Adobe XD vs Sketch
Detailed comparison of Adobe XD and Sketch to help you choose the right design tool in 2026.
Reviewed by the AI Tools Hub editorial team · Last updated February 2026
Adobe XD
UI/UX design and prototyping tool
Adobe's UI/UX design tool with native Creative Cloud integration and unique voice prototyping, though now in maintenance mode with Figma as Adobe's recommended alternative.
Sketch
Design toolkit for digital products
A macOS-native design toolkit built exclusively for UI design — faster and more focused than browser-based alternatives, with the original Symbol and Library system that defined modern design workflows.
Overview
Adobe XD
Adobe XD launched in 2017 as Adobe's answer to Sketch and Figma in the UI/UX design space. It offered vector design, prototyping, and collaboration features integrated with Adobe's Creative Cloud ecosystem. However, in a significant shift, Adobe effectively discontinued XD in 2023 — stopping new feature development, removing it from the Creative Cloud All Apps plan, and redirecting users toward Figma (which Adobe attempted to acquire for $20 billion before regulators blocked the deal). XD remains available as a standalone subscription but is no longer actively developed, making it a legacy tool that existing users should plan to migrate away from.
Design and Prototyping Features
When actively developed, XD offered a capable set of UI design features: artboards for multi-screen design, repeat grids for quickly duplicating elements (like product cards or list items), responsive resize for adapting layouts to different screen sizes, and a robust component system with states (hover, pressed, disabled). The prototyping mode lets designers connect artboards with transitions and animations, creating interactive prototypes that demonstrate user flows. Auto-Animate provided smooth transitions between artboard states, and voice prototyping allowed designing voice-controlled interfaces — a feature unique to XD.
Creative Cloud Integration
XD's primary advantage was its integration with Adobe's Creative Cloud. You could import assets directly from Photoshop and Illustrator, use Creative Cloud Libraries to share colors, character styles, and components across Adobe apps, and collaborate with team members through Creative Cloud. For design teams already paying for the full Creative Cloud suite ($54.99/month), XD was included at no additional cost. This made it the path of least resistance for Adobe- centric design agencies and teams.
The Discontinuation Reality
In September 2023, Adobe effectively put XD into maintenance mode. New licenses are available only as a standalone plan at $9.99/month (no longer part of Creative Cloud All Apps). Adobe has stopped shipping major feature updates, its XD plugin marketplace has stagnated, and the community of developers building XD extensions has largely moved to Figma. Adobe's own documentation increasingly points users to Figma as the recommended UI design tool. For anyone starting a new project or team, choosing XD in 2025-2026 would be actively against Adobe's own guidance.
Remaining Use Cases
XD still works for existing projects and teams with established XD workflows. The app is stable, files open reliably, and basic design and prototyping features function as expected. Teams maintaining legacy design systems in XD format can continue to use them. However, new plugins aren't being developed, the community is shrinking, and hiring designers who know XD is increasingly difficult as Figma dominates job requirements. The pragmatic advice: use XD for maintenance of existing projects, but start all new work in Figma.
Migration Path
Figma offers an XD file importer that converts artboards, components, and basic prototyping links. The conversion isn't perfect — some effects, complex animations, and plugin-dependent features don't translate — but it captures 80-90% of a typical design system. Third-party tools like XD2Figma help with more complex migrations. Most teams report a 1-2 week migration period for a medium-sized design system, with another 2-4 weeks for the team to adjust to Figma's different approach to components and collaboration.
Pricing
Adobe XD is available as a standalone plan at $9.99/month with 100GB cloud storage. It's no longer included in the Creative Cloud All Apps plan ($54.99/month). Figma's free plan offers more functionality than XD for individual users, and Figma Professional at $15/editor/month is the standard for team use. The pricing comparison makes XD's value proposition weak: you pay for a tool that's no longer being developed when the industry standard is available at a comparable price with active development.
Sketch
Sketch pioneered the modern UI design tool category when it launched in 2010, effectively killing Adobe Photoshop as the industry standard for interface design. Created by Pieter Omvlee and the team at Bohemian Coding in the Netherlands, Sketch proved that designers needed a purpose-built tool for screens, not a photo editor repurposed for UI work. Its vector-based, macOS-native approach introduced concepts — Symbols, Artboards, shared Libraries — that every competitor (Figma, XD, Framer) later adopted. At its peak around 2017-2018, Sketch dominated UI design with an estimated 80%+ market share among product teams.
