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Photography · head to head

Affinity Photo vs Aftershoot

Affinity Photo logo

Affinity Photo

Photography

Professional photo editing software

From
$69.99/one-time
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Aftershoot logo

Aftershoot

Photography

AI culling, editing and retouching for photographers, priced flat rate per month rather than per image

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Affinity Photo version 2.0 required a full repurchase after seven years, breaking the perpetual license promise made to earlier users; Aftershoot unlimited pricing only pays off at volume, so a photographer shooting a few hundred images a month may pay more per image than they would on a metered competitor.
  • They diverge on capability: Affinity Photo covers Photo editing, Aftershoot covers AI culling.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Affinity Photo and Aftershoot actually diverge.

Attributes where Affinity Photo and Aftershoot differ
AttributeAffinity PhotoAftershoot
Starting price$69.99/one-timeOn request
Pricing modelone-timePer module per month, unlimited images
PlatformsmacOS, Windows, iPadWindows, macOS
Founded1987Unknown

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Photography).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Affinity Photo

  • Photo editing
  • RAW processing
  • Non-destructive editing
  • AI enhancement
  • Retouching tools
  • Batch processing
  • Vector support
  • HDR tools

Only in Aftershoot

  • AI culling
  • AI editing presets
  • AI retouching
  • Unlimited processing
  • Lightroom integration
  • Duplicate and burst detection

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Affinity Photo

  • Photo editingnot Aftershoot
  • RAW processingnot Aftershoot
  • Retouchingnot Aftershoot
  • Digital photographynot Aftershoot

Aftershoot

  • A wedding photographer culling several thousand images per shoot who wants a flat monthly cost regardless of volumenot Affinity Photo
  • A studio wanting AI editing presets matched to its house style applied automatically before manual reviewnot Affinity Photo
  • A high-volume event photographer for whom per-image pricing from competitors would cost more than a flat monthly feenot Affinity Photo
  • A photographer who wants culling, editing and retouching in one bundled subscription rather than three separate toolsnot Affinity Photo

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Affinity Photo

  • Version 2.0 required a full repurchase after seven years, breaking the perpetual license promise made to earlier users
  • Affinity Photo was discontinued in October 2025 and replaced by freemium Affinity application
  • No subscription model means no cloud storage or automatic backups like Photoshop Creative Cloud

Aftershoot

  • Unlimited pricing only pays off at volume, so a photographer shooting a few hundred images a month may pay more per image than they would on a metered competitor.
  • AI culling still requires a manual review pass for accuracy on close calls, so it reduces but does not eliminate the time spent selecting images.
  • AI editing presets need training on a photographer own edited catalogue to match their style, which takes an upfront time investment before results are usable.
  • It works as a Lightroom plugin, so studios that do not use Lightroom Classic as their catalogue tool face a workflow change to adopt it.
  • Pricing is billed monthly per module with an annual commitment for the lower rate, so cancelling mid-year loses the discount already paid for.

Pricing, plan by plan

Affinity Photo

$69.99/one-time
  • Standard$69.99/one-time
    • Full version
    • All features
    • Lifetime updates

Aftershoot

On request
  • Select (culling)$10/month
    • Unlimited AI culling
    • Billed annually
    • Lightroom integration
  • Edit$30/month
    • Unlimited AI editing
    • Custom style profiles
  • Retouch$20/month
    • Unlimited AI retouching
    • Skin and blemish correction
  • Complete (Select plus Edit plus Retouch)$45/month
    • All three modules bundled
    • About 25 percent cheaper than buying separately

Which should you pick?

Choose Affinity Photo if

  • You need photo editing.
  • You work on macOS, Windows, iPad.
  • You also want raw processing.
Affinity Photo review

Choose Aftershoot if

  • You need ai culling.
  • You work on Windows, macOS.
  • You also want ai editing presets.
Aftershoot review

Questions people ask

Is Affinity Photo or Aftershoot better?
Neither clearly leads. Affinity Photo starts at $69.99/one-time and Aftershoot at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Affinity Photo or Aftershoot?
Affinity Photo starts at $69.99/one-time and Aftershoot at On request.
Does Affinity Photo or Aftershoot run on more platforms?
Affinity Photo runs on macOS, Windows, iPad. Aftershoot runs on Windows, macOS.
What is Affinity Photo best used for?
Affinity Photo is most often used for photo editing, raw processing, retouching, digital photography. Of those, photo editing and raw processing are not what Aftershoot is typically brought in for.
What can Affinity Photo do that Aftershoot cannot?
Affinity Photo covers Photo editing, RAW processing, Non-destructive editing, AI enhancement. Aftershoot covers AI culling, AI editing presets, AI retouching, Unlimited processing.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Affinity Photo: Does Affinity Photo include RAW editing?

Yes, Affinity Photo includes non-destructive RAW photo editing and development capabilities for photographers working with RAW image formats.

Source
Aftershoot: Is Aftershoot priced per image?

No, every tier processes an unlimited number of images for a flat monthly fee; this is the main difference from Imagen AI and Narrative Select.

Aftershoot: Do I need Lightroom to use Aftershoot?

Yes, it operates as a plugin inside an existing Lightroom Classic catalogue.

Aftershoot: Can I buy just the culling module?

Yes, Select, Edit and Retouch are sold separately or as the Complete bundle.

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