I'd previously tried enhancing in Lightroom and Photoshop, but StarTools was far easier and far more effective.M. D., United States
I'm relatively new to image processing and just wanted to say how straight forward and powerful StarTools is. Thanks for all your hard work and a fantastic product that I can't recommend strongly enough!L. B., United States
As a relative newcomer to Astrophotography, I struggled with post processing using GIMP and other non-aware astro software; then stumbled upon Star Tools a year ago and haven't looked back.N. Gialiris, Canada
Although you can go deep with StarTools, I think for beginners in processing, it is more easy to start working with it than some other software, like GIMP I used to work with.F. M., Belgium
I'm now creating gorgeous images from even mediocre data with very little effort using StarTools.G. B., United States
I discovered StarTools and my photos are now amazing. Thank you StarTools for turning my average photos into amazing ones.R. Forest, Canada
The code and the theory behind it are truly innovative and much easier to use than the competition.E. O., United States
I'm impressed with StarTools, in the sense that it might possible have the best simplicity of use/results ratio of all. I managed to process my fist image in 20 minutes after my first contact with StarTools.P.A., Portugal
No nonsense, affordable astro software that just works.S. Sheriff, Spain
Since I've discovered Star Tools I feel that processing can be something faster, easier and much more intuitive compared with other software. It has really powerful tools not seen in other programs.A. Roig, Barcelona, Catalunya
StarTools does more than just help you make "pretty pictures". It teaches you how to "read" your data, to better understand the objects you're looking at.D. H., United States
Your truly innovative and powerful software continues to amaze and delight me!D. Zielke, Canada
Your software makes intuitive sense to me. It is easy and automatic enough to get good results almost immediately, but powerful enough to tweak even more from my data once some time is spent playing with it.P. Brand, Australia
Congratulations for your huge and wonderful masterpiece in image post processing!M. Cecconi, Fundación Galileo Galilei - INAF, Fundación Canaria, Spain
It seemed easy to navigate and concise, but still crammed with advanced functions. Even without reading the documentation in any detail I managed to produce something half decent from a single sub!T. Murray, United Kingdom
I tried your 'Startools' today and was blown away with its blinding speed and unique functionality.R. Higby, Australia
Such a wonderful piece of software.G. Stevens, Australia
StarTools offers a breath of fresh air in a field that at times can be complex and bewildering.BBC The Sky at Night Magazine, April 2013
Having acquired StarTools I'm now starting to feel confident with what I can do in this hobby. And that's a bloody good thing!!M. Vecchi, Australia
I love love love your StarTools! Please keep up the good work! Its an amazing piece of image processing software. I am so glad I found your StarTools.A. Svahins, United States
This ingenious software in my opinion out performs all previous packages I have used in the past.P. Scully, South Africa
Underneath its simple front interface is a powerhouse of tools.BBC The Sky at Night Magazine, April 2013
I am impressed with the ease of working with the package compared to MaxIm DL Pro 5, PI and PSCS2/3/4 with which I am very familiar.J. Giles, Australia
There are many clever things about StarTools, but the most impressive is the way it rejuvenates image processing by combining more primitive algorithms into new routines.BBC The Sky at Night Magazine, April 2013
- Home
- Download
Download
One ZIP archive contains Windows, macOS and Linux versions of StarTools. Do not download StarTools from anywhere else but startools.org. We do not allow distribution of StarTools by any other party, on-line or off-line.
macOS notes
Users may have to "unquarantine" StarTools, before the OS allows it to run. Alternatively StarTools can be launched via control + clicking (right clicking) on the application, Show Package Contents, navigating to Contents/MacOS and clicking on the application.
The following command unquarantines StarTools;
xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine StarTools.app
See the screenshots for more information, or download this detailed guide.
Download stable
StarTools 1.7.461 Maintenance Release 6 for Windows 32-bit, Windows 64-bit, Windows 64-bit/GPU, macOS/GPU 64-bit, Linux 32-bit, Linux 64-bit, Linux 64-bit/GPU (6.7MB)
Latest version released 2021-04-12 (YYYY/MM/DD)
Download bleeding edge
StarTools 1.8.521 Release Candidate 1 for Windows 64-bit, Windows 64-bit/GPU, macOS Universal Intel/ARM/GPU 64-bit, Linux 64-bit, Linux 64-bit/GPU (6.8MB)
Latest version released 2021-11-26 (YYYY/MM/DD)
Please note that Release Candidates may still be subject to minor changes, and may contain small bugs, rare instabilities or other quirks. Please use at your own risk. Documentation for new modules and features is under development here.
English manual
StarTools uses AIFE.AI for content management and digital footprint. This means that the website content doubles as a printable manual and vice-versa. This content is also available as a smartphone/tablet app, virtual flipbook, virtual reality (VR) experience and more. This content will always be up-to-date with the latest information.
Unofficial English manual
Unofficial English StarTools 1.7 Manual (147MB), last updated 2021-05-09, with tips, tricks and information from various sources.
Many thanks to J. Scharmann for putting together this excellent work, as well as its German translation.
Unofficial German manual / Inoffizielle Deutsche Anleitung
Inoffizielle StarTools 1.7 Anleitung in Deutsch (147MB), letztes Update 2021-05-10.
Vielen Dank an J. Scharmann für die ausgezeichnete Übersetzung.
