darktable
An optional AI subsystem, off by default, adds an object mask tool that selects an object with a click.
Free, open-source raw developer and photo workflow app, with a lighttable for managing images and a darkroom for editing them.
- Starting price
- Free
- Output
- Developed raw photos, exported as JPEG, PNG, TIFF, HEIF, PPM, PFM or EXR
- API
- No hosted API; many aspects can be scripted in Lua
Overview
darktable is a free, open-source photography workflow application and raw developer, pairing a lighttable for managing large shoots with a darkroom for developing them. It is aimed at photographers who want precise control over raw processing, and its floating-point pipeline also suits scientific and high dynamic range images. It is installed locally on Linux, macOS and Windows. Volunteers develop it under the GNU GPL version 3 or later, so it costs nothing.
Our take
Pick darktable if you want to steer every step of raw development yourself, keep your catalogue in your own files rather than behind a subscription, and work the same way on Linux as on any other desktop. Photographers who mainly want fast, polished results from presets they already own will get there sooner in Lightroom or another commercial editor from this category instead. Anyone who just needs a free converter in front of GIMP can also consider RawTherapee.
Key Facts
| Category | |
|---|---|
| Starting price | Free Free software under the GNU GPL v3 or later. The current release is 5.6.2, from 4 October 2026. |
| Output | Developed raw photos, exported as JPEG, PNG, TIFF, HEIF, PPM, PFM or EXR |
| API | No hosted API; many aspects can be scripted in Lua |
| Languages | Interface translated into more than a dozen languages |
| Hosting | Installed locally on Linux, macOS 13.5 or later and Windows, with x86 and ARM builds; BSD and Solaris are also listed |
Screenshots
Placeholders. They are replaced as soon as the vendor sends material, and both open the same short form.
Features
- Where it runs
- Desktop app for Linux (AppImage, Flatpak and distribution packages), macOS 13.5 or later and Windows, each with x86 and ARM builds
- RAW support and camera profiles
- Yes, hundreds of cameras decoded through RawSpeed and LibRaw, and cameras that write DNG should work even if unlisted. Many models also get white balance presets and a noise profile for profiled denoise, newer ones sometimes basic decoding only. ICC profiles, not DCP
- Non-destructive editing
- Yes, originals are never modified. Edits are a history stack kept in XMP sidecar files and the library database
- Layers and masking
- No layers. Each module can be masked with drawn, parametric, raster or combined masks and blended with a blend mode and opacity
- Batch processing
- Yes, a history stack is copied whole or in part and pasted onto all selected images, appending or overwriting; export works on the whole selection
- Catalog and asset management
- Lighttable over a library database that references files in place or copies them on import, with film rolls, collections, tags, star ratings, colour labels and queries on all metadata
- AI tools and control
- An optional AI subsystem, off by default, adds an object mask tool that selects an object with a click (SAM2.1 or SegNext) and a neural restore module for raw denoise, denoise and 2x or 4x upscaling. Around it sit non-destructive editing on 32-bit floating-point buffers, full ICC colour management, styles, LUTs, a colour harmoniser and tethered shooting
- Where the AI models come from
- No image generation model. The AI masking and restore models are downloaded from a configurable model repository and run locally through ONNX Runtime, on the GPU where available
- API
- No hosted API; many aspects can be scripted in Lua, documented in a separate Lua API manual
Integrations
- Piwigo
Deployment and Support
- Deployment
-
- On-premise
- Support
-
- Community forum
- Onboarding
-
- Documentation and knowledge base
Pros and Cons
Strengths
- Free and open source under the GNU GPL v3 or later
- Non-destructive editing, with settings kept in XMP sidecar files and a database
- Optional AI masking, denoise and upscaling run on your own CPU or GPU
- Tethered shooting with live view for some camera brands
- Exports to HDR formats such as PFM and EXR as well as JPEG, TIFF and HEIF
Limitations
- The project itself warns of a steep learning curve, since little workflow knowledge carries over from other editors
- Supports ICC profiles only, not DCP camera profiles
- Edits made in Lightroom cannot be imported properly
- The Flatpak package does not include the AI features
Pricing
-
Free
$0
Free and open-source software under the GNU GPL v3 or later.
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What users say
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