Affinity Photo vs. QuarkXPress

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Affinity Photo
Score 8.8 out of 10
N/A
Affinity Photo is a software solution for photography and creative professionals, a fully-loaded photo editor integrated across macOS, Windows and iOS, from Serif Ltd.
$21.99
one-time fee
QuarkXPress
Score 9.0 out of 10
N/A
QuarkXPress from Quark Software headquartered in Denver introduces modern responsive web design with Flex Layouts, reimagined Tables, and productivity-boosting design features.
$279
per year
Pricing
Affinity PhotoQuarkXPress
Editions & Modules
iPad Edition
$21.99
one-time fee
Mac Edition
$54.99
one-time fee
Windows Edition
$54.99
one-time fee
QuarkXPress Subscription License
$279
per year
QuarkXPress Perpetual License
$629
one-time fee
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Affinity PhotoQuarkXPress
Free Trial
YesYes
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeOptional
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Affinity PhotoQuarkXPress
Best Alternatives
Affinity PhotoQuarkXPress
Small Businesses
Venngage
Venngage
Score 10.0 out of 10
Venngage
Venngage
Score 10.0 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
GIMP
GIMP
Score 8.0 out of 10
GIMP
GIMP
Score 8.0 out of 10
Enterprises
Adobe Illustrator
Adobe Illustrator
Score 9.3 out of 10
Adobe Illustrator
Adobe Illustrator
Score 9.3 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Affinity PhotoQuarkXPress
Likelihood to Recommend
9.0
(3 ratings)
9.9
(6 ratings)
Usability
10.0
(1 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
Support Rating
8.3
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
Affinity PhotoQuarkXPress
Likelihood to Recommend
Serif Europe
For single-person teams or very small teams, I think Affinity Photo is great as it has a one-off cost and no ongoing subscriptions. If people are familiar with the Adobe products it might take a period of adjusting to Affinity Photo. It might also be overkill for some people's needs. But it does offer everything and room to grow. So weighing up what you need to do with photos and seeing if it fits is important.
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Quark Software Inc.
I used QuarkXPress to maintain a proper page layout for the UI which I receive from a UIUX developer. I develop Graphic Illustrations on the digital canvas to create creative content on the page design set and to develop designer headlines and sub-headlines where writers and editors can amend the text and place the copped images.
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Pros
Serif Europe
  • Almost all of Adobe Photoshop's features for a fraction of the cost. It was an easy decision for our organization.
  • The interface and most of the features are an almost mirror image of Photoshop. Flat fees instead of high yearly fees are much more desirable for our small team.
  • They have a great support forum for the little one-offs that aren't quite like the Photoshop app, or don't have the same exact name as Photoshop. The forum really helps when this happens. The YouTube support from the company and other users has been very helpful as well.
  • I use Sketch as my primary vector design tool. Affinity allows me to take a .ai, .eps, or other proprietary format and convert it to .svg for use/manipulation with Sketch and back. I can't say enough for this feature. It has helped me stay less pigeon-holed into Adobe products, which have lacked innovation for a long time in my opinion.
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Quark Software Inc.
  • Excellent project conversion into PDFs and digital formats.
  • Incredibly user friendly and intuitive to use.
  • Works seamlessly with our Adobe Suite of programs.
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Cons
Serif Europe
  • I have found some of the tools to be particular. I have to click them in a certain order for it to work.
  • Ability to alter or move the icons displayed.
  • Auto-save as you work.
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Quark Software Inc.
  • Currently does not have a way to open really old archived QuarkXPress files.
  • Text manipulation could be expanded upon (ie be able to warp or distort text).
  • Be able to output files in InDesign format.
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Usability
Serif Europe
For a regular user of Photoshop, Affinity is a very easy transition. It has all the same features and once you adapt to it, and it provides a quick return on investment.
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Quark Software Inc.
This is an industry standard. It is intuitive and pretty simple. I have been using it for 40 years and by no means do I use its potential, rather it does just what I want it to do.
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Support Rating
Serif Europe
I don't have direct experience with a member of Affinity's support, but their forum and YouTube videos that other users have made make it relatively easy to find similar features in Affinity that are available in Photoshop or Illustrator. The differences are negligible for our small, yet experienced team.
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Quark Software Inc.
No answers on this topic
Alternatives Considered
Serif Europe
I think Affinity Photo is on par with Adobe PhotoShop. They are very similar products with both bringing many features users need. The main reason I picked Affinity Photo was its pricing of it. I didn't require Adobe products all the time. And felt they weren't offering me as much value.
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Quark Software Inc.
QuarkXPress simply blew the competition out of the water when it came to pricing and scalability in our business. Every employee that uses Quark always speaks very highly about using the software. We are not a large company but, the amount of money saved on the cost of each license was about 60% when compared to the competitors' products.
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Return on Investment
Serif Europe
  • It's been great knowing I have a tool ready to do intensive work if required on photos.
  • Gives me the ability to be more creative with my photos.
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Quark Software Inc.
  • On different computers, it does crash.
  • Issues with accidental (program) photo overrides.
  • Corrupted photo formats.
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ScreenShots

QuarkXPress Screenshots

Screenshot of QuarkXPress 2026 is compatible with the latest macOS® 26.x (Tahoe), macOS® 15.x (Sequoia), macOS® 14.x (Sonoma).Screenshot of the Welcome Screen in QuarkXPress 2026, which has had a fresh redesign. Here, users can create new projects, find ready-to-use project size presets, use customized workspaces and quickly access built-in tutorials and useful resources.Screenshot of where to adjust typography with Variable Fonts in QuarkXPress 2026 to enhance creative freedom. With a single font file, users can adjust font characteristics like weight, width, slant, and more with sliders.Screenshot of the Paste Into feature. Users can display content creatively by masking images or grouping items through placing them inside container shapes.Screenshot of built-in support for LaTeX and MathML, so that there's no need for external tools or plugins for advanced mathematical equations. This is ideal while working in STEM or Academia, as it enables quick and accurate editing of math equations across print and digital formats.