# Lensa Alternatives 2027: 13 Paid, Free & Open-Source

Source: https://zekaiwork.com/alternatives/lensa/
Prices checked: 2026-11-13 (Zekai Price Ledger)

The best Lensa alternatives in 2027 are Picsart (best overall, $15/mo), GIMP (best open source, GPL-3.0) and Pixlr (cheaper, $2.49/mo). Lensa: No price published on lensa.app. Zekai checked these prices on vendor pages on 13 Nov 2026; 10 more are compared below, including 4 open source.

| Tool | Type | Starting price | Free plan limit | Licence | Best for | Price checked | Links |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lensa (the tool being replaced) | — | No price published on lensa.app. | No | — | — | 2026-11-13 | [pricing](https://lensa.app/) |
| Picsart | Paid | $15/mo | No free plan | — | Full photo and video editor with AI agents | 2026-11-12 | [site](https://picsart.com) [pricing](https://picsart.com/pricing) [Zekai page](https://zekaiwork.com/ai-tools/picsart/) |
| Pixlr | Paid | $2.49/mo | No free plan | — | Cheapest browser photo editor with AI credits | 2026-11-12 | [site](https://pixlr.com) [pricing](https://pixlr.com/pricing/) [Zekai page](https://zekaiwork.com/ai-tools/pixlr/) |
| Evoto | Paid | $6.67/mo | No free plan | — | Batch portrait retouching for photographers | 2026-11-12 | [site](https://www.evoto.ai) [pricing](https://www.evoto.ai/pricing) [Zekai page](https://zekaiwork.com/ai-tools/evoto/) |
| Polarr Next | Paid | $12/mo | No free plan | — | RAW editing with AI culling | 2026-11-12 | [site](https://next.polarr.com) [pricing](https://next.polarr.com/pricing) [Zekai page](https://zekaiwork.com/ai-tools/polarr-next/) |
| FaceApp | Paid | Not checked | No free plan | — | Face filters and portrait retouching |  | [site](https://www.faceapp.com) [Zekai page](https://zekaiwork.com/ai-tools/faceapp/) |
| Luminar Neo | Paid | Not checked | No free plan | — | Desktop AI photo editing with sky and light tools |  | [site](https://skylum.com/luminar) [Zekai page](https://zekaiwork.com/ai-tools/luminar-neo/) |
| Adobe Photoshop | Paid | Not checked | No free plan | — | Professional layered photo editing |  | [site](https://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop.html) [Zekai page](https://zekaiwork.com/ai-tools/adobe-photoshop/) |
| Facetune | Paid | Not checked | No free plan | — | Selfie retouching on mobile |  | [site](https://www.facetune.com) [Zekai page](https://zekaiwork.com/ai-tools/facetune/) |
| GIMP | Open source | Free (self-hosted) | No limit (self-hosted) | GPL-3.0 | Free layered desktop editor | 2026-11-13 | [site](https://www.gimp.org) [code](https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/gimp) [Zekai page](https://zekaiwork.com/free-open-source/gimp/) |
| PhotoDemon | Open source | Free (self-hosted) | No limit (self-hosted) | BSD-2-Clause | Portable Windows photo editor | 2026-11-13 | [site](https://photodemon.org) [code](https://github.com/tannerhelland/PhotoDemon) [Zekai page](https://zekaiwork.com/ai-tools/photodemon/) |
| darktable | Open source | Free (self-hosted) | No limit (self-hosted) | GPL-3.0 | Raw photo development and retouching | 2026-11-13 | [site](https://www.darktable.org) [code](https://github.com/darktable-org/darktable) [Zekai page](https://zekaiwork.com/free-open-source/darktable/) |
| RawTherapee | Open source | Free (self-hosted) | No limit (self-hosted) | GPL-3.0 | Fine control over raw development | 2026-11-13 | [site](https://rawtherapee.com) [code](https://github.com/RawTherapee/RawTherapee) [Zekai page](https://zekaiwork.com/free-open-source/rawtherapee/) |
| Upscayl | Open source | Free (self-hosted) | No limit (self-hosted) | AGPL-3.0 | Local AI photo upscaling | 2026-11-13 | [site](https://upscayl.org) [code](https://github.com/upscayl/upscayl) [Zekai page](https://zekaiwork.com/free-open-source/upscayl/) |

