I ditched 4 expensive desktop apps for free open-source alternatives, and I wish I'd done it sooner

After a 7-year corporate stint, Tanveer found his love for writing and tech too much to resist. An MBA in Marketing and the owner of a PC building business, he writes on PC hardware, technology, and Windows. When not scouring the web for ideas, he can be found building PCs, watching anime, or playing Smash Karts on his RTX 3080 (sigh).

Paying for third-party apps is something we've all become used to, one way or another. Whether it's to fulfill work commitments or satisfy creative interests, app subscriptions now constitute a significant portion of our monthly expenses. Video editing, photo editing, note-taking, cloud storage, document editing, and antivirus are some of the areas where people prefer the convenience and features of paid software.

After paying a considerable sum in subscriptions over the last few years, I decided to give open-source alternatives a serious try, and I was surprised how smooth the transition was. From password management and document management to video and photo editing, I'm now using free apps that do all I need for work, hobbies, or security. The benefit to my wallet is a sweet bonus, too.

Bitwarden: I don't need paid password managers

Moving away from Google doesn't need to be expensive

Like many others, my online activity was deeply entangled with Google's Password Manager before I thought about migrating to something more secure and private. Google's solution is seamless and convenient, especially for an Android and Chrome user like myself, but it had started to feel limiting. I was ready to transition to a better solution, even if it meant paying for it.

I moved to 1Password for a while, as it was the one most of my friends were using at the time. It cost me about $30–$40 a year, but its auto password generation, autofill capability, and cross-platform support felt worth it. Besides, 1Password had a strong audit history and used a zero-knowledge architecture, which meant only I had access to my password vault.

Then, I discovered Bitwarden and never looked back. Even without the paid tier, I could enjoy all the 1Password features I just listed above. It had everything I needed to safely store, use, and share my passwords. I was saving money without compromising on security, which is always a win. You can self-host Vaultwarden instead, a community-driven version of Bitwarden that's lighter and brings free TOTP, which is paid on Bitwarden.

LibreOffice: I'm never paying for Microsoft 365 again

It beats Microsoft where it hurts

For most of us, Microsoft Office has been part of our lives since childhood, and it's hard to escape its clutches. Most of the world still uses it, businesses depend on it, and most of us are too familiar with it to switch to something else. I found myself in the same boat, but when Microsoft increased prices early last year, I was determined to find a free alternative that did most of what I depended on Microsoft for.

LibreOffice was the answer, since it was an open-source suite that satisfied my document, spreadsheet, and presentation needs. I was finally free of Microsoft's forced AI bloat and expensive subscription fee. I realized I wasn't using much of the Microsoft 365 offering anyway, so moving to LibreOffice was actually the sensible choice.

The open-source office alternative uses the OpenDocument format (ODF) and supports Microsoft Office formats as well. It's cross-platform and features customizable toolbars that offer a seamless transition from Office. Most of my work happens online on Google Docs now, so LibreOffice is more than enough for my occasional offline document editing.

Kdenlive: It's more powerful than what I need

Goodbye, Premiere Pro

Video editing is one job many of us keep coming back to — it's just so embedded in our digital lives today. I'm not a content creator, but I still need to edit the occasional product or marketing video for my business or refine an Instagram reel every few weeks. While Adobe Premiere Pro was my default choice for years, it was starting to get too pricey for my needs. That realization brought me to Kdenlive.

It was one of the most popular tools used by fellow XDA writers, and after using it for a few days, I quickly learned why. It supports all the basics like multi-track editing, non-destructive editing, color correction, and hardware acceleration. With proxy editing to work with heavy files and wide format support, I don't need any other tool for my video editing needs.

While the individual Premiere Pro subscription isn't prohibitively expensive (yet), I don't want to pay unless it's absolutely needed. After realizing that Kdenlive can do most of what Premiere Pro does for free, I don't think I'd want to go back. As for the other Creative Cloud apps, I have another thing coming in the next section.

PhotoCraft: Vibe-coded Photoshop is actually good

AI isn't all bad, right?

Photoshop was the other big reason I had been subscribed to Adobe's Creative Cloud for a long time. Our projects were created in Photoshop, and the team was used to working in Adobe's ecosystem. However, when news started circulating about AI-created clones of Adobe's most popular apps, I couldn't resist checking the project out. Developer Brandon Thomas had used years of experience and Claude Opus to recreate Adobe's CC suite.

PhotoCraft is the vibe-coded Photoshop alternative that we've been using for a few weeks. It looks almost identical to Adobe's solution and offers much of the functionality, too. Since the layout is the same and it allows working on PSD files, we're surprised how smooth the transition has been. Although advanced tools like Generative Fill and Generative Expand aren't there yet, PhotoCraft is still impressive given that it's free and a work in progress.

FOSS doesn't mean inferior

The assumption that free and open-source alternatives are always inferior to paid alternatives hasn't been true for a while. People have started to value privacy more than ever, and ditching expensive subscriptions is more possible than ever. When free video editing, photo editing, and document processing apps offer 90% of the functionality for free, people are bound to take notice.