Software · head to head
Excalidraw vs Attio
Excalidraw
Software
Virtual whiteboard for sketching hand-drawn like diagrams
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Attio
Software
The CRM built for the next generation of companies
- From
- $29/month
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Excalidraw has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Excalidraw advanced features (unlimited private scenes/folders, cloud storage, access management, presentations, extended AI, team management) are gated behind Excalidraw+; Attio the free plan stops at 3 seats and 50,000 records
- They diverge on capability: Excalidraw covers Hand-drawn style diagrams, Attio covers Custom data model.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Excalidraw and Attio actually diverge.
| Attribute | Excalidraw | Attio |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free | $29/month |
| Pricing model | Unknown | subscription |
| Free tier | Yes | No |
| Platforms | Web | Web, Ios, Android, Api |
| Founded | 2020 | 2021 |
Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).
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 Excalidraw
- Hand-drawn style diagrams
- Infinite canvas
- Shape libraries
- Text support
- Image import
- Export options
- Keyboard shortcuts
- GitHub
Only in Attio
- Custom data model
- Flexible views
- Email integration
- Calendar sync
- Automations
- Mobile app
- Templates
- Gmail
Both cover
- Real-time collaboration
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Excalidraw
- Wireframing and diagrammingnot Attio
- Real-time collaborative whiteboardingnot Attio
- Hand-drawn-style illustrations for docs and decksnot Attio
- Embedding a whiteboard into third-party apps via the npm packagenot Attio
- Visual planning and note-takingnot Attio
Attio
- Sales pipelinenot Excalidraw
- Customer managementnot Excalidraw
- Deal trackingnot Excalidraw
- Investor relationsnot Excalidraw
- Partnership managementnot Excalidraw
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Excalidraw
- Advanced features (unlimited private scenes/folders, cloud storage, access management, presentations, extended AI, team management) are gated behind Excalidraw+
- Free hosted version persists via scene links/local storage rather than a managed multi-scene workspace
- Self-hosting the full collaborative stack requires standing up a websocket server and storage beyond the npm editor package
- No official native desktop or app-store mobile apps - web/PWA only
Attio
- The free plan stops at 3 seats and 50,000 records
- Outbound email is capped at 200 messages a month on the free plan and 1,000 on Plus
- Call Intelligence, sequences, advanced reporting and permission controls all require the Pro tier
- Custom objects are capped at 3 on free, 5 on Plus and 12 on Pro, with unlimited objects reserved for Enterprise
- File storage is capped at 50 GB on the free and Plus tiers
Pricing, plan by plan
Excalidraw
Free- Excalidraw+$6/month
- Unlimited private scenes and folders
- Cloud storage
- Access management
Attio
$29/month- Starter$29/month
- Unlimited contacts
- Custom objects
- Email sync
- Plus$59/month
- Everything in Starter
- Automations
- Custom attributes
- Pro$119/month
- Everything in Plus
- Advanced automations
- Custom branding
- Enterprise$undefined/month
- Custom contracts
- SSO
- Dedicated support
Which should you pick?
Choose Excalidraw if
- You need hand-drawn style diagrams.
- You want to start without paying.
- You also want infinite canvas.
Choose Attio if
- You need custom data model.
- You work on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
- You also want flexible views.
Questions people ask
- Is Excalidraw or Attio better?
- Neither clearly leads. Excalidraw starts at Free and Attio at $29/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Excalidraw or Attio?
- Excalidraw has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Excalidraw and $29/month for Attio.
- Does Excalidraw or Attio run on more platforms?
- Excalidraw runs on Web. Attio runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
- Can I use Excalidraw for free?
- Yes. Excalidraw has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Attio starts at $29/month.
- What is Excalidraw best used for?
- Excalidraw is most often used for wireframing and diagramming, real-time collaborative whiteboarding, hand-drawn-style illustrations for docs and decks, embedding a whiteboard into third-party apps via the npm package. Of those, wireframing and diagramming and real-time collaborative whiteboarding are not what Attio is typically brought in for.
- What can Excalidraw do that Attio cannot?
- Excalidraw covers Hand-drawn style diagrams, Infinite canvas, Shape libraries, Text support. Attio covers Custom data model, Flexible views, Email integration, Calendar sync. Both handle Real-time collaboration.