Excalidraw vs Wired Elements
Which should you use? A side-by-side look at what each one does, who it suits, what it costs, how hard it is to set up, and where each falls short.
Open source · MIT
Open-source virtual whiteboard for sketching hand-drawn style diagrams in your browser.
Open source · MIT
A set of basic UI elements (buttons, inputs) drawn to look hand-sketched, for wireframes.
The short answer
Choose Excalidraw if you need…
- Teams sketching diagrams or wireframes together in a shared canvas
- People who want a casual, informal look for explanatory drawings
- Developers who want to embed a whiteboard editor in their own React app
- Users who care about end-to-end encryption for shared drawings
Choose Wired Elements if you need…
- Designers making quick wireframes or low-fidelity mockups
- Developers prototyping a page layout before real styling exists
- Teams who want a deliberately informal look in a demo or internal tool
- Developers already working with web components or Lit
Side-by-side
| Excalidraw | Wired Elements | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | App | Library |
| Price | Free and open source | Free and open source |
| Licence | MIT | MIT |
| GitHub stars | 135k | 10.8k |
| Setup difficulty | Beginner | Beginner |
| How you get it | Use it in the browser (or self-host) | Install with a package manager |
| Main language | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last code update | 5 days ago | 3 years ago |
What each one is
Excalidraw
Excalidraw is an open-source whiteboard where you draw diagrams, wireframes and sketches in a deliberately hand-drawn style. The hosted app at excalidraw.com adds real-time collaboration, end-to-end encryption and autosave to the browser. The same editor is also published as an npm package that developers can embed in their own apps.
Wired Elements
Wired Elements is a collection of common user-interface pieces, such as buttons and text inputs, that are drawn with a sketchy, hand-drawn look. They are built as web components, so they can be placed in ordinary HTML or used in frameworks. People use them for quick wireframes and mockups, or simply for a playful hand-drawn style.
Best for
Excalidraw
- Teams sketching diagrams or wireframes together in a shared canvas
- People who want a casual, informal look for explanatory drawings
- Developers who want to embed a whiteboard editor in their own React app
- Users who care about end-to-end encryption for shared drawings
- Anyone who wants drawings saved in an open .excalidraw JSON format
Wired Elements
- Designers making quick wireframes or low-fidelity mockups
- Developers prototyping a page layout before real styling exists
- Teams who want a deliberately informal look in a demo or internal tool
- Developers already working with web components or Lit
Strengths
Excalidraw
- Free and open source under the MIT license
- Simple, approachable drawing tools with a distinctive hand-drawn look
- Open .excalidraw JSON format and export to PNG, SVG and clipboard
Wired Elements
- Simple to use: the README shows plain HTML tags such as <wired-button> and <wired-input>
- Works across frameworks, with linked examples for React, Vue, and Svelte
- Permissive MIT license
Not ideal for
Excalidraw
- Users who need precise, pixel-perfect vector design; the hand-drawn style is the default look and the README does not describe precision tools
- People wanting to self-host the collaboration service; the README only links to the hosted app for real-time collaboration and does not describe a self-hosting setup
- Non-developers who only want the hosted app and have no need for the code; the npm and development sections are aimed at developers
Wired Elements
- Production sites that need a polished, conventional visual style, since the hand-drawn look is the defining feature
- Projects that need a large, complete component set; the README describes only a series of basic elements
- Users who need detailed component documentation inline, since the README points to a separate docs folder
Trade-offs
Excalidraw
- Collaboration and encryption are features of the hosted app; the README does not detail how to run them yourself
- Development setup is covered only by a linked guide, so the README alone gives limited build detail
- No downloadable binaries in the latest release; use the web app or the npm package
Wired Elements
- Limited scope: the README describes basic elements only
- The last push to the repository was in October 2023, so activity may be slow
- Detailed component properties and events are in a separate docs folder rather than the README
Getting started
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Excalidraw and Wired Elements?
Excalidraw: Open-source virtual whiteboard for sketching hand-drawn style diagrams in your browser. Wired Elements: A set of basic UI elements (buttons, inputs) drawn to look hand-sketched, for wireframes. Excalidraw suits teams sketching diagrams or wireframes together in a shared canvas, while Wired Elements suits designers making quick wireframes or low-fidelity mockups.
Are Excalidraw and Wired Elements free?
Excalidraw: Free and open source. Wired Elements: Free and open source.
Is Excalidraw or Wired Elements more popular?
Excalidraw has more GitHub stars (135k) than Wired Elements (10.8k). Popularity isn't the same as fit — check which one matches your use case above.
What are other alternatives to Excalidraw and Wired Elements?
Other options people compare them with include Drawnix, Ionicons.
Keep comparing
Built from our catalogue entries for both products: open-source details come from each project's README (AI-assisted, refreshed weekly) and GitHub data; AI-tool details are editorial. Spotted something wrong? Let us know from either product's page.