Free vs Paid Mobile Graphic Design Apps 2021

Testing a functional piece of software that has a definite purpose is always different from focusing on a game. There are plenty of nuts and bolts to pay attention to. Ultimately, however, it all boils down to one piece of criteria - how useful the app is. This, in turn, is mirrored in the software's interface, the number of features, and overall design.

Since most people who will use these apps will be either social media managers or those who are running their own business, we have made sure that our top 3 have absolutely everything you may need to make it on the web.

We also made sure to pay attention to the financial side of things. Is the app free or do you have to invest to get the full set of features? While not crucial, this was still something we wanted to cover.

Nowadays, it seems to be typical for one product to serve one purpose alone. This applies to tech, gym equipment, makeup, and, to a certain extent, smartphone apps. Comprehensive solutions are truly rare and it almost feels like a miracle when you run into something that attempts to cover more ground. This week, we have had one such miraculous encounter and discovered a truly multi-purpose gem.

The beginning is straightforward enough - you sign up either with Facebook, Google, or your email. That's it. That's the whole procedure. It will take about five seconds of your time and then you'll be ready to explore your creative side.

Immediately, you will notice a wide selection of paths you can take. Want to create an Instagram post? An animated presentation? Or perhaps a book cover? All this and so much more is now at your fingertips.

It is safe to assume that many of our readers will be interested in the social media component. This is where Canva excels. You can start from scratch or use a template - and work on your next Pinterest pin on the Facebook graphic. Believe it or not, many small to medium-sized companies will use this platform as their main tool for social media content. It is perfect for motivational quotes and hilarious memes.

In addition, you can also create logos, business cards, and posters which makes Canva ideal for non-governmental organizations, charities, and small-scale entrepreneurs. You can even make an ad for your local newspaper - as old-fashioned as that may sound.

That is not to say that the app is stuck in the past. Quite the contrary. It has a generous number of options focusing on animated content. You can edit short clips, create vivid presentations, and even make silly cartoons. The tools are all there. It's up to you to put them to good use.

Canva lets you work on your own - as well as as a part of a team. The app has an excellent way of connecting users, allowing them to cooperate and create something truly stunning together. It doesn't matter where you or your team members are - you can get everything done on the go, in real-time.

The app can be used either for free, with limited functionality, or be paid for and enjoyed to the max. Whichever option you choose, you can rest assured that it will likely satisfy all your graphic design and image editing needs.

Obviously, much like many other apps on the market, Canva too has a basic and a premium plan. As budget-conscious as we at AppGrooves tend to be - it is only natural that we'd want to get everything for free. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. Developers do, after all, have bills to pay so, if you want a truly amazing experience, you'll need to invest a bit in order to unlock everything Canva has to offer. A 14-day trial will give you a chance to try before you buy but, after that, the premium section will cost you $8.49 per month.

Apart from this minor flaw, there is little else we could possibly point out that would pass for an issue. If we are to be particularly nit-picky (and everyone following us knows we are not above it), we could say that the loading times do take a bit longer than expected - at least when you launch the app, that is. Everything else in it, however, runs very smoothly.

Today, we have an app that is just as reliable as its desktop counterpart. It is an amazing solution for amateur photographs and social media personalities alike. In fact, in some departments, it may even rival Photoshop, if not Lightroom. We are by no means exaggerating when we say this. The sheer number of options is a real miracle.

Never too big, never slow, never cumbersome - BeFunky pretty much always delivers. You start your journey by picking a photo from one of many sources - your own camera roll, social media, one of many stock images, or even a search engine. Then it's time to get editing.

A selection of powerful tools, filters, presets will give you a chance to turn any creative vision you have into reality. If this is not enough, you can also take full advantage of photo frames and overlays. In addition, there is a separate part of the app that focuses on collages. We are not exactly sure why the creators decided to section it off but, regardless, it works just fine.

Cool stickers and fun effects are perfect for anyone focusing on social media. Speaking of which, you might want to consider the fact that BeFunky covers the widest selection of platforms - from mainstream stuff like Instagram, old school classics along the lines of Tumblr, and newcomers such as TikTok. Editing and sharing are incredibly fast. Even the most impatient influencer is bound to be impressed.

Perhaps the only downside is the app's limited functionality when it comes to pure graphic design. Instead, developers have decided to focus on photo editing and bring this segment to perfection.

