License & Deployment Mix: 17 tools – 4 OSS, 14 SaaS. (OSS and SaaS counts can overlap when an open-source tool also offers a vendor-hosted edition.)
What Is Diagramming / Whiteboarding Software?
Diagramming and whiteboarding software enables teams to create visual representations of systems, processes, and ideas. These tools span a broad range of use cases – from precise technical diagrams (flowcharts, network topologies, UML, ERD, architecture diagrams) to freeform collaborative canvases (mind maps, wireframes, org charts, brainstorming boards).
Modern diagramming tools fall into several categories:
- Visual editors – drag-and-drop canvas tools for creating structured diagrams with shapes, connectors, and stencil libraries (draw.io, Lucidchart, Visio)
- Code-based / diagram-as-code – text DSLs that render diagrams from markup, enabling version control and automation (Mermaid, PlantUML, Structurizr)
- Collaborative whiteboards – infinite canvas tools optimized for real-time team collaboration, sticky notes, voting, and brainstorming (Miro, FigJam, Excalidraw)
- Specialized tools – purpose-built for specific diagram types such as C4 architecture models, graph layout, or AI-generated technical diagrams
Key capabilities include real-time multi-user collaboration, export to PNG/SVG/PDF, embedding in wikis and documentation, template and stencil libraries, version history, presentation mode, and integration with development and project management tools.
The information on these pages was researched by a combination of human review and large language models. To suggest an addition or correction, please contact us. Prepared by Rhodium Systems Inc., author of the ResorsIT platform — a unified IT operations management platform for IT teams and MSPs that integrates a curated suite of open-source, commercial, and SaaS applications into a single system with shared identity, single sign-on, access control, and a common audit trail. Use this catalogue only as a starting point for your own research, and review any tool carefully against your own requirements before relying on it. Catalogue data version 2026.197.
Comparison
Feature Matrix – Open Source / Self-Hosted
| Feature | draw.io | Excalidraw | Mermaid | PlantUML | tldraw |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flowcharts | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Basic |
| Network diag. | Yes | No | No | Yes | No |
| UML | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No |
| ERD | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No |
| Mind maps | Yes | Basic | Yes | Yes | No |
| Wireframes | Basic | Basic | No | Basic | No |
| Whiteboard | No | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| BPMN | Yes | No | No | Yes | No |
| C4 model | Yes* | No | No | Yes* | No |
| Collaboration | Cloud* | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| Templates | 100+ | Basic | N/A | stdlib | Basic |
| AI features | No | Yes** | Yes** | No | No |
* = via shape library or plugin ** = paid tier only
Feature Matrix – Cloud / SaaS
| Feature | Lucidchart | Miro | FigJam | Visio | Whimsical | Creately | Cacoo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flowcharts | Yes | Yes | Basic | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Network diag. | Yes | Basic | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |
| UML | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | Yes | Basic |
| ERD | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | Yes | Basic |
| Mind maps | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Wireframes | Yes | Basic | Basic | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Whiteboard | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Basic | No |
| BPMN | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | Yes | No |
| C4 model | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
| Collaboration | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Templates | 1000+ | 1000+ | 100+ | 100+ | 50+ | 8000+ | 100+ |
| AI features | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No |
Feature Matrix – Specialized
| Feature | yEd | Structurizr | Eraser |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flowcharts | Yes | No | Yes |
| Network diag. | Yes | No | No |
| UML | Basic | No | No |
| ERD | Basic | No | Yes |
| Mind maps | Yes | No | No |
| Wireframes | No | No | No |
| Whiteboard | No | No | No |
| BPMN | Yes | No | Yes |
| C4 model | No | Yes | No |
| Collaboration | No | Basic | Yes |
| Templates | Basic | C4 | AI |
| AI features | No | No | Yes |
SSO / OIDC Comparison
OIDC is the preferred SSO protocol; the notes below assume an Authentik-class identity provider.
