How to switch from a paid program to a free one (without losing your files)

Switching from a paid program to a free one can save you a whole subscription. But the switch only works when you take your time: without losing files, without being left without a tool in the middle of a job and knowing who to ask for help when something gets stuck.

This guide lays out a path in six steps, from listing what you use to cancelling the subscription.

1. List what you actually use

Paid programs often have hundreds of features, and hardly anyone uses them all. Before looking for a replacement, write down what you do day to day:

• the tasks you repeat every week, such as cropping photos, reviewing contracts or drawing floor plans;
• the file formats you receive and the ones you have to deliver;
• the plugins, templates and shortcuts you cannot do without;
• who you exchange files with and which program they work in.

That list becomes your yardstick. An alternative does not need everything the paid program has; it needs to do well what is on the list.

2. Find the alternatives

The best-known paid programs have a page here with the free and open-source alternatives found on GitHub, such as the pages of alternatives to Photoshop, AutoCAD, Word and Acrobat. The list of paid programs with free alternatives shows all the others.

You can also browse by category, such as image and photo, office and documents or design and CAD.

Each alternative has a card that says what the program does, which systems it runs on, what it costs and which risk signals were found. Pay attention to the cost: some programs are free but depend on a paid service or key for certain features.

3. Check the ease on your system and the file formats

Two things decide whether the switch will go smoothly.

The ease grade on your system. A program can be simple to install on Linux and need several tools on Windows. Look at the grade for your system, not someone else's. If you just want to use it, start with the ones you install by downloading and opening.

The file formats. This is where many switches get stuck. Some formats are open and work well in many programs; others belong to the vendor and only open fully in the original program:

• .psd, from Photoshop: several free editors open these files with their layers, but effects, adjustment layers and editable text may change or get lost.
• .dwg, from AutoCAD: many free drawing programs work best with .dxf, and how well .dwg files open varies from program to program and from version to version.
• .docx, from Word: free word processors open and save this format, but complex layouts, fonts you do not have installed and macros may not come out the same.
• .pdf, from Acrobat: it is an open format, and any reader opens it. Editing text, filling in forms and signing vary a lot from one program to another.

Test with your real files, not with samples. A real file, with your fonts, layers and forms, quickly shows what works and what does not.

4. Test both side by side before cancelling

Do not cancel the subscription on day one. Use both programs side by side for a while and run these tests:

• do a real task in the new program, from start to finish;
• open in the new program a file made in the old one and save it back, to see what changes along the way;
• send a file to someone who uses the paid program and ask whether it arrived intact;
• write down what was missing: sometimes it is a plugin, sometimes just a command with a different name.

If the subscription renews on a fixed date, start testing well ahead of it. That way you decide without rushing and without paying for another period just in case.

5. Export your data and settings

Before cancelling, take everything that is yours out of the paid program:

• Files in the vendor's cloud. Many paid programs keep files in their own cloud. Download everything to your computer or to another service before cancelling, because access may be limited afterwards.
• Copies in formats other programs open. Besides the original, save a version that other programs open well: .pdf for documents that only need to be read, .dxf for drawings, .png or .tif for images. Even if the original does not open well in the new program, the content stays with you.
• Settings, brushes, templates and shortcuts. Check whether the program has an option to export preferences or presets. Keep the document templates, palettes and block libraries you created alongside them.
• License and receipts. Keep the license number and payment receipts, in case you ever need to reactivate the program to open an old file.

6. Know where to ask for help

Free open-source programs rarely have customer service like a company does, but they almost always have a community:

• the project's documentation or wiki, which often has a section for people coming from another program;
• the project's forum or chat, where users help users;
• the repository's Issues on GitHub, to report a bug; before opening a new one, search whether someone has already asked the same thing;
• tutorials and videos from people who have made the same switch.

When asking for help, say which system you use, the program's version and what you tried to do. A clear question usually gets a faster answer.

One last precaution: download from the right place

Famous free programs attract copies too. Download the alternative from its official website or its official repository on GitHub. The guide How to find a GitHub project's official repository and avoid fake copies shows what to check, and the guide How to install a program from GitHub without knowing how to code helps you pick the right file.

Getting started

Open the list of paid programs with free alternatives and look for yours, or go back to the home page, which opens on replacing a paid program, with the ease grade and the risk signals for each option.