Comparison of desktop publishing software
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The following is a comparison of major desktop publishing software.
Overview
[edit]This table provides general software information including the developer, latest stable version, the year in which the software was first released, and the license under which it is available.
| Desktop publishing software | Developer(s) | Latest stable version | Initial release | License |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Affinity Publisher | Serif Europe | 2.3.0 30 November 2023[1] | 2019 | Proprietary |
| Apache OpenOffice Writer | Apache Software Foundation and others | 4.1.16[2]  10 November 2025 |
2002[3] | Apache License 2.0 (Apache OpenOffice 3.4 and later) |
| Canva | Canva Pty Ltd | Rolling updates | 2013 | Proprietary SaaS |
| Collabora Online[4] | Collabora | 26.04.3.3[5] 14 September 2026 |
2016 [6] | MPL-2.0 and others |
| CorelDRAW | Corel | 24.5 September 18, 2023 | 1989 | Proprietary |
| InDesign | Adobe | CC 2024 20.0 October 2024 | 1999 | Proprietary Trialware |
| LibreOffice Draw[7] | The Document Foundation | 26.8[8] 26 August 2026 |
2011 | LGPL v3 |
| LyX | The LyX Team | 2.5.1[9] 23 April 2026 |
1995 | GPL v2[10] |
| Marq | Draper | Rolling updates | 2013 | Proprietary SaaS |
| Microsoft Publisher | Microsoft Corporation | 2021 October 5, 2021[11] | 1991 | Proprietary Trialware |
| Pages | Apple Inc. | 13.2 September 21, 2023[12] | 2005 | Proprietary |
| QuarkXPress | Quark, Inc. | 2024 20.0.0 November 14, 2023 | 1987 | Proprietary |
| Scribus | The Scribus Team | 1.6.4[13] 20 April 2025 | 2003 | GPL |
| Superprint | 2.13 | 1.7 | 2026 | Proprietary |
| The Print Shop | Broderbund | 23.1 2009[a] | 1984 | Proprietary |
| Desktop publishing software | Developer(s) | Latest stable version | Initial release | License |
Support by platform
[edit]This table shows which platforms (operating systems and web) the latest version of each application is compatible with. Key to values:
- No means that no version for this platform exists.
- Partial means that the application for this platform lacks important functionality or is still being developed.
- Beta means that only a pre-market version of the application is available for this platform.
- Yes means that the application has been officially released in a fully functional, stable version.
- Dropped means that new versions have been discontinued for this platform; the number in parentheses is the last known stable version which was officially released for that platform.
Application names that are on a light purple background are discontinued.
| Desktop publishing software | Android | ChromeOS | iOS | iPadOS | Linux | MacOS | Windows | Web, Online, Cloud | Other OS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Affinity Publisher | No | No | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No | No[14] |
| Apache OpenOffice Writer | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes[b] | Yes | No | Yes[15][c][d] |
| Canva | Yes[e] (App[16] and Online) | Yes (App and Online) | Yes[e] (App[17] and Online) | Yes (App and Online) | Yes | Yes (App and Online) | Yes (App and Online) | Yes | No[18] |
| Collabora Online | Yes[e] (App[19] and Online) | Yes (App[20] and Online) | Yes[e] (App[21] and Online) | Yes (App and Online) | Yes (App and Online) | Yes (App[22] and Online) | Yes (App and Online) | Yes | Yes[f][d] |
| CorelDRAW | No | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No[23] |
| InDesign | No | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No[24] |
| LibreOffice | No | Yes[25][d] | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes[f] |
| LyX | No | Yes[26] | No | No | Yes[27] | Yes | Yes | No | OS/2, Haiku |
| Marq | Yes[e][28] (Online) | Yes (Online) | Yes[e][29] (Online) | Yes (Online) | Yes (Online) | Yes (Online) | Yes (Online) | Yes | No |
| Microsoft Publisher | No | No | No | No | No | No | Yes | No | No |
| Pages | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes[30] | No | No | No |
| QuarkXPress | No | No | No | No | No | Yes[31] | Yes | No | No |
| Scribus | No | Yes[32] | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | OS/2 Warp 4, ArcaOS, eComStation, OpenIndiana, Solaris, Haiku |
| The Print Shop | No | No | No | No | No | No | Yes | No | No |
| Desktop publishing software | Android | ChromeOS | iOS | iPadOS | Linux | MacOS | Windows | Web, Online, Cloud | Other OS |
Input format
[edit]This table gives a comparison of the file formats that can be opened or imported.
