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Corel Painter vs Midjourney

Corel Painter logo

Corel Painter

Software

Digital painting software that emulates natural media brushes and textures

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Midjourney logo

Midjourney

Software

AI image generation with artistic excellence

From
$10/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Corel Painter sold as a one-time perpetual license per major version, requiring paid upgrades for new releases unlike subscription competitors.; Midjourney subscription tiers as captured 29 December 2023 ranged from $10/month (3.3 Fast GPU hours) to $120/month (60 Fast GPU hours), with extra GPU time at $4/hour, and companies earning over $1,000,000/year in gross revenue were required to use the Pro plan
  • They diverge on capability: Corel Painter covers Natural-Media Brush Engine, Midjourney covers Text-to-image.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Corel Painter and Midjourney actually diverge.

Attributes where Corel Painter and Midjourney differ
AttributeCorel PainterMidjourney
Starting priceOn request$10/month
Pricing modelone-timesubscription
Platformswindows, macDiscord, Web
FoundedUnknown2021

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

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 Corel Painter

  • Natural-Media Brush Engine
  • Custom Brush Creation
  • Canvas Textures
  • Photo Painting Tools
  • Layer Support

Only in Midjourney

  • Text-to-image
  • Style transfer
  • Image upscaling
  • Variation generation
  • Discord
  • Web interface
  • Discord support
  • Web support

What people use each for

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

Corel Painter

  • Digital painting that mimics traditional medianot Midjourney
  • Concept art and illustrationnot Midjourney
  • Converting photographs into painted artworknot Midjourney
  • Custom brush development for artistsnot Midjourney

Midjourney

  • ai tools managementnot Corel Painter
  • Workflow automationnot Corel Painter
  • Reportingnot Corel Painter

Where each one falls short

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

Corel Painter

  • Sold as a one-time perpetual license per major version, requiring paid upgrades for new releases unlike subscription competitors.
  • Interface and brush engine have a steeper learning curve than more streamlined tools like Procreate.
  • No official mobile or tablet-native version, limiting use to desktop Windows and Mac.
  • Performance can lag with very large, texture-heavy brushes compared to lighter tools.

Midjourney

  • Subscription tiers as captured 29 December 2023 ranged from $10/month (3.3 Fast GPU hours) to $120/month (60 Fast GPU hours), with extra GPU time at $4/hour, and companies earning over $1,000,000/year in gross revenue were required to use the Pro plan

Pricing, plan by plan

Corel Painter

On request
  • Full License$undefined/mo
    • Perpetual license for current major version
    • Desktop app for Windows and Mac
  • Upgrade$undefined/mo
    • Discounted upgrade pricing for existing Painter owners

Midjourney

$10/month
  • Basic$10/month
    • 200 generations/month
    • General commercial terms
  • Standard$30/month
    • 15 GPU hours
    • Unlimited relaxed
  • Pro$60/month
    • 30 GPU hours
    • Stealth mode

Which should you pick?

Choose Corel Painter if

  • You need natural-media brush engine.
  • You work on windows, mac.
  • You also want custom brush creation.
Corel Painter review

Choose Midjourney if

  • You need text-to-image.
  • You work on Discord, Web.
  • You also want style transfer.
Midjourney review

Questions people ask

Is Corel Painter or Midjourney better?
Neither clearly leads. Corel Painter starts at On request and Midjourney at $10/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Corel Painter or Midjourney?
Corel Painter starts at On request and Midjourney at $10/month.
Does Corel Painter or Midjourney run on more platforms?
Corel Painter runs on windows, mac. Midjourney runs on Discord, Web.
What is Corel Painter best used for?
Corel Painter is most often used for digital painting that mimics traditional media, concept art and illustration, converting photographs into painted artwork, custom brush development for artists. Of those, digital painting that mimics traditional media and concept art and illustration are not what Midjourney is typically brought in for.
What can Corel Painter do that Midjourney cannot?
Corel Painter covers Natural-Media Brush Engine, Custom Brush Creation, Canvas Textures, Photo Painting Tools. Midjourney covers Text-to-image, Style transfer, Image upscaling, Variation generation.
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