Inkscape
Free vector drawing app for logos, signs and diagrams. The common replacement for Adobe Illustrator.
Our verdict
Inkscape is the free replacement for Adobe Illustrator, and for a home user or a small business making a logo, a poster or a sign it covers the ground. Drawings are stored as shapes rather than pixels, so they stay crisp whether you print them on a business card or a banner.
It will open Illustrator files, though not perfectly: shapes usually come through fine while text and special effects often need fixing by hand. If you have a long back catalogue of .ai files you care about, test a few before you commit.
The other limitation is print colour. Inkscape works in screen colour, and commercial printers who want CMYK separations may send you back for another go. For anything that ends up on a screen, on a home printer or on a cutting machine, it does the job at no cost.
What's good
- Artwork stays sharp at any size, so it suits logos, signage and cut files
- Reads and writes .svg, and can import Illustrator .ai and .pdf files
- Free with no subscription
- Large community with plenty of beginner tutorials
What to know first
- Can feel slow on very complex drawings
- Illustrator files usually import but text and effects often need repairing
- Print colour handling is weaker than Illustrator, so commercial printers may ask for changes
- The toolset is deep and the learning curve is real
The details
- Cost
- Free
- Open source
- Yes (GPL-3.0)
- How you install it
- App store (Flatpak), AppImage download, App store (Snap), .deb installer, .rpm installer, Built-in app store
Windows apps it can replace
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