According to the Social Science Research Network, 65% of people are “visual people,1” and thus, imagery and visuals play a huge and important role in creating business connections with their prospects and customers. But let me guess, you don’t want to learn Photoshop and other similar programs (I don’t either). You want software that’s drag-and-drop so you can customize it, that looks professional (pre-made templates anyone?), you want to change some colors and text, and click “export,” correct? Oh, and let’s not forget that it’d be nice to have a free option as you grow in your business or become more familiar with the software, am I right?
Well, we thought about you and so we’ve done some homework and found these free graphic design apps or software that you can comfortably use in your browser, or even in some cases also on your phone or via desktop to create professional-looking business graphics for your blog posts, your websites, landing pages, social media, for your mother on her birthday, or anything else you can think of.
Our Evaluation Criteria for Free Professional Graphic Design Tools
When we went through our selection process, this is what we had in mind:
Do they offer a free plan?
Does the software offer professional templates?
Is the software easily accessible through a browser?
Does the software have a relatively easy learning-curve?
We also took into some other factors like ease-of-use, effects, video features, export features, and other miscellaneous criteria.
NoticeAre we missing any good software in this post? Post in the comments to let us know.
Different Graphic Design Strokes, for Different Folks
We realized that different businesses and people will have different needs. In the end, whether you’re a savvy artist or a non-technical hustler, our selection was not aimed for the graphic design professional, but for people who seek quick delivery or output, with little to no graphics knowledge. In this case, you should be able to pump out a design in about 5-15 minutes with little effort or little practice beforehand.
The list below is not in any specific order, at the end of the article, the editor will summarize his or her selection.
Online Graphics Design Software #1
Crello
This is by far one of our top three picks. So we put it on top.
Graphic design software that allows you to create unique designs that you can’t find with other graphic design software. You can animate text, objects, and backgrounds in order to create the promotional video or page you want everyone to see. Crello gives you the blank slate to create what is in your mind and put it into colors for everyone to see. With a team of support to assist when needed, you can create the perfect addition for your website that everyone will admire and find easy to navigate through. Used for social media posts, blogs, covers, headers, media advertisement, advertising, and animated designs.
Crello would be a good place to start in order to design the best emails for your website each week. Create something that will grab the attention of your viewers. If you want to create a social media post to advertise a sale or a specific product you want to push for this week. Crello is the tool to assist you in all your creative needs.
Crello Pricing:
Free Plan: Free plan includes all design tools and over 10,000 templates to choose from
Pricing Begins: Pro plan which is $9.99/month. This plan also includes a free 14-day trial to see if you are going to like it and a 20% off if you purchase the one-year plan.
Crello's Animation Maker
View the video to get an overview
8.8Expert Score
Crello Features Pro's & Cons
Ease of Use
9
Features
8.5
Support
8
Price
9.5
PROS
Choose from a beautiful array of templates that will fit into almost any situation you want your design to go on.
Plans are straight-forward and everything you need to know about them can be found on their page under plans.
Countless templates to help you find the right fit
Colorful templates
Allows you to put your words into animation
CONS
When compared to competitors, Crello may not offer as much however this could change the more, they grow
There’s almost too much opportunity to make adjustments, causing you more time to finalize your creation
Snappa is a good place to start for any type of media design, social media, blogs, displays, infographics, and emails. Customize your page with an easy-to-follow solution of clicking. With Snappa, you can choose from a variety of different high resolutions images and photo stock to enhance the pages you want to create. They also offer over two hundred fonts to choose from. This website will allow you to customize your pages to suit your needs, no matter what that might be. Customizing your page is what Snappa can help you with. You can use your very own company emblem, logo, as well as graphics without changing a thing. You can even use the same dimensions as well, so you don’t have to sacrifice anything to try Snappa.
Snappa Pricing:
Free Plan: The Starter Package – which gives one user over 6,000 templates to choose from as well as HD photos and graphics too, but only three downloads per month
Pricing Begins: The $10 Package (Pro Package) – Gives one user access to over 6,000 templates per month and tons of HD photos and graphics and more
The $20 Package (Team Package) – gives five users access to all the things listed in the ten-dollar package plus a few other things
How to Setup Instagram Stories on Snappa
View the video to get an overview
8.5Expert Score
Snappa Feature Pro's & Cons
Ease of Use
8
Features
8
Support
9
Price
9
PROS
Pricing is affordable
Free templates that you can use
Snappa is easy to navigate through
CONS
The website may not be easy to navigate around
May not be able to load some of the more animated templates
Some of the best features are only available in the paid plans.
Working on your website gives you an upper hand on your competition. DesignBold can give you the tools you need to set yourself apart from all the others. You can create great content using every step provided by DesignBold. They provide easy drag-and-drop design to make it easier than ever to create all the content you need without all the additional steps. Once you create the design, it will automatically back it up so you won’t lose what you have created at every level. This will give you the freedom to be as created as you want to be when you have the time to do it.
With Designbold, you get a wide variety of great templates as well as stock photography so you can find everything that you are looking for. You can create blog graphics as well as social media posts and other advertisement tools you need to grow your business. Using the resize feature on Designbold will save you time because you don’t have to set up a new design every time, you can do several on just one size. Design anything you want. Allow your creativity to get out and onto virtual paper that will then be distributed to everyone on your mailing list. You will feel better knowing that you have this crazy design that will help sell your product or your service.
With Designbold, you get a wide variety of great templates as well as stock photography so you can find everything that you are looking for. You can create blog graphics as well as social media posts and other advertisement tools you need to grow your business. Using the resize feature on Designbold will save you time because you don’t have to set up a new design every time, you can do several on just one size. Design anything you want. Allow your creativity to get out and onto virtual paper that will then be distributed to everyone on your mailing list. You will feel better knowing that you have this crazy design that will help sell your product or your service.
