It can handle both Illustrator AI and Photoshop PSD files, so you don't have to worry about compatibility if colleagues or clients work with Adobe's software. In fact, Affinity Designer even offers some tools you don't get on Illustrator, such as infinite redos and one million per cent-plus zoom, and we found that it tends to run faster than Adobe illustrator too. Available for a one-off payment, Affinity Designer comes closest out of all the software we've tried in matching the breadth of Illustrator's feature set. The most notable contender is Serif's Affinity Designer. If you're put off by the hefty monthly or annual cost of Adobe's subscription model, there are now some serious alternatives as the best graphic design software for vector design.

See our full hands-on Adobe Illustrator review for more details, and see our guide to how to download Adobe Illustrator. It's best to sign up when there's an offer so you at least get a discount for your first year. This has its advantages in that you automatically get all the latest updates to the software but it also makes Illustrator quite a lot more expensive than comparable programs in the long term.

The only downside we can see really is that Illustrator is part of Adobe Creative Cloud, which means that it's only available via a monthly subscription, either for Illustrator alone or to Adobe's full suite of creative apps, which includes Photoshop, InDesign and more. It's also added Rotate View and a Width Tool that makes it simple to add variations to vector lines. We've also been pleased with some of the latest updates Adobe has made to allow customisation of the toolbar. The learning curve is fairly steep initially, but we think that once you know your way around the program, it offers a pleasant interface to use. It also has a lot of useful features and shortcuts to help speed up your workflow. Illustrator allows you to create everything from illustrations to logos with a lot of creative freedom. Regular updates have kept it ahead of growing competition in terms of the range of features and tools, and it also remains the industry-standard software, meaning that if you're working or anyone other than yourself, you'll probably be expected to use it for vector design work. If you want the best graphic design software for vector drawing and editing, then really you'll want Adobe Illustrator.

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