Microsoft Paint FINALLY gets a new look (but was it worth the wait?)

Even if you use a PC only once in a blue moon, you've still probably used Paint in some way over the years, or decades. And you've probably noticed that Microsoft hasn't exactly gone out of its way to modernise the app. Paint's been part of Windows since the operating system's first incarnation way back in 1985, and it's clung on despite all the many other changes.

It's finally going to get a long-overdue update in the latest edition of Windows 11, giving it a new look and making it touch-friendly for both fingers and drawing accessories. Paint's strength has always been its reliable simplicity, and the update looks like it will build on that and make things even easier for users who need to create quick pieces without any fuss. For more advanced software, see our guide to the best digital art software for creatives.

Thank you for reading 5 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access

Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription

Join now for unlimited access

Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

Joe Foley

Joe is a regular freelance journalist and editor at Creative Bloq. He writes news, features and buying guides and keeps track of the best equipment and software for creatives, from video editing programs to monitors and accessories. A veteran news writer and photographer, he now works as a project manager at the London and Buenos Aires-based design, production and branding agency Hermana Creatives. There he manages a team of designers, photographers and video editors who specialise in producing visual content and design assets for the hospitality sector. He also dances Argentine tango.

Read more
CorelDRAW Go
Corel just stealth launched its most exciting app in years
Photoshop logos for every version of the software over 35 years
Photoshop at 35: tell us what you love (and what you don't)
GIMP 3.0 Interface
GIMP 3.0 review: 20 years on from 2.0, has GIMP kept up with the times?
iOS 19 concept
Apple's dramatic iPhone homescreen redesign is long overdue
krita with AI
Krita 5.2.6 review: finally, a real Photoshop alternative
The logos of three of the best digital art software programs
The best digital art software
Latest in Digital Art Software
A selection of AI-generated images created in Midjourney
"It's a watershed moment": New tool 'poisons' your art to protect it from AI
Krita lighting tutorial
How to build dramatic light in Krita
Rebelle 7 review; a painting of a golden leaf
Rebelle 7 review: the most impressive painting software I've used
Adobe Cyber Monday deal
There's not long left to get the best Adobe Cyber Monday deal ever
ZBrush 2024 Maxon One update; a colourful model of a girl made in ZBrush
ZBrush 2024 gets an upgrade
Rebelle 7; a box for an art app on a sparkly background
Rebelle 7 announced, and it's got some bling - new features revealed
Latest in News
Audi EV billboard adverts
Ingenious Audi billboards soar above the chaos in EV branding
Chupa Chups logo
The Chupa Chups logo was created by an art legend in just one hour
DC Sonic the Hedgehog comic collaboration
Sega reveals first glimpse of the Sonic DC collaboration we never knew we needed
The Dell 8K monitor on a green background, next to the text, 'Lowest price'.
The only commercially available 8K monitor is on sale with $1,771 off, and I'm intrigued
Tesla Cybertruck
Another day, another Tesla Cybertruck design fail
Pokemon loaded dice
Google AI gets Pokémon facts wrong, gamers are infuriated – and it points to a dangerous problem