Creative tool privacy ratings
Image, video, audio, 3D and streaming software.
41 creative tools are rated against 4 public criteria, and 41 have enough evidence for a letter grade. Of the 17 with a known jurisdiction, 8 are based in a Five Eyes country, and 13 in the wider Fourteen Eyes.
Open-source creative tools only · Criteria for this category · Suggest an addition · Markdown
| Name | Grade | Score | Data | Jurisdiction | Open source | No trackers or telemetry | No ads or data sales | Independent audit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
A 3D creation suite for modeling, sculpting, texturing, rigging, animation, rendering, compositing, motion tracking and video editing, extendable with add-ons. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | Netherlands Nine Eyes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
A non-linear video editor and compositor for Linux, with multi-track editing, effects, transitions and titling. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | – | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
A photography workflow application and non-destructive raw developer for managing and editing digital negatives. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | – | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
A multi-track non-linear video editor for Linux, based on the MLT framework. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | – | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
A parametric 3D CAD modeler for product design, mechanical engineering and architecture, with a Python scripting interface. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | Belgium Fourteen Eyes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
A free, open source, cross-platform raster image editor for photo retouching, image composition and image authoring, with support for many file formats. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | – | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
A vector animation program by KDE for creating 2D animations, with support for Lottie, animated SVG, GIF and video export. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | – | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
A free, open source vector graphics editor for illustrations, icons, logos, diagrams, maps and web graphics, using SVG as its native format. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | – | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
A non-linear video editor from KDE, based on the MLT framework, Qt and FFmpeg. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | Germany Fourteen Eyes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
A free and open source digital painting application for Windows, macOS and Linux, developed by the Krita Foundation and KDE. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | Netherlands Nine Eyes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
An animated sprite editor and pixel art tool, forked from the last GPL-licensed version of Aseprite. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | – | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
A digital audio workstation for making music, with a pattern and song editor, piano roll, built-in synthesizers and support for VST and LADSPA plugins. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | – | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
A node-based video compositing application for visual effects and motion graphics. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | – | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
A simple open source drawing and image editing program with layers, adjustments, effects and unlimited undo, for Windows, macOS and Linux. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | – | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
A cross-platform raw photo processor for non-destructive editing of raw digital photos. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | – | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
A desktop publishing application for page layout, with CMYK color, spot colors, ICC color management and PDF/X export for print. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | – | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
A multi-track audio editor and recorder forked from Audacity, developed by volunteers, with no telemetry. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | – | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
A cross-platform tool written in Python for cutting and joining video files. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | – | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
An open source subdivision 3D modeler with an AutoUV facility for unfolding a model's surface for painting and texturing. |
Grade B | 80 | 100% | – | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
A digital audio workstation for recording, editing and mixing multi-track audio and MIDI on Windows, macOS and Linux. |
Grade C | 65 | 100% | United States Five Eyes | Yes | Partial | Yes | No |
A multi-track audio editor and recorder for Windows, macOS and Linux. |
Grade C | 65 | 100% | Cyprus Outside Eyes | Yes | Partial | Yes | No |
An animated sprite editor and pixel art tool for Windows, macOS and Linux. |
Grade D | 50 | 100% | Argentina Outside Eyes | Yes | No | Yes | No |
Free and open source software for video recording and live streaming on Windows, macOS and Linux. |
Grade D | 50 | 100% | – | Yes | No | Yes | No |
A free, open source, cross-platform video editor for trimming, effects, titles and animation. |
Grade D | 50 | 100% | – | Yes | No | Yes | No |
A 2D animation program based on Toonz, used for traditional and digital animation, with scanning, ink and paint, and effects tools. |
Grade D | 50 | 100% | Japan Outside Eyes | Yes | No | Yes | No |
A 2D hand-drawn animation program for sketching, inking and painting frame-by-frame animation with bitmap and vector layers. |
Grade D | 50 | 100% | – | Yes | No | Yes | No |
An open source design and prototyping platform for teams, based on open web standards such as SVG, CSS and HTML, available as a hosted service or self-hosted. |
Grade D | 50 | 100% | Spain Fourteen Eyes | Yes | No | Yes | No |
Open-source screen-capture tool for Windows. Takes screenshots and short screen recordings, with annotation, OCR, a colour picker, and configurable save/upload destinations. |
Grade D | 50 | 100% | – | Yes | No | Yes | No |
A 2D vector animation program that uses bones and interpolated keyframes to create animation without drawing every frame. |
Grade D | 50 | 100% | – | Yes | No | Yes | No |
A desktop app that upscales and enhances low-resolution images locally using AI models, from the makers of the Upscayl Cloud service. |
Grade D | 50 | 100% | – | Yes | No | Yes | No |
A free, open source, cross-platform video editor based on FFmpeg and MLT, with support for many formats and resolutions. |
Grade F | 30 | 100% | – | Yes | No | No | No |
A browser-based collaborative interface design and prototyping tool, with a desktop app, whiteboarding, developer handoff and AI features. |
Grade F | 20 | 100% | United States Five Eyes | No | No | Partial | Partial |
A vector graphics editor from Adobe for illustrations, logos, typography and print or web layouts, part of Adobe Creative Cloud. |
Grade F | 10 | 100% | United States Five Eyes | No | No | No | Partial |
A photo organizing and editing app from Adobe for raw processing, adjustments and cloud-synced photo libraries, part of Adobe Creative Cloud. |
Grade F | 10 | 100% | United States Five Eyes | No | No | No | Partial |
A raster image editor from Adobe for photo editing, compositing and digital painting, with generative AI features, part of Adobe Creative Cloud. |
Grade F | 10 | 100% | United States Five Eyes | No | No | No | Partial |
A non-linear video editor from Adobe, formerly called Premiere Pro, for editing, color grading and audio mixing, part of Adobe Creative Cloud. |
Grade F | 10 | 100% | United States Five Eyes | No | No | No | Partial |
An online design platform for creating graphics, presentations, documents, videos and websites from templates, with AI features and team collaboration. |
Grade F | 10 | 100% | Australia Five Eyes | No | No | No | Partial |
A video editing, color grading, visual effects and audio post-production application from Blackmagic Design. |
Grade F | 10 | 100% | Australia Five Eyes | No | No | Partial | No |
A freeware image and photo editor for Windows with layers, unlimited undo, effects and plugin support. |
Grade F | 0 | 100% | – | No | No | No | No |
A browser-based image editor for raster and vector graphics that opens PSD, XCF, Sketch and many other formats, processing files locally. |
Grade F | 0 | 100% | – | No | No | No | No |
A browser-based image editor with templates and AI tools, with a free tier and paid plans. |
Grade F | 0 | 100% | Singapore Outside Eyes | No | No | No | No |
Questions
What is the most private option among creative tools?
No pick has been made yet. The table above is sorted by score, based on public evidence.
How are creative tools rated?
Each entry answers 4 questions: open source, no trackers or telemetry, no ads or data sales and independent audit. Answers need links to evidence. See the full criteria.
Does jurisdiction matter?
Jurisdiction decides which laws can compel a provider to hand over data. Each entry shows its country and whether it is in the Five, Nine or Fourteen Eyes. The data a provider can hand over depends mostly on what it stores and who holds the keys. Read about jurisdictions and the CLOUD Act.