GIMP 3.2 RC1 is now available in the development branch, introducing a broad set of improvements across the core, tools, plug-ins, user interface, and developer APIs, giving a clear picture of what we can expect in the final stable 3.2 version.
The release introduces native SVG export for vector, text, and link layers, extending GIMP’s capabilities for producing scalable graphics. ZIP decompression and PVR texture import are now also supported, expanding the range of image formats that can be opened.
The update refines core behavior around pass-through groups, which now apply filters based on the full bounding box rather than only child layers, allowing empty groups to act more like adjustment layers. Layer-mask handling gains an option to edit masks immediately, and non-destructive filters applied to the quick mask are correctly merged when leaving the mode.
Furthermore, text rendering has been strengthened for large dimensions, vector layers auto-rename more reliably, and GIMP now blocks destructive tools on text, link, or vector layers until they’re explicitly rasterized. A new Shift+X shortcut enables fast swapping back to the previously used tool.
On macOS, quitting from the dock now follows the standard procedure, instead of immediately terminating the application, thereby protecting unsaved work. Windows users now receive proper console output with colors and correct Ctrl-C handling, and the installer offers a dark mode option.
Additionally, running the GUI binary with --no-interface now bypasses GTK completely and behaves similarly to the console version, allowing for headless usage.
The interface also received clearer visual cues: layers or paths that block actions now blink to highlight the issue, and color-history entries can be dragged and dropped like other color widgets. Dragging a file to the tab bar opens it as a new image. Multi-selection in the document history allows loading or removing multiple entries at once, and rasterize / revert-rasterize options appear directly in the Layer menu.
Plug-ins receive multiple updates, including SVG export support, cleaner dialogs, Escape-to-close behavior, vector-path export in PDFs, and fixes for vulnerabilities in XCF and JP2 loading.
Developers gain a substantially expanded API for vector, text, and link layers, new chooser widgets, and new interfaces, such as GimpRasterizable, along with several deprecated functions marked for removal. The build system now targets babl 0.1.116 and GEGL 0.4.64, adopts updated documentation layouts, and improves Flatpak and Windows packaging.
For more information, see the announcement.
For those eager to try this version, GIMP 3.2 RC1 is currently available for Linux users as an AppImage. Windows users can install it using a standard EXE file. The downloads are here.