The Mac-Native Advantage (and Limitation)
Sketch is built exclusively for macOS as a native Cocoa application. This means it runs faster and uses less memory than Electron-based competitors — a Sketch file with 100 artboards opens instantly, while Figma might struggle in the browser with the same complexity. The native experience includes proper macOS keyboard shortcuts, system font rendering, and Apple Silicon optimization (M1/M2/M3 chips run Sketch blazingly fast). The downside is obvious: if anyone on your team uses Windows or Linux, Sketch is not an option. This single-platform limitation is the primary reason Figma overtook Sketch — not because Figma's design tools are better, but because Figma works everywhere.
Symbols, Libraries, and Design Systems
Sketch's Symbol system was the first reusable component implementation in a design tool. Symbols let you create master components with overridable properties — change the text, swap an icon, toggle a layer — without detaching from the master. Shared Libraries enable teams to maintain a centralized design system that syncs across all files. When a designer updates a button style in the library, everyone's files update automatically. Smart Layout handles auto-resizing so components adapt to content changes. These features made Sketch the foundation for design systems at companies like Airbnb, GitHub, and Shopify.
Collaborative Features
Sketch added cloud collaboration in recent years, though it arrived late compared to Figma. Sketch Cloud allows sharing designs via browser for review and commenting — stakeholders don't need a Mac. Real-time collaboration (multiple designers editing the same document) launched in 2023, closing the biggest feature gap with Figma. However, the collaboration is still Mac-to-Mac for editing; web users can only view, comment, and inspect. Sketch's workspace model includes version history, branching (design versions), and a web-based design inspector for developer handoff.
Plugin Ecosystem
Sketch has a mature plugin ecosystem with hundreds of plugins for everything: content population (Craft by InVision), icon libraries, accessibility checking, animation export, code generation, and more. Unlike Figma where plugins run in a sandboxed environment, Sketch plugins have deeper system access and can be more powerful. Popular plugins include Anima (design to code), Stark (accessibility), Abstract (version control, now sunset), and various icon/illustration libraries. The ecosystem has contracted as some developers pivoted to Figma, but core plugins remain well-maintained.
Pricing
Sketch costs $10/editor/month (Standard) or $20/editor/month (Business with SSO and advanced permissions). Viewers and developers who only need inspect access are free — they use the web browser to view designs without a Mac license. This is competitive with Figma's $15/editor/month Professional plan. Sketch also still offers a one-time Mac license ($120) for designers who want the app without cloud features, though the subscription model is now the primary offering.
Current Position and Future
Sketch's market share has declined significantly since Figma's rise (2019-2023), but it retains a loyal user base, particularly among Mac-only teams, agencies, and designers who prefer native app performance over browser-based tools. Sketch remains actively developed with frequent releases. For teams already using Sketch with established design systems and libraries, switching to Figma has a real migration cost. Sketch is no longer the default choice for new teams, but it's a refined, mature tool that does UI design exceptionally well for those within its ecosystem.
Pros & Cons
Adobe XD
Pros
- ✓ Smooth integration with Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, and Creative Cloud Libraries for teams in the Adobe ecosystem
- ✓ Voice prototyping feature is unique — allows designing and testing voice-controlled interface flows
- ✓ Auto-Animate creates smooth state transitions between artboards without manual keyframe animation
- ✓ Lightweight and fast for basic design work — opens and runs quickly compared to heavier Adobe apps
Cons
- ✗ Effectively discontinued by Adobe — no major feature updates since 2023 and removed from Creative Cloud All Apps
- ✗ Plugin ecosystem is stagnant — developers have migrated to Figma, leaving XD with outdated and unmaintained extensions
- ✗ No real-time multiplayer collaboration comparable to Figma's — co-editing is limited and less responsive
- ✗ Hiring designers with XD expertise is increasingly difficult as Figma dominates job requirements and portfolios
- ✗ Desktop-only application (Mac/Windows) with no browser-based version, limiting accessibility and collaboration
Sketch
Pros
- ✓ Native macOS performance — opens large files instantly, uses less memory than browser-based tools, and runs exceptionally fast on Apple Silicon
- ✓ Pioneered the modern design system workflow with Symbols, shared Libraries, and Smart Layout that still rival Figma's components
- ✓ Mature plugin ecosystem with deep system access for powerful integrations — Anima, Stark, icon libraries, and code generation tools
- ✓ Competitive pricing at $10/editor/month with free viewer access — cheaper than Figma's $15/editor/month for teams with many stakeholders
- ✓ Clean, focused interface without feature bloat — purpose-built for UI design without trying to be a whiteboard, slideshow, or dev tool
Cons
- ✗ macOS only — completely excludes team members on Windows or Linux, which is the single biggest barrier to adoption
- ✗ Real-time collaboration arrived late (2023) and editing still requires a Mac — web users can only view and comment
- ✗ Declining market share and community momentum as Figma has become the industry default for new teams
- ✗ Plugin ecosystem is shrinking as developers prioritize Figma — some popular plugins are no longer maintained
- ✗ No built-in prototyping for complex interactions (micro-animations, scroll effects) — needs third-party tools for advanced prototypes
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Adobe XD | Sketch |
|---|---|---|
| UI Design | ✓ | ✓ |
| Prototyping | ✓ | ✓ |
| Components | ✓ | — |
| Creative Cloud | ✓ | — |
| Plugins | ✓ | — |
| Symbols | — | ✓ |
| Libraries | — | ✓ |
| Collaboration | — | ✓ |
Integration Comparison
Adobe XD Integrations
Sketch Integrations
Pricing Comparison
Adobe XD
$9.99/mo
Sketch
$10/mo Standard
Use Case Recommendations
Best uses for Adobe XD
Maintaining Legacy Design Systems
Teams with existing design systems built in XD continue using it for incremental updates and maintenance rather than investing in an immediate full migration to Figma. The tool remains stable for ongoing projects.
