If you moved from a Windows PC to a Mac, you may have looked for Paint and come up empty. The Paint app is part of Windows, and macOS has nothing quite like it built in. That still leaves you a few ways to sketch, mark up a screenshot or add a note to a photo. Your Mac already has Markup tools in Preview and Photos, a couple of installable apps aim to be as simple as Paint, and an editor that runs in a web browser needs no install at all.
Why your Mac has no Paint-style app
Apple once had its own simple drawing program, MacPaint, but it was dropped long ago. Since then, macOS has not shipped a basic paint program, and no Mac app is the same as Paint, though a few aim to be close. What the Mac does have is a set of Markup tools inside two apps built into macOS, which cover quick drawing on an existing picture.
Draw on a picture with Markup in Preview
Preview is built into macOS, and its Markup toolbar lets you draw straight onto a picture without installing anything. The toolbar's buttons can look a little different from one macOS version to the next.
- Open the picture in Preview.
- If you don't see the Markup tools, choose View > Show Markup Toolbar, or click the Markup button in the toolbar.
- Click the scribble icon in the Markup toolbar and drag across the picture to draw by hand with your mouse or trackpad.
- Use the other buttons on the same toolbar to add shapes, type text on the image or place a signature.
Mark up a photo in the Photos app
Photos has the same kind of Markup tools for photos in the Photos app. They suit highlighting with a shape, adding a note or a freehand sketch, rather than detailed artwork.
- Open the picture in Photos.
- Click Edit near the top right of the window.
- Click the Extensions button (the circle with three dots), then choose Markup.
- Pick the pen, a shape or the text tool and draw on the photo.
Install a Paint-style app
For a separate program with a canvas and a tool box, a couple of Mac apps are built to feel like Paint:
- Paintbrush is a light app in the classic style, close to Paint, with almost nothing to learn.
- Paint X has the basic Paint tools, such as a pencil, eraser, fill, text and selection, and its maker's page offers both a free download and a paid purchase option.
Use the Paint on this site in your browser
The Paint on this site runs in a browser tab, so it works on a Mac with nothing to install. It keeps the classic layout, with the tool box down the left side and the color box along the bottom. The tool box holds tools such as Pencil, Brush, Fill With Color, Text and Select. File > Open loads an image file from your computer, and File > Save downloads the picture in PNG format. As you work, the editor also autosaves the picture in your browser's storage, so reloading the page brings it back.