Pixelmator Pro

What hackers pick instead

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Every quote

The 40 most detailed of 47 comments. Each links to the original.

1. Pixelmator Pro feels like an attempt to make a better photo editor, losing some familiarity points but also being tangibly better than Photoshop at most use cases it can handle

   Recommends · Jan 2026 · in “Apple Creator Studio”

2. That's been the closest lightweight super-intuitive alternative to Paint.net I've ever messed around with.

   Recommends · Sep 2026 · in “Paint.net 5.2 alpha now runs on Linux”

3. Pixelmator lacks features, but at least you can figure out how to use them in short order

   Mixed · May 2026 · in “Photo GIMP – A Patch for GIMP 3 for Photoshop Users”

4. Pixelmator Pro is fantastic. I've forgotten about Photoshop for many years. Just buy it.

   Recommends · Jan 2026 · in “Apple Creator Studio”

5. I love Pixelmator Pro. One of my favorite apps on my computer. Super quick and snappy.

   Recommends · Jan 2026 · in “Apple Creator Studio”

6. Native MacOS - quick to load and very intuitive layer-based paint interface.

   Recommends · Mar 2026 · in “GrobPaint: Somewhere Between MS Paint and Paint.net. Multiplatform by Default”

7. Pixelmator has okay enough vector editing and export support for my needs

   Recommends · Jul 2026 · in “Apple has decided to compete for creativity app users”

8. Pixelmator Pro is available as a one time purchase as well for $49.99

   Recommends · Jan 2026 · in “Apple Creator Studio”

9. Pixelmator Pro is more enjoyable to use, has a better user interface.

   Recommends · Oct 2026 · in “Ask HN: What is the current trajectory of a senior engineer?”

10. You can otherwise buy Pixelmator Pro for $50 from Apple.

    Recommends · Oct 2026 · in “Software may be getting worse, but it used to be horrible”

11. Pixelmator is more a Mac app than Messages or Music.

    Recommends · Jan 2026 · in “Apple Creator Studio”

12. I bought it years ago and haven't regretted it.

    Recommends · Dec 2025 · in “Gimp Source Code”

13. Pixelmator Pro is great and affordable.

    Recommends · Mar 2026 · in “I Quit Editing Photos”

14. I don't want yet another subscription.

    Mixed · Jan 2026 · in “Apple Creator Studio”

15. I've moved from PS to Pixelmator

    Recommends · Apr 2026 · in “The creative software industry has declared war on Adobe”

16. Pixelmator looks the part but isn't a very good software, especially for vectors.

    Criticizes · Jan 2026 · in “Apple Creator Studio”

17. Pixelmator Pro looks like a toy app compared to Logic or Final Cut.

    Criticizes · Jan 2026 · in “Apple Creator Studio”

18. Pixelmator Pro's much more toy-like predecessor from ~10 years ago

    Criticizes · Jan 2026 · in “Apple Creator Studio”

19. they are shovelling you into an eternal subscription model

    Criticizes · Jul 2026 · in “Apple has decided to compete for creativity app users”

20. Pixelmator Pro is upgraded a couple of times under Apple's wings, and this thing is not being ruined.

    Recommends · Jan 2026 · in “Apple Creator Studio”

21. I’ve been trying to get by with Affinity and Pixelmator in the new Apple Creator Studio.

    Mixed · Apr 2026 · in “Adobe modifies hosts file to detect whether Creative Cloud is installed”

22. It's a great app and has the "paint an effect" (like blur, sharpen) that Aperture had.

    Recommends · Jan 2026 · in “A Lament for Aperture”

23. The AI image processing in Pixelmator Pro saved me hours of work on a recent project.

    Recommends · Oct 2026 · in “New 14‑inch MacBook Pro with M6”

24. Pixelmator is great and integrates well with Apple's tooling for batch processing

    Recommends · Jan 2026 · in “Apple Creator Studio”

25. There's a nice feedback loop between taking the shot and editing it later.

    Recommends · Mar 2026 · in “I Quit Editing Photos”

26. Apple bought them instead of doubling down on their talent and resources.

    Recommends · May 2026 · in “Where Are the Vibecoded Photoshops?”

27. I've been using Pixelmator (and recently Pixelmator Pro) for years now.

    Recommends · Jan 2026 · in “A Lament for Aperture”

28. "use ML" checkbox while resizing or "enhancing" images (Pixelmator Pro)

    Recommends · Sep 2026 · in “LibreOffice breaks download records after declaring it has no AI features”

29. Pixelmator Pro is the only one that is remotely relevant to my needs

    Mixed · Jul 2026 · in “Apple has decided to compete for creativity app users”

30. But I am happy, as I have absolutely no need for the others

    Recommends · Jan 2026 · in “Apple Creator Studio”

31. I use Pixelmator Pro, which can be bought on the AppStore.

    Recommends · Nov 2025

32. At least more "at home" compared to Pixelmator, IMO.

    Mixed · Jul 2026 · in “An Infuriating Goodbye to Photoshop”

33. do everything I need and float like a feather

    Recommends · Mar 2026 · in “Apple Introduces MacBook Neo”

34. I use a tool called Pixelmator Pro for this

    Recommends · Oct 2026 · in “Seam Cutter”

35. Worked on Xcode/Pixelmator/GarageBand

    Recommends · Mar 2026 · in “Apple Introduces MacBook Neo”

36. It doesn't currently support AVIF.

    Mixed · Oct 2026 · in “I guess I'm using WebP now?”

37. The other app was pixelmator

    Recommends · Apr 2026 · in “LittleSnitch for Linux”

38. they’re good enough for that

    Recommends · Nov 2025 · in “Affinity enshittification: How Canva's "Four Pledges" aged like milk”

39. I have basically no idea what it's meant to represent, apart from a very vague indication of the concept of "layers".

    Criticizes · Jan 2026 · in “If you put Apple icons in reverse it looks like someone getting good at design”

40. the developers suck (Pixelmator developers cramming all features people wanted into a different “pro” version)

    Criticizes · Oct 2026 · in “Vibecoding Photoshop: Time and pressure”