Adobe InDesign
Professional page layout software for print and digital publications
Adobe InDesign is a desktop publishing application for laying out magazines, books, brochures, reports, interactive PDFs and ebooks. It handles parent pages, multi-column text threading, advanced typography, styles and print preflight, and integrates with Illustrator, Photoshop and Adobe Fonts. Publishers, agencies and in-house design teams use it for long or complex multi-page documents.
- features
- 3
- alternatives
- 6
- platforms
- 2
- Updated
- Oct 12, 2026
Features
Our take
Pros
- Industry standard for magazines, books and long documents
- Advanced typography, styles and multi-column text threading
- Print preflight and smooth handoff with Illustrator and Photoshop
Cons
- Subscription-only, which is costly for occasional use
- Steep learning curve for newcomers to page layout
- Overkill for simple flyers or one-page designs
Editorial assessment by the Alternatives.tools team, based on what the product is known for. Not a user review.
Best Adobe InDesign alternatives
See all 6 alternatives
AffinityFreemiumFree all-in-one app for vector design, photo editing and page layout
- ScribusFreeOpen source
Open source desktop publishing app for print-ready layouts
CorelDRAWFree trialVector illustration and layout suite for print, signage and technical graphics
CanvaFreemiumBrowser-based design tool for social posts, slides and print
4.9(3.6M) · App Store
Adobe IllustratorFree trialProfessional vector graphics editor for logos, icons and illustrations
Microsoft WordFreemiumMicrosoft's word processor for documents, reports and letters
4.7(3M) · App Store
User reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to share your experience with Adobe InDesign.