscribe in one click.

free forever · no tracking pixel · every prompt stays free on the site