10 Best Free Photo Printing Software Programs in 2024

1. HP Smart

• Mobile Printing: Print directly from your Android or iOS device (iOS 11 or higher).
• Cloud Integration: Access and print photos from cloud storage services like Google Photos, Dropbox, and iCloud.
• Social Media Printing: Print photos directly from your Facebook account.
• Scan to Email: Scan documents, enhance them with automatic cropping and perspective correction, and send them directly to your email.

2. Google Photos

• Unlimited Storage: Store all your photos and videos without worrying about running out of space. This is a significant advantage for users who take a lot of photos and want to keep them all in one place.
• Powerful Editing Tools: Crop, adjust color and tone, apply filters, and enhance your photos with a variety of editing tools. Google Photos offers a range of basic and advanced editing features to improve the look of your images.
• Easy Organization: Organize your photos automatically by date, location, and the people in them. Google Photos uses AI to identify faces and places, making it easy to find the photos you’re looking for.
• AI-Powered Search: Search for photos using keywords, like “beach” or “dog.” Google Photos’ AI can recognize objects and scenes in your images, making it easy to find photos based on their content.
• Print Ordering: Order prints directly from Google Photos for pickup at local retailers like CVS or Walmart. This convenient feature allows you to get physical prints of your photos without leaving your home.

3. Canon Easy-PhotoPrint Editor

• Intuitive Interface: Easily create various types of prints, including photo layouts, cards, collages, calendars, and disc labels. The app is designed for simplicity, making it easy to navigate and create projects.
• Ready-to-Use Templates: Choose from a selection of templates for different occasions and projects, such as greeting cards, calendars, photo albums, and more.
• Poster Creation: Design and print custom posters with text and images. You can easily create eye-catching posters for events, announcements, or decorations.
• Everyday Item Printing: Create business cards, photo IDs, stickers, and other practical items. The app provides templates and tools to create professional-looking business cards and personalized stickers.
• Disk Label Printing: Design and print custom labels for your CDs and DVDs.
• Photo Editing Tools: Crop, resize, add borders, text, and stamps to your photos. You can enhance your images with basic editing features before printing them.

4. Adobe Photoshop Express

• Auto Fix: One-click correction for brightness, exposure, and shadows. The Auto Fix feature analyzes your photo and automatically adjusts these settings for optimal results.
• Filters and Effects: Apply a variety of filters and effects to enhance your photos, giving them a unique look and feel. You can choose from a range of styles, from vintage to modern.
• Basic Editing Tools: Crop, resize, rotate, remove red-eye, and retouch your photos with simple and intuitive tools.
• Collage Creation: Create photo collages with different layouts and templates, combining multiple images into a single print.

• Creating and using presets: Save your favorite editing settings as presets to apply them quickly to other photos.
• Managing assets: Organize and manage your entire photo library.
• Retouching: Remove blemishes, smooth skin, and enhance portraits with advanced retouching tools.
• Sharpening and noise reduction: Improve image clarity and reduce graininess.
• RAW processing: Edit photos in their original RAW format for maximum flexibility.
• Comprehensive photo printing software functionalities: Control print settings, layout, color management, and paper profiles for professional-quality prints.

5. Fotor Photo Editor

• Web-Based Interface: Access Fotor from any computer with an internet connection, eliminating the need to download and install software.
• Extensive Templates: Choose from a vast library of templates for various projects, including invitations, flyers, posters, social media graphics, and business cards.
• Photo Retouching: Enhance your photos with beauty filters, blemish removal, teeth whitening, and other retouching tools to create polished and professional-looking images.
• Collage Maker: Create photo collages with various layouts and customizable options, combining multiple images into a single design.

6. PhotoScape

• Image Viewer: Browse and view your photos quickly and easily.
• Screen Capture: Capture screenshots of your computer screen, a helpful tool for creating tutorials or documenting your work.
• Batch Editor: Apply edits and effects to multiple photos simultaneously, saving time and effort.
• Animated GIF Creator: Create and edit animated GIFs, a fun way to add movement to your images.
• Filters, Effects, and Stickers: Enhance your photos with a variety of filters, effects, stickers, and icons.

