What is photogimp?

diolinux/photogimp — explained in plain English

Analysis updated 2026-06-24

★ 8,744CSSAudience · designerComplexity · 1/5LicenseSetup · easy

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((repo))
    What it does
      Remaps shortcuts
      Reorganizes tools
      Adjusts layout
    What it changes
      Keyboard shortcuts
      Tool panel order
      Splash screen
    Installation
      Extract zip to home
      Works on Linux
      Works on Windows
      Works on macOS
    Requirements
      GIMP 3.0 or newer

mindmap root((repo)) What it does Remaps shortcuts Reorganizes tools Adjusts layout What it changes Keyboard shortcuts Tool panel order Splash screen Installation Extract zip to home Works on Linux Works on Windows Works on macOS Requirements GIMP 3.0 or newer

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What do people build with it?

USE CASE 1

Apply PhotoGIMP to GIMP so your Photoshop keyboard shortcuts like Ctrl+J, Ctrl+T, and Ctrl+E work the same way.

USE CASE 2

Set up GIMP as a free Photoshop replacement on Linux with familiar tool positions and panel layout.

USE CASE 3

Install PhotoGIMP on Windows or macOS to reduce the learning curve when switching from Photoshop to GIMP.

USE CASE 4

Distribute the PhotoGIMP config files to give a team of Photoshop users a consistent GIMP environment.

What is it built with?

CSS

How does it compare?

	diolinux/photogimp	kmaasrud/awesome-obsidian	sindresorhus/github-markdown-css
Stars	8,744	8,790	8,861
Language	CSS	CSS	CSS
Setup difficulty	easy	easy	easy
Complexity	1/5	1/5	1/5
Audience	designer	general	developer

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you get it running?

Difficulty · easy Time to first run · 5min

Requires GIMP 3.0 or newer already installed, the patch overwrites your existing GIMP config so back up first.

You can use, modify, and distribute this software freely, but must release any changes under the same GPL v3 license.

So what is it?

PhotoGIMP is a free patch that changes GIMP's appearance and default settings to feel more like Adobe Photoshop. GIMP is a free, open-source image editor for Linux, macOS, and Windows. It can handle most of what Photoshop does, but uses a different layout and different keyboard shortcuts. PhotoGIMP bridges that gap for people switching from Photoshop who find GIMP's defaults unfamiliar. The patch works by replacing and adding files in GIMP's configuration folder. It does not modify GIMP itself. What it changes: keyboard shortcuts are remapped to follow Adobe's official Photoshop documentation for the Windows version, tools are reorganized to match Photoshop's tool panel positions, window layout and panel positions are adjusted, canvas space is maximized by default, and a custom splash screen and app icon are included. Installation is the same on all three platforms: install GIMP 3.0 or newer, open it once and close it so it creates its config files, download the PhotoGIMP zip for your platform, and extract it into your home folder (Linux) or paste the config folder into GIMP's settings directory (Windows and macOS). The zip files put themselves in the right place by matching GIMP's folder structure. Backing up your existing GIMP settings before installing is recommended, since the patch overwrites them. On Windows, PhotoGIMP is also available via Chocolatey. The project is licensed under GPL v3.

Copy-paste prompts

Prompt 1

I installed GIMP on Linux and want to apply PhotoGIMP so it uses Photoshop keyboard shortcuts. Walk me through the installation steps for my platform.

Prompt 2

Which Photoshop keyboard shortcuts does PhotoGIMP remap in GIMP, and how do I customize the shortcuts further after installing it?

Prompt 3

I want to install PhotoGIMP on Windows. Show me the exact folder path where I need to paste the config files for GIMP 3.0.

Prompt 4

How do I back up my existing GIMP settings before installing PhotoGIMP so I can restore them if needed?

Frequently asked questions