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Excalidraw description
Excalidraw is a user-friendly, web-based drawing tool that mimics the look and feel of hand-drawn visuals. It's free to use and requires no signup, offering a simple and direct platform for brainstorming and diagramming. Excalidraw is known for its collaborative features, allowing real-time teamwork on a shared digital whiteboard. For advanced features like cloud storage, presentation mode, and administrative controls, a paid “Plus” version is available.
Who is Excalidraw best for
Excalidraw is a collaborative digital whiteboard perfect for teams who love the feel of sketching on paper but need the convenience of a digital tool. Users praise its intuitive interface and real-time collaboration, making brainstorming and diagramming effortless. While some find the limited advanced design features a drawback, many appreciate its minimalist approach for quick sketches and diagrams.
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Best for small to mid-sized teams needing a simple yet powerful diagramming tool.
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A versatile tool suitable for various industries, particularly software development and project management.
Excalidraw features
| Supported Excalidraw supports real-time collaboration, allowing team members to simultaneously edit diagrams. |
| Supported Excalidraw supports the ability to drag and drop shapes and connectors to create diagrams. |
| Supported Excalidraw supports sharing diagrams with others, granting them view or edit access. |
| Supported Excalidraw supports commenting on specific parts of diagrams, but only in the Excalidraw Plus version. |
| Supported Excalidraw supports exporting diagrams as PNG files. |
| Supported Excalidraw supports exporting diagrams as SVG files. |
| Supported Shapes can be customized, including colors, sizes, and styles. |
We evaluate the sentiment that users express about non-functional aspects of the software
Value and Pricing Transparency
Ease of Use
Ease of Implementation
Excalidraw reviews
We've summarised 25 Excalidraw reviews (Excalidraw G2 reviews) and summarised the main points below.
- Intuitive and user-friendly interface, making it easy to create diagrams.
- Real-time collaboration features enhance teamwork and idea sharing.
- Hand-drawn aesthetic provides a unique and engaging visual style.
- Wide range of export options for easy integration.
- Minimalist design minimizes distractions and promotes focus.
- Limited advanced design tools, caters mostly to quick sketches and diagrams.
- Default handwriting font is not universally loved.
- No native app for iOS/iPad.
- External images and SVGs cannot be edited within the tool.
- Subscription cost for Excalidraw+ is considered expensive by some.
Excalidraw pricing
The commentary is based on 5 reviews from Excalidraw G2 reviews.
Excalidraw is praised for its generous free tier, offering robust functionality for most users. While some advanced features require a subscription, many reviewers find the free version sufficient for their diagramming and sketching needs. One reviewer considers the subscription too expensive.
Users sentiment
Excalidraw alternatives
Draw.ioBetter suited for IT and Telco. Has broader industry applicability. Growing faster. More extensive shape library.Read more
excalidraw vs MiroBetter for enterprise customers and integrates with other tools. More widely adopted across industries. Has more momentum as a company.Read more
Lucid Visual Collaboration SuiteBetter for enterprise customers. More integrations with popular enterprise tools. Lucid Visual Collaboration Suite is known for its extensive templates and diagramming features. It is considered a more robust and feature-rich Excalidraw alternative but has a higher cost.Read more
JointJSBetter for developers needing interactive diagrams within web apps. More suitable for medium to large businesses in Software, IT, and Telecommunications. Offers highly customizable features, but has a steeper learning curve and limited documentation. Pricing generally considered less favorable.Read more
digstack.comBetter for teams working within and outside organizations. Offers pre-built templates. No hand-drawn style, SVG export, or PNG export.Read more
VisioBetter suited for creating professional diagrams and charts. Stronger Microsoft ecosystem integration. More established, but has slower momentum.Read more
Excalidraw FAQ
What is Excalidraw and what does Excalidraw do?
Excalidraw is a free, web-based drawing tool perfect for creating hand-drawn-style visuals. It excels at collaborative brainstorming and diagramming with features like real-time editing and a shared digital whiteboard. A paid "Plus" version unlocks additional features.
How does Excalidraw integrate with other tools?
Excalidraw integrates with other tools primarily through its export options, allowing you to save your work as PNG or SVG files. It also offers integrations with Microsoft Teams, Slack, and Google Drive through its paid Excalidraw Plus version.
What the main competitors of Excalidraw?
Top Excalidraw alternatives include Draw.io, Miro, Visio, SmartDraw, Balsamiq, and Canva. These competitors offer similar diagramming and visual collaboration features, each with its own strengths and weaknesses regarding complexity, integrations, and pricing.
Is Excalidraw legit?
Yes, Excalidraw is safe and legitimate. It's a free, web-based drawing tool known for its intuitive interface and collaborative features. For additional features, a paid "Plus" version is available.
How much does Excalidraw cost?
Excalidraw is a free and open-source product. There is no pricing information available regarding paid plans for Excalidraw.
Is Excalidraw customer service good?
Customer reviews on Excalidraw's customer service are mixed. While some users praise the quick and helpful support, others report slow response times. Overall, Excalidraw is valued for its ease of use and collaborative features.
Reviewed by
Michal has worked at startups for many years and writes about topics relating to software selection and IT management. As a former consultant for Bain, a business advisory company, he also knows how to understand needs of any business and find solutions to its problems.
Tymon is a seasoned CTO who loves finding the perfect tools for any task. He recently headed up the tech department at Batmaid, a well-known Swiss company, where he managed about 60 software purchases, including CX, HR, Payroll, Marketing automation and various developer tools.