ArtCraft apps guide
Guides/ArtCraft apps
ARTCRAFT / THE CREATIVE APP FAMILY

Familiar tools.
Fresh possibilities.

Images, interfaces, films, and the ideas in between. Meet a growing family of free creative apps, and find one to try first.

Explore ArtCraft (opens in a new tab)Find your app
A FEW NEW TOOLS FOR YOUR DESKTOP13 APPS · ONE PLACE TO START

By Updated

ArtCraft’s Crafting Apps cover creative work from photo editing to spreadsheets. The directory lists 13 free, open-source apps for macOS, Windows, and Linux. Start with a task, choose its app, then use the Launcher or a standalone installer.

CHOOSE A TOOL
GET IT INSTALLED
MAKE A FIRST PROJECT
A LITTLE LOOK BEHIND THE GUIDE

Trying ArtCraft at my desk.

A quick look at my setup: browsing the Launcher, then working with a video timeline. Press play to see both.

Two short clips · Sound starts muted; use the player controls to listen.
FROM MY DESK0:04

Browsing the Launcher

The Launcher on my monitor, scrolling through the app cards and their install or open buttons.

Download clip
FROM MY DESK0:18

Trying it in my own setup

Me at the keyboard with a video timeline on the monitor. The preview moves through colorful gradients, a sunset, and an aurora scene.

Download clip
PhotoCraft editing The Great Wave with an adjustment layer, editable type, and the Layers panel.
PhotoCraft: a familiar canvas, with layers, type, and image adjustments.OFFICIAL ARTCRAFT SCREENSHOT
01

Start with what you want to make.

Choose a category below, then open an app’s official page for its features and downloads. For a first image-editing project, start with PhotoCraft. For a logo or illustration, explore VectorCraft. For website layouts, look at FigCraft.

Showing 13 of 13 apps · Official directory labels, October 23, 2026

The official directory is the source for this lineup and its status labels. An available installer does not mean a finished app.

02

One launcher, or just one app.

THE SIMPLE START

ArtCraft Launcher

Download the latest Launcher release for your computer. It lists the apps, selects a build for your operating system and processor, and lets you install, open, and update the ones you choose.

View Launcher downloads (opens in a new tab)
JUST THE TOOL YOU WANT

Standalone installer

Open an app’s page and find Option 2 · Standalone. Choose your platform there. You can add the Launcher later; it can recognize supported apps already installed on your computer.

Find PhotoCraft downloads (opens in a new tab)
Choose the download for your computer
PlatformWhat to look for
macOSThe universal .dmg supports Apple silicon and Intel. Open it and drag the Launcher to Applications.
WindowsChoose the x64.msi for most Intel/AMD PCs, or the ARM64 installer for Windows on Arm.
LinuxChoose a package for your distribution and CPU, such as .deb, .rpm, or AppImage. Follow the release instructions.

See the Launcher documentation for current requirements, formats, and update behavior. The release links above stay current as versions change.

03

Make your first website cover.

Try this small PhotoCraft project: turn a photo into a cover for a blog post or portfolio case study. Use a picture you own, add one short title, and keep an editable file alongside the exported image.

  1. 01

    Open a working copy.

    Launch PhotoCraft and use File → Open to open your image. Work on a duplicate so the original remains available.

  2. 02

    Make one clear composition.

    Crop around your subject. Add a short title as a separate type layer, and use an adjustment layer if the photo needs a brightness or color change. Keep the title away from the edges.

  3. 03

    Keep the editable version.

    Save the project in PhotoCraft’s .pcraft format, or save a layered PSD when you need to pass the file to another editor. Reopen it to check the layers and text before moving on.

  4. 04

    Export a copy for the web.

    Use Export As to choose a format, quality, and scale, then inspect the preview and size estimate. Try JPEG for a photograph or PNG when you need transparency. Check the exported file in your browser.

PhotoCraft’s Export As dialog with JPG selected, quality at 90 percent, scale at 50 percent, and a file preview.
Export As shows the format, quality, scale, preview, and estimated size. These are the official demo’s settings, not required values.OFFICIAL ARTCRAFT SCREENSHOT
A SIMPLE BRIEF TO TRY

A cover for your next case study.

One image. One short title. A wide crop that suits your website’s card. Upload the export through your site’s image picker, add useful alt text, and preview its crop on desktop and mobile. Keep the page’s real heading as text, even if the artwork includes a title.

PhotoCraft documents these editing and export features in its README. This is a suggested first project; the images show ArtCraft’s own demos.

04

Let the next task choose the next tool.

VectorCraft editing a Neon Drive poster with the title selected and live appearance settings visible.
VectorCraft / editable vector artworkOFFICIAL ARTCRAFT SCREENSHOT

A logo, icon, or poster

VectorCraft provides vector drawing, editable effects, and image tracing. Save the editable document, then export an SVG for scalable artwork or a PNG for a simple image placement.

Explore VectorCraft
FigCraft showing light and dark Ridgeline app screens, an auto-layout tree, and the Design panel.
FigCraft / interface design and prototypesOFFICIAL ARTCRAFT SCREENSHOT

A layout before you build

FigCraft offers frames, auto layout, components, and prototypes. Start with one screen, build a reusable card, then try a second screen size. Existing .fig imports are best effort, so check your imported design.

Explore FigCraft

FigCraft’s README explains its current import and alpha limitations. For a video project, FilmCraft is the family’s timeline editor; EffectCraft focuses on motion graphics and effects.

Common questions

Are the Crafting Apps free?

The apps directory describes these 13 apps as free and open source. They are a separate collection from ArtCraft’s AI image and video studio; pricing for that studio is not the pricing of this app suite.

Do I need to install all 13 apps?

No. Choose an app in the Launcher, or use the standalone installer on that app’s official page.

Can these replace my existing creative apps?

Treat them as tools to evaluate on your actual workflow. PhotoCraft explicitly says it is not yet a daily professional Photoshop replacement, and FigCraft describes .fig import as best effort. Test a copy of a representative project and compare the saved and exported results.

Can I open the apps directly in a browser?

Several app pages list WebAssembly downloads to host yourself. A Web label does not by itself provide a hosted editor. The desktop Launcher or standalone installer is the path covered here.

Is ArtCraft the same as the Crafting Apps?

ArtCraft also offers an AI image and video studio. This guide covers the separate Crafting Apps directory at getartcraft.com/apps.

Sources and credits

Independent toolandtea guide, checked October 23, 2026. App names, categories, and status labels come from the official Crafting Apps directory. Installation guidance comes from the ArtCraft Launcher documentation and the linked app download pages.

Feature and workflow references: PhotoCraft and its README, VectorCraft, and FigCraft with its README. Screenshots and app icons are official ArtCraft assets, shown unchanged. The two desk videos are my own recordings, converted for web playback with their full duration and original audio preserved. They show a brief look at my setup; they are not a comprehensive feature test or benchmark.