Technology: Apps

10 Best Photo Editing Apps For Android IN 2021 | Above Android

10 Best Photo Editing Apps For Android IN 2021 | Above Android

Editing a photo on a smartphone was not a great experience in the past, but that's no longer the case. There are a ton of great apps for photo editing on the Android platform. Best of all, there are a lot of different apps to choose from, so you can get exactly what you want. It doesn't really matter if you're looking to do a quick edit, a semi-automated one, or you want all the possible tools at your disposal.

Decide what you want, find the perfect app for it, and you're good to go. That's actually why we're here, to try and help you find a photo editing app that suits you best. We've listed 10 photo editing Android apps down below. These are our favorite photo editing apps on the platform.

Each of these applications has something different to offer. In other words, each of them shine in one way or the other. There are a lot more, good apps available in the Play Store, of course, these are only our picks. Chances are you'll find what you're looking for here, if not, you can always visit the Google Play Store, and dig further. We've included descriptions for each of these apps, along with more information about each of them.

Top 10 Best Photo Editing Android Apps 2020

Below is a quick overview of the top 10 best photo editing Android apps for 2020, including any download and in-app purchase costs.

Download Cost In-app cost (per item)

Snapseed ✕ ✕

Photo Editor Pro ✕ $0.99-$15.99

Adobe Lightroom ✕ $1.99-$59.99

Pixlr ✕ $0.99-$15.99

PicsArt ✕ $0.99-$150

Pixaloop ✕ $0.99-$77

Fotor ✕ $0.99-$41.99

Photo Grid ✕ $0.99-$39.99

LightX ✕ $0.99-$31.99

AirBrush ✕ $0.99-$35.99

Below is a little more information on each app, a suggestion for the type of user the app is best suited to, and a direct link for easy downloading.

All download links go to the app's Google Play Store listing. Users are always recommended to download apps from Google Play or an authorized app store.

Best Photo Editing Android App For Most Users

Snapseed

Price: Free to download
In-app purchases: No
Android version: Varies with device

Snapseed kicks off this list, and for a good reason. This is probably the best photo editing app for most users. Snapseed has been purchased by Google a long time ago, and it only got better from that point on. The app is highly intuitive, and it comes with tons of tools that you can utilize. Thanks to its algorithms, some automated edits are also a possibility, in case you don't want to do things manually.

If you do decide to go down the manual route, you'll realize that the experience the app offers is great. Once you select the desired tool or category, you'll be able to use it. In some cases, more tools are packed together, and you can scroll between them vertically by holding down the finger on the display. Tweaking brightness and contrast, for example, can be done by moving your finger left and right, while holding it down on the display. This is an excellent tool for photo editing, and worth trying out.

DOWNLOAD SNAPSEED

Best Photo Editing Android App For Filter Lovers

Photo Editor Pro

Price: Free to download
In-app purchases: Yes
Android version: 4.4+

If you like using filters, chances are you'll love Photo Editor Pro. This app is not all about filters, far from it, but it does have tons of them at your disposal. There are over 100 filters available within this app. Lomo, PINK, Vignette, Natural, Warm, Dew… and many more are included. On top of that, you can access some Glitch Effects here, and also blue the background of your images like a pro.

This app even allows you to mix and blend two images in order to create something truly unique. Dozens of light leak effects are available, while the app also offers tools for body retouching. If collages are more your thing, you can create them here as well. You can remix up to 18 pictures into a photo collage without a problem. 100+ grids are at your disposal. These are only some of the features this app offers.

DOWNLOAD PHOTO EDITOR PRO

Best Photo Editing Android App For Adobe Subscribers

Adobe Lightroom
Price: Free to download
In-app purchases: Yes
Android version: 5.0+
If you're an Adobe subscriber, and perhaps already use Adobe Lightroom on desktop, then this is the perfect app for you. This is basically a mobile version of the desktop app. It is packed with features, and one of the more powerful photo editing apps available in the Play Store. This app even comes with presents which will definitely simplify things for you, in case you don't want to manually edit photos.
All the basic tools are available here, along with more advanced ones. The healing brush is, for example, a part of the package, and it works like a charm. The app also has a camera built in, and it comes with its own set of options. Color grading is also a breeze in Lightroom. The app's UI is quite intuitive, and it actually looks quite nice. It's there, and easily visible, and yet not too flashy.
DOWNLOAD ADOBE LIGHTROOM

Best Photo Editing Android App For UI Layout

Pixlr

Price: Free to download
In-app purchases: Yes
Android version: 4.4+

Pixlr is one of the best-looking photo editing apps on Android. Its UI is flat, and it just feels so right to use. The vast majority of options are included in the lower portion of the display, so that they're easy to reach. This app is not all about the looks, though. It's actually quite a powerful photo editing application, that's for sure. In addition to all the basic actions that you'd expect, this app also provides more advanced ones.

