Adobe Lightroom

Adobe's photo organiser and RAW editor, in a cloud-synced version and the desktop-only Lightroom Classic.

Visit Adobe Lightroom See 7 alternatives

Verified facts: 5 of 5
Alternatives ranked: 7
Approved reviews: 0
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About Adobe Lightroom

Lightroom is where many photographers import, sort, rate and develop their RAW files. It comes in two flavours that share one plan: Lightroom, which stores originals in Adobe's cloud and syncs edits between desktop, web and mobile, and Lightroom Classic, which keeps the catalogue and files on your own drives and is still preferred by many working pros. Both offer non-destructive sliders, AI masking for subject and sky, presets, Content-Aware and Generative Remove, Denoise and Super Resolution. The trade-off is lock-in: edits live in Lightroom's catalogue, and the software is available only as a Creative Cloud subscription. The Lightroom plan includes 1TB of cloud storage, and a Photography plan bundles it with Photoshop. The mobile app for iOS and Android is free to use for basic editing, with premium features unlocked by a subscription.

Best for: Photographers who want one tool to organise, develop and sync large RAW libraries.

What works

Strong catalogue tools for rating, keywords and collections
Cloud sync between desktop, web and mobile in the Lightroom version
AI masking, Denoise and Generative Remove built in
Lightroom Classic included for local-file workflows

Why people leave

Subscription only; editing stops being fully available if you cancel
Edits are stored in Lightroom's catalogue, which makes switching harder
Two similar apps with different storage models can confuse new users

Top Adobe Lightroom alternatives

See all 7

1
Capture One
Preferred by many studio pros for colour rendering and tethering, with a perpetual licence option.
66.5
2
darktable
Free, open-source RAW developer and library with a similar lighttable-and-darkroom workflow.
62.6
3
ON1 Photo RAW
A one-time purchase that combines a Lightroom-style catalogue with layers and masks.
57.2
4
Luminar Neo
A simpler, AI-led editor sold as a lifetime licence, usable as a Lightroom plug-in too.
55.3
5
Photomator
Mac, iPhone and iPad editor that edits your Apple Photos library directly, with batch edits.
53.6

Why people left Adobe Lightroom

In reviewers' own words, from reviews of the apps they moved to. These are their opinions, not ours.

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Adobe Lightroom: common questions

Is Adobe Lightroom free?

No, Adobe Lightroom is a paid product.

Is Adobe Lightroom open source?

No, Adobe Lightroom is not open source. Open-source alternatives include darktable and RawTherapee.

What platforms does Adobe Lightroom run on?

Adobe Lightroom is available for Windows, macOS, Web, iOS and Android.

What are the best alternatives to Adobe Lightroom?

The highest-ranked Adobe Lightroom alternatives right now are Capture One, darktable and ON1 Photo RAW. See the full ranked list for pricing, platforms and verified facts.

See all 7 Adobe Lightroom alternatives

Adobe Lightroom facts

5 of 5 verified

Cloud storage: 1TB with the Lightroom plan; Checked Oct 25, 2026adobe.com(opens source in a new tab); “The Adobe {{lightroom}} plan comes with 1TB.”
Lightroom Classic: Included in the Lightroom plan; Checked Oct 25, 2026adobe.com(opens source in a new tab); “Adobe {{lightroom-classic}} is included in the Adobe {{lightroom}} plan.”
Free mobile app: Yes, iOS and Android; Checked Oct 25, 2026adobe.com(opens source in a new tab); “Yes, Adobe {{lightroom}} for mobile is a free app for iOS and Android”
Free trial: 7 days; Checked Oct 25, 2026adobe.com(opens source in a new tab); “Yes, you can download a 7-day free trial of {{lightroom}}.”
Purchase options: Creative Cloud membership only; Checked Oct 25, 2026adobe.com(opens source in a new tab); “No, {{lightroom}} is available only as part of a {{creative-cloud}} membership.”