The Definitive Guide to Different UX Design Tools in 2020

This article compares the best free UX design tools of 2020. There are a lot of UX software and tools out there, and it can get overwhelming and confusing to differentiate between them and figure out which ones are the best for you. Whether you’re new to the UX domain, a veteran designer interested in discovering what other tools are out there and how they’re different from what you use, or perhaps you’re transitioning from UI to UX, this article is for you. This list excludes Sketch, Omnigraffle, Balsamiq, Axure RP, ProtoPie, and Proto.io because they currently don’t have permanent free plans.

Before we get started, let’s list the major different types of available UX design tools:
1. Pre-prototyping tools used for flowcharts, diagramming, personas, journeys & planning
2. Wireframing & UI design tools
3. Interactive prototyping or interactive mockup tools
4. Design handoff tools that help developers easily implement the designs
5. Collaboration, presentation, feedback and brainstorming tools (can be used pre, during, or post prototyping)

A tool/software can be a mix of more than one of the above types.
Let’s have a look…

UXPressia
✓ Create user personas
✓ Create user journey maps
✗ Can’t create user flows (it’s not made for that)
✓ Create empathy maps
✓ Create impact maps
✓ Has many other business templates
✗ Present and comment (not available in free plan)

FlowMapp
✓ Create user personas
✓ Create user journey maps
✓ Create user flows
✓ Create site maps
✗ Only these 4 types of templates are available
✓ Present (shareable link)
✗ Can’t comment on presentations

Milanote
✓ Create user personas
✓ Create user journey maps
✗ You can create user flows, but it’s not really a diagramming tool (it’s not made for that)
✓ Has many useful planning and business templates
✓ Present and comment

Octopus.do
✓ Create sitemaps
✓ Create screen flows
✓ Present and comment
✗ Can’t export as PNG in free plan
+ More features such as cost estimator available in pro plan.

Draw.io
Now called Diagrams.net
✓ Create user flows
✓ Create other sorts of diagrams and maps
✗ No persona and journey templates
✗ Can’t present and comment collaboratively

Lucidchart
✓ Create user personas
✓ Create user journey maps
✓ Create empathy maps
✓ Create user flows
✗ Premium version allows wireframe creation, but it’s not typically a wireframing software
✗ Present and comment (not available in free plan)
✓ Has MANY templates (ex. for agile workflows, charts, flows, diagrams, planning) & can create all sorts of diagrams
+ Integrations: Can import from Visio, Gliffy, Draw.io, & Omnigraffle. Has many integration options, including Microsoft Teams, Microsoft Office, Office 365, Google Drive & Docs, G Suite, Slack, OneDrive, Githib, Zapier, Jira, AWS, Confluence, and more…

2 more tools, Miro and Stormboard, also fall into this category, but I placed them under the collaboration tools section at the end because of their primary focus on collaboration. You’ll see them later.

Adobe XD
Similar to Sketch and Invision Studio. Easy to use, specially if you’re used to Adobe products.
✗ No prebuilt components (ex. buttons, input box, drop down)
✗ No button states
✗ No complex interactions (ex. hide/show, conditional logic)
✗ No icons (ex. font Awesome), but you can add libraries/kits
✓ Create component
✗ No autofill capabilities (unless you install plugins)
✓ Highlight interaction hotspots
✓ Shows arrow links between screens
✓ Collaborative commenting/feedback
✓ You can mark comments resolved/unresolved
✗ Can’t assign comments to team members but can mention them
✓ Comments can be used as documentation
+ Integrations: Has a lot of plugins that you can use to enable the above features that are missing

Lunacy
Similar to Sketch & XD, it’s actually a Sketch alternative for Windows.
✗ No prebuilt components (ex. buttons, input box, drop down)
✗ No button states
✗ No complex interactions (ex. hide/show, conditional logic)
✓ Has icons library
✓ Create component (called Symbols)
✓ Has autofill capabilities (ex. Avatars, names, dummy text)
✗ No ability to create interactive prototypes, you have to export screens and use them in an interactive prototyping tool
✗ No collaborative commenting/feedback

InVision
Similar to Sketch & XD
✗ No prebuilt components (ex. buttons, input box, drop down)
✗ No button states
✗ No complex interactions (ex. hide/show, conditional logic)
✗ No icons (ex. font Awesome), but you can add libraries/apps/kits
✓ Create component
✗ No autofill capabilities (unless you install plugins)
✓ Highlight interaction hotspots
✓ Shows arrow links between screens
✓ Collaborative commenting/feedback
✓ You can mark comments resolved/unresolved
✗ Can’t assign comments to team members but can mention them
✓ Comments can be used as documentation
✓ Has collaborative boards and freehand whiteboard features
+ Integrations: Has a lot of integrations/plugins/apps that you can use to enable the above features that are missing

Figma
Similar to Sketch & XD
✗ No prebuilt components (ex. buttons, input box, drop down)
✗ No button states
✗ No complex interactions (ex. hide/show, conditional logic)
✗ No icons (ex. font Awesome)
✓ Create component
✗ No autofill capabilities (unless you install plugins)
✓ Highlight interaction hotspots
✓ Shows arrow links between screens
✓ Collaborative commenting/feedback
✓ You can mark comments resolved/unresolved
✗ Can’t assign comments to team members
✗ No documentation option
+ Integrations: Has a LOT of plugins! ex. Zeplin, Axure… you can find a plugin to enable the above features that are missing