| Desktop publishing software | EPS | SVG | HTML | OpenDocument ODT | Microsoft DOCX | Other | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Affinity Publisher | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | Yes[33] |
| Apache OpenOffice Writer | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | Yes[34] |
| Canva | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | PNG, WebP, audio, video, fonts, others[35] |
| Collabora Online | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | PUB, TeX/LaTeX, WebP, others[36][37] |
| CorelDRAW | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | others[38] |
| InDesign | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | WebP, others[39] |
| LibreOffice | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | PUB, WPD, TeX/LaTeX, RTF, others[40] |
| LyX | No | No | No | Yes | No | No | CSV, TeX/LaTeX, others[41] |
| Marq | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | PNG |
| Microsoft Publisher | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | RTF |
| Pages | No | No | No | No | No | Yes | RTF[42] |
| QuarkXPress | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | PSD, AI, SWF, PNG PDF, RTF |
| Scribus | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | PUB, TeX/LaTeX, others List |
| The Print Shop | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
| Desktop publishing software | EPS | SVG | HTML | OpenDocument ODT | Microsoft DOCX | Other |
Output format
[edit]This table gives a comparison of the file formats each software can export or save.
| Desktop publishing software | EPS | PNG | SVG | WebP | EPUB | HTML | Other | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Affinity Publisher | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | Yes, others[43] |
| Apache OpenOffice Writer | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | [44] |
| Canva | Yes | No | Yes[g][45] | Yes | Yes | No | Yes [h] | JPEG, Video:GIF, MP4, others[46] |
| Collabora Online | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ODF, others[47][48] |
| CorelDRAW | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | PSD, AI, SWF, WPD, others[49] |
| InDesign | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | JPG, RTF, others[50] |
| LibreOffice | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ODF, JPEG, RTF, other[51] |
| LyX | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | PS, ODF, TeX/LaTeX, DOCX, others[52] |
| Marq | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | No | No | JPEG, GIF, MP4, others[53] |
| Microsoft Publisher | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | JPG, TIFF |
| Pages | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | RTF[54] |
| QuarkXPress | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Kindle[55] |
| Scribus | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | List, TeX/LaTeX |
| The Print Shop | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
| Desktop publishing software | EPS | PNG | SVG | WebP | EPUB | HTML | Other |
See also
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ↑ release date not stated on vendors web page
- ↑ Rosetta 2 emulation is required to run on all current Apple macOS hardware which use Apple silicon (M1, M2, M3...). Native CPU support remains for previous Intel based macOS devives.
- ↑ Build your own application from source code
- 1 2 3 unsupported
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 not supported on mobile web browsers.
- 1 2 Online or Build your own application from source code
- ↑ The free version of Canva does not support transparent backgrounds. Canva Pro or Enterprise have an option to “Remove Background” from images
- ↑ Can export as HTML when creating an email design.
References
[edit]- ↑ "Latest Affinity V2 releases on each platform by store". Affinity Newsroom. 8 November 2022. Retrieved 2023-10-01.
- ↑ "Announcing Apache OpenOffice 4.1.16". 10 November 2025. Retrieved 12 November 2025.
- ↑ "The Apache OpenOffice Project Announces Apache OpenOffice 3.4" (Press release). Apache Software Foundation. 8 May 2012. Retrieved 9 May 2012.
- ↑ "Create great flyers, newsletters, brochures and more with open source software". opensource.com. Archived from the original on 2016-11-08.
- ↑ "Collabora Online 26.04 Release Notes".
- ↑ "Collabora Productivity releases Collabora Online 1.0 "Engine" for Hosters and Clouds" (Press release). Collabora Productivity. 2 June 2016. Retrieved 15 June 2016.
Collabora Productivity, the driving force behind putting LibreOffice in the Cloud, has released the first production grade version of Collabora Online, its flagship cloud document suite solution.
- ↑ "Create great flyers, newsletters, brochures, and more with open source software". opensource.com. Archived from the original on 2016-11-08.
- ↑ Italo Vignoli (26 August 2026). "LibreOffice 26.8 brings professional typography, deeper support for the world's writing systems, and no artificial intelligence". Retrieved 26 August 2026.
- ↑ "[lyx-announce] LyX 2.5.1 Released". 23 April 2026. Retrieved 26 April 2026.
- ↑ "License". Lyx. Retrieved 2024-04-02.
- ↑ "See what's in Office 2021". Microsoft. Archived from the original on 2023-03-30.
- ↑ "Pages on the Mac App Store". Mac App Store. June 13, 2023.
- ↑ "1.6.4 Release". scribus.net.
- ↑ "System requirements". Affinity. Retrieved 2024-03-31.
