Sketch Alternatives: Top 8 UI/UX Design Tools for 2025

Looking for a fresh take on your UI/UX design workflow? While Sketch has been a go-to for Mac users, there are many powerful Sketch alternatives available today that offer different features, platforms, and pricing. Whether you need something free, cross-platform, or with advanced collaboration, you’ve got options. Here’s a quick peek at some top contenders:

• Figma: Your best bet for real-time collaboration and web-based design, working across any OS.
• Affinity Designer: A powerful vector editor that’s a one-time purchase, great for Mac, Windows, and iPad.
• Adobe XD: Ideal if you’re already in the Creative Cloud ecosystem, offering strong prototyping on Mac and Windows.
• InVision Studio: Excels with advanced animation and high-fidelity prototyping on both Mac and Windows.
• Gravit Designer: A fantastic free and comprehensive vector tool, available as a web and desktop app.
• Inkscape: A robust, open-source vector graphics editor for Mac, Windows, and Linux.
• UXPin: Unique for its code-based design, bridging the gap between design and development.
• Lunacy: A free multi-platform app with native Sketch file support, perfect for cross-OS teams.

Finding the right design software can really boost your productivity and creativity. These top Sketch alternatives bring a compelling mix of features, collaboration tools, and accessibility. Ready to explore a new design tool that fits your unique needs?

What are the best Sketch alternatives and why consider them in 2025?

The best Sketch alternatives are design tools that offer similar functionalities for UI/UX design, vector graphics, and prototyping, providing compelling reasons to switch or expand your toolkit. While Sketch has been a long-standing favorite for many Mac-based designers, the design landscape is constantly evolving. More designers are looking for solutions that offer cross-platform compatibility, advanced real-time collaboration, different pricing models (like one-time purchases or generous free tiers), and specialized features beyond what Sketch provides. This shift is driving many to explore tools like Figma, Affinity Designer, and Adobe XD, which have emerged as strong Sketch competitors by addressing these diverse needs.

Here’s a brief rundown of popular tools:

• Figma: Web-based, excellent for collaboration, cross-platform.
• Affinity Designer: Powerful vector editor, one-time purchase, Mac/Windows/iPad.
• Adobe XD: Integrated with Creative Cloud, strong prototyping, Mac/Windows.
• InVision Studio: Advanced animation and prototyping, Mac/Windows.
• Gravit Designer: Free, web-based and desktop versions, comprehensive vector tools.
• Inkscape: Open-source, powerful vector graphics, Mac/Windows/Linux.
• UXPin: Code-based design, advanced prototyping, Mac/Windows.
• Lunacy: Free, native Sketch file support, Windows/Mac/Linux.

Why is Figma the best collaborative Sketch alternative for teams?

Figma is the industry leader for real-time collaborative design, making it an exceptional Sketch alternative for teams. Its web-based platform means multiple designers can work on the same file simultaneously, boosting efficiency for team projects. It removes platform barriers, letting you access your work from any browser, on any operating system. Figma also brings powerful design and prototyping tools, often offering a more streamlined workflow in certain areas compared to Sketch. If team synergy and accessibility are high priorities, Figma is an outstanding choice, widely regarded as one of the best Sketch apps for modern design teams.

Beyond collaboration, Figma’s auto layout and component features are incredibly robust. They enable designers to build scalable and consistent design systems with ease. This focus on system-driven design makes it perfect for projects needing high consistency and flexibility. For those familiar with Sketch’s symbol system, Figma’s components will feel both intuitive and more powerful.

Is Affinity Designer a strong Sketch alternative for a one-time purchase?

Yes, Affinity Designer is a powerful Sketch alternative, especially if you prefer a one-time purchase model over a subscription. Affinity Designer, part of Serif’s popular Affinity suite, provides a robust vector design experience that rivals Sketch but with a significant advantage for many: a perpetual license. You’ll find it available on Mac, Windows, and iPad, offering cross-platform flexibility that Sketch simply doesn’t. Designers often rave about Affinity Designer’s comprehensive vector tools, its unique pixel persona for raster editing, and impressive performance. When you consider the Sketch vs Affinity debate, the pricing model is often a key differentiator.