UXPin
✓ Has prebuilt components (ex. buttons, input box, drop down)
✓ Has button states
✓ Has complex interactions (ex. hide/show, conditional logic)
✓ Has icons (ex. font Awesome)
✓ Create component
✓ Has autofill capabilities (ex. Avatars, names, dummy text)
✓ Highlight interaction hotspots (you have to enable it from icon)
✗ Doesn’t show arrow links between screens because it works differently than other programs: each screen is a different page, and you can see them all by clicking the overview icon
✓ Collaborative commenting/feedback
✓ You can mark comments resolved/unresolved
✓ You can assign comments to team members
✓ Documentation option (for collaboration)
✓ Persona template
✓ Business model Canvas template
✓ Project canvas template
+ Integrations: Sketch (import + plugin), Photoshop (plugin), Adobe Fonts, Slack, Jira Cloud (plugin)

MarvelApp
✗ Can’t create wireframes (it’s an interactive mockup tool only)
✓ Upload screenshots and link them to make an interactive prototype/mockup. Superfast and super easy.
✓ Auto-generates screen user flows
✓ Highlight interaction hotspots
✓ Collaborative commenting/feedback
✓ You can mark comments resolved/unresolved
✓ Create user tests (recorded sessions that show you how user interacted… with option of recording voice and cam)
+ Integrations: Sketch (plugin)

Mockflow
✓ Has prebuilt components (ex. buttons, input box, drop down)
✗ No button states
✗ No complex interactions (ex. hide/show, conditional logic)
✓ Has icons (ex. font Awesome)
✗ No create component
✓ Has autofill capabilities (ex. Avatars, names, dummy text)
✓ Highlight interaction hotspots (shows for a second when you first launch)
✗ No transition effects
✗ Doesn’t show arrow links between screens because it works differently than other programs: each screen is a different page
✓ Collaborative commenting/feedback
✗ Can’t mark comments resolved/unresolved
✗ Can’t assign comments to team members
✗ No documentation option (for collaboration)
✓ Has sitemap builder
✓ Has design system creator
✓ Has annotation maker (you have to add images separately)
✓ Has collaborative design approval functionality, with variation approval system and workflow boards
✓ Has workflow for wireframes/prototypes (not started, in progress, completed, approved, implemented)
+ Integrations: G Suite, Google Drive, Slack, Trello, Confluence, Jira, Office 365, and has plugins called “powerups” that add functionality

JustinMind
Has some display issues when zoomed out
✓ Has prebuilt components (ex. buttons, input box, drop down)
✗ No button states
✗ No complex interactions (ex. hide/show, conditional logic)
✓ Has icons (ex. iOS icons)
✓ Can create components (save as templates)
✗ No autofill capabilities (ex. Avatars, names, dummy text) but some elements come with autofilled dummy text (ex. paragraph)
✓ Highlight interaction hotspots
✓ Has transition effects
✓ Can create flow links between screens manually because it works differently than other programs: each screen is a different page
✓ Collaborative commenting/feedback
✗ Can’t mark comments resolved/unresolved
✗ Can’t assign comments to team members
✓ Can add comments as documentation (for collaboration)
✓ Has sitemap feature
✓ Has design system creator in form of “Master” template
+ Integrations: Can import from XD, Sketch and Photoshop

Moqups
Bit complex and annoying to use
✓ Has prebuilt components (ex. buttons, input box, drop down)
✗ No button states
✗ No complex interactions (ex. hide/show, conditional logic)
✓ Has icons (ex. font Awesome)
✗ No create component
✗ No autofill capabilities (ex. Avatars, names, dummy text) but some elements come with autofilled dummy text (ex. paragraph)
✓ Highlight interaction hotspots
✗ No transition effects
✗ Doesn’t show arrow links between screens because it works differently than other programs: each screen is a different page
✓ Collaborative commenting/feedback
✓ Can mark comments resolved/unresolved
✗ Can’t assign comments to team members, but can mention teammates
✗ No documentation option (for collaboration)
✓ Has flow chart templates
✓ Has business templates
✓ Has sitemap builder
✗ No integrations

Zeplin
It’s a design handoff tool that makes things easier for developers by enabling them to extract assets and measure elements.
✗ Can’t create wireframes
✓ Create style guide (design system)
✓ Can import components
+ Integrations: You need to export design from Figma, XD, or Photoshop

Confluence
✓ Collaborative planning & notes
✓ Collaborative roadmapping
✓ Collaborative commenting/feedback
✓ Team mentions capability
+ Integrates with other Attlassian apps (ex. Jira)

Miro
Very user-friendly and simple
✓ Collaborative whiteboard for planning
✓ Add sticky notes and link them with arrows
✓ Create flowcharts, personas, empathy map, user journey map, roadmaps, agile workflows, business model canvas, and LOTS more.

Stormboard
✓ Collaborative whiteboard for planning
✓ Add sticky notes and link them with arrows
✓ Create tasks/task list, assign them, mark as complete
✓ Kanban workflows
✓ Templates for personas, empathy map, user journey map, roadmaps, agile workflows, business model canvas, and LOTS more.

Verdict
There’s no perfect full-stack solution (that includes all 5 types of tools) when it comes to UX design software, so you have to choose what’s best for you based on the features you need and how easy they are to use. Sometimes you’re going to have to choose based on what your organization is already used to. It also helps to choose based on the limitations of the free version/plan, and the price of the paid version since there’s a high chance you’ll be upgrading to a paid plan in the future. Please also keep in mind that it’s not the tools that make a great UX designer. The tools are just there to make your life easier and enable you.

Bookmark this page so that you can easily find it and refer to it when you need it in the future, and feel free to share it.

About Me
My name is Karim Muhtar, and I’m a senior UX designer and consultant with over 10 years of experience. You can reach out to me whenever you need my design services or consultations. Referrals are good too. You can have a look at some of my work on www.karimmuhtar.com.