• Affinity Designer Vs Publisher
• Affinity Publisher Vs. Adobe Indesign
• Affinity Publisher Adobe Indesign
• Affinity Publisher Import Adobe Indesign

• You can do 99% of what you can do with Adobe's InDesign, for $50/user lifetime (even cheaper if you buy in bulk), as opposed to a recurring charge from Adobe every month. Affinity Publisher helps us do all of our print design work for our clients, including seminar stands, marketing flyers, and even billboards.
• Affinity Publisher is professional-level design software from Serif, which includes a growing portfolio of creative tools. Affinity Publisher, which offers many of the same features as Adobe InDesign, is fast and light and works in Mac and Windows environments.
• Aug 27, 2019 Pre-purchase question. I have a PDF that Id need to fix (a la Adobe Acrobat). Will Publisher do that? Now that Acrobat has been upgraded/integrated into Adobe subscription based Reader DC, Im sure that this will become more important for me. Besides editing text elements, the other uses I can see.

Affinity Publisher From books, magazines and marketing materials, to social media templates, website mock-ups and other projects, this next-generation publishing app gives you the power to combine your images, graphics and text to make beautiful layouts ready for publication. Was $49.99 Now only $24.99. Affinity Publisher is a publishing program for Mac and Windows that allows you to create single- and multi-page documents. Publishing programs are suitable for creating layout-based media, which combine typography, graphics, and photos, such as magazines, brochures, flyers, and books.

The Affinity Publisher is making a tough time to its competitors, especially for Adobe InDesign, and its unique attributes are filling the digital publishing space. Although it lacks certain features, the cost-effectiveness is enough to enter the market and stand against the industry giant – Adobe.

Read further and found out who is the winner in the Affinity Publisher vs InDesign duel.

About The Affinity Publisher

Serif released the full version of Affinity Publisher on June 2019, and it is running on a Mac OS and Microsoft Windows as well.
Publisher works like InDesign and being the part of Serif product line alongside with Affinity Photo, and Affinity Designer makes him a powerful tool, and with the use of the whole family, you can create any type of publishing media imaginable.

Affinity Publisher Making it Hard for InDesign

Tutorial Videos

The Affinity Publisher provides several tutorial videos for the beginners. They help you to understand the essential functions like setting a new document or adding the text etc.

If you are a new user or even an advanced one, you should watch the introductory videos to utilize the program to the maximum.

Affinity Designer Vs Publisher

I cannot merely say that Affinity Publisher is a copy of InDesign. If you are familiar with Adobe InDesign, you would probably know how to set up the master spread, when designing a book or brochure.

The same feature is available in Publisher, but it works a bit differently than in InDesign, so you have to get used to its design process.

Features And Workflow

If you are accustomed to the InDesign, you will immediately see the resemblance between the two. They both have similar tools and features, but the workflow of Publisher is relatively unique, and like with every new program, it takes some time to get used to it.

If you haven’t used InDesign before, you will find Affinity Publisher smoother to use because it has a better UX design compared to InDesign, which makes you find the desired functions with ease and fewer clicks.

Use For Different Media

Affinity designer is not limited only for the use of print media, but you can also use it for making online presentations, e-books, and if you’re a UX designer, you can neven use it for creating wireframes for apps or websites.

What About The Performance?

InDesign lacks in handling power of the workflow and is quite RAM thirsty. Especially users with slightly older computers or the ones who make designs on a laptop can definitely feel how much power InDesign needs for running.

InDesign Fast Display function can resolve the problem to some degree. However, you would have to complete the design without seeing the actual pixel quality, which might lead to a problem later on in a printing process.

On the other hand, Publisher is quicker in handling the document. No matter what workstation you are using, PC or laptop: images will remain sharp, and you will not face any crushing problems which are typical for InDesign.

Imitation of The Interface

To attract the users of InDesign, Publisher had to make the interface looking similar to InDesign, for instance, Strokes, Swatches, and Colors are in their usual positions.

Even though the Publisher imitated some of the InDesign’s features, it improved the overall usability of a program, with the use of the vital commands available right at your fingertips.

Asset Panel

Publisher’s assets panel is an attractive feature for many users. You can choose between different pre-made vector icons, which you can simply drag into your designs. This feature can improve and fasten your design process.

Should You Consider Switching to Affinity Publisher?

If creating magazines, brochures, and other print media daily, Affinity Publisher is brilliant software to use. It has an impressive interface, enough capacity to deal with the complicated task, and has a unique attributes list.
It is also part of the StudioLink, which is one of the most noteworthy things Serif has created. It enables you to alter photographs, make vectors, and create page breaks inside one application.
Best fit for Publisher would be a freelance graphic designer or small designer team, and if you are one of the two you should consider shifting from InDesign.
Despite being a new player in the publishing business, it is still a professional-grade all-in-one publication tool, that will definitely suit all your needs.
On the other hand, if you work in an environment where everyone uses Adobe InDesign, switching to Affinity Publisher most likely isn’t the right choice.

The Publisher Needs Some Essential Nuts and Bolts

When the software was in sill in a Beta form, developers were collecting users feedback to make necessary improvements for the final version. However, there are still some specific features missing, which might be quite unfavorable for some users.

For example, if you want to make a three-fold brochure where you put together three spreads one next to another, you can, for now, forget about it.
Another thing that you can not make with Publisher are interactive presentations, and if you make a lot of those, I suggest you stick with the InDesign for now because Serifs said that they are not planning to take any steps in that direction.

Farewell to Adobe InDesign?

Publisher covers print and in some way also web design, besides it’s made for both Windows and Mac operating system. You will be able to create single or multi-page documents, books, brochures, and magazines with ease, and if you’re looking for processing speed, power, and flexibility, the Publisher is the ideal choice for you.

