Penpot vs Inkscape
Both are alternatives to Figma. Here's how they stack up — verified facts, no spin.
Also searched as Inkscape vs Penpot — same comparison, one verdict.
Penpot
TOP PICKThe one open design tool that genuinely competes — and it self-hosts.
Penpot is a browser-based design and prototyping tool with real-time collaboration, components, auto-layout and prototyping, built on open web standards rather than a proprietary format. Files are SVG-based, which means what you draw is readable by other software instead of trapped. It self-hosts with Docker, so designs can live on your own infrastructure — the deciding factor for regulated work. MPL-2.0, around 58k GitHub stars. It imports Figma files, though fidelity drops on complex documents, so treat a migration as a project rather than a click.
Inkscape
Professional vector editing, free for twenty years.
Inkscape is a mature desktop vector editor — the open answer to Illustrator rather than to Figma. Precise path editing, full SVG support, extensions and a two-decade track record. For icon work, illustration and print-bound vector output it is genuinely professional. It is on this page because a meaningful slice of Figma seats are bought by people who only ever draw vectors, and a desktop tool with no per-seat fee serves them better. GPL, installed rather than browser-based, and single-player by design.
Side by side
| Penpot | Inkscape | |
|---|---|---|
| Sovereignty Score | 92 | 96 |
| Open source | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hostable | Yes | Yes |
| Local-first | Yes | Yes |
| License | MPL-2.0 | GPL-2.0 / GPL-3.0 |
| Pricing | Free and open source, self-hosted or on Penpot's free cloud. Paid plans for hosted teams. | Free and open source. Desktop install, no accounts. |
Penpot is Macrostack's recommended Figma alternative, so it's our pick here.
Penpot
Strengths
- +Only open tool with real feature parity ambitions against Figma
- +SVG-based files — your work is not locked in a proprietary format
- +Self-hosts with Docker; designs never leave your infrastructure
- +MPL-2.0 with no enterprise directory carve-out
Trade-offs
- −Real-time collaboration is smoother in Figma
- −Plugin ecosystem is a fraction of Figma's
- −Figma import loses fidelity on complex files
- −Performance lags on very large documents
Inkscape
Strengths
- +Deep, precise vector editing — better than Figma at pure illustration
- +Native SVG throughout; files open anywhere
- +Runs entirely offline with no account of any kind
- +Twenty years of development and a large extension library
Trade-offs
- −No collaboration — this is a single-player desktop tool
- −No prototyping, components or developer handoff
- −Interface feels dated next to browser-native tools
- −Wrong tool for designing product screens
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Facts verified 2026-08-07. Licenses and pricing change — spotted something out of date? That's a correction we want.