Adobe-Centric Agency Workflows
Design agencies deeply invested in Adobe Creative Cloud use XD alongside Photoshop and Illustrator, leveraging shared libraries and asset pipelines. However, most agencies in this position are actively planning their Figma migration.
Voice Interface Prototyping
UX teams designing voice-controlled interfaces (Alexa skills, Google Assistant actions, voice-first apps) use XD's unique voice prototyping feature to create and test voice interaction flows — a capability no other major design tool offers.
Best uses for Sketch
Mac-Only Design Teams with Established Systems
Teams already invested in Sketch with extensive Symbol libraries and design systems continue benefiting from native performance and mature tooling without the cost and disruption of migrating to Figma.
Agencies Delivering High-Fidelity UI Designs
Design agencies that deliver static UI mockups and specifications use Sketch's focused design tools and web inspector for client reviews and developer handoff without needing real-time collaboration for external stakeholders.
Solo Designers and Freelancers on Mac
Individual designers who don't need real-time collaboration prefer Sketch's speed, offline capability, and one-time license option ($120). Working locally means no dependency on internet connection or cloud availability.
Design System Maintenance and Distribution
Organizations maintaining large-scale design systems use Sketch Libraries to distribute components across teams, with version control ensuring everyone uses the latest tokens, colors, and component specifications.
Learning Curve
Adobe XD
Low to moderate for designers familiar with Adobe products. The interface follows Adobe conventions, so Photoshop and Illustrator users adapt quickly (1-2 weeks). For designers new to UI/UX tools, the basic workflow takes a few days to learn. However, investing time in learning XD is hard to recommend when Figma skills are more valuable and marketable in the current job market.
Sketch
Low to moderate. Designers familiar with any vector tool learn Sketch basics quickly. The Symbol/Library system takes a few days to master. Coming from Figma, the concepts map nearly 1:1. The biggest hurdle is the macOS requirement — there's no learning Sketch without a Mac.
FAQ
Is Adobe XD still being developed?
No. Adobe effectively discontinued active development of XD in September 2023. The application still works and receives critical security patches, but no major features are being added. Adobe has redirected UI/UX design focus to Figma (after the failed acquisition) and their own emerging tools. The XD team has been reassigned, and Adobe's documentation now recommends Figma for new projects.
Should I learn Adobe XD or Figma?
Figma, without question. Figma is the industry standard for UI/UX design in 2025-2026, dominating job listings, design team workflows, and the plugin ecosystem. Learning XD provides no career advantage and limits collaboration with the broader design community. Even Adobe-centric teams are migrating to Figma. The only reason to learn XD is maintaining existing projects already built in it.
Is Sketch still worth using in 2026?
If your team is all-Mac and you have existing Sketch files and libraries, yes. Sketch remains an excellent UI design tool with superior native performance. However, for new teams or mixed-platform organizations, Figma is the more practical choice due to universal browser access and larger community. Sketch is no longer the default industry standard, but it's still a capable, actively developed tool.
Can I open Sketch files without a Mac?
Yes, through Sketch's web workspace. Anyone with a browser can view, comment on, and inspect Sketch designs via the cloud workspace — no Mac needed. Developers can measure spacing, copy CSS values, and download assets from the web inspector. However, editing designs still requires the Mac app.
Which is cheaper, Adobe XD or Sketch?
Adobe XD starts at $9.99/mo, while Sketch starts at $10/mo Standard. Consider which pricing model aligns better with your team size and usage patterns — per-seat pricing adds up differently than flat-rate plans.