It even allows you to create collages. You can choose from a number of presets, and go from there. Adjusting grid styles, rations, and backgrounds for grids is also a possibility. You can create cool photo effects with this app by using the 'Stylize' option. The Color Splash effect is also included, while you can add text to your photos here as well. Pixlr can also remove blemishes, and red-eye, while it can also smoothen skin, and so on.

DOWNLOAD PIXLR

Best Photo Editing Android App For Collage Making

PicsArt

Price: Free to download
In-app purchases: Yes
Android version: Varies with device

If your main goal with a photo editing app is to make collages, PicsArt is one of the best options out there. You can choose between a photo grid, freestyle collage, or a scrapbook. Once you do, you'll get quite a few presets, and you'll also be able to further customize the layout. This app is an all-in-one photo editor, though, so it's not focused solely on photo grids, not even close.

There are tons of stickers included in the app, while you can also create your very own ones. A drawing tool is included in the app as well. Various filters are at your disposal, while you can utilize the background eraser tool as well. Removing objects is also a possibility here, while you can also edit videos if you want. This app works best for short-form videos, and there are quite a few features available.

DOWNLOAD PICSART

Best Photo Editing Android App For Animating Photos

Pixaloop

Price: Free to download
In-app purchases: Yes
Android version: 7.1+

Pixaloop is a considerably different app than any other application on the list. Why? Well, this app basically delivers a full-fledged photo animator to your device. This app tries to keep things simple in the process, so that basically anyone can use it. The app's goal is to bring your still photos to life, by animating them. You can create 3D photo animation in a number of ways by using this app.

For example, you can make the water move, or you can do the same with your hair. These are only a couple of examples. You can add movements, and adjust the speed with this app. It also allows you to replace a background, and control what moves by using anchors. Animating some images will work better than others, but you can really do wonders with Pixaloop. Still image animation has never been easier.

DOWNLOAD PIXALOOP

Best Photo Editing Android App For Design

Fotor

Price: Free to download
In-app purchases: Yes
Android version: 4.1+

Fotor is one of the best-designed photo editing apps for Android. This app's UI is based at the bottom of the display, so that you have all the tools readily available. The company did a great job of incorporating elements into that UI as well, everything looks very nice. It's easy to use these tools, as the app is quite intuitive, it's made for beginners and advanced users alike, anyone can use it.

You'll find a ton of options inside this app. Full-featured effects are included, as are border options, and stickers. Over 200 stickers are available in Fotor. You can make personalized collages by using this application, while some professional photo-editing tools are also included. One-click enhancements are also a part of the package, if you'd like to keep things simple.

DOWNLOAD FOTOR

Best Photo Editing Android App For Making Grids

Photo Grid

Price: Free to download
In-app purchases: Yes
Android version: 5.0+

If you love making photo grids, the app called 'Photo Grid' is an excellent choice. Much like a number of other apps on the list, this app keeps its UI elements in the lower portion of the display. You will find over 20,000 collage templates inside this app, though do note that only a handful of them are free. Over 1,000 text styles and fonts are included, along with over 100 color options.

The app focuses most on grids, but you can also create scrapbooks if you want, with ease. There are a ton of additional options for fine-tuning included. You can choose the aspect ratio of your grids, and also choose to blur some portions. Cropping and rotating tools are a part of the package as well, as are contrast and brightness adjustment options. We're only scratching the surface here, though.

DOWNLOAD PHOTO GRID

Best Photo Editing Android App For Face Retouching

LightX

Price: Free to download
In-app purchases: Yes
Android version: 4.1+

LightX is an extremely powerful photo editor. This app especially shines when it comes to face-editing. It can smoothen and sharpen up your selfies, both automatically or manually. You can remove spots and marks from your face, like pimples and blemishes. You can also change your hair color inside this app, and apply different hairstyles. Teeth whitening is also a possibility.