One big advantage that BeFunky has over many of the apps in our "honorable mentions" section is the fact that you won't have to deal with watermarks, ads, or popups when using it. Of course, full functionality will only be available to premium users (for $4.99 per month, to be precise) but, even if you stick to free, you will still be able to do a good deal of pro-level editing.

Most of the time, we like to include distinctly different apps into our top 3, making sure that everyone reading the article can find top-quality products to fit their needs. When it comes to Over, it could easily be described as the exact opposite of BeFunky. Instead of photography, this app focuses on pure graphic design, social media posts, flyers, book covers, and even product packaging! You can easily design just about anything with this specialized yet powerful tool. Total amateurs, as well as experienced professionals, can benefit from it.

You can log in with Google, Facebook, email, or even your Apple account. The app gives you a chance to review what permissions are granted and, even further down the line, puts great emphasis on privacy and security. In our book, this is definitely a nice move to make - and something we haven't seen from many other apps in this category.

The design is modern, not exactly minimalist, but not overwhelming either. The choice of colors is refreshing and the vibrant hues are almost certain to pleasantly surprise younger users. The balance is struck between aesthetics and functionality.

With Over, you can easily create an Instagram story, a Facebook post, Pinterest pin, a flyer or a poster. The list goes on to include motivational quotes, logos, , and even wallpapers. In fact, the app almost rivals Canva in this department - even if it does lack the Photoshop-like qualities of BeFunky.

Even if it was initially meant as a graphic design platform, Over has recently branched into the realm of video editing. The steps in this direction, however, are still pretty timid. The controls feel pretty basic and Instagram itself will offer more variety when it comes to videos. Of course, this is something that is bound to improve in the future but, for now, the average user will be better off focusing on the rest of the app which is impressive enough.

When it comes to the costs, it is good to know that most options are available free of charge. In fact, it is only the templates that will require you to make a small investment (of $4.19 per month). This may be worth considering if it will make your work easier and more streamlined. If not, if you prefer to let your imagination run wild, you can just as easily manage with the basic plan. The app is great either way.

A pretty decent platform that aims to cover a lot of ground. Adobe has a reputation for quality products and, for the most part, this applies to Spark Post as well. However, a few glitches soured the experience for us and cemented our decision not to include it among the winners. While everything else runs comparatively smoothly, the app tends to freeze when you try to insert or edit any sort of text. This problem persists even after reinstallation - and an update. It seems that there is not much that can be done about it, at least not for now. Since stock images also tend to take their time to load, we definitely prefer to give other software a chance. Adobe could do better, so much better.

This is a solid solution that, while sometimes basic, had a clear chance of it being one of our top 3. Unfortunately, one thing threw us off balance from the get-go. Even after we played with it for a while, the issue was still there. What was it, you ask? You see, no matter what we tried to do - a poster, a collage, or a social media graphic - things would always go ever so slightly out of alignment. It was a strange yet persistent problem - in all formats, in all sizes, in all sorts of contexts. Centering something exactly the way we wanted seemed borderline impossible. This is definitely not the one for detail-oriented professionals - or people with OCD. No other app frustrated us as much as this one did.

Ok, we admit it, we are suckers for a beautiful interface. After all, the aesthetic component is not something you can easily ignore. It is really important if you're going to spend a lot of time looking at an app so we always make sure to assess the situation objectively. In this department, PicMonkey performs wonderfully. The functionality, however, is not quite there yet. Without a serious expansion in the number of tools available, the app will forever be confined to our "honorable mentions".

Covering photos, videos, collage, and graphic design - we couldn't help but be intrigued by this potentially comprehensive solution to all our problems. However, once we started using it, we realized that the collage component was wonderfully constructed while the others were left as an afterthought - still in different stages of development. In addition, we constantly had to fight our way through an enormous number of ads - something that we rarely (if ever) are able to tolerate. Paying for the privilege of removing them somehow didn't seem worth it.

As the name implies, this one is good for flyers and posters but not so much for social media. In fact, there are more than a few issues that hinder its performance in this particular department. Exporting images can take a while and, frankly, the other bits of the app are not that speedy either. This is not meant for your average influencer, and definitely not for a professional who expects everything to be delivered on time. If you're in a hurry, you might want to run away from this one as fast as you possibly can.