Whether you plan to design t-shirts for business or personal use, the software you choose to use matters.. a lot. It can either make this task easier and faster, or it can trap you into spending countless hours of editing. While Photoshop remains the most popular among them, there are plenty of other options.
I’ve listed the top 11 software solutions which can help bring your creative projects to life. With several brush tools and other cool features, you are are free to create any design you can think of.
The only limit is your imagination! 😉
Here is the top 11 T-shirt design software you need to know about:
1. CorelDraw Graphics Suite
CorelDraw Graphic Suite is one of the most recognizable names on this list. If you are familiar with CorelDraw, you can use it for designing T-shirts.
It is a vector graphics software that allows users to design just about anything including T-shirts. It offers a wide variety of color options, clip art, and fonts you can use for designing T-shirts.
With its powerful features, CorelDraw Graphics Suite might be hard for beginners to use. It is quite expensive, costing $699 for a license. But you can try it for free with its 15-Day free trial.
2. Adobe Illustrator
Adobe Illustrator is another familiar name on this list. The program can be used for designing custom T-shirts and different other types of apparel. Adobe Illustrator has a wide variety of features, effects, shapes, and fonts to help you come up with the T-shirt design of your needs. However, you will be required to pay for the subscription, which costs $19 a month. However, like CorelDraw, it is not beginner-friendly.
3. Flash T-Shirt Design Software
The Flash T-Shirt Design Software provides its users with an incredibly good quality of service. It offers a wide variety of design options that allow you to choose the text, color, and size of the clip art you would like to use. It even has an e-commerce solution that helps you better manage your business. You can even process payments that customers make automatically using the software since it is easy to link it to popular payment gateways.
Note: Their demo video is v.2011, but if you go to their website, they alreayd have v.2017 update.
4. T-Shirt Factory Deluxe
T-Shirt Factory Deluxe was created by Art Explosion. It should not be a problem at all to use the program to design custom T-shirts and other apparel. You can use it for designing all kinds of T-shirts including shirts with a business logo and photo T-shirts.
Once you have finished designing, you can print out your design on a transfer paper. You can then transfer the design to any type of apparel by just ironing it and peeling.
5. GIMP
Indeed, GIMP is best known for being an image editing software. But you can use it for creating custom T-shirt designs. The software contains all features you would ever need when creating a custom T-shirt design. The brush, text, art, etc. that comes with the software make the process of designing T-shirts quite simple. You just need to get a T-shirt sample from the Internet then start designing.
6. GraffixPro Studio
GraffixPro Studio has an impressive list of features to offer. It has an amazing collection of fonts, artwork, garment templates, and image library. It is an incredibly comprehensive T-shirt design software application. It has a free trial version but you can still buy the full software for just below $900.
7. CustomInk
The Design Lab over at CustomInk.com is an amazing online service for designing custom T-shirts. It has hundreds of clipart with various sections such as tech, people, transportation, parties, nature, animals, and so on to help you achieve the desired look of your T-shirts. You are even free to use personalized numbers and names to create a group jersey for your group or team.
This online shirt design platform is mainly used by those who order custom prints from CustomInk. However, they do provide you an option to ‘print’ (save) a copy of your design. Perfect for beginners, you can use this tool to get your feet wet and start designing shirts.
8. FatPaint
When it comes to designing diverse and cool T-shirts for people of different ages, FatPaint is one of the best. This free only graphic design software comes highly recommended even for beginners. It is user-friendly and gives you the freedom to enjoy and play around with the features it has to offer. The software brings with it an impressive list of features including flexible design templates and amazing responsiveness.
9. SonicShack T-Shirt Designer
The great thing about SonicShack T-shirt Designer is that it is quite easy to use. It is completely free and has a collection of tools that allow you to choose an item to design. It is quite easy to alter the text, art, and color. The software is great since it can be used for designing other clothing items such as caps.
10. Tee Designer
Available for download at GitHub.com, Tee Designer is another amazing tool for designing custom T-shirts . The software allows you to design either a hoodie or a T-shirt. Design the front and back sides of your T-shirt using the software. You can even add images and logos and if you want to add a custom image you simply have to upload it and include it in your design. It is javascript-based software that runs on your local server, which means that you don’t actually even have to install it. Simply download it to your computer and it will be ready to run.
11. Almamaster Store
Similar to CustomInk, Almamaster Store is another incredible online tool for helping you design custom T-shirts. The website can even provide you with the T-shirt with your design on it if you so wish. Just visit the website, create your custom design, save it, then share with friends. If you would like to buy a T-shirt with the design, simply order it. You have a wide variety of tools such as text, number, note, art, text, brush, and so on to help you create the design of your choice.
The Bottom Line..
Designing your own custom T-shirts either for business or for pleasure requires all the help that you can get. T-shirt design software is one of the most important tools for helping you design custom T-shirts easily and quickly. The 11 T-shirt design software discussed here are some of the best in the market. It is now up to you to determine the best option for your needs.
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