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Krita

Free painting and illustration program.

GPL-3.0

Strong copyleft: free to use, study and change, but distributed copies and derivative works must stay under this license with source code available.

Read the full license ↗

Plain-language summary, not legal advice.

Source code ↗Support this project ↓
Release notes / 6.0.4.1

Version checked by hand on 2026-11-10. Snapshot from the included release data, not a live check.

p An critical bigfix release to fix a regression in making br impossible to change an ICC profile attached to a display /p

Read the full release notes on GitHub ↗

Available on these platforms

Check the official download page for the supported OS version and processor architecture. A desktop download is not evidence of a native phone app.

Compatibility details and official sources

Official availability checked 2026-11-12. Availability is not feature parity. The recorded release and license refer to the linked source project; separate clients can differ. No install or compatibility test was run.

Before you install

Built by and for people who paint.

Krita or GIMP?
Krita is for digital painting and illustration; GIMP for retouching and compositing. Both are free - try both.
Which package?
Distribution packages, the AppImage, or the Windows and macOS builds. The GitHub repository is a mirror of KDE's infrastructure.
How do files work?
Native .kra files keep layers; export for sharing. It opens PSD files with caveats on exotic features.

Advice and funding routes source-checked November 12, 2026. Researched, not an install or restore test. Installation source ↗ · Report a correction

Krita 5.0.0 with a painted character on the canvas, the toolbox on the left and the color selector and layers docks on the right
Screenshot by VulcanSphere (software: KDE, artwork: Tyson Tan) on Wikimedia Commons ↗ (CC BY-SA 4.0). Krita 5.0.0 from December 2021. The artwork shown is by Tyson Tan and is part of the Commons upload. The tool icon is the project's own mark. Image credits.

Krita is a desktop program for digital painting and illustration, made by a community of artists and developed under KDE. The project’s site states it is licensed under the GNU GPL.

The GitHub repository is a mirror; the project’s own repository is on KDE’s infrastructure.

Quick start

Checked against the project’s own documentation on November 9, 2026. We have not run these installs ourselves. Commands are copied from the project’s pages, or from Flathub and Homebrew where the section says so.

Linux

The download page links the AppImage and the source tarball. The Flathub package is verified by its publisher:

flatpak install flathub org.kde.krita

Windows and macOS

Download from krita.org/en/download. The paid Microsoft Store and Steam versions are optional ways to support development.

Homebrew has a cask for it. That is Homebrew’s packaging, not the project’s own:

brew install --cask krita

NixOS

nixpkgs packages Krita as krita (source: pkgs/by-name/kr/krita/package.nix):

environment.systemPackages = [ pkgs.krita ];

Rebuild with sudo nixos-rebuild switch, then launch Krita from the application menu.

First steps

  • On first start Krita opens with no document. Use File > New (Ctrl+N), open the Custom Document section and pick a size such as A4 at 300 ppi.
  • Draw on the canvas. The brush tool is selected by default. Change colour from the colour selector docker.
  • Save with File > Save.

Source: Krita manual, starting Krita.

Ask your AI to help with setup

Linux · Free painting and illustration program. Paste into your AI assistant. It may only be able to guide you. Review changes before running anything.

Researched, not run by the Index. Checked 2026-11-12. No AI account or connection is needed here.

Read or copy the prompt manually

Ask your AI to help with setup

Windows and macOS · Free painting and illustration program. Paste into your AI assistant. It may only be able to guide you. Review changes before running anything.

Researched, not run by the Index. Checked 2026-11-12. No AI account or connection is needed here.

Read or copy the prompt manually

Ask your AI to help with setup

NixOS · Free painting and illustration program. Paste into your AI assistant. It may only be able to guide you. Review changes before running anything.

Researched, not run by the Index. Checked 2026-11-12. No AI account or connection is needed here.

Read or copy the prompt manually

Tags: Creative