Adobe Photoshop/Elements on MacBook 2013 Big Sur

I believe that Adobe has stopped selling versions of Photoshop Elements that are compatible with Big Sur.

Adobe – Adobe Photoshop Elements system requirements

Adobe Photoshop Element 2026 requires at least macOS 14.4 (Sonoma). It also has an artificial time bomb (which Adobe calls a "three-year term license"). That means that Photoshop Elements 2026 will stop working three years after you start using it, even if it is otherwise still compatible with your machine.

Following the links to system requirements for older versions, it seems that the ones that supported Big Sur were

• Photoshop Elements 2023
• Photoshop Elements 2022
• Photoshop Elements 2021

That would leave you with the problem of finding a legitimate copy of one of those applications, and then getting Adobe to let you activate it. Looks like all of those versions of Elements are encumbered by DRM; it would not be enough just to have an original disk if it turned out that Adobe had shut down activation.

The story would be similar for full Photoshop (which for Big Sur, was only available through rental / subscription).

Adobe – Adobe Photoshop on desktop technical requirements

Alternatives:

• As long as you don't want the premium AI features, the basic version of Affinity Studio will run on Catalina and up, and is free with registration. This application combines the functions of the Affinity Photo, Designer, & Publisher applications into a single program.
• The GNU Image Processing Program (GIMP) is free and will run on Big Sur and up.
• GraphicConverter 12 is an inexpensive photo editing program that will run on High Sierra up to Sequoia. (I'm not sure about Tahoe.). You can download and play with a trial version for free to help decide if this is something you might want to buy.