Photopea Review, Pricing & Alternatives (2026)

Photopea is a one-person project by Ivan Kutskir, a developer from Ukraine based in the Czech Republic, who launched it in 2013. It has grown into one of the most widely used free image editors on the web because it copies Photoshop's layout and shortcuts closely, so Photoshop users can work in it immediately. The app runs entirely in the browser using your CPU and GPU, and files do not upload to a server, which keeps editing fast and private. It is funded mainly by ads shown in a side column or a bottom banner on phones. Schools, hobbyists, freelancers and people who receive PSD files without owning Photoshop use it heavily.

Editing tools include layers, masks, layer styles, smart objects, adjustment layers, channels, paths, the pen tool, healing and clone tools, Liquify, Puppet Warp and a full set of filters and adjustments such as Levels and Curves. Photopea opens and saves PSD files with layers intact, and reads more than 40 other formats, including PNG, JPG, WEBP, SVG, PDF, AI, XCF, Sketch, Figma, INDD, CDR, HEIC and AVIF. It handles RAW files from Canon, Nikon, Sony, Fujifilm and others with exposure and color controls. Vector shapes and text support logo and layout work, and scripts and plug-ins extend the editor.

AI features are split between free and paid. Remove BG and Magic Cut, in the Select menu, separate subjects from backgrounds, and object selection helps isolate parts of an image. Magic Replace in the healing tools replaces a selected area with new content from a text description, similar to generative fill, and a Generate With AI dialog creates images from prompts, labeled as sponsored by Zoner AI. AI credits are available only to Premium users, who get 3,000 a month, and Photopea documents an option to enter your own Dezgo API key when credits run out. Reviewers, including PCMag, describe the generative results as average next to Adobe Firefly.

Photopea is free with every editing feature, plus 0.5 GB of PeaDrive storage. Premium is a prepaid period rather than an auto-renewing subscription, priced from about €5 a month. In September 2026 the account panel listed one user at €8 for 30 days, €15 for 90 days and €50 for a year, with team plans from €20 for 30 days for five people. Premium removes ads, raises PeaDrive to 5 GB, doubles history steps and adds the AI credits. When the period ends, accounts return to the free version with ads. A white-label distributor license is sold for embedding Photopea in other sites.

Photopea's strengths are price, PSD fidelity and the ability to run on almost any device without installation, including Chromebooks. Its limits are ads on the free tier, a dense interface for beginners, no real-time collaboration and generative AI that trails Photoshop. Adobe Photoshop offers Firefly Generative Fill and better performance on large files, at a subscription price. Pixlr and Canva are easier for quick edits and social graphics. GIMP is free open-source desktop software, and Affinity Photo is a one-time purchase. Choose Photopea if you need Photoshop-style editing and PSD support for free in a browser.