Photopea Tool Manual

A concise guide to Photopea’s main tools — what each does and when to use it. Photopea is a browser-based image editor similar to Adobe Photoshop.

1. The Workspace

Toolbar (left): most tools live here — click or click-and-hold icons to access sub-tools.

Options bar (top): changes depending on active tool.

Panels (right): Layers, History, Properties, etc. — use Layers to manage stacking, visibility, and blending modes.

Tip: hover a toolbar icon to see its name and keyboard shortcut (e.g., B = Brush).

2. Key Tools & What They Do

V Move Tool

Selects and moves layers or selected content. Use transform handles to rotate/scale after moving. Make sure the correct layer is active.

M Selection Tools (Marquee, Lasso, Magic Wand)

Select parts of the image. Rectangular/Elliptical Marquee for geometric selections, Lasso for freehand, Magic Wand/Quick Select for color-based selection. Use Shift to add, Alt (or Option) to subtract. Refine edges with Select & Mask.

B Brush / Pencil / Eraser / Clone Stamp

Brush: paint soft strokes. Pencil: sharp pixel lines. Eraser: removes pixels (reveals transparency). Clone Stamp: copies pixels from a source area to retouch. Choose brush size, hardness, and opacity in the options bar.

T Text Tool

Create and edit text layers. Set font, size, color, and alignment. After typing, use the Move tool to reposition or Character/Paragraph panels to refine.

U Shape Tools

Draw vector (or pixel) shapes: Rectangle, Ellipse, Line, Polygon, Custom Shape. Set fill and stroke. Hold Shift to constrain proportions.

G Gradient / Paint Bucket / Blur

Gradient: create color transitions (linear, radial, etc.). Paint Bucket: fill an area with the foreground color or a pattern. Blur/Sharpen/Smudge: image retouching brushes.

I Eyedropper & Color Picker

Pick a color from the canvas to set the foreground (or background) color. Use X to swap foreground/background and D to reset to defaults.

P Pen Tool & Path Tools

Draw vector paths with anchor points and handles for precise curves and shapes. Use Direct/Path Selection to edit anchor points. Great for clipping paths and exact shapes.

Z Zoom & Hand Tools

Zoom in/out for detail work and use Hand (or hold Spacebar) to pan around when zoomed in.

3. Tips & Recommended Workflow

Work on separate layers for non-destructive edits.
Use Adjustment Layers and Masks rather than destroying the original pixels.
Use the Layers panel to manage stacking order, blending modes and opacity.
Use Undo (Ctrl+Z or Cmd+Z) and the History panel to backtrack mistakes.
Shortcuts speed things up: B Brush, M Marquee, T Text, V Move.
Save/export your work often (Photopea runs in the browser).