Excalidraw vs Penpot
Comparing two open source alternatives . Use the comparison below to decide which one fits your needs.
Excalidraw
MITOpen-source virtual whiteboard for creating hand-drawn style diagrams and sketches.
Penpot
MPL-2.0Open-source design and prototyping tool for cross-domain teams — a self-hostable alternative to Figma.
Side-by-side comparison
| Excalidraw | Penpot | |
|---|---|---|
| License | MIT | MPL-2.0 |
| Self-hostable | Yes | Yes |
| GitHub Stars | 125,147 | 49,557 |
| Forks | 13,991 | 3,182 |
| Open Issues | 3,140 | 657 |
| Last Commit | Jun 11, 2026 | Jun 11, 2026 |
| First Released | Jan 2, 2020 | Dec 29, 2015 |
| Categories | ||
| Tags |
Similar open source alternatives
AFFiNE
Open-source knowledge base combining note-taking, whiteboard, and project planning in one workspace.
Alternative to: 
Notion
Notion
ExcaliDash
A self hosted dashboard and organizer for Excalidraw with live collaboration.
Alternative to: 
Miro
Miro
Draw.io
draw.io is a JavaScript, client-side editor for general diagramming.
Alternative to: Miro
Miro
open-pencil
AI-native design editor with real-time collaboration, component system, and Figma-compatible file format.
Alternative to: 
Figma
Figma