This app is not all about face-editing, though. It is a full-fledged photo editing app. It allows you to cut out images, and also change the background in them. Color Splash photo effects are available, and you can also mix photos in order to create some special effects. Basic and professional photo editing tools are also available. You can also use the refine tool to shape your body features, and much more.

DOWNLOAD LIGHTX

Best Photo Editing Android App For Boosting Selfies

AirBrush

Price: Free to download
In-app purchases: Yes
Android version: 4.1+

AirBrush is also an excellent choice when it comes to retouching faces. It can remove blemishes and pimples with ease. Whitening teeth is a breeze for this app, and the same goes for brightening someone's eyes. You can adjust the skin color in photos, and do it in style. If you'd like to slim, reshape, or lengthen someone's shape in a photo, that's easily doable with AirBrush.

Artistic retouching filters are also readily available, as are natural filters that you can use. There are a ton of options included in this app. This app is mostly focused on retouching faces and body shapes, but there are tons of additional features included on the inside. The app's UI is also really easy to use, as it's laid out really well.

DOWNLOAD AIRBRUSH

Empower your Android phone with the best apps

If you own an Android smartphone, you'll need some essential apps to sync your files, watch movies, track your sleeping patterns, catch up on your reading, and more. We've collected the best, most useful apps that Google Play Store has to offer.

(You may notice some crossover with our list of essential iPhone apps. Some apps are just that good.)

1. Sleep As Android

Sleep As Android tracks the quality of your shut-eye.Sleep As Android

You don't have to fasten a fitness tracker to your wrist to track your sleeping patterns—use your phone and the Sleep As Android app instead. When you place your phone on your mattress, the app can monitor movement and noise to work out how well you're sleeping and how much shut-eye you bank.

The basics come free, but pay the one-time upgrade free, and you can access a ton of useful extras. These include a smart alarm that wakes you up based on your sleep cycles, and an ad-free experience in the app.

Sleep As Android for Android, free or $5.50 for an upgraded version

2. Evernote

Evernote is one of the best note-taking apps out there.

Evernote lets you scribble memos, schedules, random thoughts, and just about anything you'd want to jot down in digital form. The app has been around for more than a decade now, but despite its advanced age, it's managed to stay fresh and keep pace with newer rivals. Where it really excels is in organization: Evernote lets you sort all your documents into notebooks and label them with categories and custom tags so they'll be easily searchable and accessible. It also syncs seamlessly across multiple devices.

All those features come with the free version of the app. If you buy a $5/month premium account, you also gain the ability to link your Evernote account with third-party apps, as well as better sharing options.

Evernote for Android, free or $5 per month for a premium subscription

3. Nova Launcher

Customize Android's appearance with Nova Launcher.

On an Android, you can customize the appearance pixel-by-pixel in a way that you just can't do on iPhones. Specifically, launcher apps—like the excellent Nova Launcher—let you completely reskin the design of Android, redoing everything from the home screen layout to the details of individual app icons.

Once you install Nova Launcher on your phone, it lets you add more icons to the home screen, change their size, tweak text and label settings, introduce more gesture controls, completely reskin your phone with a new theme, and much more. If you shell out for the Prime upgrade, it piles on even more visual customizations.

Nova Launcher for Android, free or $5 for the prime version

4. IFTTT

IFTTT lets multiple accounts connect with each other.

IFTTT, or If This Then That, ties together different apps: When a trigger happens in one service ("if this"), then an action results in another ("then that"). You can integrate a whole bunch of programs, including social media, web apps, hardware devices, online services, smart home platforms, and more.

The app works particularly well with an Android device: You can use it to change your phone's wallpaper every day, back up your SMS messages to email, post to multiple social networks at the same time, or switch off your Wi-Fi when you leave the house. This is just an idea of what's possible—IFTTT has many more abilities for you to explore.

IFTTT for Android, free

5. CamScanner

Digitize your documents with CamScanner.

Several apps let you use your phone's camera to digitize paper documents, but few are as slick and powerful as CamScanner. It can crop and enhance images in seconds, leaving you with a digital document that's aligned and easy to read—even if your phone's camera isn't the best. You can join documents together, add your own annotations on top, and then share the result as a PDF or JPG.

