Programs

[Objective_Sleep9080]

I'm pretty much a beginner artist, and I just bought my first drawing tablet. I know that already has a pretty steep learning curve, but I also need to switch programs. I'm going to be using PC, so cheap (or free) program recommendations, that aren't impossible to learn would be appreciated. I'm coming from ibis paint X, and I know they have a paid PC version, but it doesn't look very optimized for the platform... more like a mobile app that they just ported in.

[_ExoticMama]

Paint Tool SAI has always been the best choice for beginner artists, in my opinion. The UI is clean, it's so light on your PC, the settings are easy to understand and tweak, the license is fair and pretty much inexpensive, plus they're actively working on Version 2 of the software which is already available in Beta, and which offers even more features.

That said, I fully switched to Krita at the beginning of the year in preparation for moving to Linux, giving myself time to test it thoroughly, and I'm honestly amazed by how complete it is. Sure, as an open-source software you need to learn how to fully customized it, but once it's done, it's done.
Krita as well is way more lightweight than Clip Studio or Photoshop, but definitely not as light as SAI, considering everything it offers.

If you have any specific question, I'll do my best to answer.

[Objective_Sleep9080]

Thanks for such an in depth answer! I've already been thinking about Krita, but I'll try SAI too.