In the dawn of time, Adobe Photoshop was the flagship application that gave credibility to the Mac in a Windows PC world and established the Mac as the tool of choice for creative users. It is therefore fitting that Adobe quickly released a native version of Photoshop designed for Mac M1 or Apple Silicon. And he gives new Macs his stamp of approval by stating at the time that many filters and other effects run up to 50% faster on M1 models.
And, of course, Photoshop’s selection of filters and creative tools is unmatched, with the ability to quickly and easily select and replace objects in an image, versatile masks and layers for creating composite images and, depending on AI technology fashion, a number of neural filters that can alter the color in scenes, fix blemishes, and even change someone’s expression or make them look older. You can even remove the sky from a scene if you don’t like it and drop a new sky in the background.
Admittedly, Adobe’s insistence on monthly subscription fees for using Photoshop and other Adobe software has opened the door to rivals who simply charge a one-time fee, but Photoshop still rules the roost when it comes to is all about the depth, precision and creative freedom it provides, and with plans starting at $9.99 / £9.98 per month, that’s pretty competitive. A 7-day free trial is also available.
Paying this monthly fee also ensures that users get instant access to new features and updates as they become available, with the most recent update including a new super-resolution feature to increase file resolution. RAW image quality while maintaining clarity and detail, according to Adobe.
There are different ways to get Photoshop on your Mac. You can subscribe to Photoshop on its own ($20.99 / £19.97 including 100GB of cloud storage) or as part of a bundle. You can prepay for a year, pay monthly for a year, or pay a little more per month but cancel at any time. There are also offers for Students and teachers or Schools and universities. We cover the best prices and offers for Adobe Creative Cloud separately.
The Photography Plan is the best offer. It includes Photoshop CC, Lightroom CC (for web and mobile), and Lightroom Classic CC (for desktop). This all costs $9.99/£9.98 per month (you need to sign up for a year). You get 20GB of storage included (there’s a 1TB storage option that costs around $10/£10 more per month). Register on the Adobe website.
Alternatively, you can get the single Photoshop app for $20.99/£19.97 per month if you sign up for a year, or $31.49/£30.34 per month if you only pay on a basic monthly (meaning you can cancel within a year). Register on the Adobe website. There is also a Business option where you can get a single license for $33.99 / £25.28 (excl. VAT) per month.
All Adobe Creative Cloud apps, including Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Premiere Pro and Acrobat, cost $54.99/£51.98 per month. Register on the Adobe website.
You can also consider Adobe Photoshop Elements, which we review here: Adobe Photoshop Elements Review.
For more information, read How to Get Photoshop on a Mac