Xara Photo & Graphic Designer vs Fotor Comparison

When it comes to picking any kind of software, it’s important to ask what it is that you are looking for. When it comes to photo editing programs in particular the questions are varied and complicated, but there’s always one key question: how is this software going to be used?

Luckily, whatever your need there is always software to answer that demand. Xara Photo & Graphic Designer is more professional software, and should be used as such. Fotor, however, is more for the average user. Both are fantastic tools, but have very specific audiences – which one are you?

Rather than having to fight with menus, Xara is smartly designed to keep the experience as clutter-free as possible with almost every action taking place directly on the photo rather than behind dialog boxes. This helps to make the program a little easier to get to grips with for beginners, though admittedly it will require some learning first.

That’s kind of the balance of this program, though. While it is more complex and therefore harder to use for those not already handy with image editing software (or not able to put the effort into learning), it’s also more powerful as a result therefore making it far more capable of tweaking photos to perfection.

Couple this with its wide array of compatible file types – from bespoke software-specific files to unique raw files from digital cameras – and vector-based drawing features, too, and you’ve got a program that is not only able to compete with Photoshop, but utterly trounces it on pricing too.

Alongside the basic adjustments, Fotor focuses on retouching. There’s a huge list of beautification tools that includes red-eye removal, weight reduction and plenty of facial enhancements. The success of these tools are varied and the cloning tool is a hassle to use, but its options are so robust and varied that with a bit of patience with tweaking your photos can be improved dramatically.

If you’re not too demanding about the results and perhaps just want a handful of tools available to enhance holiday snaps then Fotor is a perfect choice. It is simpler, but still achieves everything that you might need. Add bonuses such as a collage creator, countless stickers and effects and even a graphic design editor – perfect for cards or photo books – and Fotor is a simple but effective package worth considering.

On the surface of it the two programs are not comparable. One is a professional suite of tools designed to target those looking for alternatives to Photoshop, the other is a simpler set of features aiming for inexperienced users. Both excel at their goals, so it’s important to know on which side you stand. It’s worth considering that amateur photo editors can learn how to use Xara, but the opposite isn’t possible – those with experience will find Fotor a little too simple or flawed.

But that isn’t a slight on Fotor, because both apps have their frustrations. In that sense there isn’t a clear winner, just the knowledge that Xara is a more powerful suite of tools while Fotor is much easier to adapt to and use. There are ways of trialing each of the programs, however, so why not do so and see which is better suited to you?