- ↑ "System requirements". Apache_Software_Foundation_and_others. Retrieved 2024-03-31.
- ↑ "Canva: Design, Photo & Video". Google Play. Retrieved 2024-04-02.
- ↑ "Mac App Store Preview". Apple. Retrieved 2024-04-02.
- ↑ "Technical requirements". Canva. Retrieved 2024-03-31.
- ↑ "Google Play Store". Google Play. Archived from the original on 2020-11-08. Retrieved 2021-01-20.
Collabora Office - LibreOffice based editor for Microsoft Office, LibreOffice and OpenOffice docs.
- ↑ "Collabora Office 6.4 Launches For Android, iOS & Chrome OS". KYM Know Your Mobile. 2020-12-02. Retrieved 2021-01-15.
...it works on desktop and mobile, and it will sync up between devices too, so you can start something on your desktop PC and then pick it up later on your phone and/or tablet.
- ↑ "Apple App Store". App Store. Archived from the original on 2020-03-01. Retrieved 2021-01-20.
Collabora Office - This app is available only on the App Store for iPhone and iPad.
- ↑ "Collabora Office Enterprise-ready Office Suite for Windows, MacOS and Linux". Collabora Productivity. Retrieved 2024-04-01.
- ↑ "Product Info Sheet". coreldraw. Retrieved 2024-04-01.
- ↑ "InDesign system requirements". Adobe. Retrieved 2024-03-27.
- ↑ "3 alternatives for Microsoft Publisher on your Chromebook". chromeunboxed. 17 August 2020.
- ↑ "How to setup Lyx on a Chromebook". Lyx. Retrieved 2024-04-02.
- ↑ "Step-By-Step Installation of Lyx on Linux, macOS, and Windows". Baeldung. 14 August 2023. Retrieved 2024-04-02.
- ↑ "System requirements". Marc. Retrieved 2024-04-02.
- ↑ "System requirements". Marc. Retrieved 2024-04-02.
- ↑ "Pages User Guide for Mac". Apple. Retrieved 2024-04-02.
- ↑ "Getting Started with QuarkXPress 2023". QuarkEXpress. Retrieved 2024-04-02.
- ↑ "3 alternatives for Microsoft Publisher on your Chromebook". chromeunboxed. 17 August 2020.
- ↑ "Import and export file formats". Affinity. Retrieved 2024-03-27.
- ↑ "File Formats". Apache Software Foundation and others. Retrieved 2024-03-31.
- ↑ "Upload formats and requirements". Canva. Retrieved 2024-03-27.
- ↑ "interoperability with over 100 third party documents formats". Collabora Productivity. Retrieved 2024-04-01.
- ↑ "Which formats can the programs of Collabora Online read?". Collabora Online. Retrieved 2024-03-28.
- ↑ "Supported file formats". CorelDRAW help. Retrieved 2024-03-27.
- ↑ "Supported file formats for InDesign". Adobe. Retrieved 2024-03-27.
- ↑ "Working with File Formats, Security, and Exporting". LibreOffice Productivity. 18 January 2023. Retrieved 2024-04-01.
- ↑ "UserGuide, see IMPORT". Lyx. Retrieved 2024-04-02.
- ↑ "Pages User Guide for iPhone". Apple. Retrieved 2024-04-02.
- ↑ "Import and export file formats". Affinity. Retrieved 2024-03-27.
- ↑ "File Formats". Apache OpenOffice. Retrieved 2024-03-27.
- ↑ "Download design with transparent background". Canva. Retrieved 2024-04-02.
- ↑ "Supported download file types". Canva. Retrieved 2024-03-27.
- ↑ "interoperability with over 100 third party documents formats". Collabora Productivity. Retrieved 2024-04-01.
- ↑ "Which formats can the programs of Collabora Online read?". Collabora Online. Retrieved 2024-03-28.
- ↑ "Supported file formats". CorelDRAW help. Retrieved 2024-03-27.
- ↑ "Supported file formats for InDesign". Adobe. Retrieved 2024-03-27.
- ↑ "Working with File Formats, Security, and Exporting". LibreOffice Productivity. 18 January 2023. Retrieved 2024-04-01.
- ↑ "UserGuide, see EXPORT". Lyx. Retrieved 2024-04-02.
- ↑ "Download export settings". Canva. Retrieved 2024-03-27.
- ↑ "Pages User Guide for iPhone". Apple. Retrieved 2024-04-02.
- ↑ "Digital Publishing with QuarkXPress 2022". QuarkEXpress. Retrieved 2024-04-02.