## How each alternative compares with Lensa

- **Picsart** (Paid, $15/mo, checked 2026-11-12): Pro adds a 1-tap image enhancer, bulk edit of up to 50 images, 100 GB cloud storage and Getty stock, beyond Lensa's effects, eraser and hair try-on. Switch if you edit photos and video for social accounts and want templates, stock and bulk edits in one subscription. Stay with Lensa if you want one-tap trend looks and portrait beauty tools in a simple phone editor.
- **Pixlr** (Paid, $2.49/mo, checked 2026-11-12): Plus costs $2.49 a month and gives 80 monthly AI credits plus ad-free saves; Pixlr Editor and Express run in a browser as well as mobile. Switch if you want a browser-based editor with a layer-style Editor and AI edits for a few dollars a month. Stay with Lensa if you mainly want preset looks, hair try-on and object erasing in a single phone app.
- **Evoto** (Paid, $6.67/mo, checked 2026-11-12): Credit-based desktop retouching with 1 credit per photo, 720+80 credits on the yearly Starter plan, tethered shooting and device limits of 2 to 6 by plan. Switch if you retouch portrait batches for clients and want per-photo credits with tethered shooting. Stay with Lensa if you retouch selfies casually and prefer one-tap effects without credit budgeting.
- **Polarr Next** (Paid, $12/mo, checked 2026-11-12): Now sold as Pixieset Photo Editor on web and desktop with RAW processing, AI culling flags for closed eyes and blur, and trainable Personal AI Styles. Switch if you shoot RAW and want AI culling and personal edit styles in a desktop and web editor. Stay with Lensa if you edit phone JPEGs for social posts and do not need RAW or culling.
- **FaceApp** (Paid, Not checked): Focused on face filters such as Retouch, Makeup, Hair Volume, Beard and Emotions, with a Remover tool for unwanted objects. Switch if you want face-specific filters like beard, emotions and makeup rather than general photo effects. Stay with Lensa if you want enhancer and preset-style colour grading across whole photos.
- **Luminar Neo** (Paid, Not checked): Skylum's Luminar is sold for desktop, web, tablet and mobile with Enhance, Atmosphere fog and cloud, and in-app printing; the site shows only Black Friday discounts. Switch if you want a desktop editor with Enhance and atmosphere effects across Windows, Mac and mobile. Stay with Lensa if you want a free-to-start mobile app without desktop software.
- **Adobe Photoshop** (Paid, Not checked): Layer-based editor with masks and generative tools used for professional retouching, far beyond Lensa's one-tap effects. Switch if you need layers, masks and print-grade retouching that preset-based apps cannot deliver. Stay with Lensa if you only want quick social edits on a phone without learning a layer-based editor.
- **Facetune** (Paid, Not checked): Selfie and portrait retouching app from Lightricks; its site blocked automated reading, so plan details are not stated here. Switch if you want a dedicated selfie retoucher and are willing to confirm its plans in the app stores. Stay with Lensa if you want object erasing, hair try-on and enhancer tools in the same app.
- **GIMP** (Open source, Free (self-hosted)): Free GPL-3.0 desktop editor with layers, curves and clone tools on Windows, macOS and Linux; it has no built-in one-tap trend looks or AI presets. Switch if you want a free layer-based editor with no subscription, watermark or account. Stay with Lensa if you want one-tap AI effects and portrait presets without learning an editor.
- **PhotoDemon** (Open source, Free (self-hosted)): Portable Windows-only editor under a BSD licence with batch processing and many filters, instead of a phone app built around trend effects. Switch if you edit on Windows and want a free portable program that needs no install or account. Stay with Lensa if you edit on iPhone or Android and want effects tuned for social posts.
- **darktable** (Open source, Free (self-hosted)): darktable is a non-destructive raw developer with optional AI denoise, upscale and object masks that are off by default; the README says it is not a free Lightroom replacement. Switch if you shoot raw photos and want local, non-destructive edits with no account or credits. Stay with Lensa if you want one-tap trend effects and portrait presets on your phone.
- **RawTherapee** (Open source, Free (self-hosted)): RawTherapee is a GPL-3.0 raw photo processor known for fine control over demosaicing and development; it has no AI presets or one-tap beauty effects. Switch if you shoot raw and want detailed control over colour and noise on your own computer. Stay with Lensa if you want AI beauty tools and trend looks without learning a raw workflow.
- **Upscayl** (Open source, Free (self-hosted)): Upscayl is an AGPL-3.0 desktop app that enlarges and sharpens images with AI models on your own GPU; it does not retouch faces or add trend effects. Switch if you want to enlarge or sharpen photos with AI on your own machine, with no uploads. Stay with Lensa if you want portrait retouching, avatars and effects rather than upscaling.

