Why Adobe InDesign is still the go-to tool for professional layouts
Adobe InDesign has earned its reputation as the industry standard for professional layout design, and it’s not just because of brand recognition. While some tools can mimic the basics, there are specific design tasks that only InDesign can handle at a professional level—and for serious designers, publishers, and marketers, these features are non-negotiable.
In this article, we’ll cover 5 high-level design tasks that are virtually impossible (or extremely inefficient) to do outside of InDesign. If you’re wondering what sets InDesign apart from free tools or even other Adobe apps, this is your answer.
1. 📚 Building Long, Structured Documents with Master Pages & TOC Automation
InDesign was built for publishing. That means it’s equipped with tools that make managing long-form documents efficient, consistent, and scalable.
What InDesign offers:
- Master pages for reusable layouts across hundreds of pages
- Automatic table of contents (TOC) generation
- Running headers and footers that adapt by section
- Live page numbers, section breaks, and smart text flow
🛠️ Try doing this in Canva or Illustrator, and you’ll hit a wall after a few pages. InDesign makes it effortless—especially for books, magazines, annual reports, and proposals.
2. 🧩 Creating Complex Multi-Style Typography with Nested Styles and GREP
InDesign’s typographic engine is unmatched. While tools like Photoshop and Illustrator let you apply basic font styling, InDesign allows for automated, rule-based styling across massive documents.
Unique features:
- Paragraph and character styles
- Nested styles (e.g., bold the first sentence of every paragraph)
- GREP styles (apply styles based on text patterns using regex)
- Next Style sequencing (auto-apply the right style after headings, subheads, etc.)
💡 If you’re laying out editorial content, catalogs, or resumes with structured text, this saves hours and ensures consistency—something you simply can’t do in tools like Figma or Affinity Publisher at this level.
3. 🖱️ Advanced Object Styling, Anchoring, and Text Wrap Options
InDesign handles complex relationships between text and visuals like no other tool.
Examples only InDesign can handle easily:
- Automatically anchor images to specific text so they move together
- Wrap text around irregular image shapes with custom wrap paths
- Set object styles that include stroke, fill, effects, and text wrap settings
- Combine text and images in multi-column flow layouts with precision
📌 Tools like Illustrator don’t offer these layout-based interactions. InDesign’s page-aware intelligence makes it ideal for magazine layouts, white papers, and infographics.
4. ✨ Exporting Interactive PDFs and Online Publications
Need to create a digital experience—not just a flat PDF? InDesign is one of the few tools that can export interactive, responsive, multimedia-rich documents.
What you can do in InDesign:
- Add buttons, hyperlinks, forms, and videos
- Build slide shows and tabbed content
- Export as Interactive PDF or Publish Online (with built-in hosting)
- Embed navigation (TOC, jump links, next/prev buttons)
💡 InDesign’s interactivity features turn static documents into engaging presentations and marketing tools—without needing code or third-party plugins.
5. 🗂️ Preflight, Bleeds, Slugs, and Press-Ready Packaging
Designing for print production? This is where InDesign shines. It’s not just about looking good on screen—it’s about creating a file a printer can actually use.
Why print designers rely on InDesign:
- Live Preflight panel that checks for errors (missing fonts, overset text, low-res images)
- Built-in bleed and slug guides for accurate trimming and folding
- Export presets for print, PDF/X-4, EPUB, and press-optimized files
- Package function that collects all fonts, links, and settings for handoff
🎯 This is professional-grade output preparation—and it’s simply not replicable in most general-purpose design tools.
Final Thoughts: The InDesign Advantage
There’s a reason InDesign is a staple at design studios, publishing houses, marketing agencies, and universities: no other tool offers the same depth, control, and automation for layout work.
Whether you’re producing a magazine, a print catalog, an interactive whitepaper, or a book ready for press, InDesign is the only tool that delivers true professional polish and production readiness—end to end.
