VectorCraft Online

LightCraft Online – Free Photo Editor & Lightroom Alternative

Preparing LightCraft…

First visit downloads the editor once (≈23 MB). After that it opens instantly from your browser cache. Nothing you draw is uploaded.

Free · Open source · In your browser

The open-source Lightroom alternative, running right here. Non-destructive raw development, colour grading, masking, presets and a photo library — on your own machine.

  • Official LightCraft web build, unmodified
  • Runs locally with WebAssembly in your browser
  • Open source (MIT or Apache-2.0), made by ArtCraft team

About the app

What is LightCraft?

LightCraft is a free, open-source photo library and raw developer that recreates the Adobe Lightroom workflow. Every adjustment is non-destructive and renders through a scene-referred, wide-gamut, 32-bit float pipeline. It is written in Rust by the ArtCraft team and runs on Windows, macOS, Linux and in the browser.

It is alpha software. Its authors put it at about 81% of Lightroom’s features, and nearer 49% of the way to replacing it for a typical working photographer. It is great for JPEG, DNG and most Sony, Panasonic, Fujifilm, Nikon and older Canon raw files.

LightCraft is one of the Crafting Apps, alongside VectorCraft, the free Illustrator alternative.

LightCraft features

Lightroom’s darkroom, rebuilt from scratch in Rust

Light and tone in LightCraft

Light and tone

Exposure, contrast, highlights, shadows, whites and blacks with edge-aware tone mapping that avoids halos.

Colour grading in LightCraft

Colour grading

Shadow, midtone and highlight wheels, an 8-band colour mixer and vibrance that protects skin tones.

Masking in LightCraft

Masking

Brush, linear and radial gradients, and luminance, colour, sky, subject and background selections.

Tone curves in LightCraft

Tone curves

A parametric region curve plus RGB and per-channel point curves that can never invert tones.

Presets in LightCraft

Presets

Apply looks in one click from the Presets column and build your own from any edit.

A library that stays out of the way in LightCraft

A library that stays out of the way

All Photos, Picks, By Date and nested albums, with ratings, flags and fast grid views.

Screenshots: LightCraft contributors, MIT OR Apache-2.0. Photographs shown are public domain (U.S. National Archives, Library of Congress) or generated demo images.

Get started

How to use LightCraft online

  1. 1

    Let it load once

    The first visit downloads LightCraft and its fonts (about 23 MB). It opens with a demo library so you can try it immediately.

  2. 2

    Import your photos

    Add JPEG, DNG or raw files to the library. They are read by your browser, not uploaded.

  3. 3

    Develop and export

    Use Light, Color, Effects, curves and masks, then export the finished photo to your computer.

Compare

LightCraft vs Lightroom and darktable

FeatureLightCraft OnlineAdobe Lightroomdarktable
PriceFreeSubscriptionFree
Runs in the browserWith subscription
No account needed
Open source
Lightroom-style sliders & layout
Non-destructive editing
Raw camera supportMany camerasExtensiveExtensive
MaturityAlphaIndustry standardMature

Check LightCraft’s raw support list for your camera before relying on it.

Desktop app · version 0.8.0 · released 2026-10-14

Download LightCraft

Prefer a native app? Every link goes straight to the official GitHub release by ArtCraft team.

LightCraft for Windows

How to install

  1. Download the .msi installer that matches your PC (x64 for almost all Intel and AMD computers).
  2. Double-click it and follow the setup steps; LightCraft appears in the Start menu.
  3. Prefer not to install? Unzip the portable build anywhere and run LightCraft from that folder.

LightCraft for macOS

How to install

  1. Download the universal .dmg and open it.
  2. Drag LightCraft into your Applications folder.
  3. Open it from Applications or Launchpad. The app is signed and notarized by Apple.

LightCraft for Linux

How to install

  1. AppImage: make it executable (chmod +x lightcraft-*.AppImage) and run it.
  2. Flatpak: flatpak install --user lightcraft-*.flatpak
  3. Debian/Ubuntu: sudo apt install ./lightcraft-*.deb — Fedora: sudo dnf install ./lightcraft-*.rpm

LightCraft for FreeBSD

How to install

  1. Unpack the tarball and run the lightcraft binary inside it.

Verify your download

Compare the file’s SHA-256 hash with SHA256SUMS.txt from the release. On macOS or Linux run shasum -a 256 <file>; on Windows run certutil -hashfile <file> SHA256. Older versions and release notes are on the GitHub releases page .

LightCraft FAQ

Is LightCraft free?

Yes. LightCraft is free, open-source software (MIT or Apache-2.0), and this page lets you use its web version without paying, installing anything or creating an account.

Does LightCraft support my camera’s raw files?

It handles JPEG, DNG and most Sony, Panasonic, Fujifilm, Nikon and older Canon raw files well. Support varies by camera model, so test a few of your own files.

Are my photos uploaded?

No. LightCraft runs in your browser with WebAssembly; photos you import are processed on your device and exports download to your computer.

Is LightCraft ready to replace Lightroom?

For casual use it is getting close; for professional work not yet. Its authors estimate about 49% readiness for a typical working photographer and about 64% for casual use.

Is this the official LightCraft website?

No. LightCraft is made by the ArtCraft team (getartcraft.com). This is an independent page that hosts the unmodified official web build.

Can I download LightCraft as a desktop app?

Yes. Signed builds for Windows, macOS, Linux and FreeBSD are linked in the download section below, straight from the official GitHub release.

LightCraft guides

More free Crafting Apps

LightCraft, the free Lightroom alternative, is one of the ArtCraft team’s open-source Crafting Apps. See all apps