Graphic design tools play a crucial role in determining the value and efficiency of design services, influencing hourly rates and profitability for designers.
Top designers are leveraging specific software stacks combining AI-powered tools with specialised software to deliver premium services efficiently.
Adobe's Creative Cloud Suite, including Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign, remains industry leaders providing advanced editing, vector graphics, and layout design functionalities.
Affinity Designer emerges as a cost-effective vector graphic design tool known for its versatile toolset, precision, and user-friendly interface.
The comparison between Affinity Designer and Adobe Illustrator showcases the one-time purchase model of Affinity Designer against Adobe's subscription-based pricing.
Sketch stands out for UI/UX design, offering a user-focused interface, symbol management, real-time collaboration, and lightweight performance.
Canva revolutionizes graphic design with its intuitive interface, cloud-based convenience, collaboration features, diverse templates, customisation options, and accessible pricing.
Procreate caters to mobile designers, providing a touchscreen experience, affordability, user-friendly interface, custom brushes, layering capabilities, and high-resolution canvases.
CorelDRAW Graphics Suite is lauded for vector illustration, intuitive interface, versatile tools, collaboration, and compatibility, making it a strong contender against Adobe's offerings.
In 2025, Adobe dominates the graphic design software market but faces competition from emerging players like Canva and Sketch, offering cost-effective solutions.
Key trends in graphic design software include AI-driven tools, immersive design, sustainability focus, freemium models, and the continued evolution of design tools towards AI dominance by 2030.