Gwenview vs HawkView
Gwenview
apps.kde.org
HawkView
hawkview.coSide by side
| Figure | Gwenview | HawkView |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 1 | 2 |
| Spec score · Photo Viewer Software | 7.7 (#12) | 7.6 (#15) |
| Distribution | KDE lists Linux installation through AppStream application stores or a distribution’s package manager, and links to Flathub. | HawkView is offered through the Microsoft Store and as a direct installer or portable ZIP; the installer runs for the current user without admin rights. |
| Editing | It can rotate, crop, resize, mirror, flip, reduce red eye, and adjust brightness, contrast, or gamma. | It offers cropping, straightening, flipping and lossless 90-degree JPEG rotation, with edits held in memory until saved or discarded. |
| Privacy | KDE says its software generally does not transfer information from users’ devices except after an explicit user action; any telemetry, where present, is opt-in and disabled by default. | The app keeps images, edits and settings on the computer and has no accounts, sign-up, ads or tracking; update checks and anonymous crash reports are optional network uses. |
| Support | The Gwenview page links to its handbook, community forum, and bug reporting page for help and issue reporting. | Users can contact HawkView through its contact form or the listed support email. |
Plans
In their own words
HawkView
HawkView is a Windows image viewer for viewing, editing, converting, and presenting images. It supports around 40 formats, including HEIC, AVIF, JPEG XL, camera RAW, PSD, SVG, and animated formats. Its GPU-accelerated viewer streams visible areas of images up to 64 megapixels using 512-pixel tiling. Editing includes cropping, straightening, flipping, and lossless 90-degree JPEG rotation, with changes held in memory until saved or discarded. Slideshows provide 36 transitions, background music, and MP4 export at 720p, 1080p, or 4K. The app reads and edits more than 40 EXIF, IPTC, and XMP fields and displays geotagged photos on OpenStreetMap; locations can open in Google Maps. Images, edits, and settings remain on the computer, with no accounts, sign-up, ads, or tracking. Update checks and anonymous crash reports are optional network uses. HawkView supports 64-bit x64 Windows 10 and 11 and is distributed through the Microsoft Store, direct installer, or portable ZIP. Personal use is free; professional or commercial use requires a paid license.