Adobe Lightroom shrinks Adobe's heavyweight editing software down to fit your phone, with manual sliders, AI Quick Actions, and preset filters. It made my roundup of the best camera apps for iPhone and Android for its editing depth, but the free tier delivered far less than I expected from an Adobe product.
I went in assuming Lightroom would be the strongest editor of the group. I came out convinced that you'll need to subscribe to see what Lightroom can really do, which is why it earned a middle of the pack rating from me.
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- Free, subscription for full features
- Adobe account required
- Available for iPhone and Android
What is Adobe Lightroom?
Lightroom is a mobile photo editor that combines manual editing controls with AI shortcuts and a community feed for sharing edits. The app asks you to create an Adobe account before you can touch a single photo, and there's no way to skip that step and preview the editor first.
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Three tabs keep everything organized
The home screen splits into three tabs: one for every photo uploaded from your phone, one for editing, and one for a community feed where people share edits and trade prompts. The layout is easy to learn, even if you've never opened Adobe software before.
The community tab was the weakest part of the app. It felt less like an active group and more like a ghost thread when I checked it, so I doubt many people spend time in that part of Lightroom.
Manual editing is simple, but Quick Actions test your patience
Editing any image starts with picking a photo, then choosing a Quick Action or digging into individual sliders for light, color, blur, detail, optics, profiles, and saturation. Those sliders give you far more precision than a filter app, and they're the best reason to download Lightroom on the free tier.
The Quick Actions took close to six minutes to load on both my iPhone 11 and my Samsung Galaxy S24 FE. By the third minute, I seriously questioned whether they were worth the wait.
Image: Jessica Santero | WhistleOut
Once a few Quick Actions finally loaded, I applied the adaptive subject preset to a photo of a dog I was dog-sitting. The result looked fine, but nothing stood out, since it's one of the few actions available without a subscription.
Should you pay for Adobe Lightroom?
Lightroom is worth paying for only if you plan to do serious manual editing on your phone. Most of its premium tools sit behind the subscription, and those tools are undoubtedly better than the handful of free actions I tested. The manual sliders alone make Lightroom a capable free editor, but capable isn't the same as impressive when the headline features stay locked away.
Casual photographers have better free options
If you mostly edit selfies and quick social posts, VSCO gives away far more editing tools for free and suggests edits the moment you upload. iPhone owners who want personality over precision will have more fun with Hipstamatic's film filters, and A Color Story is the better fit if every edit is headed straight to Instagram.
Lightroom makes the most sense for photographers who already know what every slider does and want those controls in their pocket. For everyone else, the free version feels more like a demo than a finished app, and a six-minute wait for a preset is hard to justify when faster editors cost nothing.
How I tested Adobe Lightroom
- Timed Quick Action loading on both an iPhone 11 and a Samsung Galaxy S24 FE to see whether the delay was device-specific.
- Edited the same untouched test photo used across the roundup with both manual sliders and the free adaptive subject preset.
- Checked the community tab for active posts, shared edits, and prompts.
- Stayed on the free tier to measure how much of Lightroom you can use without a subscription.
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Adobe Lightroom: FAQ
Is Adobe Lightroom free on mobile?
Lightroom is free to download, but most useful features require a subscription. Current pricing is listed on the App Store and Google Play pages.
Do you need an Adobe account to use Lightroom?
Yes, Lightroom requires you to create an Adobe account before you can edit anything in the app.
How long do Lightroom Quick Actions take to load?
In my testing, Quick Actions took close to six minutes to load on both an iPhone 11 and a Samsung Galaxy S24 FE. Start with the manual sliders if you don't want to wait.
Is Lightroom better than VSCO?
Lightroom offers deeper manual editing controls, but VSCO gives you far more tools for free. Casual photographers will get more out of VSCO without paying.
Jessica Santero
Staff Writer
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