About Adobe Illustrator

Adobe Illustrator CC is an industry-standard tool in vector drawing and editing for professional design and artwork. Users can create graphic designs that go virtually anywhere including print, websites, video games, logos for brand corporations, packaging for general merchandise, as well as business cards, billboards, bus wraps and even clothes.

Illustrator CC enables graphic designers to create sketches, typography and illustrations for print, web, video, and mobile, and offers a wide set of tools, filters and effects. Illustrator works with vector graphics which are resolution independent and defined mathematically for quality control, and also with the more traditional, raster graphics.

Illustrator CC comes with thousands of royalty-free stock art and all projects can be loaded into InDesign for a complete design workflow. The solution also integrates with animation and video apps like Animate CC, Premiere Pro, and After Effects.

With the seamlessly integrated Adobe Creative Cloud, users can easily access, organize, and share creative assets with other users, as well as other Adobe desktop and mobile apps.

Adobe’s mobile apps include Illustrator Draw, Capture CC, and Comp CC that let users intuitively capture creative vision with shapes, color, and typography with their mobile devices and seamlessly continue projects on the desktop with Illustrator CC.


Key benefits of Adobe Illustrator

  • Create freeform vector designs on-the-go with the Adobe Illustrator Draw app for Android, and seamlessly move the designs over to desktop Illustrator CC.

  • Users can pull creative assets (live text, images and graphics) into the Comp CC iPad and iPhone app from the shared Creative Cloud Libraries and instantly send layouts to Illustrator CC.

  • Creative Cloud is always synced so users can browse and access colors, type styles, graphics, brushes and more anytime, anywhere, from within Illustrator and mobile apps like Sketch and Draw.

  • With the Capture CC app, users can extract a color theme or create a vector graphic using an iPad, iPhone or Android phone and load them into Illustrator for further editing.

  • Users can import / export content and projects from Photoshop and Dreamweaver with testing support for content management solutions like WordPress, Joomla!, and Drupal.

  • Images

    Adobe Illustrator Software - With Illustrator CC, the touch type tool allows users to take individual letters and transform them, as well as change the text itself
    Adobe Illustrator Software - Illustrator CC users have the possibility to free transform elements in a more intuitive way
    Adobe Illustrator Software - Use images in brushes (pattern brush tool) and choose the way the image runs around corners with Illustrator CC
    Adobe Illustrator Software - The export CSS feature in Illustrator CC allows users to copy elements from the illustrator document and transfer them into CSS directly
    Adobe Illustrator Software - Search fonts quicker with Illustrator CC's font search window that enables the choice between searching entire font names or first words only
    Adobe Illustrator Software - Import multiple images and place them on the page with the integrated place gun tool that allows users to drag and place images exactly where they want them with Illustrator CC
    Adobe Illustrator Software - Illustrator CC's live corners tool lets users intuitively shape corners with on-art controls or specific values
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    Adobe Illustrator video
    Adobe Illustrator video
    Adobe Illustrator Software - With Illustrator CC, the touch type tool allows users to take individual letters and transform them, as well as change the text itself
    Adobe Illustrator Software - Illustrator CC users have the possibility to free transform elements in a more intuitive way
    Adobe Illustrator Software - Use images in brushes (pattern brush tool) and choose the way the image runs around corners with Illustrator CC
    Adobe Illustrator Software - The export CSS feature in Illustrator CC allows users to copy elements from the illustrator document and transfer them into CSS directly
    Adobe Illustrator Software - Search fonts quicker with Illustrator CC's font search window that enables the choice between searching entire font names or first words only
    Adobe Illustrator Software - Import multiple images and place them on the page with the integrated place gun tool that allows users to drag and place images exactly where they want them with Illustrator CC
    Adobe Illustrator Software - Illustrator CC's live corners tool lets users intuitively shape corners with on-art controls or specific values

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    Reviews

    Overall rating

    4.8 /5
    (8,364)
    Value for Money
    4.3/5
    Features
    4.7/5
    Ease of Use
    4.0/5
    Customer Support
    4.3/5

    Already have Adobe Illustrator?

    Software buyers need your help! Product reviews help the rest of us make great decisions.

    Showing 5 reviews of 8,364
    Jeffrey
    Overall rating
    • Industry: Retail
    • Company size: Self Employed
    • Used Daily for 2+ years
    • Review Source

    Overall rating

    • Value for Money
    • Ease of Use
    • Customer Support
    • Likelihood to recommend 9.0 /10

    Illustrator - the standard for graphic design

    Reviewed on 24/9/2020

    Overall my experience has been great. I definitely recommend AI if you are serious about design. It...

