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Microsoft Visio Alternatives 2026: 5 Free Options
Microsoft Visio alternatives: draw.io (diagrams.net), Excalidraw, LibreOffice, yEd Graph Editor and 1 more. Prices and licenses checked October 23, 2026.
•3 min read•Graphic Design & Diagramming
Verdict:Visio Plan 1 costs $5 per user per month billed yearly but is a web app only; the desktop app with BPMN 2.0, floor plans and electrical diagrams is Plan 2 at $15. Most people searching for an alternative want to stop paying for that, or are on a Mac, where there is no desktop Visio. draw.io is the default answer: it is Apache-2.0, free forever according to its site, runs in a browser or as a desktop app, and handles flowcharts, network diagrams and UML with no account. Excalidraw is better for rough sketches in meetings. LibreOffice Draw suits people who want a desktop file-based tool with no cloud, and yEd is useful when you have data to lay out automatically, such as a network map from a spreadsheet. Mermaid wins when the diagram belongs in a README and should change through pull requests. What you lose is specialized stencils, such as P&ID and electrical symbols, and tight links to Microsoft 365 and Power BI. If you must hand .vsdx files to colleagues, test a sample round trip before switching, because complex shapes and custom stencils often do not survive conversion.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Price | Platforms | Best for | Tested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| draw.io (diagrams.net) | Free (Free with no sign-up; open files from local storage or your own cloud account) | Web, Windows, macOS, Linux | General diagrams with no cost | Docs only |
| Excalidraw | Free (Free web app with real-time collaboration and end-to-end encryption); paid from $6 per user/month, Excalidraw+ | Web | Quick sketches and workshops | Docs only |
| LibreOffice | Free (download and use at no cost per its site) | Windows, macOS, Linux | Offline desktop diagramming | Docs only |
| yEd Graph Editor | Free (Free including commercial use; may not be redistributed or used in automated processes) | Windows, macOS, Linux (Java) | Auto-laid-out network and org charts | Docs only |
| Mermaid | Free (Open-source library plus free online Mermaid Live Editor) | Web, JavaScript library | Diagrams in documentation and code | Docs only |
| Lucidchart | Free (3 editable Lucidchart documents, 75 shapes per document, 100 templates); paid from $9 per month, billed annually (Individual) | Web | Diagramming | Docs only |
Independent comparison. Paid placements are labelled separately; editorial links earn no affiliate commissions. Learn more.
See the tools in action
Explore the interface and watch a workflow before choosing.
Good fit if
- You want a free general-purpose diagram editor (draw.io (diagrams.net) is the pick)
- You draw diagrams in documentation and code reviews (Mermaid is the pick)
- You want an offline desktop tool in an office suite (LibreOffice is the pick)
- You need auto-layout from spreadsheet data (yEd Graph Editor is the pick)
Not ideal if
- You rely on Microsoft Visio features or integrations that these tools do not replicate
Microsoft Visio today: Paid from $5 per user/month, billed yearly (Plan 1, web app only) (Microsoft Visio pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Why people look for Microsoft Visio alternatives
Visio Plan 1 is $5 per user per month paid yearly but covers the web app only; the desktop app, offline use and local files need Plan 2 at $15. Data linking is available only in the desktop app. Global and billing administrators need an annual commitment to buy online, and the free trial requires a work or school account and a credit card. Visio Standard and Professional have no trial.
draw.io (diagrams.net)
Compared with Microsoft Visio: Apache-2.0 diagramming app, free with no sign-up, as a web app and desktop apps. It covers flowcharts, UML and network diagrams, but has fewer built-in industry shape libraries than Visio Plan 2's 250,000-plus shapes.
Price: Free (Free with no sign-up; open files from local storage or your own cloud account) (draw.io (diagrams.net) pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web, Windows, macOS, Linux. Apache-2.0 (open source).
Project activity: 9k GitHub stars · latest release v32.6.1 (Oct 23, 2026) · last commit Oct 23, 2026
Best for: General diagrams with no cost.
Excalidraw
Compared with Microsoft Visio: MIT whiteboard with a hand-drawn look and real-time collaboration, free on the web. It lacks Visio's precise shapes and data linking, but it is fast for sketching ideas; Excalidraw+ is $6 per user per month.