While Sketch focuses almost exclusively on UI/UX, Affinity Designer offers a broader spectrum of graphic design capabilities. This makes it a versatile tool for illustration, branding, and even print design alongside UI work. Its rich feature set makes it a strong contender for those seeking a one-time payment and a robust all-in-one graphic design solution. Plus, understanding vector image file types can help you make the most of its capabilities.

How does Adobe XD integrate with Creative Cloud as a Sketch competitor?

Adobe XD offers seamless integration with the Adobe Creative Cloud ecosystem, making it a powerful Sketch competitor for designers already using other Adobe products. It provides a complete solution for UI/UX design, wireframing, prototyping, and sharing. XD’s key strength is its tight integration with tools like Photoshop and Illustrator, allowing for smooth asset transfer and an efficient workflow. And unlike Sketch, it’s available on both Mac and Windows, which is a big plus for many designers.

Adobe XD is constantly evolving, with new features for animation, voice prototyping, and co-editing. Its emphasis on speed and ease of use in prototyping helps designers quickly bring ideas to life and test user flows effectively. For designers looking to bridge the gap between design and development, exploring tools like XD can be as important as mastering any specific design software. For those looking to grow their skills in general, consider these 9 skills every beginner graphic designer should nurture.

What advanced prototyping and animation features does InVision Studio offer as a Sketch alternative?

InVision Studio excels in advanced prototyping and animation, setting it apart as a strong Sketch alternative. This all-in-one screen design platform provides robust tools for designing, prototyping, and animating. Its standout feature is its sophisticated animation capabilities, which let you create high-fidelity prototypes that genuinely mimic real user interactions. Studio offers a free tier for basic use and is available on both Mac and Windows.

While InVision is also known for its collaboration and design system management through its Cloud platform, Studio provides a robust desktop application for detailed design work. Its focus on dynamic interactions and fluid animations makes it a compelling choice for designers who prioritize bringing user experiences to life through motion and interactivity.

Can Gravit Designer be a truly free Sketch alternative for graphic design?

Yes, Gravit Designer is an excellent and truly free Sketch alternative, packed with features for comprehensive graphic design. It offers a wide array of vector design tools suitable for UI/UX, illustration, iconography, and print design. Gravit Designer is incredibly accessible, available as a web-based application, and a desktop app for Mac, Windows, Linux, and even Chrome OS.

Despite being free, Gravit Designer doesn’t hold back on features. It includes advanced vector editing, non-destructive effects, multiple fills and borders, and a powerful typography engine. It’s an ideal starting point for beginners or a solid choice for professionals on a budget who still need powerful vector capabilities. If you’re interested in typography, you might also want to learn about choosing the right typography for your design.

Why choose Inkscape for powerful open-source vector graphics over Sketch?

Inkscape is a highly capable and completely free, open-source Sketch competitor, particularly for designers prioritizing robust vector graphics. When you compare Sketch vs Inkscape, you’re essentially weighing a commercial, UI-focused tool against a community-driven, general-purpose vector editor. Inkscape is popular for illustration, iconography, and creating scalable vector graphics (SVGs). Available on Mac, Windows, and Linux, Inkscape adheres to the W3C SVG standard, making it excellent for web graphics.

While its interface might feel a bit different from Sketch for pure UI design, Inkscape’s extensive feature set for vector manipulation, path operations, and object creation is incredibly powerful. For designers who value open-source solutions and require advanced vector illustration capabilities, Inkscape is an invaluable tool. It truly delivers professional-grade results as a free Sketch alternative.

How does UXPin use code components for design, making it a unique Sketch alternative?

UXPin distinguishes itself as a unique Sketch alternative by allowing you to build user interfaces directly with code components. This innovative approach ensures your designs are perfectly consistent with the final product’s code, effectively bridging the gap between design and development. UXPin also offers powerful prototyping features and built-in accessibility tools, available on both Mac and Windows.

