Lunacy vs Sketch
Both are alternatives to Figma. Here's how they stack up — verified facts, no spin.
Also searched as Sketch vs Lunacy — same comparison, one verdict.
Lunacy
Free desktop UI design that opens Sketch and Figma files.
Lunacy is a free desktop design app from Icons8 that reads and writes Sketch files and imports Figma documents, with built-in icons, illustrations and photos. It runs natively on Windows, macOS and Linux, and works offline — useful where a browser-based tool is not an option. It is proprietary and free rather than open source, which is why it scores where it does: you are not paying, but you are still depending on a company's decision to keep it free.
Sketch
The incumbent Figma displaced — still excellent, still Mac-only.
Sketch was the tool Figma took the market from, and it is still a first-class native macOS design application with a strong plugin ecosystem and a one-time-purchase option alongside subscriptions. Being native means it is fast in ways a browser tool is not. The constraints are the ones that cost it the market: macOS only, and collaboration that was retrofitted rather than designed in. Listed because for a solo designer on a Mac who resents subscriptions, it remains a rational choice.
Side by side
| Lunacy | Sketch | |
|---|---|---|
| Sovereignty Score | 48 | 38 |
| Open source | No | No |
| Self-hostable | No | No |
| Local-first | Yes | Yes |
| License | Proprietary (free) | Proprietary |
| Pricing | Free. Paid Icons8 subscription only for premium asset libraries. | Around $12 per editor per month, or a one-time licence with a year of updates. |
Lunacy edges it on the Sovereignty Score, but the right pick depends on the trade-offs below.
Lunacy
Strengths
- +Genuinely free with no seat limit
- +Opens Sketch files natively and imports from Figma
- +Runs offline as a native desktop app on all three platforms
- +Built-in asset libraries save real time
Trade-offs
- −Proprietary — free today is a business decision, not a licence
- −No self-hosting and no source access
- −Collaboration is weaker than Figma or Penpot
- −Tied to Icons8's ecosystem and its commercial direction
Sketch
Strengths
- +Native macOS performance — noticeably faster than browser tools
- +One-time purchase option, which is rare in this category now
- +Mature plugin ecosystem built over a decade
- +Files are local by default
Trade-offs
- −macOS only — excludes most teams outright
- −Collaboration is bolted on rather than native
- −Proprietary format with the same lock-in as Figma's
- −Losing ecosystem momentum to Figma and Penpot
Related alternative guides
Facts verified 2026-08-07. Licenses and pricing change — spotted something out of date? That's a correction we want.