As someone who has been in the graphic design industry for a couple decades, I’ve tried just about every graphic design and photo editing software out there. While I’m frugal, I’m also not afraid to invest money in software that will save me time and make my job easier, which is why I’ve invested in the full Adobe Creative Suite, Affinity Suite, and even Canva Pro! Here my favorite graphic design programs in 2023.
Best for Social Media Graphics: Canva
I can already hear my fellow professional graphic designers writing me off, but hear me out. While I absolutely love Adobe Creative Suite and thing it is worth every penny, Canva’s brand kit feature and built-in social media re-sizing make it so quick and easy to create branded social media graphics, short form video, and other digital content (and yes, I use Adobe’s library feature). Some days I just don’t have the time to create every graphic from scratch, especially videos, which is where Canva’s library of design templates and simple editor is helpful. I also love not having thousands of social media posts taking up space on my hard drive.
Best for Logo Design: Adobe Illustrator
What I will absolutely not compromise on is using a proper vector program for creating logos, and the best software for logo design is Adobe Illustrator. Every professional print shop can take – and usually prefer – Adobe files whether native AI files or Adobe PDFs. One of the biggest reasons I recommend Illustrator above others, is that logos usually involve typography to some degree, and text settings like kerning is much more refined in Illustrator; none of the competitors even come close on this.
Whatever you do, do not use Canva to create logos for clients. For starters, their templates are copyrighted by the original designer and their licensing specifically states that even derivatives cannot be trademarked by Canva users. Even you create your logo from just free elements, it will not output in the proper vector files that print shops will need. Additionally, Canva does not have a CMYK color picker so you can’t guarantee your logo colors will print properly.
Best for Making SVG Files: Affinity Designer*
As much as Adobe Illustrator is the industry standard for vectors, the interface is a UX nightmare and surprisingly limited in some areas. Maybe it’s because I’m an Adobe Photoshop stan, but the AI interface just doesn’t work the way I expect it to, so I’ve found myself gravitating to Affinity Designer when creating SVG files for cutting machines and direct to garment printing. Just a few of the features I prefer in Designer include:
- I can duplicate a layer with the CMD + J shortcut AND it keeps the object in the same location
- I can add an outside stroke to live text without having to convert it to curves/outlines
- My color palettes are available in every document without having to import them
- Adding layers together creates a single object instead of a “compound path” containing separate objects
* My biggest caveat with Affinity is that it is still pretty buggy. For example, expanding the stroke on text sometimes fills in the counter of letters, e.g. the hole in an O. Likewise, subtracting a layer from another sometimes deletes both layers. These bugs are documented on the Affinity help site, but they unfortunately don’t have a timeline for a fix.
Best for Print Layout: ?
I haven’t had to professionally design a multi-page print document since the days when Quark Xpress required a dongle, so I can’t really give a definitive answer on this one. Adobe InDesign is considered the industry standard, but a couple years ago I tried making a simple low-content book for KDP using InDesign, but it was so clunky that I ended up going back to Microsoft Word. Seriously. I’ve heard Affinity Publisher is a promising competitor and hope it’s more user friendly.
Best for Designing Seamless Repeat Patterns : Illustrator
Adobe Illustrator has a built-in pattern maker that makes it easy to create AND edit repeating pattern from multiple graphics. While you can use offset technique to create patterns in programs like Procreate and Photoshop, you can’t easily reposition graphics that overlap the edges and ensure they’ll be seamless.
Now if only Adobe would make it as easy to export a pattern’s tile as it is to design it…
Best All-Around: Adobe Photoshop
What started out as just a photo editing program (and is still the best photo editing software by far), Photoshop’s vector tools and ability to work with embedded vectors actually make it a strong graphic design program, especially when working with a fixed size. The artistic abilities of raster tools make Photoshop the go-to for industry giants like Disney artists, but being the lowest cost option from Adobe (just $10/month!) makes it accessible to beginners too.
Everything I need to design my print on demand graphics is just easier in Photoshop than in Illustrator or Designer:
- I don’t have to expand objects or any other steps for my fonts and masks to export correctly; the image always exports the way it looks in the editor
- using smart objects to place a graphic inside another document and have it automatically update with changes (I do this a lot with AOP garments to ensure patterns are the same size and graphics line up, e.g. when creating the front pocket of a hoodie)
- my color and pattern swatches are available in every new document
- duplicating layers keeps the object in the same position
- outside stroke, knock outs, and other features work on live text, i.e. I don’t have to convert text to static shapes
I admit that I might just not know Illustrator as well as Photoshop, but my point is – use what works for you, as long as it outputs the correct file type for your intended use. Do I need a scalable vector for a t-shirt design? No. Should I use a raster program like Photoshop to create a logo just because I find it easier to use? Also, no.
