JohnSwanda Loc: San Francisco

Before the subscription, Adobe charged a lot more than $120 for major upgrades. I've been using Photoshop since the first version, and the subscription is a better deal than the initial price of PS plus the upgrades, and it now includes Lightroom.

GLSmith Loc: Tampa, Fl

Corel previously mentioned with all of their versions is a rock solid alternative. My preference for closeness to everything Adobe has is ACDSEE Ultimate. Extremely easy learning curve, copious amounts of online videos, excellent & quick tech support, free updates....

Peteso Loc: Blacks Hills

I agree for that, and other reasons. A few years ago I transitioned from Adobe to ON1, and never looked back.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

Just. To address the credit card issue - I’ve had it happen twice. Once a waiter at a restaurant apparently copied the number, code, name and expiration number. The second time, some miscreant in Miami used my SSN (likely obtained from the Equifax breach) to open two different store accounts (both with Chase) which he immediately maxed and disappeared. Many stores will open a store account on the spot with only your name and SSN (the ones that were opened didn’t even have the correct address), and as far as I know, once your SSN is out there, you can’t change it. One answer to prevent new accounts is to place a fraud alert on all three credit reporting services, but that doesn’t fix the stolen credit card numbers.

BigDaddy Loc: Pittsburgh, PA

I use ACDSee Ultimate and have been since it first came out as shareware. I agree it is super easy to use for editing, and has layers, which Lightroom doesn't have, making Lightroom (imo) useless for any serious editing. I rarely use ACDSee for editing however, it started out as a Photo Cataloging application, and has been doing that longer than anyone. ACDSee would be hard to beat as catalogue software, although it has it's quirks. For editing, I see little reason to use anything other than my main editor, be it Affinity or PS. Both do it all so why use a lessor platform?

Primarily though, ACDSee does NOT have free upgrades. It does have constant ads to upgrade at a "discount" and those ads never stop coming. I had to put up a filter to kill their constant ads.

R.G. Loc: Scotland

I don't need or want Photoshop. It's big and multi-faceted and for those that need it the subscription fee probably seems very reasonable. Lr is just a photo editor and organiser, and other companies that provide the same sort of thing are happy to provide a perpetual licence at a very reasonable price. I wish that Lr was available in the same way. Lr may be good but it's not the only good photo editor and to my mind $120 per year every year seems quite steep.

steveo52 Loc: Rhode Island and Ocala Florida

You’ve got some great advice so far. I use PayPal to pay the monthly fee. Getting a credit card with a low threshold balance of $200 is a good idea too.

Sergey

A few people already mentioned virtual credit cards. Many banks offer that option now. You can create a separate credit card number that is used only on particular website. Also check out privacy.com. I haven't used it and didn't do a lot of research on it but I read that it's a good option too.

I wouldn't stop using Adobe subscription when there are so many virtual options available.

nikon_jon Loc: Northeast Arkansas

When I edit photos I do nothing more than I would do in a darkroom, sharpen, tweak the color, adjust the horizon line, and perspective correction, so Paint Shop Pro has satisfied my needs for years. It does offer some sophisticated features that one might find on Photoshop, but I never use them. Paint Shop also offers processing of dynamic range and raw files.

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

It is on Page 3 now, so there really isn't any real reason to add a comment. But, this is a topic with two topics. First, what's better than Lightroom? Second, how do you pay for stuff in this online economy we live in?

Part one, for me, is easy. I've got too much time spent learning the Adobe system. And, even though flawed in places, there are reasons it is the "king" of the post processing mountain. Discussing the price seems silly. A single six pack of quality craft beer in my neighborhood costs the same as the monthly price of the Photography plan.

Part two is solvable. Consider anything like a WalMart burner card. Figure out the annual price with any taxes, add a dollar and go buy a card at Walmart. The Adobe system adds 12 months to whatever you have. So, as you reach a month or two before the end of your subscription, add another 12 months.

The real question might be if the full $50 package is worthwhile for typical retired folks! That ups it to the cost of dinner instead of a six pack. There is so much to explore and learn in the full system that it would go a long ways to keeping senior citizen brains running well! (I have a seniour neighbor that does a new $3 crossword puzzle every night. That's $90 a month!)

BobHartung Loc: Bettendorf, IA

Your choice is like smashing your thumb with a hammer because you have a headache.

keithmac Loc: Nanaimo, B.C. Canada

I don't use my credit card for anything on the net, I have been using Adobe photoshop and Lightroom for several years and don't want to give it up. In Canada we can purchase a card with an activation number that is good for 1 year. They are available at most retailers like Staples, London Drug, or Costco. I have never had any kind of issue with this method and Adobe sends me a message when my subscription is due to expire and I purchase a new card.

olBadger

I began using PSP back when version 4.0 was released as I couldn't afford things like Photoshop at that time. As Jasc continued, I not only kept using it (alongside Photoshop and various others I added as money allowed), but I promoted it widely to average folks who were not tech-savvy as it was dead simple to operate, and folks could be comfortable within minutes.

I myself am pretty well settled these days for the apps I need, or choose to use, but will take a look at On1 by your recommendation - in case I determine I need something else/more on down the line. :-)

dandev Loc: Enumclaw, WA

This is the solution I've been using for about 2 years. I edit thousands of photos a year.

lnl Loc: SWFL

I’m echoing those who recommended virtual cards. I also use one from Capital One. It allows me to create a unique card number for each vendor on-line. I can then continue to use that card only for that vendor or delete those I no longer use. It lessens exposure as you know if and where your card was compromised when it can only be used by one vendor. We live in a new world of credit card use and mis-use so the best thing is to minimize risk by using the best tools available and not giving up your software.