Softwr

Developer Tools · head to head

Penpot vs Photopea

Penpot logo

Penpot

Developer Tools

Open source design and prototyping platform

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Photopea logo

Photopea

Design

Free online photo editor

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Penpot smaller user base and community compared to Figma means fewer templates and resources; Photopea performance becomes sluggish and prone to crashes with high-resolution images or multi-layered files
  • They diverge on capability: Penpot covers Vector editing, Photopea covers Photo editing.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Penpot and Photopea actually diverge.

Attributes where Penpot and Photopea differ
AttributePenpotPhotopea
PlatformsWeb, Windows, macOS, LinuxWeb
CategoryDeveloper ToolsDesign
Founded20212013

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (Unknown), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Penpot

  • Vector editing
  • Interactive prototyping
  • Design systems
  • Components & libraries
  • Real-time collaboration
  • SVG support
  • CSS Grid & Flexbox
  • Code export

Only in Photopea

  • Photo editing
  • PSD compatibility
  • Layer support
  • Selection tools
  • Filters and effects
  • Google Drive
  • Dropbox
  • Adobe fonts

Both cover

  • Web support

What people use each for

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

Penpot

  • UI/UX designnot Photopea
  • Prototypingnot Photopea
  • Design systemsnot Photopea
  • Developer handoffnot Photopea
  • Open source projectsnot Photopea

Photopea

  • Quick photo editsnot Penpot
  • PSD file editingnot Penpot
  • Web designnot Penpot
  • Social media graphicsnot Penpot

Where each one falls short

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

Penpot

  • Smaller user base and community compared to Figma means fewer templates and resources
  • Self-hosting requires Linux server and Docker knowledge for technical setup
  • Real-time collaboration features may have performance issues with very large design files

Photopea

  • Performance becomes sluggish and prone to crashes with high-resolution images or multi-layered files
  • Risk of losing work due to browser crashes or save failures
  • Aggressive advertising that can slow down the entire computer
  • No local installation option, always requires browser access
  • Basic file organization and version tracking compared to professional tools

Pricing, plan by plan

Penpot

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Cloud-based design
    • Real-time collaboration
    • Components and variants
  • Unlimited$7/month
    • All free features
    • Priority support
    • Advanced cloud features
  • Enterprise$950/month
    • Custom enterprise features
    • Dedicated support
    • Advanced security

Photopea

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Photopea review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Penpot if

  • You need vector editing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Windows, macOS, Linux.
  • You also want interactive prototyping.
Penpot review

Choose Photopea if

  • You need photo editing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want psd compatibility.
Photopea review

Questions people ask

Is Penpot or Photopea better?
Neither clearly leads. Penpot starts at Free and Photopea at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Penpot or Photopea?
Penpot starts at Free and Photopea at Free.
Does Penpot or Photopea run on more platforms?
Penpot runs on Web, Windows, macOS, Linux. Photopea runs on Web.
Can I use Penpot for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Penpot best used for?
Penpot is most often used for ui/ux design, prototyping, design systems, developer handoff. Of those, ui/ux design and prototyping are not what Photopea is typically brought in for.
What can Penpot do that Photopea cannot?
Penpot covers Vector editing, Interactive prototyping, Design systems, Components & libraries. Photopea covers Photo editing, PSD compatibility, Layer support, Selection tools. Both handle Web support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Penpot: Is Penpot really free?

Yes. Penpot is completely free with no feature gates. The open-source version can be self-hosted on your own infrastructure for zero cost beyond server expenses.

Source
Photopea: Is Photopea free to use?

Yes, Photopea is completely free and supported by ads displayed within the browser. No subscription or payment is required to use the full feature set.

Source
Penpot: Can I self-host Penpot?

Yes. Penpot can be self-hosted on your own infrastructure with no licensing costs. Organizations with specific privacy or governance needs can run Penpot on their own servers.

Source
Photopea: Does Photopea support Photoshop PSD files?

Yes, Photopea fully supports Photoshop PSD files including layers, masks, text, and effects. It can read and export files back to PSD, PNG, JPG, PDF, SVG, or GIF format.

Source
Penpot: What are the paid plans if I use Penpot cloud?

Penpot's cloud service offers a free tier, Unlimited plan at $7 per user per month for professionals and medium teams, and Enterprise starting at $950 per month for larger organizations.

Source
Photopea: What platforms does Photopea run on?

Photopea is a web-based editor accessible through any modern browser including Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge, and Opera. It can be added to desktop as a shortcut or Chrome extension.

Source
Penpot: What platforms does Penpot support?

Penpot runs in the browser, so it works on Windows, Mac, Linux, and any OS with a web browser. No platform-specific downloads required.

Source
Photopea: Does Photopea upload my files to servers?

No. Photopea processes images entirely within your browser and does not upload files to external servers, keeping your work private and secure.

Source
Share

Related pages

More on Penpot

More on Photopea

Keep looking

Other head to heads