Why I Chose Affinity Publisher over Adobe Indesign
Adobe Indesign may be the industry-leading layout and page design software with a plethora of features, but according to me, Serif’s Affinity Publisher gave me a much smoother, faster and better experience of working.
I was a design student for four years and I never heard my peers or my faculty ever talk about Affinity. From the beginning we were taught Adobe softwares, one of them being Adobe Indesign. Everyone was using it so did I. But I felt that I was not being able to explore my creativity enough with that software.
At first the whole interface was a little overwhelming for me. So much was happening at the same time on the same screen that it became confusing. The amount of features is so extensive that it took me quite a while to get a hang of it. I gave it a try every now-and-then, but used to end up getting frustrated.
Almost every semester we were supposed to make some kind of a booklet and since Adobe Indesign had already tested my patience, I decided to make my booklets on Adobe Photoshop or Adobe Illustrator. This went on for 3 years. While Indesign made my classmates’ lives easier, I was converting and compiling my art-boards into a single PDF on the way to the print shop right before the deadline.
The place where I used to intern introduced me to Affinity softwares. I was already familiar with Adobe Indesign, so it did not take me much effort to understand Publisher. It was only recently released, in June 2019. I worked on it for a while during my internship and it was so much simpler, cleaner and intuitive that I decided to use it for my Graduation Project documentation. Here are the reasons which led me to my decision:
- Cost Effectiveness — This factor in itself is enough to enter the market and stand against Adobe, especially for students, aspiring designers and professionals on a budget, so price here can actually be the dealbreaker. The entire software can be purchased for ₹4,000 whereas Indesign is for ₹19,158 just for a year. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Affinity offered 90 day trials and 50% off on their products to show their support to designers, students and artists, which is when I got the software, basically a cheaper deal for me.
- Intuitive Design — With a modern user interface, Publisher gives intuitive on-screen controls and intelligent visual feedback with helplines, dots, snapping and much more. For graphic heavy books like magazines and portfolios, the software is much simpler to use with a lighter feel. Contents load much faster, tools and features are easier to manipulate, hence it doesn’t hamper the working pleasure.
- Better User Experience — In Publisher, the desired functions can be found with ease and fewer clicks. Even though it does not have all of Indesign’s features, a beginner only requires the essentials, not unnecessary or obsolete features. And who’s complaining where there is improved overall usability compared to Indesign. Like, in Indesign, you may never know the actual pixel quality until you finish, which may lead to problems while printing. On the other hand, in Publisher, the images will always remain sharp.
Indesign is an indispensable asset in the design industry, used almost everywhere, and will continue to for a very long time. Though, for personal design projects or freelancing, Affinity Publisher can save the day. Designers are supposed to be free thinkers, so they can at least try something new if it offers a better way of working. If you’re still on the fences, try the Publisher trial version, test it out, and it might convince you to replace Indesign.
PS- Please remember, my decision of choosing Affinity Publisher over Adobe Indesign is because of my particular way of designing. I don’t have enough experience in both to make a definitive statement about which one is superior.
