[opensourcedex]

best-of ranking · updated nightly

Best Open Source Design & Visualization Tools

Ranked by GitHub stars — actual adoption, not editorial taste. All 8 are free, open source and self-hostable; license and last activity on every entry.

  1. 1
    Excalidraw ★ 135K

    Collaborative whiteboard with a hand-drawn aesthetic

    MIT TypeScript pushed 2026-11-02 details →
  2. 2
    Affine ★ 74K

    Docs, whiteboards, and databases in one privacy-first workspace

    NOASSERTION TypeScript pushed 2026-11-02 details →
  3. 3
    Penpot ★ 62K

    Open-source UI design and prototyping for product teams

    MPL-2.0 Clojure pushed 2026-11-02 details →
  4. 4
    Tldraw ★ 51K

    Free instant whiteboard with real-time collaboration

    NOASSERTION TypeScript pushed 2026-11-02 details →
  5. 5
    Graphite ★ 28K

    Procedural vector editor that runs in your browser, no signup needed

    Apache-2.0 Rust pushed 2026-11-02 details →
  6. 6
    vectorcraft ★ 11K

    An open-source, clean-room reimplementation of Adobe Illustrator, built in pure Rust.

    Apache-2.0 Rust pushed 2026-11-02 details →
  7. 7
    Ray.so ★ 2.4K

    Create beautiful images of your code

    MIT TypeScript pushed 2026-11-01 details →
  8. 8
    Chalk.ist ★ 1.8K

    Transform your source code into stunning visuals

    MIT Vue pushed 2026-01-07 details →
method stars desc · snapshot from github api refresh nightly related Input & Dictation, Office Suites, Email & Communication, Password & Secret Management, Time & Task Management, System Cleanup & Optimization

Related best-of lists

best Input & Dictation →best Office Suites →best Email & Communication →best Password & Secret Management →best Time & Task Management →best System Cleanup & Optimization →

last updated nightly · ranking method: github stars, live-tracked

Looking for a replacement for one specific commercial product? Browse alternatives by tool →

Frequently asked questions

What is the best open source Design & Visualization tool in 2026?

Excalidraw leads the ranking with 135,053 GitHub stars, ahead of Affine. Rankings use live GitHub star counts, refreshed nightly.

How is this list of Design & Visualization tools ranked?

By GitHub stars — a proxy for adoption and community size. Each entry also shows its licence, primary language and last commit date, so you can judge maintenance activity rather than trusting the ranking alone.

Are the best Design & Visualization tools free?

Every project on this list is open source and free to self-host. Some also offer paid managed hosting, but the software itself carries no licence fee.