How to download and install Affinity on Mac

Affinity is now one free app for vector design, photo editing and page layout, made by Canva and downloaded from affinity.studio. Here is what your Mac needs, how to install Affinity and why it asks for a Canva account.

Affinity

macOS 10.15 or later
One file for Apple Silicon and Intel
Free with a Canva account

Official Affinity websiteaffinity.studio ↗

The links go to the developer’s website (affinity.studio). MacWashing is not affiliated with the developer and keeps no installers.

Step by stepDownload from the website and installHomebrewOne command in Terminal

Open Terminal (Applications › Utilities) and run:

brew install --cask affinity

Homebrew downloads the app from the developer’s server, checks the file and puts the app in Applications.

No Homebrew yet? How to install Homebrew: one command from brew.sh.

Before you download

Affinity has one installer that runs natively on Apple Silicon and Intel Macs. It needs macOS 10.15 Catalina or later, at least 4 GB of memory (8 GB or more is better) and 3.5 GB of free space. The download itself is over 1 GB.

Affinity is free, but it needs a Canva account: the website asks you to sign in before downloading, and so does the app. A free Canva account is enough. Download Affinity only from affinity.studio.

How to install Affinity

Open Affinity.dmg in your Downloads folder.
Drag Affinity to the Applications folder.
Eject the Affinity disk: click the eject button next to it in the Finder sidebar.
Open Affinity from Applications and click Open when macOS asks about an app downloaded from the internet.
Sign in with your Canva account, or create a free one.

What to set up after the first launch

Older Affinity apps. Affinity Designer, Photo and Publisher 2 are separate apps and stay on your Mac. Remove them once you no longer need them.
Canva AI tools. All the vector, pixel and layout tools are free. Canva’s AI tools inside Affinity need a paid Canva plan.
Other apps’ files. Affinity imports PSD, AI, PDF, SVG and IDML files. Your own work is saved in the .af format.
The installer. Move Affinity.dmg from Downloads to the Trash once Affinity runs: it takes over 1 GB.

If Affinity won’t install or open

«Affinity is damaged and can’t be opened». The download was incomplete. Delete the file and download it again from affinity.studio.
Affinity doesn’t start on an older Mac. Check your macOS version in About This Mac: Affinity needs macOS 10.15 or later.
The copy to Applications stops. Free up space: Affinity needs about 3.5 GB, and the installer takes over 1 GB on top until you delete it.

Alternatives to Affinity

Keep your Mac tidy

MacWashing, System Junk: Xcode junk, user caches, installers and logs found, 22.83 GB ready to be cleaned

System Junk in MacWashing finds the caches apps build up over time and shows how much space they take. And if you decide to remove Affinity, the Uninstaller takes its files with it.

Download MacWashing How it works

Free trial · macOS 14 or later

Questions and answers

Is Affinity really free?

Yes. Canva made Affinity free: every vector, photo and layout tool works without payment, and updates are free too. Only Canva’s AI tools in Affinity need a paid Canva plan.

Do I need a Canva account, and is Affinity in the Mac App Store?

You need a Canva account, and a free one works. Affinity for Mac comes from affinity.studio, not from the Mac App Store.

Can Affinity open Photoshop and Illustrator files?

Yes. Affinity imports PSD and AI files with their layers and structure, as well as PDF, SVG and IDML.