Photopea review

Photopea is a free photo editor that runs in a web browser. Its homepage says files are processed on your device, not uploaded. That makes it a browser-based editor, not a cloud storage workflow; the free plan includes 0.5 GB of PeaDrive storage, but local editing is the core pitch.

Photopea’s main format is PSD: it opens and saves PSD files, and also handles formats including PNG, SVG, PDF, AI and Figma. Its tools cover photo editing and vector graphics, with layers, masks, smart objects and filters. It can open several RAW formats for adjustments to exposure, color balance, contrast, highlights and shadows. The editor also includes AI tools to remove backgrounds or replace image areas from a text description.

The practical question is whether a browser editor fits your work. It offers plenty of familiar editing functions, but it is not a desktop application with the same offline workflow. Reddit users describe it as a convenient option for quick edits and a possible Photoshop substitute for less demanding work.

The clearest advantage is the amount available without paying. The Free plan has one user, ads in the workspace, 0.5 GB of PeaDrive storage, standard history steps and about one AI action per day. A commenter on r/photopea says it does much of what Photoshop does, including content-aware tools; that is one user’s view, not a feature-by-feature comparison.

File compatibility is another useful selling point. Photopea supports PSD plus image, design and document formats such as PNG, SVG, PDF, AI and Figma, so it may reduce format friction when moving work between tools. Its layers, masks, smart objects, filters and vector tools give it more range than a basic crop-and-retouch editor.

Premium removes ads and raises storage to 5 GB. According to the pricing details, the single-user pass costs €8 for 30 days or €50 for 365 days, equivalent to €4.17 per month when annualized. Passes are prepaid, not auto-renewing subscriptions. Team options are also listed: up to five users cost €20 for 30 days or €150 for 365 days. That is a relatively low-cost way to pay for more history and AI credits, although the team credit allowance is not published.

Photopea’s main constraint is the browser-based workflow. The homepage says files stay on your device, but that does not make the editor a desktop app or guarantee offline access. Reddit users describe needing an internet connection, and one commenter says browser performance and offline work are reasons to choose Photoshop instead. Treat those as user reports, not published performance limits.

The free tier has clear caps: ads, 0.5 GB of PeaDrive storage, standard history steps and about one AI action per day. Premium increases storage to 5 GB and includes more history, but the price details do not specify the AI-credit allowance for team plans. The single-user plan lists 3,000 credits per month.

Performance on large projects is another reported concern. Some Reddit users say Photopea slows down or crashes with larger files, while another says very large files are a problem. The published material gives no official maximum file size or hardware requirement, so there is no reliable published cutoff to compare against Photoshop. Organizations that need local deployment can ask about self-hosting, listed at $6,000–$24,000 for 12 months paid upfront; updates beyond two free per year cost $300 each.

Photopea’s Free plan costs €0 and includes ads, 0.5 GB of PeaDrive storage, standard history steps and about one AI action per day. Premium Single User is €8 for a 30-day pass or €4.17 per month when the 365-day pass price is spread across the year. It removes ads, raises storage to 5 GB, doubles history steps and includes 3,000 AI credits per month.

Team pricing jumps to €20 for a 30-day pass for up to five users, or €12.50 per month on the annual pass. For up to 20 users, it’s €70 or €41.67 per month; for up to 50, €150 or €83.25. Team AI-credit amounts are not published on the vendor's site.

These are prepaid 30-, 90- or 365-day passes, not auto-renewing subscriptions. The self-hosted version costs $6,000–$24,000 upfront for 12 months; after two free updates per year, each update costs $300. Whitelabel pricing is custom; basic iframe embedding is free.

Photopea runs in a browser and, according to its homepage, processes files on your device rather than uploading them. That makes trying it less dependent on moving a library into a new service: open a supported file, edit it, and save PSDs, which the homepage calls Photopea’s main format. It also supports formats including PNG, SVG, PDF, AI and Figma, though the published details don’t specify export options for every format.

To leave, keep your working files in formats your next editor supports; PSD is the clearest handoff option documented here. The published material doesn’t describe a bulk export, account migration process or offline mode, so check those needs before moving a large project. Photopea’s verdict also flags offline workflows, very large or complex projects, and teams that need published support terms as poor fits.

We can’t substantiate what makes Reddit users leave: no Reddit posts or comments were included in the published sources. The pricing details do list a 0.5 GB PeaDrive limit on Free and 5 GB on Premium, worth checking if you rely on that storage.