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Gimp

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Gimp User Reviews

Popular in Graphics and Photo

5 stars		24
4 stars		4
3 stars		1
2 stars		3
1 star		2
Based on 34 reviews

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Based on 34 user reviews
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Unrefined

by objective Jan 13, 2023 (Read all my 13 reviews)

Huge installation -- takes a few hundred MB. Terrible UI, especially under Windows. Difficult to use. Current version crashes on me when I simply try opening two files at once.

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Too complicated

by Hollinski Mar 21, 2022 (Read all my 3 reviews)

Really bad user interface, its way too complicated even for the simplest commands. There are free editing programs with much better usability. Nerdish program made by nerds for nerds. Could be a great software but the terribly designed user interface kills it.

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Not for rookie, but very good.

by mnm1969 Apr 03, 2021

Not for rookie, but very good.

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Powerful but hard to learn; win users beware

by Harlan Jun 16, 2019 (Read all my 69 reviews)

This has been a great free program for many years. It is powerful enough to compete with expensive paid products. It is difficult to learn, but no more so than similar programs. Unfortunately, each product has different interfaces and nomenclature, making it difficult to move from one to another, even with many YouTube videos for each product. Users should understand, however, that GIMP is primarily a Linux project, and all development is done for a Linux environment and then ported to Windows without being tested. The result is a growing pile of reported bugs under Windows which the developers admit are not getting much attention. If you are running this under Windows, you may run into these bugs and you can't expect any support. I'm considering moving to paid software.

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Fails

by Compulink Jan 09, 2018 (Read all my 12 reviews)

Difficult to install. The download site says it automatically installs as 32 or 64 but on my 64 bit laptop it tries to install as 32 bit. When it does install it is slow.

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Powerful, but exasperating

by biggeros302 Oct 18, 2017

The program is rather powerful, but even more irritating. I simply hate its irrational interface and the way in which he sometimes execute the commands messing everything up. Selecting something is sometimes a torture. In the end it is free so it can be a useful choice, but whenever you can use something else, be it even paint.

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Keep trying, because this rocks!

by darkocean Sep 24, 2015 (Read all my 36 reviews)

The last time I reviewed this was in 2006. Now that I'm a little more advanced in my graphic art, and photo edits I've out grown MS 'pain' and Photofiltre. I just didn't want to learn a new program was all. Update: This isn't that hard to use after all. Instead of trying to use the (weird) erase tool to clean up images use the fuzzy select toon and for totally clean up the rectangle select tool then right click > edit > cut to clean off say pixilated junk. I frekn' HATE MS paint in windows 8 now. I save a nice clean image that I just made come back to it later to find that the quality has been reduced, and it's pixilated) The ordinal MS paint never did that, and would save images as a bmp image nice and clean. Not any more. I have yet to figure out how to get this program to save my files as a bmp image. I'll come back later with a new review when I do. Also, I was excited to find that it has a smudge tool.

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Powerful, but not intuitive...

by indirizzobreve678 Feb 01, 2015 (Read all my 3 reviews)

It has many functions and it's free, but it isn't for occasionally editing. Needs to read help also to draw a simple line and a learning period for more complex action.

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Why is the interface always so bad?

by elliotlord5153 Jan 17, 2015

Over the years, I've downloaded Gimp to see if I can use it but I've always been put off by the interface with the floating tools. Why won't you lock them for god's sake? It's so unusuable as all the separate windows get in the way of each other. It looks like the first ever attempt at making a graphics program. I'm sure it functions well enough but sort it out!!!

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Gimp isn't so difficult

by mongoman595 Jan 28, 2012

I am concerned that some of the comments might discourage people from using GIMP. It really isn't that difficult to master. My advice is to search the Internet for GIMP tutorials. There are so many, and they are very good at getting you up to speed.

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Extremely useful program!

by Dragonfire72 Apr 24, 2010 (Read all my 3 reviews)

This is the best photo-editing program I have used! There are tons of additional customizations you can download as well to make this FREE program do everything that the overpriced Photoshop does! This is my main editor I have used for 5 years now. It does take a little experimenting to get used to the layout, however it is well worth the effort. There is not much I have found that it can't do. The interface may not be the prettiest but what it lacks in flash it more than makes up for where it really counts. This is a powerhouse staple of photo-editors! Oh and did I mention that it is TOTALLY FREE?

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Great editor!

by JamJar Apr 20, 2010 (Read all my 27 reviews)

The GIMP is an amazing program. True it's interface takes getting used and it's not the easiest program to use, but then no advanced graphics editor is. It can do everything make great banners, buttons, wallpapers. It can crop things spot on. It's also a very capable photo editor. It can merge photos and do the normal things like change colours to Sepia and B/W etc etc.

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Great piece of work

by JimWillis Aug 05, 2009 (Read all my 8 reviews)

It just keeps getting better and better.