| Tool | OIDC | SAML | SCIM | Authentik Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| draw.io | N/A | N/A | N/A | No auth needed |
| Excalidraw | No | No | No | Reverse proxy auth for self-hosted |
| Mermaid | N/A | N/A | N/A | Library; no auth |
| PlantUML | N/A | N/A | N/A | Server: reverse proxy auth |
| tldraw | No | No | No | SDK: host app handles auth |
| Lucidchart | No | Yes | Yes | SAML via Authentik (Enterprise) |
| Miro | No | Yes | Yes | SAML via Authentik (Business+) |
| FigJam | No | Yes | Yes | SAML via Authentik (Org/Enterprise) |
| Visio | Yes* | Yes* | Yes* | Via Microsoft Entra ID federation |
| Whimsical | No | Yes | Yes | SAML via Authentik (Enterprise) |
| Creately | No | Yes | Yes | SAML via Authentik (Enterprise) |
| Cacoo | No | Yes | Yes | SAML via Nulab Pass (Enterprise) |
| yEd | N/A | N/A | N/A | Desktop app; no auth |
| Structurizr | No | Yes | No | SAML on on-premises (Enterprise) |
| Eraser | No | No | No | No SSO documented |
* = via Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD), not native Visio SSO
Best SSO support: Visio inherits Microsoft 365 SSO. Lucidchart, Miro, and FigJam offer SAML SSO on enterprise tiers. For self-hosted tools (draw.io, Excalidraw, PlantUML server, Structurizr on-premises), Authentik forward-auth via Traefik provides SSO without native support.
Deployment Comparison
| Tool | Type | Self-Hosted | Desktop | Web |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| draw.io | OSS | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Excalidraw | OSS | Yes | PWA | Yes |
| Mermaid | OSS | N/A* | No | N/A* |
| PlantUML | OSS | Yes | No | Yes |
| tldraw | Source-avail | Yes | No | Yes |
| Lucidchart | SaaS | No | No | Yes |
| Miro | SaaS | No | Yes | Yes |
| FigJam | SaaS | No | Yes | Yes |
| Visio | SaaS+Desktop | No | Yes** | Yes |
| Whimsical | SaaS | No | No | Yes |
| Creately | SaaS | No | Yes | Yes |
| Cacoo | SaaS | No | No | Yes |
| yEd | Freeware | N/A | Yes | Yes*** |
| Structurizr | Open core | Yes | No | Yes |
| Eraser | SaaS | No | No | Yes |
* = library/CLI; runs anywhere JavaScript runs ** = Windows only *** = yEd Live (limited features)
Pricing Comparison
| Tool | Free Tier | Paid Starting | SSO Tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| draw.io | Full | Confluence plugin ~$10/mo | N/A |
| Excalidraw | Full | Excalidraw+ ~$6/user/mo | N/A |
| Mermaid | Full | Mermaid Chart $8/user/mo | N/A |
| PlantUML | Full | Free (open source) | N/A |
| tldraw | Dev/hobby | Commercial license varies | N/A |
| Lucidchart | 3 docs | $7.95/user/mo | Enterprise (custom) |
| Miro | 3 boards | $10/user/mo | Business ($20/user/mo) |
| FigJam | 3 boards | $5/user/mo | Organization ($45/editor/mo) |
| Visio | No | $5/user/mo (web) | Microsoft 365 |
| Whimsical | Limited | $10/editor/mo | Enterprise ($18/editor/mo) |
| Creately | Yes | $8/user/mo | Enterprise (custom) |
| Cacoo | No | $5/user/mo | Enterprise (custom) |
| yEd | Full | Free | N/A |
| Structurizr | 1 workspace | ~$5/workspace/mo | On-premises (varies) |
| Eraser | 3 files | $10/user/mo | Not available |
Licensing Comparison
| Tool | License | Type | OSS |
|---|---|---|---|
| draw.io | Apache 2.0 | Open source | Yes |
| Excalidraw | MIT | Open source | Yes |
| Mermaid | MIT | Open source | Yes |
| PlantUML | GPL / multi | Open source | Yes |
| tldraw | tldraw license | Source-available | Partial |
| Lucidchart | Proprietary | SaaS | No |
| Miro | Proprietary | SaaS | No |
| FigJam | Proprietary | SaaS | No |
| Visio | Proprietary | SaaS + Desktop | No |
| Whimsical | Proprietary | SaaS | No |
| Creately | Proprietary | SaaS | No |
| Cacoo | Proprietary | SaaS | No |
| yEd | Freeware | Proprietary | No |
| Structurizr | Apache 2.0 / Commercial | Open core | Partial |
| Eraser | Proprietary | SaaS | No |
Diagram Type Support Comparison
| Tool | Flow | Network | UML | ERD | Mind Map | Wireframe | Whiteboard |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| draw.io | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Basic | No |
| Excalidraw | Yes | No | No | No | Basic | Basic | Yes |
| Mermaid | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| PlantUML | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Basic | No |
| tldraw | Basic | No | No | No | No | No | Yes |
| Lucidchart | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Miro | Yes | Basic | No | No | Yes | Basic | Yes |
| FigJam | Basic | No | No | No | Yes | Basic | Yes |
| Visio | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No |
| Whimsical | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Creately | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Basic |
| Cacoo | Yes | Yes | Basic | Basic | Yes | Yes | No |
| yEd | Yes | Yes | Basic | Basic | Yes | No | No |
| Structurizr | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
| Eraser | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | No | No |
Note: Structurizr is C4-model-only and does not fit standard diagram type categories.