Its standout feature is Merge technology, which allows you to import actual production code components into the design editor. This creates a single source of truth for both designers and developers. It makes UXPin an ideal tool for teams focused on design systems and efficient hand-off processes, offering a different paradigm compared to traditional pixel-based design tools. To understand more about how these tools handle different visual data, you could explore different file formats in graphic design.

Does Lunacy offer native Sketch file support for cross-platform design?

Yes, Lunacy by Icons8 is an impressive and completely free design app that provides native support for Sketch files, making it a standout Sketch alternative for cross-platform teams. You can open, edit, and save .sketch files directly, even on Windows or Linux. This makes it an excellent bridge for teams working across different operating systems. Lunacy truly aims to replicate many of Sketch’s core functionalities in a free, multi-platform package.

Lunacy includes tools for vector editing, UI design, basic prototyping, and offers built-in access to a vast library of icons, photos, and illustrations. Its ability to work with Sketch files natively makes it a strong free Sketch alternative for teams looking to migrate or collaborate across various operating systems without losing access to their existing Sketch assets. This kind of file compatibility is also something to consider if you’re dealing with opening CDR files without CorelDRAW.

How to choose the best Sketch alternative for your design workflow?

With so many excellent Sketch alternatives available, picking the right one truly depends on your specific needs, team setup, and budget. Think about these key factors:

• Platform Needs: Do you need a Mac-only, Windows-only, cross-platform (Mac/Windows/Linux), or a flexible web-based solution?
• Collaboration Requirements: How crucial is real-time collaboration with your team for your projects?
• Pricing Model: Are you looking for a free tool, a subscription, or a one-time purchase to own the software?
• Essential Features: Do you need advanced prototyping, sophisticated animation, powerful vector illustration, or code-based design capabilities?
• Ecosystem Integration: Is seamless integration with other tools (like Adobe Creative Cloud or specific design system platforms) important for your workflow?

Each of these Sketch competitors brings unique strengths. Evaluating your requirements carefully will help you find an alternative that not only meets your needs but potentially elevates your design workflow and sparks new creative possibilities. For those who enjoy deeper dives into tool comparisons, you might find our article on Top 10 Photoshop Replacement Alternatives useful.

Commonly Asked Questions About Sketch Alternatives

Are there any good free Sketch alternatives for UI/UX design?
Yes, absolutely! Gravit Designer, Inkscape, and Lunacy are excellent free Sketch alternatives that provide robust features for vector design and UI/UX work. Figma also offers a very generous free tier that works well for many individual designers and small teams.

Can I open Sketch files with other design software?
Yes, many Sketch competitors can open Sketch files, though the level of compatibility can vary. Lunacy offers native .sketch file support, meaning it handles them exceptionally well. Figma, Adobe XD, and Affinity Designer can also import .sketch files, often with good results depending on the file’s complexity.

Which Sketch alternative is best for real-time collaboration?
Figma is widely regarded as the industry leader for real-time collaboration. Its web-based nature and powerful multi-user editing features make it incredibly efficient for team-based projects, positioning it as one of the best Sketch apps for collaborative environments.

Is Affinity Designer a good replacement for Sketch for vector design?
Yes, Affinity Designer is a powerful and versatile Sketch alternative, particularly if you prefer a one-time purchase model. It truly shines in vector editing and provides a broader range of graphic design capabilities. The Sketch vs Affinity discussion often comes down to specific workflow needs and pricing preferences.

What are the main advantages of using Sketch alternatives?
Using Sketch alternatives offers several key advantages. These include broader cross-platform compatibility (with many tools working on Windows, Linux, and directly in web browsers), diverse pricing models (free, subscription, or one-time purchase), enhanced collaboration features, and specialized tools for advanced prototyping or code-based design. These benefits make them strong Sketch competitors across various niches in the design world.

Choosing the right tool is a personal journey, but with so many fantastic options available, you’re sure to find a design platform that perfectly aligns with your creative vision and technical requirements. Explore these alternatives and elevate your design game today!

More Resources for Designers

• Why Figma (Figma Official Site)
• Affinity Designer (Serif Official Site)
• Adobe XD (Adobe Official Site)