What is the difference between Adobe XD and Excalidraw?

Adobe XD is best for Designers in the Adobe ecosystem, while Excalidraw is best for Anyone wanting quick hand-drawn diagrams. Adobe XD starts at $9.99/mo and Excalidraw starts at Free.

Is Adobe XD or Excalidraw cheaper?

Adobe XD starts at $9.99/mo. Excalidraw starts at Free and is free.

Is there a free alternative to Adobe XD?

Yes, Excalidraw offers a free tier.

Adobe XD vs Excalidraw

Adobe XD is UI/UX design and prototyping tool from Adobe, integrated with Creative Cloud, while Excalidraw is virtual whiteboard with a hand-drawn aesthetic for diagrams, sketches, and brainstorming. The biggest difference up front: Excalidraw is free, while Adobe XD starts at $9.99/mo. Adobe XD is built for designers in the adobe ecosystem, whereas Excalidraw targets anyone wanting quick hand-drawn diagrams.

At a glance

	Adobe XD	Excalidraw
Best for	Designers in the Adobe ecosystem	Anyone wanting quick hand-drawn diagrams
Starting price	$9.99/mo	Free
Free tier	—	✓
Open source	—	✓
Free tier available	—	✓
Open source	—	✓
Auto-Animate	✓	—
Components	✓	—
Creative Cloud	✓	—
Embeddable	—	✓
Hand-Drawn Style	—	✓
Open Source	—	✓
Prototyping	✓	—
Real-Time Collab	—	✓

Adobe XD

Strengths

Interactive prototyping with transitions so stakeholders can click through realistic mockups
Auto-Animate creates smooth transitions between artboards without manual keyframing
Affordable at $9.99/mo — one of the lower-priced options in the design category
Includes components alongside the core feature set — fewer separate tools needed

Weaknesses

No free plan — you need to pay $9.99/mo from day one to use it
Fewer built-in features means you may need additional tools to cover gaps
Output quality depends on your design skills — templates only go so far
Mobile experience lags behind the desktop version in features and polish

Try Adobe XD → Full review

Excalidraw

Strengths

Open source and transparent
Hand-drawn aesthetic makes diagrams feel informal and approachable — great for early ideas
Fully open-source — you can self-host, audit the code, and avoid vendor lock-in
The core product is free with no paywalled essentials

Weaknesses

May lack some advanced features
Self-hosting is free but requires server maintenance and DevOps knowledge
Fewer built-in features means you may need additional tools to cover gaps
Output quality depends on your design skills — templates only go so far

Try Excalidraw → Full review

The bottom line

Pricing: Excalidraw is completely free, which makes it the obvious pick if budget is the top concern. Adobe XD starts at $9.99/mo. That cost buys you a more polished or feature-rich experience, so it comes down to whether the extras justify the spend.

Feature gaps: Adobe XD offers Auto-Animate, Components and Creative Cloud that Excalidraw lacks. Excalidraw brings Embeddable, Hand-Drawn Style and Open Source that Adobe XD does not have.

Team fit: Adobe XD is geared toward mid-size teams teams, while Excalidraw is aimed at any size teams. Pick the one that matches where your team is today and where it is headed — migrating tools later is always painful.

Open source: Excalidraw is open source, meaning you can self-host, audit the code, and avoid vendor lock-in. Adobe XD is proprietary — you are trusting the vendor with your data and uptime.

Where each tool shines: Adobe XD's biggest strengths are: interactive prototyping with transitions so stakeholders can click through realistic mockups. auto-animate creates smooth transitions between artboards without manual keyframing. Excalidraw's biggest strengths are: open source and transparent. hand-drawn aesthetic makes diagrams feel informal and approachable — great for early ideas.

Watch out for: With Adobe XD, users commonly note that no free plan — you need to pay $9.99/mo from day one to use it. With Excalidraw, the main complaint is that may lack some advanced features.

Choose Adobe XD if...

You need a tool built for designers in the adobe ecosystem
You specifically need Auto-Animate and Components
You care about auto-animate creates smooth transitions between artboards without manual keyframing
Your team size fits the mid-size teams profile Adobe XD is designed for

Choose Excalidraw if...

You need a tool built for anyone wanting quick hand-drawn diagrams
Budget is a hard constraint — Excalidraw is free, Adobe XD is not
You need self-hosting, data sovereignty, or the ability to audit source code
You specifically need Embeddable and Hand-Drawn Style
You care about hand-drawn aesthetic makes diagrams feel informal and approachable — great for early ideas