What is the difference between Penpot and Spline?

Penpot is best for Teams that want a free, open-source Figma alternative, while Spline is best for Designers who want 3D on the web. Penpot starts at Free and Spline starts at Free.

Is Penpot or Spline cheaper?

Penpot starts at Free and is free. Spline starts at Free with a free tier.

Is there a free alternative to Spline?

Both Penpot and Spline offer free tiers.

Penpot vs Spline

Penpot is open-source, browser-based design and prototyping platform. Self-hostable, while Spline is 3D design tool for the web with real-time collaboration and easy export to web formats. Penpot is open source and can be self-hosted, giving you full control over your data. Penpot is built for teams that want a free, open-source figma alternative, whereas Spline targets designers who want 3d on the web.

At a glance

	Penpot	Spline
Best for	Teams that want a free, open-source Figma alternative	Designers who want 3D on the web
Starting price	Free	Free
Free tier	✓	✓
Open source	✓	—
Free tier available	✓	✓
Open source	✓	—
3D Design	—	✓
Components	✓	—
Interactions	—	✓
Open Source	✓	—
Prototyping	✓	—
Real-Time Collab	—	✓
SVG Native	✓	—
Self-Hosted	✓	—
Web Export	—	✓

Penpot

Strengths

100% free and open source
Self-hostable for data sovereignty
Real-time collaboration like Figma
Uses open standards (SVG)

Weaknesses

Less mature than Figma — fewer features
Smaller plugin and community ecosystem
Performance not as smooth as Figma
Fewer design resources and templates available

Try Penpot → Full review

Spline

Strengths

Browser-based 3D design — no heavy software install required
One-click export to web formats (HTML, React, iframes) for production use
Free for 2 projects — generous enough for most small teams to get real work done
Includes interactions alongside the core feature set — fewer separate tools needed

Weaknesses

Free plan exists but key features are locked behind the paid upgrade
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
Limited team/admin features if your organization eventually scales up

Try Spline → Full review

The bottom line

Pricing: Both Penpot and Spline are free. You can try both without spending a dollar.

Feature gaps: Penpot offers Components, Open Source and Prototyping that Spline lacks. Spline brings 3D Design, Interactions and Real-Time Collab that Penpot does not have.

Team fit: Both tools target small teams teams, so the decision hinges on features and workflow fit rather than scale.

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

Where each tool shines: Penpot's biggest strengths are: 100% free and open source. self-hostable for data sovereignty. Spline's biggest strengths are: browser-based 3d design — no heavy software install required. one-click export to web formats (html, react, iframes) for production use.

Watch out for: With Penpot, users commonly note that less mature than figma — fewer features. With Spline, the main complaint is that free plan exists but key features are locked behind the paid upgrade.

Choose Penpot if...

Your profile matches its sweet spot: teams that want a free, open-source figma alternative
You need self-hosting, data sovereignty, or the ability to audit source code
You specifically need Components and Open Source
You care about self-hostable for data sovereignty

Choose Spline if...

You need a tool built for designers who want 3d on the web
You specifically need 3D Design and Interactions
You care about one-click export to web formats (html, react, iframes) for production use
The free tier works for you: free for 2 projects