Overview
draw.io, also served as diagrams.net, is a free diagramming application whose source code is licensed under Apache 2.0. Its website credits draw.io Ltd and draw.io AG, and describes the company as private and not venture-capital funded. The online editor needs no sign-up and the project advertises “no paywalls”.[5]
A distinguishing design choice is storage: draw.io does not store diagrams itself. Users save to their own Google Drive, OneDrive, SharePoint, GitHub or local disk, and the company states it cannot access the data.[5] Integrations include Google Docs and Slides, Microsoft Teams, a VS Code extension, a Notion browser extension, and apps for Confluence and Jira.[5]
draw.io covers flowcharts, UML, network, cloud-architecture and ER diagrams with large shape libraries, making it the default free alternative to Visio and Lucidchart. Its interface is less polished, real-time collaboration depends on the chosen storage back end, and the free product carries no vendor support commitment.
draw.io (diagrams.net) features
- Free online and desktop editor
- Apache 2.0 open source
- Bring-your-own storage
- VS Code and Notion extensions
- Confluence and Jira apps
- Google and Microsoft integrations
draw.io (diagrams.net) pricing
Free; no sign-up required. Atlassian Marketplace apps are priced separately.
draw.io (diagrams.net) strengths and limitations
Strengths
- Completely free
- Data stays in the user's own storage
- Desktop app works offline
- Very broad shape libraries
Limitations
- Dated interface
- Collaboration depends on storage provider
- No vendor support for free use
Appears in
draw.io (diagrams.net) alternatives and competitors
Alternatives to draw.io (diagrams.net): companies ranked in the same lists.
Lucidchart
Microsoft Power BI
Miro- Figma FigJam
Creately- Whimsical
Gliffy- SmartDraw
- Cacoo
OmniGraffle
Excalidraw- Mermaid Chart
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