Unoffical Spanish manual / Manual en Espanol
Manual de StarToolsBasado en la versión 1.7 al español (7.9MB). Ultima actualizacion 2021-03-22.
Muchas gracias a C. R. Guixé por la excelente traducción.
Unoffical Spanish manual / Manual en Espanol 1.7 alpha
Manual de StarTools Basado en la versión 1.7 alpha al español (8.2MB). Ultima actualizacion 2020-10-29.
Muchas gracias a C. R. Guixé por la excelente traducción.
If your GPU or iGPU appears to be unstable on your Windows operating system in StarTools, and you think it may be struggling with any larger datasets you give it, then the issue may be caused an unsuitable Timeout Detection and Recovery (TDR) allowance.
The minimum specifications to run StarTools depends mostly on the resolution the data you intend to process.
StarTools works on Windows, Linux and macOS.
StarTools is display-device agnostic, but can be configured to display its GUI at a 4x higher resolution to accommodate high-DPI devices and 4K displays.
Some less reputable virus scanners such as BitDefender, Norton and SpyBot may falsely report StarTools as a Trojan or Potentially Unwanted Program (due to malware that carries a similar name). Despite multiple users going through the lengths of getting StarTools white listed, the same problem pops up every 6 months or so.
StarTools uses all your CPU's cores to speed up processing in situations where it makes sense. As of 1.7, however, StarTools will offload suitable, heavy arithmetic to your GPU as well.
As of version 1.7, StarTools offloads suitable, heavy arithmetic to your system's GPU.
StarTools supports virtually all modern GPUs and iGPUs on all modern Operating Systems.
The 32-bit version is meant for older computers with less memory and/or a 32-bit Operating System.
StarTools is a completely native, self-contained application that does not require any further installation of helper libraries or run-time frameworks.
If you had bothered to read the 'buy' page, you would have learned that you could spare yourself the effort of writing a keygen or crack - if you can't afford the license fee and you are a genuine enthusiast, we're happy to work something out!
Download Android Tech Demo
StarTools 1.3.204 for Android 1.6+ Technology Demo (1.5 MB)
NOTE: Put any file you want to load in /sdcard root and name it 'file.tiff'
I'd previously tried enhancing in Lightroom and Photoshop, but StarTools was far easier and far more effective.M. D., United States
I'm relatively new to image processing and just wanted to say how straight forward and powerful StarTools is. Thanks for all your hard work and a fantastic product that I can't recommend strongly enough!L. B., United States
As a relative newcomer to Astrophotography, I struggled with post processing using GIMP and other non-aware astro software; then stumbled upon Star Tools a year ago and haven't looked back.N. Gialiris, Canada
Although you can go deep with StarTools, I think for beginners in processing, it is more easy to start working with it than some other software, like GIMP I used to work with.F. M., Belgium
I'm now creating gorgeous images from even mediocre data with very little effort using StarTools.G. B., United States
I discovered StarTools and my photos are now amazing. Thank you StarTools for turning my average photos into amazing ones.R. Forest, Canada
The code and the theory behind it are truly innovative and much easier to use than the competition.E. O., United States
I'm impressed with StarTools, in the sense that it might possible have the best simplicity of use/results ratio of all. I managed to process my fist image in 20 minutes after my first contact with StarTools.P.A., Portugal
No nonsense, affordable astro software that just works.S. Sheriff, Spain
Since I've discovered Star Tools I feel that processing can be something faster, easier and much more intuitive compared with other software. It has really powerful tools not seen in other programs.A. Roig, Barcelona, Catalunya
StarTools does more than just help you make "pretty pictures". It teaches you how to "read" your data, to better understand the objects you're looking at.D. H., United States
Your truly innovative and powerful software continues to amaze and delight me!D. Zielke, Canada
Your software makes intuitive sense to me. It is easy and automatic enough to get good results almost immediately, but powerful enough to tweak even more from my data once some time is spent playing with it.P. Brand, Australia
Congratulations for your huge and wonderful masterpiece in image post processing!M. Cecconi, Fundación Galileo Galilei - INAF, Fundación Canaria, Spain
It seemed easy to navigate and concise, but still crammed with advanced functions. Even without reading the documentation in any detail I managed to produce something half decent from a single sub!T. Murray, United Kingdom
I tried your 'Startools' today and was blown away with its blinding speed and unique functionality.R. Higby, Australia
Such a wonderful piece of software.G. Stevens, Australia
StarTools offers a breath of fresh air in a field that at times can be complex and bewildering.BBC The Sky at Night Magazine, April 2013
Having acquired StarTools I'm now starting to feel confident with what I can do in this hobby. And that's a bloody good thing!!M. Vecchi, Australia
I love love love your StarTools! Please keep up the good work! Its an amazing piece of image processing software. I am so glad I found your StarTools.A. Svahins, United States
This ingenious software in my opinion out performs all previous packages I have used in the past. P. Scully, South Africa
Underneath its simple front interface is a powerhouse of tools.BBC The Sky at Night Magazine, April 2013
I am impressed with the ease of working with the package compared to MaxIm DL Pro 5, PI and PSCS2/3/4 with which I am very familiar.J. Giles, Australia
There are many clever things about StarTools, but the most impressive is the way it rejuvenates image processing by combining more primitive algorithms into new routines.BBC The Sky at Night Magazine, April 2013