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A gem among picture tools

by crazynut Mar 26, 2009 (Read all my 4 reviews)

I found this piece of software when I started using ubuntu (Linux), because it is bundled with it. I was surprised with what I found. This is one of the best photo editing tools that I have ever used. True, the learning curve is a little steep, but it is well worth learning it. Come on, learning new things does not kill anyone. The interface is a little awkward, but you will get used to it very soon. It always does what I want it to do. There are many tutorial sites out there and they are free. That is the beauty of open source computing. There are many plugins for gimp, which increases your productivity. If you download this, dont let go, because it is the best of its kind, better than Photoshop, CorelDraw, etc. Worth using and learning. I recommend this to all the people who edits photos.

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Amazing Photoshop replacement

by sazhazman Feb 17, 2009 (Read all my 26 reviews)

I have been a dedicated PhotoShop user for years, until last month when PS started crashing upon saving, not fully loading every time, eating up all my resources and slowing my computer to a crawl. I heard a lot about the Gimp and decided to try it. I am truly amazed. This software can do everything for which I purchased PS. I'll stick with this instead of shelling out another $300 for the latest version PS.

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Say good-bye photoshop, corel,psp hello gimp

by Davoid Dec 21, 2008 (Read all my 7 reviews)

Maybe a little harder to learn than Paint Shop Pro or even Photoshop. Gimp is a very powerful graphics/photo editing program for FREE. And because it is ported over and to other operating systems it has great support and upgrade value. Plenty of learning web sites maybe as many as Photoshop. It is really worth learning this program because that is all it cost you!

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Gimp is excellent and free ...

by TideWalker Oct 25, 2008 (Read all my 23 reviews)

Just about any powerful program has a learning curve and so does the GIMP. You can find many tutorials on the web and video tutorials also. Find one that will take you through the interface and you'll already have a good start. Many people have left Gimp in the early stages of learning, because of lost or closed docks. Once that happened, they couldn't get things back to normal. Once you have learned the interface and understand it, you'll be much happier with the Gimp. Here is a good way to search video tutorials or just tutorials with a search engine. Type these words with the plus sign like so -- GIMP+tutorials+video or just Gimp+tutorials. Do some of the tuts and don't do them when you are tired. Learning is not easy when you are tired and sleepy. The Gimp is the most powerful graphics+ program out there for free. Get it, figure it out and you'll be very glad you did. Excellent and Free.

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Persevere, it's worth it.

by Rustyboy Oct 25, 2008 (Read all my 33 reviews)

I tried The Gimp a while back and (like many others I suspect) gave up on it as I thought it "awkward". On my second try of The Gimp, I persevered and the results were excellent. It is extremely powerful and once you put in a little effort to understand how to use it you will be well rewarded. The documentation is downloadable but not straightforward to find. There are also some good tutorials to be found that can teach you the basics to get you going.

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Gimp knows best

by gimpguy Sep 06, 2008 (Read all my 1159 reviews)

I have read some users' replies in forums and sites etc. on Gimp and think there may be a misunderstanding, Gimp is not Xnview, or anything like, it's not supposed to be like them, see, those like Xnview are simple editors, Gimp is a FULL Blown editor and creator and while can be used for simple things, is too powerful to rate with simple editors. It's excellent for what it does. The steep learning curve is ONLY how deep you get into using it of course but it's fairly UNLIMITED when you do get to know it. Once again, if it's too powerful for some users,simple editors will do but if you want an all out application, Gimp will do just about anything. I have personally created numerous beginner tuts and when people understood, they were more than happy with Gimp. For what it does, it's hard to believe it's FREE!

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My favorite!

by jabhacksoul Jan 16, 2008

The Gimp has many different developments in the fact that so many programmers take an active role in producing it. The first time you use it you will get annoyed and then come back and you will see why so many of us love to use the Gimp. So much function, scripts, and flexible. The Gimp is the best 2D artist tool available on the internet and you can't beat the price!

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Just what we needed

by JSoftInc Nov 25, 2007 (Read all my 6 reviews)

You should have called this "photoshop 2"!! the price/value rivals any commercial software already on the market. GIMP does the basics of what we need very well, and has enough features that it takes some time to learn, but so does all other good software...

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Very good program . . .

by JMMannion Jan 30, 2007 (Read all my 25 reviews)

This program is very good. It is a bit overwhelming at the beginning, but after a few hours it begins to smooth out. It works a lot like most other paint programs except it does it in a big way. JMM

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It's good!

by MrJaw69 Jan 23, 2007 (Read all my 34 reviews)

. . . but it's a little different. When I first used Gimp it was doing exactly what I wanted it to do, but I didn't know it because I wasn't used to the interface, but now that I'm used to it I'm finding more and more useful features. If this is your first image processing software you might look for something a little less elaborate, but if not, I'd recommend it. It saved me from spending $100+ on a commercial product. I seem to recall that I had some trouble downloading the documentation, but so far I haven't needed it.

