Last checked October 15, 2026
Best Free Alternatives to Figma (2026)
Figma is where product teams design, prototype, and hand off UI. The Professional plan uses seat types, so a designer, a developer, and a commenter are not the same price.
What Figma costs
Figma's pricing page lists Professional at $16/month for a Full seat, $12/month for a Dev seat, and $3/month for a Collab seat.
Organization and Enterprise are higher. The Starter plan is free with a file limit. This check uses the figures printed on figma.com/pricing and does not assume an annual discount beyond that page.
Ranked by Drop-in score
How we rank#1 is the highest-scoring alternative that is not sponsored. A featured listing, when one is sold, is labeled and sits after #1.
- 79#1Open source
Penpot
Open-source design and prototyping, with a free cloud.
Last checked October 15, 2026 · MPL-2.0
WebSelf-host - 61#2Free, closed source
Lunacy
A free proprietary design app for Windows, Mac, and Linux.
Last checked October 15, 2026 · Proprietary
MacWindowsLinuxWeb - 34#3Open source
diagrams.net
Free diagramming, formerly draw.io, under Apache-2.0.
Last checked October 15, 2026 · Apache-2.0
WebMacWindowsLinuxSelf-host - 25#4Free, closed source
Affinity
Canva's professional photo, vector, and layout suite, free for individuals.
Last checked October 15, 2026 · Proprietary
MacWindows
Feature by feature
Full is the whole job. Partial is a real version with a gap. Missing means it does not do this. Not checked counts as zero in the score.
| Feature | Penpot#1 · 79 | Lunacy#2 · 61 | diagrams.net#3 · 34 | Affinity#4 · 25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vector interface designWeight 10 | Full | Full | PartialShapes and connectors, not a UI design surface. | Full |
| Components and variantsWeight 10 | Full | Full | PartialCustom shape libraries, not components and variants. | PartialSymbols exist. They are not Figma components and variants. |
| Auto layoutWeight 9 | PartialFlex and grid layout cover a lot of auto layout and do not match every Figma behavior. | Partial | Missing | Missing |
| PrototypingWeight 8 | Partial | Partial | Missing | Missing |
| Multiplayer editingWeight 8 | Full | PartialCloud documents support collaboration. It is not Figma multiplayer. | PartialDepends on where the file is stored. There is no Figma-style multiplayer. | Missing |
| Inspect and dev handoffWeight 7 | Full | Partial | Missing | Missing |
| Shared librariesWeight 6 | Full | Partial | Partial | Partial |
| Whiteboard / FigJam-style canvasWeight 4 | Missing | Missing | Partial | Missing |
| Self-hostingWeight 6 | Full | PartialOnly on a paid private-cloud plan. | Full | Missing |
| Variables and design tokensWeight 5 | PartialDesign tokens exist. They are not a full Figma variables clone. | Partial | Missing | Missing |
Real cost
Penpot
- Free tier
- Penpot Cloud has a $0 plan. Self-hosting the same software is free.
- Hosted plan
- Unlimited editors are listed at $7/editor/month, capped at $175/month. A Business plan is $25/member/month.
- Self-hosting
- Moderate. Docker Compose is documented and heavier than a single-container app. Fine for a design team, not a five-minute install. Approximate server cost: $15–40/mo. Unverified estimate.
Lunacy
- Free tier
- Free plan: low-resolution built-in assets, an Icons8 attribution requirement, 10 cloud documents, and 30-day version history.
- Hosted plan
- The paid plan is listed at $11.99. The billing period was not explicit on the page captured for this check. Unverified.
- Self-hosting
- Not a self-hosted product. Private cloud and bunker mode are paid. The free app is not a self-hosted server.
diagrams.net
- Free tier
- The web app and desktop apps are free. Self-hosting the editor is free.
- Hosted plan
- No hosted price recorded.
- Self-hosting
- Easy. The editor can be hosted as a static web app or Docker image. Diagrams still need a storage location you choose. Approximate server cost: $0–8/mo. Unverified estimate.
Affinity
- Free tier
- The full photo, vector, and layout apps are free for individuals. Canva AI tools inside Affinity are part of Canva premium.
- Hosted plan
- No hosted price recorded.
- Self-hosting
- Not a self-hosted product. Desktop apps only. There is nothing to host.
Top pair
Migrate from Figma to Penpot
Move the design files with Penpot's Figma importer if your version still ships it, and export SVG or PDF for anything that has to look identical on day one.
Read the migration guide