    Overall my experience has been great. I definitely recommend AI if you are serious about design. It can handle any area of design and is a workhorse of a program - it is very flexible.

    But with great flexibility, comes great complexity. So, therefore, even though I have a pretty good understanding of how to use Illustrator, there's still more for me to learn after many years. Not to mention they always add new features.

    And I still have to take some time to creatively express exactly what I envision.

    For this reason, I also use Affinity Designer on my Mac, alongside illustrator. The reason is, Affinity Designer is much more simple and certain tasks are quicker with Affinity.

    However, anytime I need to do more complex stuff, such

    Pros

    The nice thing about Adobe Illustrator is you can do anything you want, as far as manipulating graphics and creating any digital artwork or illustration imaginable. It's so versatile in what you can do, that it also can seem very complex to the novice.

    But if you stick with it and use it consistently or take some tutorials, once you learn the ins and outs of Adobe Illustrator, you begin to realize what it's capable of. I have used Inkscape and affinity designer and though I use affinity designer (due to the simplicity and quickness at some tasks), I always turn to Adobe Illustrator when I need to do more complex tasks.

    I am old school, and typically like drawing by hand. The great thing about digital design is you can still get a tablet and draw by hand if you like. This is obvious to many people but some may not be aware or haven't made the jump over to trying a drawing tablet yet. If you haven't tried one and you love drawing with traditional media, you are going to love working with a tablet in Illustrator.

    Cons

    The biggest con I can think of is the learning curve. When first starting to use Adobe Illustrator is it can seem very complex. So when you're new, is a pretty big learning curve. With that said, I still am learning after 5+ years.

    For this reason, I recommend taking some tutorials or classes to understand what illustrator is capable of and for learning what every tool does. Taking tutorials also gives you an insight into how to creatively use tools for different purposes.

    I know when I first learned Illustrator. I had a good idea of what most tools did. But I just wasn't aware of the different use cases on how to creatively construct my artwork, actually using the tools. It was something that slowed me down, compared to just grabbing a pencil and paper and sketching out my vision.

    But once you learn to use the different tools together, you start to get a flow going and you get quicker with time.

    Alternatives Considered

    Inkscape and Affinity Designer

    Reasons for Switching to Adobe Illustrator

    I chose adobe illustrator because it is well known as being a standard in the graphic design industry. So since I knew that it was one of the top choices, I started learning AI early on. However, over the years, they changed to a subscription model, which isn't ideal for everyone, and some may opt for a one-time fee software products. If that is you, and you don't demand the top of the line features and abilities, Affinity designer is a great choice. Inkscape is also a good free version, but I don't think the latest mac OS is compatible. But if you want the best of the best, adobe illustrator is it.
    Mark
    Overall rating
    • Industry: Design
    • Company size: Self Employed
    • Used Daily for 2+ years
    • Review Source

    Overall rating

    • Value for Money
    • Ease of Use
    • Customer Support
    • Likelihood to recommend 10.0 /10

    My preview

    Reviewed on 6/5/2023

    I have used adobe illustrator for more than 10 years now and it gives more good and perfect...

    I have used adobe illustrator for more than 10 years now and it gives more good and perfect results. I highly recommend it for all creative designers.

    Pros

    Nice features and very user friendly Great tools to work to achieve a perfect outcome

    Cons

    Integration of more plugins to faster work

    Chibuike
    Overall rating
    • Industry: Professional Training & Coaching
    • Company size: 2–10 Employees
    • Used Daily for 2+ years
    • Review Source

    Overall rating

    • Value for Money
    • Ease of Use
    • Likelihood to recommend 10.0 /10

    My Adobe Illustrator Review

    Reviewed on 8/7/2022

    Adobe Illustrator has given me a platform to express my creativity and progress it. I have designed...

    Adobe Illustrator has given me a platform to express my creativity and progress it. I have designed mind-blowing logos, branded businesses, and designed presentations, and vector icons. it is the best vector design in the market.

    Pros

    Each version of Adobe Illustrator keeps getting better than the previous. I have been using it for more than 1o year and it keeps getting better. I love the Image Tracing feature than can vectorize and raster images. It even has more features. You can also stay organise by creating and customizing layers and artboards.

