A free yet powerful vector-graphics editor that can genuinely replace AI and CDR.
About Inkscape
Inkscape is a professional vector-graphics application used worldwide by designers and hobbyists to create illustrations, clip-art, logos, icons, diagrams, typography and more. Marketing, CAD, web graphics and cartooning are typical fields where it is now common.
Unlike pixel editors, Inkscape works with vector graphics, so artwork is not locked to a fixed resolution and can be printed or rendered at any size without quality loss—the same advantage offered by commercial packages such as Adobe Illustrator and CorelDRAW.
Key Features
- Cross-platform: Windows, macOS (Intel & Apple Silicon M1/M2) and Linux
- Native, standards-compliant SVG format supported by most browsers and apps
- Import / export: SVG, AI, EPS, PDF, PS, PNG and more
- Multi-language interface, including Chinese
- Full vector toolkit in a friendly, CDR-like workspace; easy to learn
- Extensible with add-ons and custom scripts
Feature Tour
Object Creation
- Drawing: Pencil (free-hand paths), Pen (Bézier curves & lines), Calligraphy (filled strokes)
- Shapes: rectangles (with rounded corners), ellipses (arcs, segments), stars/polygons, spirals
- Text tool (multi-line, on-canvas editing)
- Embed bitmaps or convert selections to bitmap
- Clones (“live” linked copies) with tiling tools
Object Manipulation
- Transform (move, scale, rotate, skew) interactively or by numeric values
- Z-order operations (raise / lower)
- Groups (“select inside group” without ungrouping, “enter group” as temporary layer)
- Layers (lock/hide, reorder, nested trees)
- Align & distribute
Fill & Stroke
- Color pickers: RGB, HSL, CMYK, color wheel, CMS
- Eye-dropper tool
- Copy/paste style
- Multi-stop gradient editor
- Pattern fills (bitmap or vector)
- Dashed strokes with preset libraries
- Path markers (arrows, dots, custom)
Path Operations
- Node editing: move nodes & Bézier handles, align/distribute nodes
- Convert to path (text, shapes); stroke to path
- Boolean operations (union, difference, etc.)
- Path simplification with threshold control
- Inset/outset, linked & dynamic offset objects
- Bitmap tracing (color or monochrome)
Typography
- Multi-line text, any installed outline font, right-to-left scripts
- Letter-spacing, kerning, line-spacing controls
- Text on path (both remain editable)
- Text in shape (flow into frame)
Rendering & Export
- Fully anti-aliased display
- Alpha transparency for on-screen work and PNG export
- Live rendering during interaction
- Command-line export & conversion
File Support
- Pure SVG as native format; real-time XML tree view/editor
- Export: PNG, PDF, EPS, PS, OpenDocument Drawing, DXF, sk1 and more
Getting Started
Most design students have met Illustrator or CorelDRAW; print shops still run decades-old CDR. Both are excellent—yet commercial. Inkscape delivers the same core skill-set for free and is now a genuine replacement.
Pre-1.2 builds felt clunky, but v1.2 overhauled the UI: customizable bottom palette, movable toolbars, better align-and-distribute. If you already know vectors the switch is instant; newcomers can follow the built-in tutorials and animated guides.
Because Inkscape speaks native SVG—the web-standard vector format—files interchange painlessly with developers and other apps.
After installing the latest build I recreated typical artwork with zero road-blocks. If you’re still on cracked Illustrator copies, migrate to Inkscape and avoid legal & security headaches.
Free & Open Source
Inkscape is released under the GPL. Anyone—individual or company—may download, use, or bundle it in commercial projects at no cost. Source code is open; contribute features or fork your own variant if you wish. The project is community-driven: dozens of authors retain their copyrights while collaborating on code, translations, documentation and road-map decisions.