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Design · head to head

Adobe Illustrator vs Proto.io

Adobe Illustrator logo

Adobe Illustrator

Design

Professional vector graphics software

From
$22.99/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Proto.io logo

Proto.io

Design

Hosted high-fidelity prototyping with device preview and no code

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Adobe Illustrator listed on UK G-Cloud as part of Adobe Creative Cloud (which bundles Illustrator) at £58 to £80 per licence per month, via reseller ServiceKey; Proto.io prototypes live in the vendor cloud and offline export is a higher-tier feature, so the ability to archive completed client work is a plan-level decision rather than a given.
  • They diverge on capability: Adobe Illustrator covers Vector drawing, Proto.io covers Event and condition system.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Adobe Illustrator and Proto.io actually diverge.

Attributes where Adobe Illustrator and Proto.io differ
AttributeAdobe IllustratorProto.io
Starting price$22.99/monthOn request
Pricing modelsubscriptionPer user per month
PlatformsWindows, Macos, IosWeb, iOS, Android
Founded1982Unknown

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Design).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Adobe Illustrator

  • Vector drawing
  • Bezier tools
  • Shape tools
  • Typography
  • Gradients & effects
  • Symbols & instances
  • Artboards
  • 3D capabilities

Only in Proto.io

  • Event and condition system
  • Timeline animation
  • Device preview
  • Component library
  • User testing integration
  • Design import

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Adobe Illustrator

  • Logo designnot Proto.io
  • Vector illustrationnot Proto.io
  • Icon designnot Proto.io
  • Print designnot Proto.io

Proto.io

  • Running usability tests where the prototype must respond to real input rather than replay a fixed click pathnot Adobe Illustrator
  • Demonstrating a form-heavy or data-driven flow to stakeholders before any code existsnot Adobe Illustrator
  • Testing a mobile interaction on the physical device it is designed for, with correct gesture behaviournot Adobe Illustrator
  • Validating a concept for a client who needs to feel the product, not watch a video of itnot Adobe Illustrator

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Adobe Illustrator

  • Listed on UK G-Cloud as part of Adobe Creative Cloud (which bundles Illustrator) at £58 to £80 per licence per month, via reseller ServiceKey

Proto.io

  • Prototypes live in the vendor cloud and offline export is a higher-tier feature, so the ability to archive completed client work is a plan-level decision rather than a given.
  • Design is done elsewhere and interaction is rebuilt here, so every change to the visual design has to be reapplied by hand and the two artefacts drift apart.
  • The event and condition model is layer based, so a genuinely complex flow becomes a large tree of triggers that nobody but its author can audit.
  • Editor seats are priced individually and viewer access is limited on lower plans, so opening review to a wide stakeholder group pushes you up a tier for people who never edit anything.
  • The market standardised on Figma, so hiring people who already know Proto.io is progressively harder and every new researcher is a training cost.

Pricing, plan by plan

Adobe Illustrator

$22.99/month
  • Single App$22.99/month
    • Illustrator desktop app
    • 100GB cloud storage
    • Adobe Fonts
  • All Apps$59.99/month
    • All Creative Cloud apps
    • 100GB cloud storage
    • Adobe Stock trial

Proto.io

On request
  • Freelancer$undefined/month
    • Single editor
    • Limited active projects
    • Standard sharing
  • Startup$undefined/month
    • Multiple editors
    • More projects
    • Team library
  • Agency$undefined/month
    • Higher project and storage limits
    • Client sharing controls
  • Corporate$undefined/month
    • Largest quotas
    • Offline export on higher tiers
    • Priority support

Which should you pick?

Choose Adobe Illustrator if

  • You need vector drawing.
  • You work on Windows, Macos, Ios.
  • You also want bezier tools.
Adobe Illustrator review

Choose Proto.io if

  • You need event and condition system.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want timeline animation.
Proto.io review

Questions people ask

Is Adobe Illustrator or Proto.io better?
Neither clearly leads. Adobe Illustrator starts at $22.99/month and Proto.io at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Adobe Illustrator or Proto.io?
Adobe Illustrator starts at $22.99/month and Proto.io at On request.
Does Adobe Illustrator or Proto.io run on more platforms?
Adobe Illustrator runs on Windows, Macos, Ios. Proto.io runs on Web, iOS, Android.
What is Adobe Illustrator best used for?
Adobe Illustrator is most often used for logo design, vector illustration, icon design, print design. Of those, logo design and vector illustration are not what Proto.io is typically brought in for.
What can Adobe Illustrator do that Proto.io cannot?
Adobe Illustrator covers Vector drawing, Bezier tools, Shape tools, Typography. Proto.io covers Event and condition system, Timeline animation, Device preview, Component library.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Proto.io: Can it replace Figma?

No. It has no design system or file-handoff role. It sits alongside Figma for the prototypes Figma cannot express.

Proto.io: What happens to prototypes if we stop paying?

They stop being accessible unless you have exported them, and offline export is restricted to higher plans, so plan archiving before you cancel.

Proto.io: Is it worth learning now that InVision has gone?

If your work is usability research on conditional flows, yes. If you need click-through demos of static screens, Figma already does that at no extra cost.

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