GIMP 3.2.8: RTL text, coloured borders and security fixes

GIMP 3.2.8 is out as the fourth maintenance update in the current stable series, which first launched in March 2026. According to the release coverage, no major new features ship, as fixes and fine-tuning are the main focus; larger work is being done alongside maintenance but is aimed at the next major series. Compared with the 3.2.6 update in September, dialogs open in better initial positions, the Preferences page loads faster, and the Add Border filter now allows the creation of colourful semi-transparent borders.

The text tool's support for right-to-left languages has been strengthened: arrow keys behave correctly and direction icons appear in the on-canvas interface. If text direction is not set, the Unicode Bidirectional Algorithm chooses one based on the first character typed. A gotcha was also fixed when editing linked layer files, described as GIMP's version of Photoshop's Smart Objects: the attributes dialog no longer allows clicking OK while a linked file is still being added, while Cancel remains selectable.

Performance tweaks include better caching for large gradients of up to 6000px and a more efficient marching ants animation, while HEIF loading code was adjusted to allow larger images to load. A new GUI testing suite was added for developers, which the team says will help check for regressions during development rather than after.

The update also includes platform-specific fixes for the macOS and Windows versions, covering theme matching, printing and windowing behaviour, plus a small set of security updates plugging recently discovered vulnerabilities in libraries GIMP uses. The latest version is available from the official website as Linux AppImages and official installers for Windows and macOS, for 64-bit Intel/AMD and 64-bit ARM devices; it is also on Flathub and the Snap Store, and Windows users can get it from the Microsoft Store.

If installed from a vendor store, the update is delivered there, so users should check.