    Cons

    I hate it when it crashes when I'm working. I've been in a situation when I was designing a presentation. I saved the file properly and tried opening it afterward but it refuses to open. It said something that my file was corrupt. If the file is corrupt, why should it still be having a .ai extension

    Alternatives Considered

    Canva

    Reasons for Choosing Adobe Illustrator

    I had been using Corel Draw before and decided to try Adobe Illustrator, I noticed Illustrator's interface was more friendly and inviting than Corel Draw also the layers, paths, artboards, and toolbar.

    Switched From

    CorelDRAW

    Reasons for Switching to Adobe Illustrator

    I preferred Illustrator because of its advanced capabilities over Canva. Also because it's offline software.
    Sundiep
    Overall rating
    • Industry: Internet
    • Company size: Self Employed
    • Used Daily for 2+ years
    • Review Source

    Overall rating

    • Value for Money
    • Ease of Use
    • Customer Support
    • Likelihood to recommend 9.0 /10

    A reliable programme for vector and graphics work

    Reviewed on 2/2/2023

    My creativity may now be developed and expressed thanks to Adobe Illustrator. I've created...

    My creativity may now be developed and expressed thanks to Adobe Illustrator. I've created incredible logos and businesses that have become brands, presentations, and vector icons. It is the industry's top vector design. I continue to get greater outcomes every day. When it comes to web design or even branding for t-shirts or print on other products, Ai delivers the greatest tools to produce vectors and illustration designs that give wings to the imagination and fashion come alive. Ai is quite competent. Just wanted to thank the devs. I've only ever encountered the greatest design and editing firm in Adobe.

    Pros

    The amount of sophistication of Adobe Illustrator's capabilities reflects its long history and longevity. Because Adobe is so widely used, cooperation is simple and results are reliable. Each tool may be modified to suit a particular requirement or preference, and the workspace may also be customized to fit particular design scenarios. I put a lot of importance on typography. There is nothing that can compare to the fine-grained control that Adobe Illustrator offers for typing operations. On this front, Adobe benefits from decades of experience, collaborations, and the close integration between Illustrator and other Creative Cloud products, which also happen to be widely used in the design business.

    Cons

    The drawback that I can see is that it might be a bit challenging to explore all the wonderful functions that the program offers if I don't have the professional skills to operate it. Therefore, if I don't know how to accomplish that outcome, the work starts to look a bit unprofessional. I also detest it when it crashes when I'm working, which is another problem. A circumstance when I was planning a presentation happened to me. The file won't open after I correctly saved it and tried to access it later. It indicated that my file was corrupt in some way.

    Mayank
    Overall rating
    • Industry: Media Production
    • Company size: 11–50 Employees
    • Used Weekly for 1+ year
    • Review Source

    Overall rating

    • Value for Money
    • Ease of Use
    • Customer Support
    • Likelihood to recommend 8.0 /10

    Best Designer friend

    Reviewed on 26/3/2023

    Pros

    It has a very simplistic interface which makes it very easy for the user to work on their respective concepts and designing and working on layout has become very easy with the many variety of tools and features provided in the software. Makes Designing a fun work to do when using adobe illustrator.

    Cons

    Some times the software hangs if loaded with a lot of designs . Also earlier you could purchase the software , currently it’s on subscription basis making it a bit expensive .

    Showing 5 reviews of 8,364 Read all reviews

    Adobe Illustrator FAQs

    Below are some frequently asked questions for Adobe Illustrator.

    Adobe Illustrator offers the following pricing plans:

    • Starting from: US$31.49/month
    • Pricing model: Subscription
    • Free Trial: Not Available

    Individuals US$19.99/month Latest version of selected app ProSite portfolio website Typekit desktop and web fonts 20GB of cloud storage Business US$29.99/month (per license) Choice of one creative desktop app or the entire collection of 20+ apps Team website, premium fonts, and up to 100GB of storage for collaboration 24/7 technical support Additional pricing options for students & teachers, schools & universities.

    Adobe Illustrator has the following typical customers:

    Self Employed, 2–10, 11–50, 51–200, 201–500, 501–1,000, 1,001–5,000

    Adobe Illustrator supports the following languages:

    Chinese, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, Traditional Chinese, Turkish, Ukrainian

    Adobe Illustrator supports the following devices:

    Android (Mobile), iPhone (Mobile), iPad (Mobile)

    We do not have any information about what integrations Adobe Illustrator has

    Adobe Illustrator offers the following support options:

    Email/Help Desk, FAQs/Forum, Knowledge Base, Phone Support

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