VectorCraft
Vector illustration
Pen-tool-first vector illustration, rebuilt in Rust.
- Replaces
- Adobe Illustrator
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
- Release
- v0.13.1 · 2026-10-18
Details
Open-source creative & office suite · indexed 2026-10-19
Thirteen paid apps. Thirteen open-source answers.
An independent directory of the Craft suite — 13 native creative and office apps written from scratch in Rust, released under Apache-2.0, replacing Adobe and Microsoft subscriptions. We index, describe and compare; every download goes to the upstream repository.
OpenCraftApps is an independent editorial directory. It is not run by ArtCraft or storytold, and it hosts no installers — every download link opens the upstream GitHub release.
Spotlight · 02 of 13
PhotoCraft
The image editor you already know how to use, in Rust.
PhotoCraft is the most-watched project in the suite: a clean-room raster editor covering the layer/mask/curve workflow that retouchers and compositors live in. Upstream ships a large PSD test corpus, which is the honest way to judge layer-compatibility claims.
- Layers, masks and blend modes
- Curves, levels and colour adjustments
- Filter stack with non-destructive filters
- RAW / Camera RAW style import
- PSD import backed by an upstream compatibility corpus
Replaces
Adobe Photoshop
Every app in the suite is a one-to-one answer to a paid product. PhotoCraft: An open-source, photo editor written by scratch in pure Rust.
Watch out for
- Plugin ecosystem (Photoshop UXP/C++ filters) does not exist yet
- CMYK print pipeline and advanced colour management are still maturing
Directory
Pick a job, pick a craft.
Three clusters: the Adobe-shaped hole, the Microsoft-shaped hole, and the specialist tools. Licence, release and platform data come from each repository.
PhotoCraft
Raster photo editing
The image editor you already know how to use, in Rust.
- Replaces
- Adobe Photoshop
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
- Release
- v0.10.0 · 2026-10-18
Details
FilmCraft
Non-linear video editing
Multi-track NLE engineered in Rust.
- Replaces
- Adobe Premiere Pro
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
- Release
- v0.9.0 · 2026-10-18
Details
LightCraft
RAW catalogue and development
Catalog and RAW development that stays on your disk.
- Replaces
- Adobe Lightroom
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
- Release
- v0.9.1 · 2026-10-18
Details
PdfCraft
PDF reading and editing
Read, annotate, merge and split PDFs offline.
- Replaces
- Adobe Acrobat Pro
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
- Release
- v0.9.0 · 2026-10-18
Details
EffectCraft
Motion graphics and compositing
Node-graph motion and compositing with a real-time viewport.
- Replaces
- Adobe After Effects
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
- Release
- v0.11.1 · 2026-10-18
Details
DesignCraft
Desktop publishing
Multi-page layout, threaded text and print-ready export.
- Replaces
- Adobe InDesign
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
- Release
- v0.9.0 · 2026-10-18
Details
WordCraft
Word processing
Ribbon-style word processing with native .docx.
- Replaces
- Microsoft Word
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
- Release
- v0.8.0 · 2026-10-18
Details
GridCraft
Spreadsheets
Heavy spreadsheets, multi-threaded recalculation.
- Replaces
- Microsoft Excel
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
- Release
- v0.8.0 · 2026-10-18
Details
DeckCraft
Presentations
GPU-rendered slide decks with master-slide discipline.
- Replaces
- Microsoft PowerPoint
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
- Release
- v0.8.0 · 2026-10-18
Details
FigCraft
Interface design and prototyping
Auto layout, variants and prototypes without per-seat billing.
- Replaces
- Figma
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
- Release
- v0.7.0 · 2026-10-18
Details
SoundCraft
Audio recording and mixing
Multitrack recording, MIDI and plugin hosting in Rust.
- Replaces
- Avid Pro Tools / Adobe Audition
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
- Release
- v0.8.0 · 2026-10-17
Details
CADCraft
2D CAD drafting
Command-line 2D drafting with DWG/DXF round-tripping.
- Replaces
- Autodesk AutoCAD
- Licence
- Apache-2.0
- Release
- v0.8.0 · 2026-10-17
Details
Head to head
The suite vs. the subscriptions
Where the open-source apps win is structural, not cosmetic. Where they lose is also structural — both are in this table.
| Dimension | Craft suite | Adobe | Microsoft |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost model | None — free binaries and source | Recurring subscription, per seat or plan | Recurring subscription tied to a tenant |
| Where files live | Your disk; optional self-hosting | Local plus Creative Cloud sync | OneDrive / SharePoint by default |
| Source access | Apache-2.0, auditable, forkable | Closed | Closed |
| Installation | Installer or portable archive per release | Creative Cloud desktop service | Click-to-run + account activation |
| Linux support | Official builds for three architectures | None | None (web versions only) |
| Real-time collaboration | Not a hosted service — file handoff | Libraries, frame.io, cloud docs | Live co-authoring is the core selling point |
Why this suite
Built the slow way, on purpose.
