PlantUML AlternativesDiagram Editors & Mind Mapping Tools like PlantUML

PlantUML is described as 'Open-source tool that uses simple textual descriptions to draw UML diagrams. The generator can be run anywhere within JVM and integrated with various application such as wiki, text editor, IDE, programming language, documentation generator, and others' and is a very popular Diagram Editor in the development category. There are more than 100 alternatives to PlantUML for a variety of platforms, including Windows, Web-based, Mac, Linux and Android apps. The best PlantUML alternative is draw.io, which is free. Other great apps like PlantUML are Excalidraw, yEd Graph Editor, Dia and Freeplane.

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PlantUML alternatives page was last updated

Alternatives list

  1. Lucidchart icon
    Sponsored

    Lucidchart is a cloud-based platform that promotes teamwork through diagramming, collaboration, and data visualization. It serves millions worldwide, offering flowcharts, UML, real-time collaboration, Visio support, and browser access. Designed for innovation and understanding, it integrates easily into workflows.

    62 Lucidchart alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Subscription)
    • Proprietary

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    • Software as a Service (SaaS)
  2. draw.io icon
     1010 likes
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    Feature-rich diagram editor offering privacy-focused, ad-free experience with real-time collaboration, offline usage, dark mode, and cloud storage support. No registration required and compatible with various diagram formats, it excels in simplicity by not tracking user data.

    129 draw.io alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Chrome OS
    • Notion
    • Self-Hosted
    • Nextcloud
    • Microsoft SharePoint
    • Flathub
    • Microsoft OneDrive
    • PortableApps.com
    • Google Drive
    • Google Docs
    • Microsoft Teams
    • Google Slides
    • Flatpak
    • Google Sheets
     
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    6
    Comments about draw.io as an Alternative to PlantUML
    Guest
    Negative
    6

    It does not uses simple textual descriptions

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Guest
    Positive
    -3

    You can paste PlantUML text into draw.io and it renders it

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    PlantUML Icon
    draw.io icon
    • Most users think draw.io is a great PlantUML alternative.

    • draw.io is the most popular Web-based, Windows, Mac & Linux alternative to PlantUML.

    • draw.io is the most popular free alternative to PlantUML.

    • draw.io is Free and ProprietaryPlantUML is Free and Open Source
    • draw.io is Lightweight and Privacy focusedPlantUML is not according to our users
  3. Excalidraw icon
     95 likes
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    Excalidraw is an open-source whiteboard tool that lets you easily sketch diagrams that have a hand-drawn feel to them. Available directly online as a web app and also through CodeSandbox to easily see how the code works, and the app is available for self-hosting.

    78 Excalidraw alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Subscription)
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Self-Hosted
     
    • Excalidraw is the most popular Open Source alternative to PlantUML.

    • Excalidraw is Freemium and Open SourcePlantUML is Free and Open Source
    • Excalidraw is Privacy focusedPlantUML is not according to our users
  4. yEd Graph Editor icon
     441 likes
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    yEd is a powerful diagram editor that can be used to quickly create diagrams manually or import external data for analysis and auto-magically arrange even large data sets by just pressing a button. You can use yEd to quickly create flow charts, BPMN and UML diagrams...

    117 yEd Graph Editor alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • BSD
     
  5. Dia icon
     451 likes
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    Open-source diagram editor supporting Linux, Windows, Unix, and Mac OS X, with features for constructing entity relationship, UML, flowchart, and network diagrams, customizable with XML-defined shapes, extensibility, and a GTK+-based graphical user interface.

    91 Dia alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • PortableApps.com
    • FreeBSD
    • Xfce
    • DragonFly BSD
    • NetBSD
    • OpenBSD
     
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    1
    Comments about Dia as an Alternative to PlantUML
    Guest
    Negative
    1

    Dia does not use simple textual description.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    PlantUML Icon
    Dia icon
    • Dia is Free and Open SourcePlantUML is also Free and Open Source
    • Dia is LightweightPlantUML is not according to our users
  6. Freeplane icon
     253 likes
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    Freeplane is a powerful and free software for building mind maps. It is a redesigned version of the well known FreeMind , and is created by one of FreeMind's key developers.

    84 Freeplane alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    • Java
     
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    1
    Comments about Freeplane as an Alternative to PlantUML
    Guest
    Negative
    9

    While mind mapping may fall into the category of "graphing application," it is not a replacement for software architecture diagramming and/or UML modeling.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    PlantUML Icon
    Freeplane icon
    • Freeplane is Free and Open SourcePlantUML is also Free and Open Source
  7. Lucidchart icon
     533 likes
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    Lucidchart is a cloud-based platform that promotes teamwork through diagramming, collaboration, and data visualization. It serves millions worldwide, offering flowcharts, UML, real-time collaboration, Visio support, and browser access. Designed for innovation and understanding, it integrates easily into workflows.

    62 Lucidchart alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Subscription)
    • Proprietary

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad
    • Software as a Service (SaaS)
     
    • Lucidchart is the most popular Android, iPhone, iPad, SaaS & Android Tablet alternative to PlantUML.

    • Lucidchart is Freemium and ProprietaryPlantUML is Free and Open Source
  8. Mermaid icon
     32 likes
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    Ever wanted to simplify documentation and avoid heavy tools like Visio when explaining your code? This is why mermaid was born, a simple markdown-like script language for generating flowcharts, Gantt charts and sequence diagrams from text via JavaScript.

    26 Mermaid alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Self-Hosted
    • JavaScript
    • Node.JS
     
  9. Microsoft Visio icon
     250 likes
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    Create data-connected diagrams with real-time collaboration as part of the Office Suite. Ideal for IT and business professionals, it visualizes complex info with ease, providing intuitive tools for diagramming, mind mapping, and vector graphics.

    123 Microsoft Visio alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Subscription
    • Proprietary

    Platforms

    • Windows
     
    • Microsoft Visio is the most popular commercial alternative to PlantUML.

    • Microsoft Visio is Paid and ProprietaryPlantUML is Free and Open Source
  10. Copy a direct link to this comment to your clipboard

    Efficient web-based tool for constructing high-quality commutative diagrams. Offers LaTeX export with embedded links, intuitive interface supporting both mouse and keyboard inputs, and features like multiple selections, macro support, and smart label alignment.

    55 quiver diagram editor alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Online
     
  11. Graphviz icon
     74 likes
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    Graphviz is open source graph visualization software. Graph visualization is a way of representing structural information as diagrams of abstract graphs and networks. It has important applications in networking, bioinformatics, software engineering, database and web design...

    56 Graphviz alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
     
  12. MindMeister icon
     141 likes
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    MindMeister is the market-leader in online mind mapping. Unlike traditional mind mapping tools, MindMeister allows for real-time brainstorming sessions between an unlimited number of users and requires only a standard web browser.

    146 MindMeister alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium (Subscription)
    • Proprietary

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
     
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    1
    Comments about MindMeister as an Alternative to PlantUML
    Guest
    Negative
    0

    While mind mapping may fall into the category of "graphing application," it is not a replacement for software architecture diagramming and/or UML modeling.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    PlantUML Icon
    MindMeister icon
    • MindMeister is Freemium and ProprietaryPlantUML is Free and Open Source
  13. Kroki icon
     7 likes
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    Creates diagrams from textual descriptions! It provides a unified API with support for BlockDiag, BPMN, Bytefield, C4 (with PlantUML), Ditaa, Erd, GraphViz, Mermaid, Nomnoml, PlantUML, SvgBob, UMLet, Vega, Vega-Lite, WaveDrom.

    24 Kroki alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Self-Hosted
     
12 of 115 PlantUML alternatives