Tools
17 tools.
Cacoo
Cacoo is an online diagramming tool by Nulab (the company behind Backlog project management and Typetalk messaging).
License: Proprietary (proprietary) · Kind: web · Deploy: saas · SSO: SAML
Creately
Creately is an AI-powered visual collaboration and diagramming platform that positions itself as a workspace for both structured diagrams and collaborative planning.
License: Proprietary (proprietary) · Kind: web · Deploy: saas · SSO: OIDC, SAML
draw.io (diagrams.net)
draw.io (diagrams.net) is a widely used open-source diagramming tool that runs client-side in the browser, supporting flowcharts, UML, network, ERD, and BPMN diagrams with no account required.
License: Apache-2.0 (OSS) · Kind: web · Deploy: saas · SSO: none
Eraser
Eraser is an AI-powered technical design tool that combines a markdown editor, collaborative canvas, and diagram-as-code builder in a single workspace.
License: Proprietary (proprietary) · Kind: web · Deploy: saas · SSO: none
Excalidraw
Excalidraw is an open-source virtual whiteboard tool that produces diagrams with a distinctive hand-drawn aesthetic.
License: MIT (OSS) · Kind: web · Deploy: native, saas · SSO: none
FigJam
FigJam is Figma’s collaborative whiteboard product, designed for brainstorming, planning, and team workshops. It sits alongside Figma’s design tool on the same platform, sharing the same account, SSO, and collaboration infrastructure.
License: Proprietary (proprietary) · Kind: web · Deploy: saas · SSO: SAML
Lucidchart
Lucidchart is the market-leading cloud diagramming platform, used by millions of users across enterprises, education, and government.
License: Proprietary (proprietary) · Kind: web · Deploy: saas · SSO: SAML
Mermaid
Mermaid is a JavaScript-based diagramming library that renders diagrams from Markdown-inspired text definitions. Instead of dragging shapes on a canvas, users write a simple text DSL that Mermaid renders into SVG diagrams in the browser.
License: MIT (OSS) · Kind: web · Deploy: saas, docker, package · SSO: none
Microsoft Visio
Microsoft Visio is the longest-established enterprise diagramming tool, first released in 1992 and acquired by Microsoft in 2000.
License: Proprietary (proprietary) · Kind: web · Deploy: saas, native · SSO: OIDC, SAML
Miro
Miro is a collaborative whiteboard platform for brainstorming, workshops, and diagramming on an infinite canvas, with real-time co-editing, 1,000+ templates, and 160+ app integrations.
License: Proprietary (proprietary) · Kind: web · Deploy: saas · SSO: SAML
Mural
Mural is an enterprise visual collaboration platform designed for workshops, brainstorming, design thinking, and team planning.
License: Proprietary (proprietary) · Kind: web · Deploy: saas · SSO: OIDC, SAML
PlantUML
PlantUML is an open-source tool that generates UML and other diagrams from plain text descriptions using a domain-specific language.
License: GPL-3.0-or-later (OSS) · Kind: web · Deploy: saas, docker, native, k8s · SSO: none
SmartDraw
SmartDraw is a diagramming and visualization platform that has been a long-standing competitor to Microsoft Visio since the 1990s.
License: Proprietary (proprietary) · Kind: web · Deploy: saas · SSO: OIDC, SAML
Structurizr
Structurizr is a purpose-built tool for creating software architecture diagrams using the C4 model (Context, Container, Component, Code).
License: Apache-2.0 (OSS) · Kind: web · Deploy: native, docker, saas · SSO: SAML
tldraw
tldraw is a collaborative whiteboard and infinite canvas tool built as a React SDK. It provides a polished drawing experience with pressure-sensitive freehand drawing, geometric shapes, rich text, connectors, and image/video support.
License: LicenseRef-tldraw (source-available) · Kind: web · Deploy: native, saas · SSO: none
Whimsical
Whimsical is a collaborative workspace for visual thinking that combines flowcharts, wireframes, mind maps, sticky notes, and documents in a single clean interface.
License: Proprietary (proprietary) · Kind: web · Deploy: saas · SSO: SAML
yEd
yEd is a free desktop graph editor developed by yWorks, a German company specializing in graph visualization libraries.
License: Proprietary (proprietary) · Kind: web · Deploy: saas · SSO: none
