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Best Productivity ResourcesBy Shushant LakhyaniVerified creator

Desktop App

Scribus

Free, open-source desktop publishing for brochures, magazines and print-ready PDFs.

Visit Scribus4.2

  • Rating

    4.2 / 5

  • Pricing

    Free

  • Difficulty

    Intermediate

  • Works on

    Windows, macOS, Linux

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What is Scribus?

Scribus is a free, open-source desktop publishing app for laying out brochures, newsletters, posters, magazines and books, and exporting print-ready PDFs. It is free software under the GNU GPL (version 2 or later) and runs on Windows, macOS and Linux. The latest stable release is Scribus 1.6.6 (April 2026).

Pros: what Scribus does well

  • Free and open source (GPL)
  • Real page layout tools for print and PDF
  • Runs on Windows, macOS and Linux

Cons: where it falls short

  • Takes time to learn if you are new to page layout
  • Interface feels dated next to commercial apps

Who Scribus is for

Anyone laying out print documents who does not want an InDesign subscription.

Who can skip it

People making quick social posts from templates.

Scribus alternatives

Not sold on Scribus? These do a similar job, and each card says what it has in common.

All Writing resources

Handy

Focus: speech to text, dictation and whisper. Shares open source with Scribus. Rated 4.7 (Scribus: 4.2).

Desktop AppFreeWindows, macOS
4.7Visit

MuseScore Studio

Focus: music notation, sheet music and composition. Shares open source with Scribus. Rated 4.7 (Scribus: 4.2).

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows
4.7Visit

micro

Focus: text editor, terminal and ssh. Shares open source with Scribus. Rated 4.6 (Scribus: 4.2).

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows
4.6Visit

VSCodium

Focus: code editor, vs code and privacy. Shares open source with Scribus. Adds Offline. Rated 4.6 (Scribus: 4.2).

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows
4.6Visit

LibreOffice

Focus: office suite, word processor and spreadsheets. Shares open source with Scribus. Rated 4.5 (Scribus: 4.2).

Desktop AppFreeWindows, macOS
4.5Visit

Free alternatives to Scribus

Want to spend nothing? These free picks cover similar ground.

OpenWhispr

Focus: dictation, speech to text and whisper. Shares open source with Scribus. Rated 4.5 (Scribus: 4.2).

Desktop AppFreeWindows, macOS
4.5Visit

Lapce

Focus: code editor, rust and plugins. Shares open source with Scribus. Rated 4.4 (Scribus: 4.2).

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows
4.4Visit

Stop Slop

Focus: writing, ai and editing. Shares open source with Scribus. An AI tool, not a desktop app. Rated 4.8 (Scribus: 4.2).

AI ToolFreeCross-Platform
4.8Visit

Prompt Master

Focus: prompt engineering, claude and skill. Shares open source with Scribus. An AI tool, not a desktop app. Adds Web. Rated 4.7 (Scribus: 4.2).

AI ToolFreeWeb, Cross-Platform
4.7Visit

Reactive Resume

Focus: resume, cv builder and job search. Shares open source with Scribus. A web app, not a desktop app. Adds Web. Rated 4.7 (Scribus: 4.2).

Web AppFreeWeb, Cross-Platform
4.7Visit

AutoKey

Focus: text expansion, automation and shortcuts. Shares open source with Scribus. An automation tool, not a desktop app. Rated 4.4 (Scribus: 4.2).

Automation ToolFreeLinux
4.4Visit
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