Canva:

When Affinity joined the Canva family last year, we made a promise to preserve its power while expanding what’s possible. Today, that vision comes to life with the all-new Affinity: a studio-grade creative app that brings vector, photo, and layout tools together in one high-performance platform. Fully featured. Lightning-fast. And completely free.

Affinity previously sold three separate apps: Designer (vector design), Photo (photo editing), and Publisher (page layout), all available on Mac, iPad, and PC. The new, combined app offers the full functionality of all three apps, for free:

Affinity is now completely free, forever. The full, professional-grade Affinity experience, available to everyone.

There’s no catch, no stripped-back version, and no gotchas. The same precise, high-performance tools that professionals rely on every day are now open to all, because creative freedom shouldn’t come with a cost.

From the FAQ:

Is Affinity really free?

Yes, Affinity really is free. That doesn’t mean you’re getting a watered-down version of the app though. You can use every tool in the Pixel, Vector, and Layout studios, plus all of the customization and export features, as much as you want, with no restrictions or payment needed. The app will also receive free updates with new features and improvements added.

The only thing that seems to require a (paid) Canva account is (optional) AI functionality:

For everyone with a Canva premium account, Canva AI’s tools are now included directly inside Affinity through the new Canva AI Studio. This includes familiar favorites like Generative Fill, Expand & Edit, and Remove Background – powerful features that speed up repetitive steps while keeping designers in full control of every detail.

When I paid $115 for an Affinity universal license in 2024, I thought it was a screaming good deal: three terrific apps, three platforms, and no subscriptions. I balked slightly at the Canva acquisition because these kinds of deals often go south, either via price increases or crappier apps.

Instead, we get what looks like a massively improved app for Mac and PC (an iPad version is “coming soon,” with a beta expected “next year,” promises CEO Ash Hewson). Making it free was a truly unexpected bonus—I was fully anticipating the apps would be locked behind a $120-a-year Canva Pro account. I couldn’t be happier my concerns were misplaced.

I hope Adobe is quaking in its overpriced subscription boots.