Updated October 14, 2026. Written for FigCraft 0.5.1 (what changed since). Prices in USD.
- Team with shared libraries, comments and prototype links: Penpot.
- Solo, offline, no account, lots of .fig files with prototypes in them: FigCraft desktop.
- Can't install anything but need to keep your work: Penpot. FigCraft's browser version can't save.
| Penpot | FigCraft | |
|---|---|---|
| Licence, version | MPL-2.0, 2.18.3 (October 6, 2026) | MIT or Apache-2.0, 0.5.1 (October 12, 2026) |
| Where it runs | Browser, on penpot.app or a server you host | Desktop app for Windows, macOS, Linux and FreeBSD; a browser preview |
| Account | Yes (free sign-up), or your own server | None |
| Price | $0 Professional; Unlimited $7 per editor a month, capped at $175 | Free, no paid plan |
| Figma files | Exporter plugin run inside Figma; prototypes don't come across | Opens .fig directly, best effort, prototypes and variables included; experimental .fig export |
| Layout | Flex and Grid layouts built on CSS | Figma-style auto layout with wrap and grid |
| Design systems | Components, variants, libraries, design tokens | Components, variants, properties, styles, variables with modes, libraries |
| Prototyping | 4 triggers, 6 actions, 3 animations | 10 triggers, 11 actions incl. variables and conditions, 8 transitions with smart animate |
| Sharing | Teams, comments, a link per prototype flow | Live sessions in preview, no accounts, no prototype link |
| Developer handoff | SVG and HTML markup, CSS | CSS, HTML, React, SwiftUI, Compose |
| Fonts | Upload TTF, OTF, WOFF or WOFF2 for the team | Your installed fonts (desktop) plus bundled open fonts |
| AI agents | MCP server, hosted or local | MCP server through figcraft-cli |
| Maturity | 2.x, a new release every few weeks | Alpha, about half of the way to replacing Figma by its developers' estimate |
Getting your Figma files out
This is where the two differ most, and it decides the order of work: both routes need Figma access, so export before your seat or plan ends.
Penpot doesn't read .fig files. Its Penpot Exporter plugin runs inside Figma and writes a .zip that Penpot imports. Shapes, vectors, frames, booleans, masks, text, components with variants, auto layout and libraries come across; prototyping doesn't, and large files are slow because the plugin works through Figma's API. The exporter also isn't fully reliable yet.
FigCraft's desktop app opens a .fig file saved with File › Save local copy in Figma, with pages, components and overrides, styles, variables and prototype interactions. It also reads the JSON from Figma's REST API. The importer is best effort and hasn't been checked against real project files, so expect warnings and look over each page. The step-by-step version is in how to open a .fig file without Figma.
Whichever you choose, save a local copy of every Figma file you care about. A .fig on your disk keeps both options open, and FigCraft opens it without a Figma account.
Working with other people
Penpot is organised around teams: projects and shared libraries belong to a team, comments sit on the canvas and in View mode, and every prototype flow gets a link you can send to a client. If your organisation can't use a hosted service, the self-hosted version runs from Docker or a Kubernetes Helm chart, including on networks with no internet access.
FigCraft's multiplayer is a first preview. The desktop app can share an open file through a server or on the local network with a short join code, and others join from the desktop app or the browser with live cursors and their own undo. Team files can sit on a self-hosted figcraft-server for Linux, but there are no accounts yet: whoever has the link gets in. Comment threads and version history exist inside a file, not across a team.
Layout and components
Both put their layout on Shift+A. Penpot calls it Flex Layout and adds a separate Grid Layout, built on CSS flexbox and CSS grid. That suits teams handing designs to web developers, because the CSS in Inspect describes the same layout a browser will draw. FigCraft copies Figma's auto layout instead, with Hug, Fill and Fixed and the same rules, so a Figma user's habits carry over unchanged; the auto layout tutorial walks through them.
Both have components with variants and shared libraries. Penpot has design tokens; FigCraft has Figma-style variables with modes (light and dark from one set of colours), bound to fills, spacing, text and more.
Prototyping
FigCraft goes deeper. Smart animate, drag and key triggers, and variables with if / else conditions let you build a working toggle or a cart counter, and it keeps prototypes from .fig files. Penpot's prototyping covers on click, mouse enter, mouse leave and after delay, with navigate, overlays, previous screen and open URL, animated by dissolve, slide or push. For most click-through user tests that is enough.
Penpot wins on getting the prototype to people: a link per flow. FigCraft has no prototype link, so you present it from your own screen. Prototyping a mobile app flow shows how that works in practice.
Offline, fonts and where it runs
FigCraft is a native app with installers for Windows, macOS, Linux and FreeBSD, and it works with no connection. Your files are .figcraft archives on your own disk, and the desktop app uses the fonts installed on your computer.
Penpot runs in the browser, so your operating system doesn't matter. It has no official desktop app (the one on its self-host page is a community build Penpot doesn't support). Fonts you own are uploaded once per team and then available to everyone in it. If you're on Linux, Figma on Linux compares all the routes.
How far along each one is
Penpot is on its 2.x line, with twelve releases between mid-May and early October 2026. FigCraft is in alpha: nearly all of Figma's main menu is wired and the core editor works end to end, but it hasn't been checked against real Figma documents and its developers put it at about half of the way to replacing Figma. Expect rough edges, and keep originals of anything you import.
FigCraft in your browser at figcraft.run/editor is a preview: it can't open, save or export files, and the work lasts until the tab closes. It is a quick way to see whether the interface suits you before installing the app. See online vs desktop for how that compares with the other Craft apps.
Which to pick
The hard case is a freelancer whose clients still send Figma files and expect Figma links back. Penpot can't open the .fig a client emails you, and FigCraft can't send a client a prototype link. If clients mostly send files for you to work from, FigCraft desktop handles the opening; if they mostly review your work, Penpot's links and comments matter more. When both matter, a free Figma Starter account for client reviews next to either tool covers the gap.
To decide this week: save local copies of your three most important Figma files. Open one in FigCraft desktop and run the same file through the Penpot Exporter into a free Penpot account. Unless teamwork has already decided it for you, whichever keeps more of your components and layout intact is the one to move to.