DesignBold Pricing:
Free Plan: Yes – 2gb Storage Free Plan.
Pricing Begins: The $9.99/month unlimited premium package.
What is DesignBold?
Get a 1 minute overview.
8Expert Score
DesignBold Features Pro's & Cons
Ease of Use
8.5
Features
8.5
Support
7
Price
8
PROS
Many fonts to choose from.
Easy Drag and drop design
Collaboration tools to have the entire team working on the same projects.
Dozens of different types of templates for different needs.
CONS
The tools may be more generic than that of a similar competitor
The platform may develop bugs from time to time – but are normally address quickly.
An online graphic design tool that every social media manager and business owner needs is stencil. This website offers fast and simple ways that you can create the social media posts, blog posts, presentations, and emails that you want your viewers to see. More people are turning to visual content today and it’s important that you have all the tools needed to create the perfect media that you need when you need it the most. With the tools you have access to on Stencil, you can take your dull content and create interesting pictures that put your content into color.
When you use Stencil, you will have access to the latest and the greatest templates as well as stock photography. This will allow you to create blog graphics and design some of your best work for your social media posts. You want to create a post that will attract the attention of everyone who may have been looking at your products or services but have never bought; this creation may be what they need to make the move.
Stencil Features:
Millions of photos to select from
The ability to create unlimited images every month
Over 650 template designs to choose from
Different fonts to choose from
Logo and watermarks available
Stencil Pricing:
Free Plan: The Free Package – gives you the basics you need as an individual to create colorful content.
Pricing Begins: The Pro Package – $9.00/month
The Unlimited Package – $12.00/month – this is the most popular package as you will have access to anything and everything this website offers.
How to Use Stencil
View the video to get an overview
8.3Expert Score
Stencil Features Pro's & Cons
Ease of Use
9
Features
8
Support
7
Price
9
PROS
One of the easiest platforms to use with simple navigation.
Easily create layers and manipulate elements.
Auto-save and easy to navigate depository
CONS
While simple to use, the editing features are limited.
No video or animation features.
No folder or file management system - so when you accumulate a lot of saved files, it can be difficult to manage.
Pixlr is an online program that allows you to create free online photo editing right from your browser. It was created to enable an outlet for creativity among those who needed to create and share images through an online site. There are so many different choices you can make as a user of Pixlr. This online program offers one-click building options that are great for preparing what you need for your social media, your blog, your emails, or even presentations. Pixlr even offers an option to remove the backgrounds in a photo so you can recreate the photo in another location.
Pixlr is a good choice for anyone who needs to have editing skills without having the knowledge that you can only get in college. The step-by-step tool will make it easier to get out of the box and create beautiful designs that will work well with what you need. The editing can be as sophisticated or as simple as you desire. Best of all, your images that you use will be kept private so you can feel better about uploading them onto the site. Pixlr is a very simple design to work with and will help you get your tasks accomplished with a few simple clicks.
Pixlr Features:
Different Filters available for designs
Layers available
Color replacement options
Image retouching
Filters for almost everything
Pixlr Pricing:
Always Free Plan.
The Premium Package for $3.99/month
The Professional Package for $14.99/month
How to the Basics of Pixlr
View the video to get an overview
8.4Expert Score
Pixlr Features Pro's & Cons
Ease of Use
9
Features
9
Support
6.5
Price
9.0
PROS
One of a few free programs that opens and edits Adobe Photoshop files (.PSD)
You can choose different icons and stickers to add to your creation in order to create an audience that is perfect
You can choose between 'basic' and 'advanced' versions depending on skill
CONS
Because it is a free program, you have to deal with ads
It may take a while to find the right font and colors to best suit your need
The online creating of beautiful posters, cards, emails, and more can be found in FotoJet. With FotoJet, you can create photo collages that show your artistic side and gives you some amazing tools to help create your perfect product. You can design it from beginning to the end.
This is a free collage maker available online. It also offers a graphic designer option so your photos can be transformed into something that you will want to share with everyone. You will get access to collage layouts that give you the opportunity to look professional.
Fotojet is a simple application to use with a modern view of today. You can bring graphics, photos, and collages alive and in different settings to appease your creative talents. There are several template options to choose from and you will have the opportunity to even save your favorite template so you can go back to it immediately the next time. Adjust the images, create effects and texts. Your final product will be something that you can use when you want to create a presentation or to create an email chain that goes out to everyone who is subscribed.
Features of FotoJet
Over 80 shapes to choose
Ability to add photos
Over 20 backgrounds to choose from
Add different photos
Over 500 clip art images available
Lots of template layouts available
FotoJet Pricing:
Free Plan: Includes basic features and assets only.
Pricing Begins: $2.91/mo for all features.
FotoJet Overview
View the video to get an overview
8.5Expert Score
FotoJet Feature Pro's & Cons
Ease of Use
9
Features
7.5
Support
8
Price
9.5
PROS
Great templates
Its practical
Easy to work around
CONS
Doesn't automatically save your work
You don’t get much to work with on the free package
Editor’s Opinion: Don’t Forget that the Goal is to Engage Your Users.
Regardless of which software you choose, be aware that the goal is to engage, as well as to retain. Let me explain what I mean. Several independent studies found that web pages that utilizes more images situated in-between content found that articles and salespages retained their readers much longer than those that didn’t. This signifies that images work well to avoid overwhelming content as well as engaged users second to video and “live” content. Given that any piece of content would need several images at least, it’s essential to identify a tool that works for you that allows you to pump out images quickly to strengthen your content.
