PhotoCraft (v0.7.0) review: what works, what fails, and whether it can replace Photoshop yet
PhotoCraft is an image editor written from scratch in Rust that copies Photoshop's menus, shortcuts, panels and PSD format. It is the most-starred Craft app (42,800 stars on GitHub) and, by its own authors' estimate, about 45% ready for real work.
Last checked 11 Oct 2026. Independent site; not affiliated with ArtCraft or Adobe.
What works today
- Layers and masks: layer and vector masks, groups, blend modes, opacity, clipping.
- 16 adjustment layers that stay live: Levels with a histogram, Curves per channel, Vibrance, Hue/Saturation, Black & White, Channel Mixer, Gradient Map, Photo Filter, Selective Color, Color Lookup (.cube, .3dl, .look) and more.
- Layer styles: Drop Shadow, Inner Shadow, Outer and Inner Glow, Bevel & Emboss, Satin, Stroke and the three overlays, on any layer including type.
- Type stays editable and round-trips through PSD. Shape layers and paths with boolean operations; the project reports 116 of 116 shape layers in its PSD corpus matching Photoshop pixel for pixel.
- Selections, including on-device subject and object selection (no server), 70+ live-preview filters, smart objects with smart filters, 8/16/32-bit documents in RGB, CMYK, Lab and Grayscale with ICC colour management.
- Files: PSD and PSB open and save; 307 of 309 psd-tools test files survive a round trip according to the README.
- Automation: every action is a command, so the same engine runs from the UI, a CLI, a JSON channel or an MCP server for AI agents.
What the project says is missing
From ROADMAP.md (10 Oct 2026): feature breadth ~76% (tools 53 of 68, panels 30 of 35, formats 13 of 31), ready for real work ~45%, "essentials user" ~61%. The team estimates 1,100 to 1,800 agent-hours to reach beta. The gaps it names: start-up and GPU robustness on real machines, brush and transform responsiveness, the Type tool, discoverability (fly-outs, commit buttons), opening AVIF and PDF, and PSD exchange on complex files. There is no plug-in or scripting ecosystem and no Adobe-style AI features; those "need owner decisions".
"Ready for real work" and "feature breadth" are the project's own published estimates from each repository's ROADMAP.md (last re-measured 10 Oct 2026). They are honest, but they are self-graded. We quote them; we did not measure them.
PhotoCraft vs Photoshop in one minute
| PhotoCraft 0.7.0 | Photoshop 2026 | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free, MIT or Apache-2.0 | Subscription |
| Runs on | macOS, Windows, Linux, FreeBSD, browser | macOS, Windows, iPad, web |
| Account needed | No | Yes |
| PSD / PSB | Open and save | Native |
| Generative AI | None | Firefly built in |
| Plug-ins | None | Large ecosystem |
| Maturity | Alpha, ~45% ready by its own estimate | 35 years |
Who it is for right now: people who want a free, offline editor that feels like Photoshop for everyday retouching, compositing and layered work, and who keep Photoshop or another editor around for the files that do not open cleanly. Who should wait: anyone who depends on plug-ins, actions, Camera Raw or Firefly.
How to install PhotoCraft
Option 1: the ArtCraft Launcher (recommended by the project)
The ArtCraft Launcher (v0.2.0) installs PhotoCraft and every other Craft app, picks the right build for your computer and updates them. Get it from the official apps page or the launcher's GitHub releases.
Option 2: a standalone installer
Every release on GitHub ships these files (replace 0.7.0 with the current version):
| Platform | File | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| macOS | photocraft-0.7.0-macos-universal.dmg | One file for Apple silicon and Intel. Signed and notarized, so Gatekeeper opens it without a warning. |
| Windows 10/11 (64-bit) | photocraft-0.7.0-windows-x64.msi | Installer. A -portable.zip that runs without installing is next to it. ARM64 and 32-bit builds exist too. |
| Linux | photocraft-0.7.0-linux-x86_64.AppImage | Also .deb, .rpm, .flatpak and a plain tarball, for x86_64 and ARM64. |
We never host installers. Download from GitHub or getartcraft.com only, and check the file against SHA256SUMS.txt in the same release if you want to be sure.
Questions
Is PhotoCraft really free?
Yes. It is dual-licensed MIT or Apache-2.0, runs offline and asks for no account. The ArtCraft team funds itself through the separate ArtCraft studio app's cloud credits.
Can PhotoCraft replace Photoshop?
For basic layered editing, adjustments and layer styles it already covers a lot. The authors themselves put it at about 45% ready for real work and call it alpha. Treat it as promising, not as a drop-in replacement yet.
Does PhotoCraft open PSD files?
Yes. PSD and PSB open and save, and the project reports 307 of 309 test files rendering identically after a round trip. Smart filters, rare layer kinds and very large files are the usual places where something is lost.
Is there a PhotoCraft web version?
Yes. Every release includes a photocraft-web zip, and the project says the same UI runs in the browser through WebAssembly. The desktop app is faster and has fewer limits.
Who makes PhotoCraft?
The ArtCraft team at Storyteller.ai, with community contributors, on GitHub as storytold/photocraft. The repository was created on 30 September 2026.