On top of this basic version, you can sign up for a premium account for $5 per month. With this version, CamScanner will turn images into digital text that you can search through on your phone or via the app's web interface.

CamScanner for Android, free or $5 per month for a premium account

6. Google Podcasts

Google Podcasts is a simple yet powerful podcasting app.

Google's recent foray into podcasting apps hits a nice balance between functionality and simplicity. On top of playing your favorite shows, it also syncs your listening across devices—and supported devices include Google Home speakers. The interface is clean and clutter-free, so searching for and discovering new podcasts is simple. Once you subscribe to a show, new episodes download and join your queue automatically.

Google Podcasts for Android, free

7. SwiftKey

Give your Android keyboard an upgrade with SwiftKey.

You might be happy with the keyboard that came with your Android smartphone, but if you want to take typing to the next level, then you need SwiftKey. It picks up on the phrases, slang, and nicknames you rely on and uses that information to provide more intelligent autocorrect and text predictions. If you prefer swiping to tapping, SwiftKey supports that too. This helps you type faster.

Besides adapting to your own typing style, SwiftKey also gives you easy access to emojis and GIFs, supports multiple languages, and provides lots of color themes to jazz up the keyboard's appearance.

SwiftKey for Android, free

8. VLC Player

VLC Player can cope with audio, videos, and images.

Android devices can play movies and music right out of the box, but it's still worth supplementing your default apps with VLC Player. Think of it as an all-in-one app you can rely on for any media playback job.

VLC Player can handle just about every file format out there. Besides simple playback, it packs in tons of other features: You can play web streams, apply subtitles, tweak sound settings via the built-in equalizer, watch videos in pop-up windows on top of other apps, stream content from computers on your local Wi-Fi network, and more.

VLC Player for Android, free

9. Snapseed

Everything you need from an image editor.Snapseed

You'll find many Android apps for photo editing, but we're big fans of Snapseed. It gives you access to just about every image-tweaking tool you can think of, helping you do everything from adjusting colors to removing objects. You can do intensive work tweaking the effects on a very fine level, or just slap on some filters in seconds. Despite the wealth of features, Snapseed and its tools remain straightforward to use. Once you're done, you can easily share and export the results.

Originally an independent app, Snapseed is now developed by Google. Like many of the tech giant's apps, it's free.

Snapseed for Android, free

10. Pocket

Pocket helps you catch up on your reading.

You never have enough time to catch up on all those online articles. Instead of leaving tabs to proliferate, Pocket lets you save articles from any browser, whether it's on your computer, tablet, or phone. Then read these pieces at your leisure on the Android app. You can even sync the items so they'll be accessible when you're offline. What's more, Pocket strips out all the advertising and other distractions from webpages to give you a clean reading experience that's easy on the eyes.

Extra features, such as advanced search and auto tagging, require a premium $5 per month subscription. It also has the added bonus of removing the ads from the Pocket app.

Pocket for Android, free or $5 per month for a premium subscription

11. Dropbox

Dropbox lets you access your files from anywhere.

Dropbox remains the best app for seamlessly syncing files to and from your portable devices. It works across the web, Windows, macOS, iOS, and of course Android, which means you need never find yourself without access to an important file. You can use Dropbox to automatically back up your photos and videos to the cloud, keep that important set of PDFs with you, or take notes that sync back to your laptop.

On the negative side, the free Dropbox plan only offers a miserly 2GB of storage. However, if you need more space, premium plans start at $10 per month for 1TB of storage.

Dropbox for Android, free or $10 to $20 per month for premium plans

12. Plex

Plex streams your media files to your device.

Plex makes it easy to stream music, movies, TV shows, photos, and more from your computer to your Android device. You need to set up the app on your Windows or macOS computer first, and then you can beam any content stored on the hard drive to your phone—no matter where you happen to be.

That said, there are a couple of caveats. Although you can stream files to other computers for free, to send them to your Android phone—while avoiding limits on your file sizes—you'll need a $5 per month Plex Pass subscription. Also, you must have all your content downloaded to the computer disk, because Plex can't work with protected videos purchased from Google, Apple, or Amazon. Finally, you'll rely on a pretty fast connection to avoid too-long buffering times.

Plex for Android, free or $5 per month for a Plex Pass.

Top 10 Best Photo Editing Android Apps