Adobe Photoshop
The professional image editor, now with Firefly.
why this verdict
Keep paying — OpenAI has not replaced it
OpenAI's version overlaps, but does not finish the design job, so this one still earns its $23/mo.
- A named launch, not a vibe named, unlinked
- Generative image models. OpenAI, March 25, 2025 — no announcement link recorded yet.
- How much of the job it covers not the job editorial call
- Parts of it. The job still needs the tool to get finished.
- Is there a free way to do it? yes
- 2 of 3 listed replacements have a usable free tier: GIMP and Photopea.
- What the call is worth $276/yr
- $23/mo at the entry paid tier — $276 a year per seat.
- Threatened by
- OpenAI
- Since
- March 25, 2025
- List price
- $23/mo
- Per year
- $276
The backstory
Photoshop is the industry standard for image editing, built on layers, masks and precise, non-destructive control that pros rely on. OpenAI's generative image models can conjure a picture from a prompt, but they can't retouch a client's photo pixel by pixel or match a brand's exact composite. Adobe answered by baking its own Firefly generative fill straight into the canvas. It survived because the deep editing workflow, plugin ecosystem and professional muscle memory are the product, not the AI button.
Escape hatches
One-time purchase pro editor, no subscription
affinity.serif.com open_in_newFree open-source layered image editor
gimp.org open_in_newFree browser editor that opens PSD files
photopea.com open_in_new2 of 3 replacements have a usable free tier.