The best Darkroom alternatives

App	Price	How you pay	Mac	iPhone	iPad	Watch	App Store	Developer	Rating
Darkroom	Free to start	Free, with paid upgrades							4.8
Pixelmator Pro	$49.99 once	Pay once							Too few ratings
Halide	From $19.99	Subscription							4.4
Photomator	From $7.99	Subscription							4.5
LibreCam	Free to start	Free, with paid upgrades							Too few ratings
Lampa	Free to start	Free, with paid upgrades							4.7
Phlow	From $8	Subscription							4.9
Excire Foto	$249 once	Pay once							Too few ratings
Better Camera	Free to start	Free, with paid upgrades							Too few ratings

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1. 1

   Pixelmator Pro

   $49.99 onceBest alternative

   Pick it if you edit photos and make graphics on a Mac and refuse to pay for Photoshop.

   Photo editing, RAW, design and AI cleanup tools in 1 Mac app, for $49.99 once with no subscription.

   Prices and full verdictMac App StoreCompare
   
2. 2

   Halide

   From $19.994.4

   Pick it if your iPhone photos look over-processed and you want manual control over shutter speed and ISO.

   A manual iPhone camera that can switch off Apple's AI processing for natural, film-like photos.

   Prices and full verdictApp StoreCompare
   
3. 3

   Photomator

   From $7.994.5

   Pick it if you edit RAW photos in batches and want a lifetime license for Lightroom-style tools.

   Lightroom-style editing that works right inside your Photos library, with a lifetime license if you hate subscriptions.

   Prices and full verdictApp StoreCompare
   
4. 4

   LibreCam

   Free to startBest free

   Pick it if you hate the smoothed, over-sharpened look of iPhone photos and edit RAW files in Lightroom or Darkroom.

   Shoots what the sensor saw, with Smart HDR, Deep Fusion and sharpening all off, for a $5.99 Pro upgrade.

   Prices and full verdictApp StoreCompare
   
5. 5

   Lampa

   Free to start4.7

   Pick it if you want iPhone photos and videos that look like film without editing every shot afterwards.

   Film and 2000s digicam color baked in at capture, for photos and 4K video, without the flat HDR look.

   Prices and full verdictApp StoreCompare
   
6. 6

   Phlow

   From $84.9

   Pick it if you shoot and edit RAW on your iPhone and are tired of duplicate files cluttering Photos.

   RAW capture with live film presets, and edits that sync back to the original file in Photos.

   Prices and full verdictApp StoreCompare
   
7. 7

   Excire Foto

   $249 once

   Pick it if you keep thousands of photos in folders and want to find one by describing it, without uploading anything.

   Find photos by typing what is in them, with on-device AI and a one-time price.

   Prices and full verdictDeveloper's siteCompare
8. 8

   Better Camera

   Free to start

   Pick it if you want real manual controls on your iPhone but find Halide-style pro apps too busy.

   Manual exposure, focus peaking and film looks on iPhone, with a free roll of 36 shots to start.

   Prices and full verdictApp StoreCompare
   

• Pixelmator Pro vs DarkroomPick it if you edit photos and make graphics on a Mac and refuse to pay for Photoshop.
• Darkroom vs PhotomatorPick it if you edit RAW photos in batches and want a lifetime license for Lightroom-style tools.