Penpot

Penpot is the first open-source, web-based design and prototyping platform built on open standards (SVG, CSS) that lets designers and developers collaborate in a single app — no vendor lock-in, no handoff drama. We rate it 82/100: the best free Figma alternative for privacy-conscious teams, open-source advocates, and organizations that must self-host their design stack.

What Is Penpot?

Penpot was created by Kaleidos, a Spanish open-source software company, and launched publicly in early 2021. By March 30, 2026, the project reached 45,100+ GitHub stars and shipped version 2.14.1. Unlike Figma (owned by Adobe) or Sketch (Mac-only), Penpot runs in any modern browser and is 100% self-hostable via Docker with MPL-2.0 licensing.

The core problem Penpot solves is the design-developer gap: designers produce mockups, then developers manually re-implement measurements. Penpot eliminates this by natively generating SVG, CSS, and HTML code from any design element — for free, in the built-in Developer Mode — without a paid tier.

Key Features of Penpot

• Native CSS Grid & Flexbox Layout: Penpot is the only major design tool to implement real CSS Grid natively — not as a plugin. Design layouts using the same grid rules you ship to production, eliminating the "translate this to CSS" step.
• Native Design Tokens: As of Penpot 2.0, design tokens are built-in with no Token Studio plugin required. A single source of truth connects design decisions (color, spacing, typography) directly to code.
• Free Developer Mode: Unlike Figma, which paywalls Dev Mode behind an Org plan, Penpot's code inspection and measurement tools are completely free. Developers get CSS, SVG, and HTML for any element at zero cost.
• Self-Hosting via Docker: Deploy on your own server or cloud account in 15–30 minutes using Docker Compose. Design data never leaves your infrastructure — critical for agencies, regulated industries, and privacy-first teams.
• Real-Time Collaboration: Multiple designers work on the same file simultaneously with live cursors, comments, and shared component libraries across projects.
• Plugin System: Penpot 2.x ships a plugin API for custom automation, integrations, and brand-specific design system tooling.
• Open Standards File Format: Files are stored in SVG + JSON, not a proprietary binary. You can read, edit, and migrate your files without going through Penpot's platform.

What Users Say About Penpot

Community sentiment is broadly positive but honest about trade-offs. On Reddit's r/webdev and r/design, the most common praise covers open-source nature (especially post-Adobe/Figma deal), the generous free plan, and free Developer Mode. The recurring criticism: the interface feels slightly less polished than Figma — some panels feel modern, others like afterthoughts. G2 reviewers in 2025–2026 highlight native CSS Grid support as a breakout feature ("I can design the exact grid I'll build without using a plugin"), while noting that performance on very large files can lag. Product Hunt commenters at Penpot 2.0's launch praised the redesigned UI and CSS Grid, with the main complaint being a smaller plugin ecosystem versus Figma's mature marketplace.

Penpot Pricing

Penpot's pricing is unusually transparent — and genuinely free for most professional use cases.

Plan	Price	Key Details
Free	$0/month	Unlimited projects, files, and collaborators on Penpot Cloud. No seat limit, no feature walls.
Professional	Capped at $175/month	No matter how large your team, you never pay more than $175/month. Includes 25GB storage and advanced sharing controls.
Enterprise	Capped at $950/month	SSO, audit logs, SLA, dedicated support. Flat price regardless of team size — designed for large orgs.
Self-Hosted	Free (Open Source)	Run it on your own infrastructure. MPL-2.0 licensed. Full feature parity with Penpot Cloud.

The capped pricing model is a direct shot at Figma's per-seat pricing, which can cost large teams thousands per month. A 200-person design org pays the same $175/month as a 20-person team on Penpot Professional.

Who Should Use Penpot?

Best for: Freelancers and startups on tight budgets, agencies that need to self-host client files for compliance, developers who want free code inspection, open-source advocates, and teams migrating from Figma after vendor-lock concerns intensified with the Adobe deal.

Not ideal for: Organizations deeply invested in Figma's plugin ecosystem (Penpot's plugin library is still maturing), teams that do heavy mobile app prototyping requiring platform-specific component libraries, or designers needing seamless Lottie/After Effects animation workflows.

Pros and Cons

Pros:

• Completely free for unlimited seats and files — no credit card, no arbitrary limits
• First design tool with native CSS Grid — production-ready layout design without plugins
• Developer Mode is free (Figma charges for this feature)
• Self-hostable via Docker in under 30 minutes — your data stays on your servers
• Open standards file format (SVG/JSON) — no vendor lock-in, ever
• Active OSS community: v2.14.1 released March 30, 2026, weekly release cadence

Cons:

• UI polish is slightly behind Figma — some panels feel inconsistent
• Smaller plugin ecosystem; some Figma-specific plugins have no Penpot equivalent yet
• Performance on very large files (50MB+) can lag in complex projects
• Browser-only — no native macOS or Windows app (Docker for self-hosting)
• Smaller talent pool: harder to hire designers who already know Penpot

Alternatives to Penpot

Figma remains the industry standard — richer plugin ecosystem, smoother UX on large files, and stronger mobile prototyping. But paid Dev Mode and per-seat pricing make it expensive at scale. Lunacy (by Icons8) is a free native Windows/Mac app with AI features, but it's not open-source. Excalidraw is excellent for wireframes and diagrams but lacks the component systems and code export that Penpot delivers for full UI design work.

Verdict: Is Penpot Worth It?

For any team where Figma's pricing feels punishing, or where data sovereignty is non-negotiable, Penpot is a clear recommendation. Free for unlimited seats, no paywalled Dev Mode, open-source file format, and a weekly release cadence — it earns its 82/100. Held back only by a maturing plugin ecosystem and occasionally rough UI edges, it's exceptional value at zero cost, and the $175/month Professional plan cap is genuinely disruptive pricing for larger teams.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Penpot free?

Yes. Penpot Cloud is free forever for unlimited users, projects, and files with no feature paywalls. Paid plans start at $175/month (capped for any team size) and add storage and enterprise features. The self-hosted version is fully free under the MPL-2.0 license.

Can I self-host Penpot?

Yes. Penpot can be self-hosted using Docker Compose on any Linux server or cloud provider. Setup takes approximately 15–30 minutes using the official guide at docs.penpot.app.

How does Penpot compare to Figma?

Penpot is free, open-source, and self-hostable — Figma is none of those. Penpot has native CSS Grid and free Developer Mode. Figma has a more mature plugin ecosystem, smoother UX on large files, and stronger mobile component libraries. For privacy-first or budget-conscious teams, Penpot wins. For teams deeply embedded in Figma's ecosystem, switching costs may not yet justify the change.

Is Penpot open source?

Yes. Penpot is licensed under the Mozilla Public License 2.0 (MPL-2.0). Full source code is on GitHub at github.com/penpot/penpot with 45,100+ stars as of March 2026.

What platforms does Penpot support?

Penpot runs in any modern web browser (Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari) on macOS, Windows, and Linux. There is no native desktop app. Self-hosted deployments run on Linux servers via Docker.