## Open-source options in detail

- **GIMP** (https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/gimp): Licence: GPL-3.0; Commercial use: Yes; GPL-3.0 means shared changes stay open if you distribute the software.; Runs on: Desktop app for Windows, macOS and Linux.; Setup: easy: Download and run the installer; no account or API key.; Last commit: 2026-11-13; Last release: 2026-11-03; GitHub stars: 310 (2026-11-13)
- **PhotoDemon** (https://github.com/tannerhelland/PhotoDemon): Licence: BSD-2-Clause; Commercial use: Yes (BSD-2-Clause).; Runs on: Windows PC (XP to 11); 22 MB portable download.; Setup: easy: Unzip and run; no installation needed.; Last commit: 2026-11-09; GitHub stars: 2,430 (2026-11-13)
- **darktable** (https://github.com/darktable-org/darktable): Licence: GPL-3.0; Commercial use: Yes; GPL-3.0 means shared changes stay open if you distribute the software.; Runs on: 8 GB RAM recommended; a GPU with OpenCL is advised.; Setup: easy: Install a release package; optional AI features are off by default.; Last commit: 2026-11-13; Last release: 2026-10-04; GitHub stars: 13,441 (2026-11-13)
- **RawTherapee** (https://github.com/RawTherapee/RawTherapee): Licence: GPL-3.0; Commercial use: Yes; GPL-3.0 means shared changes stay open if you distribute the software.; Runs on: Desktop app for Windows, macOS and Linux.; Setup: easy: Download an installer or package from rawtherapee.com.; Last commit: 2026-11-09; Last release: 2026-07-26; GitHub stars: 4,293 (2026-11-13)
- **Upscayl** (https://github.com/upscayl/upscayl): Licence: AGPL-3.0; Commercial use: Yes; AGPL-3.0 means sharing changes if you run it as a service.; Runs on: A Vulkan-compatible GPU; many integrated GPUs do not work.; Setup: easy: Install the app for Linux, macOS 12+ or Windows; needs a Vulkan GPU.; Last commit: 2026-03-27; Last release: 2025-01-17; GitHub stars: 52,493 (2026-11-13)

## Questions

### What is the best alternative to Lensa in 2027?
Picsart is the best overall Lensa alternative on this page ($15/mo). To self-host, GIMP is open source (GPL-3.0).

### Is there a free version of Lensa?
No. Lensa has no free plan; paid plans start at No price published on lensa.app., checked on 13 Nov 2026.

### Is there a 100% free alternative to Lensa?
Yes. GIMP, PhotoDemon, darktable, RawTherapee, Upscayl are open source and free to self-host.

### How much do Lensa alternatives cost for a team of 5?
If each of 5 people buys the entry paid plan, at the prices Zekai checked on 13 Nov 2026, the monthly cost is Pixlr $12.45/mo, Evoto $33.35/mo, Polarr Next $60/mo. Team and business plans can cost more per seat. The Zekai Cost Finder on this page recalculates for any team size.

### Which is better, Picsart or Lensa?
Pro adds a 1-tap image enhancer, bulk edit of up to 50 images, 100 GB cloud storage and Getty stock, beyond Lensa's effects, eraser and hair try-on. Choose Picsart if you edit photos and video for social accounts and want templates, stock and bulk edits in one subscription. Stay with Lensa if you want one-tap trend looks and portrait beauty tools in a simple phone editor.

### Why are people leaving Lensa?
The documented reasons are: Lensa's terms (effective 6 May 2026) say Avatars and Effects are Virtual Items it may manage, modify or remove, unused plan Tokens expire each period, and plans can be changed at any time (6 May 2026). Each is sourced in the section above.

### What is better than Lensa AI?
It depends on the job: Picsart for templates and bulk edits, Evoto for portrait batches, Polarr Next for RAW editing, and Adobe Photoshop for layered retouching.

## Related on Zekai

- [Adobe Photoshop alternatives](https://zekaiwork.com/alternatives/adobe-photoshop/)
- [Upscayl alternatives](https://zekaiwork.com/alternatives/upscayl/)
- [Generative AI for Graphic Designers & Creative Arts](https://zekaiwork.com/professions/ai-graphic-design-creative-tools/)

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