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Excalidraw vs Hive

Excalidraw logo

Excalidraw

Technology

Virtual whiteboard for sketching hand-drawn like diagrams

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Hive logo

Hive

Project Management

Project management built for speed

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • 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+; Hive the free plan is capped at 200 MB of storage
  • They diverge on capability: Excalidraw covers Hand-drawn style diagrams, Hive covers Tasks.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Excalidraw and Hive actually diverge.

Attributes where Excalidraw and Hive differ
AttributeExcalidrawHive
Pricing modelUnknownfreemium
PlatformsWebWeb, Ios, Android, Desktop
CategoryTechnologyProject Management
Founded20202015

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated).

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
  • Real-time collaboration
  • Infinite canvas
  • Shape libraries
  • Text support
  • Image import
  • Export options
  • Keyboard shortcuts

Only in Hive

  • Tasks
  • Gantt view
  • Kanban
  • Time tracking
  • Forms
  • Slack
  • Zoom
  • Google Drive

Both cover

  • Web support
  • Desktop support

What people use each for

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

Excalidraw

  • Wireframing and diagrammingnot Hive
  • Real-time collaborative whiteboardingnot Hive
  • Hand-drawn-style illustrations for docs and decksnot Hive
  • Embedding a whiteboard into third-party apps via the npm packagenot Hive
  • Visual planning and note-takingnot Hive

Hive

  • Project and task management with multiple project viewsnot Excalidraw
  • Coordinating work, proofing and resourcing for teamsnot 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

Hive

  • The free plan is capped at 200 MB of storage
  • The Starter plan at $5 per user per month is limited to 10 projects
  • Eight capabilities are sold as $5 per user add ons on the Teams plan, including CRM, timesheets, proofing, resourcing, advanced dashboards, external users and SSO
  • Buying SSO plus a few of those add ons therefore costs more than the $12 base seat itself
  • AI credits are metered monthly at 1,000, 3,000 and 5,000 by plan

Pricing, plan by plan

Excalidraw

Free
  • Excalidraw+$6/month
    • Unlimited private scenes and folders
    • Cloud storage
    • Access management

Hive

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 1,000 AI credits per month
    • 200MB storage
    • Up to 10 workspace members
  • Starter$5/month
    • 3,000 AI credits per month
    • Unlimited storage
    • Up to 10 projects
  • Teams$12/month
    • 5,000 AI credits per month
    • Unlimited workspace members
    • Custom fields

Which should you pick?

Choose Excalidraw if

  • You need hand-drawn style diagrams.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want real-time collaboration.
Excalidraw review

Choose Hive if

  • You need tasks.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android, Desktop.
  • You also want gantt view.
Hive review

Questions people ask

Is Excalidraw or Hive better?
Neither clearly leads. Excalidraw starts at Free and Hive at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Excalidraw or Hive?
Excalidraw starts at Free and Hive at Free.
Does Excalidraw or Hive run on more platforms?
Excalidraw runs on Web. Hive runs on Web, Ios, Android, Desktop.
Can I use Excalidraw for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
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 Hive is typically brought in for.
What can Excalidraw do that Hive cannot?
Excalidraw covers Hand-drawn style diagrams, Real-time collaboration, Infinite canvas, Shape libraries. Hive covers Tasks, Gantt view, Kanban, Time tracking. Both handle Web support, Desktop support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Excalidraw: Is Excalidraw free?

Excalidraw appears to be a free drawing application available at no cost to users. The website does not display information about pricing tiers or premium features, suggesting it is offered as a free service.

Source
Hive: Is Hive free?

Hive offers a free plan with 1,000 AI credits per month, 200MB storage, and support for up to 10 workspace members. Paid plans start at $5 per user per month.

Source
Excalidraw: Does Excalidraw offer paid plans?

No pricing tiers or paid upgrade options are mentioned on the Excalidraw website, which indicates the service is available entirely free without commercial pricing models.

Source
Hive: Does Hive offer annual billing discounts?

Hive offers 33% savings when choosing annual billing instead of monthly. Annual commitment discounts are available across all plan tiers.

Source
Hive: What are Hive's add-on pricing options?

Optional add-ons are available at $5 per month each, including CRM, Finance, Proofing & Approvals, Timesheets, and Team Resourcing features.

Source
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