Before purchasing Publisher, be sure to check out how long your Adobe subscription lasts, so you won’t be stuck with two programs that do the same job.

Final Words: Affinity Publisher Vs Adobe InDesign

With the one-off payment of $49.99 Publisher is an excellent choice if you’re looking for an InDesign substitute, which runs at $239,88/yr, besides being a cheaper alternative Serif also offers free updates on all their programs.
Even though Affinity Publisher is not perfect yet, developers are listening carefully to the design community and are developing new tools that will come with future updates, besides that they are trying to make the program runs smoothly as possible, without any crushes.
If you’re still on the fences, try the Publisher trial version, test it out, and it might convince you to dump InDesign for good (I know I did).

If you’re interested in other Affinity products, you can also read my review about Affinity Designer vs. Adobe Illustrator here on DesignyUp.

Affinity Publisher Vs. Adobe Indesign

Designers working with desktop publishing may want to take a look at Affinity Publisher. The tool, which is now available for Mac and Windows platforms, is emerging as a powerful and flexible design option.

The tool is part of the Serif line of graphic design products, which also includes Affinity Photo and Affinity Designer, both super-capable platforms in their own right.

Here’s a look at Affinity Publisher and how it compares to a tool you may already be familiar with – Adobe InDesign.

What is Affinity Publisher?

Affinity Publisher is a professional design software package. It’s made for desktop publishing, including books, magazines, marketing collateral but can also be used for digital materials as well.

The app allows you to manipulate and work with images, graphics, and text to create almost endless layout possibilities with workflow boosts to make large documents easy to work with and manage.

It works with other Serif products as well as native Adobe files and has the power to handle complex vector elements without losing functionality or speed.

The biggest reason Affinity Publisher may be growing in the marketplace is cost. It does not include a subscription model and runs off your local machine. It works on Mac or Windows computers and the download is $49.99 with a free trial available. (You can get it directly from the Affinity Publisher website or in the Mac App Store.)

Affinity Publisher Basics

Affinity Publisher makes it easy to try this tool with a great price and single app download pricing model. It’s robust and includes everything you would want in a desktop publishing app.

The only downsides are that it can feel unfamiliar and a little clunky if you are used to InDesign. Some of that is likely because it is different or maybe because the tool is a little newer and they are still working out some of the finer details.

The Affinity package of tools has a neat feature – StudioLink – that lets you hop between tools in the same app. If you are planning to switch to all Affinity products for design tasks, this is a time-saving option that’s highly functional.

When you get into the software itself, everything is there – you can see some of these key features in the next section – although some things work a little differently than what you may be accustomed to with Adobe products.

Key differences include lack of document setup presets on launch – although you can find third-party templates on design marketplaces – and master pages and layers that require a little more thought until you get used to us.

Designers working on laptops may love this: The software is light and fast without losing render or image quality.

Affinity Publisher Key Features

So, what can Affinity Publisher do? That’s always the big question when it comes to using or switching to a new tool.

Key features include:

• Layout functionality for double page spreads, live master pages, custom shaped frames (including for text), frame linking, tables, and ability to share across apps or devices
• Tons of text manipulation options and control with decorations, drop caps, paths, artistic options, baseline grid, and flow features
• Pixel-perfect graphics that you can link or embed, plus non-destructive layer adjustments
• Pen and node tools, boolean operations, layer effects, and fill options
• Ability to package and export files
• Data merge tools for complex documents with an external data element (supports text/CSV, JSON, and Excel files)
• Live preflight checks
• Color control with end to end CMYK, spot color support, Pantone library, and ICC color profiles
• Asset management tools to help you keep most-used elements at hand
• Preview mode for grids, guides, bleed, and margins

Affinity Publisher vs. Adobe InDesign

The biggest tool comparison is Affinity Publisher vs. Adobe InDesign when it comes to desktop and print publishing. For those not working with either tool on a daily basis, they may seem almost identical at a glance.

They are pretty stiff competitors with the edge going to InDesign because of time on the market and familiarity for so many users. But cost and function could negate that advantage.

Affinity Publisher has all the layout tools regularly use including master pages, spreads, grids, tables, typography options, text flow, presentation or print output settings, and more. You can import IDML files, use the preflight checker, create smart master pages, and work with OpenType fonts. Linking or embedding graphics files is a non-issue.

There are plenty of other similarities as well.

• Works on Mac and Windows desktops
• Have fairly intuitive interfaces
• Allows you to work with native Adobe files
• Ability to create pro quality documents for print or digital publishing
• Plenty of tutorials and templates available
• Include free trials (Affinity Publisher’s is 30 days, compared to 7 for Adobe InDesign)
• Core tools and publishing functionality are similar
• Excellent export capability in a number of file formats

The most obvious difference between Publisher and InDesign is probably price and pricing structure.

Affinity Publisher comes with a one-time fee when you download it, $49.99.

InDesign is part of Adobe’s Creative Cloud suite of software and comes with a monthly fee, which is based on your plan. The single app price is $20.99 per month.

Conclusion

Affinity Publisher is a powerful design and layout tool that’s highly comparable to Adobe InDesign.

It’s flexible and easy to learn. And the price is hard to beat.

For current Adobe InDesign users, it could be a little tougher to switch software because while it has much of the same functionality and end result, it just feels different to use. Switching will totally depend on your comfort level.

Either way, the download and trial are worth a try!

Affinity Publisher Adobe Indesign

Affinity Publisher Templates

Affinity Publisher Import Adobe Indesign

In this feature, we've covered the basics of Affinity Publisher with tutorials and software comparisons, as well as the best Affinity Publisher templates.