Price: Free (Free web app with real-time collaboration and end-to-end encryption); paid from $6 per user/month, Excalidraw+ (Excalidraw pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web. MIT (open source).
Project activity: 134.7k GitHub stars · latest release v0.18.1 (Apr 21, 2026) · last commit Oct 27, 2026
Best for: Quick sketches and workshops.
Worth knowing: Excalidraw+ has a 14-day trial; annual billing saves 14%. Hand-drawn look, not a formal-shape library.
LibreOffice
Compared with Microsoft Visio: Its Draw component produces flowcharts and technical diagrams, and the suite is free under MPL-2.0. The interface is dated compared with Visio, and collaboration is weak, but it works offline and needs no account.
Price: Free (download and use at no cost per its site) (LibreOffice pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux. MPL-2.0 (open source).
Best for: Offline desktop diagramming.
Worth knowing: Desktop suite of Writer, Calc, Impress, Draw, Base and Math; it has no built-in cloud storage or email.
yEd Graph Editor
Compared with Microsoft Visio: Free desktop graph editor with automatic layouts for flowcharts, BPMN and UML. It imports Excel data for diagrams, but it is freeware rather than open source, and Visio export is a separate paid yFiles add-on.
Price: Free (Free including commercial use; may not be redistributed or used in automated processes) (yEd Graph Editor pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux (Java). Freeware (proprietary).
Best for: Auto-laid-out network and org charts.
Worth knowing: Imports Excel and XML; exports PNG, JPG, SVG, PDF. Visio export is a separate paid yFiles add-on.
Mermaid
Compared with Microsoft Visio: MIT library that draws diagrams from text, so it can live in a Git repo and docs. You give up Visio's drag-and-drop canvas and precise placement, but gain diagrams that are easy to version and review.
Price: Free (Open-source library plus free online Mermaid Live Editor) (Mermaid pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web, JavaScript library. MIT (open source).
Project activity: 90.9k GitHub stars · latest release @mermaid-js/tiny@12.2.0 (Oct 13, 2026) · last commit Oct 27, 2026
Best for: Diagrams in documentation and code.
Worth knowing: Generates diagrams from Markdown-like text. A paid platform exists at mermaid.ai; its price was not found.
Other popular options (paid)
Lucidchart
Compared with Microsoft Visio: Browser-based, with a free plan of 3 editable documents and 75 shapes per document; Individual is $9 per month billed annually, between Visio Plan 1 at $5 (web only) and Plan 2 at $15.
Price: Free (3 editable Lucidchart documents, 75 shapes per document, 100 templates); paid from $9 per month, billed annually (Individual) (Lucidchart pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Which one to pick
- You want a free general-purpose diagram editor: draw.io (diagrams.net)
- You draw diagrams in documentation and code reviews: Mermaid
- You want an offline desktop tool in an office suite: LibreOffice
- You need auto-layout from spreadsheet data: yEd Graph Editor
Limits of this review
Docs-only for draw.io (diagrams.net), Excalidraw, LibreOffice, yEd Graph Editor, Mermaid: we did not install or run them, so feature claims come from vendor pages and we did not test import from Microsoft Visio. Vendor prices and free limits change; confirm on the linked pricing page before you buy or migrate.
Related guides
More in Graphic Design & Diagramming
All Graphic Design & Diagramming alternatives →Sources
- Microsoft Visio pricing
- draw.io (diagrams.net) pricing
- draw.io (diagrams.net) license
- draw.io (diagrams.net) GitHub repository
- Excalidraw pricing
- Excalidraw license
- Excalidraw (more detail)
- LibreOffice pricing
- LibreOffice (more detail)
- yEd Graph Editor pricing
- Mermaid pricing
- Mermaid license
- Mermaid GitHub repository
- Lucidchart pricing
Kevin Fan
Kevin Fan is a SaaS founder. He runs Free Instead Of, which tracks free and open-source alternatives to paid software and checks each price and free-plan limit against the vendor's own pages.
Methodology
Based on official pricing and product pages checked between 2026-10-22 and 2026-10-23: Microsoft Visio, draw.io (diagrams.net), Excalidraw, LibreOffice, yEd Graph Editor, Mermaid, Lucidchart. Prices, free limits and licenses are the figures shown on those pages on those dates. No tool on this page was installed or run. No accounts were created.