Open source, auditable
All 13 apps and the launcher are Apache-2.0 in one GitHub organisation (storytold). You can read the code that touches your files.
Open upstream ↗ →Native desktop, not wrapped
Written from scratch in Rust rather than forked, and shipped as installers — the app you run is native code, not a site in a wrapper, with no per-seat metering service behind it.
Open upstream ↗ →Familiar from day one
Each app targets one product people already know: ribbons for Office work, pen and layers for design, a timeline for edit.
Open upstream ↗ →Your files, your machine
Catalogues, documents and sessions stay local. Nothing is uploaded to open a file or to export one.
Open upstream ↗ →Automation-friendly
Public repos, scriptable builds and a command-line build inside every app's release — PdfCraft's CLI ships Linux tarballs as well. Some teams run these in pipelines; see what is verified.
Open upstream ↗ →One launcher
Craft Launcher v0.5.1 installs and updates the enabled apps from upstream releases, so you are not tracking 13 repositories.
Open upstream ↗ →Straight talk
What you give up
A directory that only lists wins is an advertisement. This is the other half of the picture.
Not there yet
- No hosted collaboration: no live cursors, comment threads or shared cloud libraries.
- No plug-in or add-in marketplace — VBA, ExtendScript and AE expressions do not transfer.
- Enterprise procurement artefacts (SSO, audit reports, support SLAs) are not this project's business.
- Format fidelity is per-release work: test your own files before a deadline depends on them.
Already true today
- Free for commercial use, with a permissive licence and the source attached.
- Ships for Linux as well as macOS and Windows, on several CPU architectures.
- Releases arrive every two to four weeks across the suite.
- Portable archives exist for machines where you cannot install anything.
Install
Get it where the files actually live
GitHub release assets, published by the maintainers, with SHA-256 sums alongside. We link; we never mirror.
Craft Launcher
One installer surface for the whole suite: the launcher fetches the apps you enable from the upstream release assets and keeps them updated.
FAQ
Questions people actually arrive with
What is the Craft suite?
Thirteen desktop creative and office applications — VectorCraft, PhotoCraft, FilmCraft, LightCraft, PdfCraft, EffectCraft, DesignCraft, WordCraft, GridCraft, DeckCraft, FigCraft, SoundCraft and CADCraft — written from scratch in Rust by the storytold organisation, plus a launcher that installs them. Each one targets a specific paid app: Illustrator, Photoshop, Premiere Pro, Lightroom, Acrobat, After Effects, InDesign, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Figma, Pro Tools and AutoCAD.
Is it really free and open source?
Yes. Every repository in the organisation we index is published under Apache-2.0, which permits commercial use, modification and redistribution. You can clone the source and build it yourself with a current Rust toolchain.
Are these forks of GIMP, Inkscape or LibreOffice?
No. The Craft apps describe themselves as clean-room implementations written from scratch, which is why they carry an Apache-2.0 licence rather than GPL or MPL. GIMP, Inkscape, Krita, Darktable, FreeCAD and LibreOffice remain strong, more mature alternatives in the same jobs — we list them on the relevant app pages.
Is OpenCraftApps the official ArtCraft website?
No. OpenCraftApps is an independent directory. The upstream project page is getartcraft.com and the code lives at github.com/storytold. We link to those; we do not speak for them.
Do you host the installers?
Never. Every download button on this site opens the project's own GitHub release page or the direct release asset hosted by GitHub. That keeps the file authentic, and means when upstream fixes a bug the link is already current.
Guides
Switching without breaking a workflow
6 min · updated 2026-10-17
Switching from Adobe to the Craft suite without losing a project
A six-step migration plan that assumes nothing exotic about your workflow, and tells you plainly which dependencies you cannot replace today.
5 min · updated 2026-10-17
Replacing Microsoft 365 for document work with WordCraft, GridCraft and DeckCraft
Office replacement fails on collaboration and macros, not on typing. Here is how to find out which camp you are in before the licence lapses.
4 min · updated 2026-10-17
Verify what you install: checking checksums on open-source downloads
Two minutes per install, and you never have to trust a mirror site — including this one — on faith again.
Free forever, and you can read why.
Start with the directory, decide with the comparison, install from upstream. Corrections and missing tools: hello@opencraftapps.top.