7. IrfanView

• Fast Image Viewing: Quickly view and browse through large collections of photos.
• Basic Editing Tools: Perform common edits like cropping, resizing, rotating, and adjusting color and brightness.
• Batch Conversion: Convert multiple images from one format to another simultaneously, a useful feature for web designers or anyone working with different image formats.
• Slideshow Creation: Create slideshows with your photos, complete with transitions and music.
• Plugin Support: Extend IrfanView’s functionality with plugins that add features such as support for additional image formats, special effects, and more.

8. Paint.NET

• Layers: Work with multiple layers to edit and manipulate different elements of your images independently. Layers allow you to make changes to specific parts of an image without affecting the rest.
• Unlimited Undo: Experiment with different edits and effects without worrying about making irreversible mistakes.
• Special Effects: Apply a variety of special effects to enhance your photos, such as blurs, distortions, and artistic filters.
• Plugin Support: Expand Paint.NET's functionality with a wide range of plugins created by the community, adding features like new brushes, file format support, and special effects.

9. GIMP

• Advanced Editing Tools: GIMP offers a professional-level set of tools for sophisticated image editing tasks, including:
  • Advanced image correction: Adjust color balance, exposure, levels, and curves with precision.
  • Album creation: Create photo albums and slideshows.
  • Plugin support: Extend GIMP’s functionality with a vast library of plugins.
  • RAW camera file capabilities: Edit photos in their original RAW format for maximum quality and editing control.
  • Soft-proofing for printing: Preview how your images will look when printed, ensuring accurate color and tonal reproduction.
  • Paper profile adjustments: Make fine-tune adjustments to your printer’s paper profile to achieve specific print results.
• Layer Support: Work non-destructively with layers, allowing you to edit and manipulate different elements of your images independently without affecting the original image.
• Customization: Customize GIMP’s interface and functionality to match your workflow preferences, creating a personalized editing environment.
• Open Source: GIMP is free to use, distribute, and modify. Its open-source nature encourages collaboration and innovation, with contributions from a global community of developers.

10. PrintStation

• Batch Printing: Print multiple images quickly and easily. You can select a group of photos and print them all at once, saving time and effort. PrintStation also includes features to optimize the printing process, such as:
  • Automated sizing and positioning: Photos are automatically resized and positioned to fit the selected layout and paper size.
  • Customizable page layouts: Choose from a variety of preset layouts, or create your own to arrange your photos as you like.
  • Support for various paper sizes: PrintStation supports standard photo sizes, as well as custom paper dimensions.
• Headers and Footers: Add custom headers and footers to your prints, including text, page numbers, dates, or image information.
• Image Information Display: Optionally display file information, such as filename and date, on your prints, making it easy to keep track of your photos.
• Wide Format Support: PrintStation works with a wide range of image formats, including common types like JPEG, TIFF, PNG, and GIF, allowing you to print photos from various sources.

Recommendations

• HP Smart is a must-have for HP printer owners, offering the convenience of wireless printing from your computer or mobile device, as well as cloud integration and social media printing capabilities.
• Canon Easy-PhotoPrint Editor is a user-friendly option for Canon printer users, providing an intuitive interface for creating personalized prints and projects, including templates for various occasions.

Choosing the Right Photo Printing Software

• Printer Compatibility: Ensure the software is compatible with your printer and offers the features you need for your printing workflow. For example, if you want to print professional-quality photos, look for software that supports features like soft-proofing, intelligent sharpening, and color management, as found in programs like Canon Digital Photo Professional (DPP) and Professional Print & Layout (PPL).
• Ease of Use: If you’re a beginner or prefer a straightforward approach, opt for a program with a simple and intuitive interface. Programs like HP Smart, Canon Easy-PhotoPrint Editor, and Adobe Photoshop Express are known for their user-friendliness.
• Features: Determine the specific editing and printing features you require. Do you need basic editing tools for cropping and color correction, or do you require more advanced features like layers, RAW processing, or batch editing?
• Cost: Many excellent free photo printing software programs are available, as highlighted in this article. However, some programs, like Adobe Lightroom, are subscription-based, offering more advanced features and professional-level tools.