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Wonderful!

by FirefoxWiz Oct 08, 2006 (Read all my 5 reviews)

I've used the Gimp for a good while now, and when I first got it, I figured out things SOO easily! It is very easy to use, plus has wonderful features. Rounded button, beveled buttons, "Glowing" text, ect. Plus people have made more plugins to enhance the way GIMP works! The best part is that is it totally FREE!

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One of the best

by shimpoo Aug 14, 2006 (Read all my 8 reviews)

One of the best photo editing software. You can do everything with GIMP. I think it's equivalent to other commercial products. (Since GIMP is free, it is much better) It may be difficult for the new so I recommend you get a good tutorial book to get start. If you only want to correct your images you took, then Photofiltre or Faststone image viewer would be much better for you, it's quick and easy.

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Great software!

by calafair Aug 14, 2006

I'm amazed by this freeware! I've used other programs before and always got frustrated with them because of how my images turned out and they were quite difficult to use too. I had expected the GIMP to be the same, but since it's free, I downloaded it anyway and I'm glad I did. It's easy to install (i'm not sure why people have problems with it but i got the software from the official GIMP website) I'm not quite sure what people meant by "steep learning curve" because I don't think it's all that difficult to use. I thought it was quite easy to use and I learned it in a few hours time. The cons are that 1) the program opens up as individual windows, which can be rather annoying if you're not used to it. 2) It has crashed on me a few times while I was working on some images. It doesn't happen very often, but just save your work often to be on the safe side.

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The gimp has layers, onions have layers!

by calraith Jun 10, 2006 (Read all my 2 reviews)

Ya know, there are like 800,000 free image editors. Most image viewers have image editing features, like cropping, rotation, sharpness, gamma, etc. The GIMP blows all those out of the water. Layers, transparency, dodge / burn, clone tool, customizable brushes, select-by-color -- the price of this program severely belies its functionality. Use IrfanView or cPicture for minor modifications like brightening, cropping, etc. However, if you are interested in "photochopping," the GIMP has just about all of the functionality of Adobe Photoshop. Don't get discouraged by the learning curve. After all, like Photoshop, I bet most people who use the GIMP regularly only use around 25% of its features.

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Although...

by ArturN Feb 20, 2006 (Read all my 19 reviews)

Although a steep learning curve, and a cluttered worksapce sometimes, the Gimp is an excellent image and graphics editor. I used PhotoImpact but Gimp offers me exactly the same features and a lot more and in some features, is much easier and user friendly to use than PI.And it offers the same power as Photoshop. And it's free. First users may be detracted for the hard learning curve it offers but should give it a try, as it has a very good on line tutorial as well as help files. It's worth it.

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A bab interface

by ferrija1 Feb 05, 2006 (Read all my 3 reviews)

GIMP is a very powerful program, one of the most powerful ones i have seen, though it has a very poor interface. The way GIMP is set up is that everything opens in new windows, like MAC Operating Systems, which can be annoying. A Powerful editor with a bad interface

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Great program!!!!!!!

by nld1205 Feb 04, 2006

I had used photoshop, paint shop pro, photoimpact, and most other free ones. The GIMP is the best ones I tried and its free

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I love open source!

by Ghost_grey Dec 06, 2005 (Read all my 56 reviews)

I used photoshop a while back it was hard but i got used to it, so now i'm using the gimp, which is just as powerful, also the learning curve isn't bad for me unlike other tools, nice. i love open source, free, open to everyone to make better open source is so much better than priority. much better.

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The learning curve is worth effort

by guitarwizard55 Oct 16, 2005

I find The Gimp to be a refreshing type of challenge. With a little effort, you'll find yourself learning its functions with more ease than you might think. The installation is actually not that difficult, and it does so much. I have it for both my XP and Linux machines - greatest freeware graphics editor yet.

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The open source photoshop!!

by subcriminal Aug 07, 2005

Please ignore reviewers slating The GIMP! If you have used JASC paintshop pro or Adobe PhotoShop you will get on fine with it. It uses a multi windowed environment much like Macromedia uses in their professional software providing an uncluttered canvas. It's hard to believe how the competition can price their software so high when OpenSource software is being created at this standard. OK so you have to download and install the GTK+ environment before the GIMP will install, but it provides a link and a fast download! Installation is as simple as any other Windows installer. Just be glad you're not trying to get it running on a homebrewed Linux box! BTW. If you're running illegitimate software on your Windows boxes because of high pricing you should check out Open Source. Take a look at the software Linux users are running and see if there are any Windows ports. There's some very nice software being ported from the Linux world and it's free and legal.

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Stick with it !!!

by kelv23 Jul 25, 2005

I've only just started using The Gimp but you can tell its got vast a vast depth of features to it. It can be a little frustrating if you just want a pick up and use program,but stick with it and the benefits will reveal themselves.Far outdoes many of the programs out there that you pay a premium for.I dont see the point of paying for programs that are probably half as useful as this.Whoever made this knew what they were doing....

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