Best Picasso Alternatives
ranked by AI · updated Aug 2026
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Picasso is an open-source Android library for downloading, decoding, caching, and displaying images in applications. It targets Android developers and provides a concise API with automatic memory and disk caching, transformations, and request cancellation.
π‘ Pick it when shared Kotlin and Compose image loading across multiple platforms matters more than Android-only maturity.
Kamel is a Kotlin Multiplatform asynchronous image-loading library with Compose support. It provides image decoding, memory and disk caching, and platform integrations...
Pros
Supports shared Kotlin code across Android, iOS, desktop, and other targets
Compose-oriented API is better suited to multiplatform UI than Picasso
Includes memory and disk caching without requiring a platform-specific loader
Cons
Smaller ecosystem and community than Glide, Coil, or Fresco
Fewer Android-specific integrations and tuning options than established loaders
Multiplatform setup can add complexity to Android-only projects
π‘ Pick it for polished Compose loading states and transitions when Picasso's basic image view API is too limited.
Landscapist is a Jetpack Compose image-loading library that provides composable APIs, loading states, transitions, and integrations with loaders such as Coil, Glide,...
Pros
Provides richer Compose loading states and transitions than Picasso
Can use multiple underlying image-loading engines
Reduces repetitive UI code for placeholders, errors, and success states
Cons
Compose-only rather than a general replacement for Picasso's view APIs
Adds an abstraction layer and dependency on an underlying loader
Less appropriate for legacy XML-based Android interfaces