Figma vs Sketch vs Adobe XD: Design Tool Showdown

The UI/UX design tool market has consolidated significantly over the past few years. Figma, Sketch, and Adobe XD remain the three most-discussed options, though their trajectories have diverged. Figma has become the default choice for most product design teams. Sketch maintains a loyal macOS-only user base. Adobe XD occupies an uncertain position following Adobe's acquisition of Figma and subsequent strategic shifts.

This comparison reflects the state of all three tools as of early 2026, based on production use across multiple design teams ranging from two-person startups to 50+ person design organizations.

Feature Comparison

Pricing

Sketch is the cheapest per-editor option at $12/month, and its one-time license purchase (now discontinued for new users) made it historically attractive for cost-conscious teams. Figma's $15/editor/month is the standard for browser-based collaborative design. Adobe XD's pricing is complicated by its bundling within Creative Cloud — if you already pay for CC, XD is effectively included.

Collaboration and Team Workflows

Figma's browser-first approach means that anyone with a link can view, comment on, or edit a design. There is no software to install, no files to sync, and no version conflicts. Multiple designers can work on the same file simultaneously with live cursor tracking. This model has proven so effective that it has reshaped how design teams operate, moving away from file-based workflows to shared, persistent design environments.

Sketch added real-time collaboration in version 100, and it works well for teams already invested in the Sketch ecosystem. However, the macOS-only requirement limits collaboration with non-Mac users. Sketch's workspace model now supports shared libraries and project organization, but the experience still feels file-oriented compared to Figma's canvas approach.

Adobe XD supports coediting and shared links, but the collaboration experience has not kept pace with Figma. Adobe's focus has shifted since the Figma acquisition, and XD updates have slowed considerably. Teams that rely on real-time collaboration as a core workflow will find Figma significantly ahead.

Design Systems and Components

Figma's component system is the most advanced of the three. Variants allow a single component to represent multiple states (default, hover, disabled, etc.) within one container. Component properties — booleans, text, instance swaps — let designers configure components without detaching them. The addition of variables with modes enables design tokens that switch between light/dark themes or responsive breakpoints.

Sketch's symbols system is mature and well-understood. Overrides allow customization of text, images, and nested symbols. Smart Layout handles responsive resizing. While less flexible than Figma's variant system, Sketch's approach is simpler to learn and sufficient for many design system needs.

Adobe XD's component system supports states (hover, disabled, etc.) and responsive resize. It is functional but lacks the depth of Figma's variables or the maturity of Sketch's override system.

Prototyping

All three tools include built-in prototyping, but the capabilities differ. Figma's prototyping has expanded with variables that enable conditional logic, multi-step flows, and persistent state across screens. You can build interactive prototypes that respond to user input without leaving Figma. Smart animate handles transitions between frames with matching layers.

Sketch's prototyping is straightforward — link artboards with transitions, set hotspots, and preview. It covers standard click-through prototypes well but lacks conditional logic or advanced interactions. For more complex prototypes, Sketch users typically export to tools like Principle or ProtoPie.

Adobe XD introduced auto-animate early and handles micro-interactions well. Voice triggers and drag gestures are unique features. However, the overall prototyping depth falls between Figma and Sketch.

Developer Handoff

Figma's Dev Mode is a dedicated workspace for developers. It surfaces CSS, iOS, and Android code snippets, shows component properties, and highlights design tokens. Plugins extend Dev Mode with frameworks-specific code generation (Tailwind, SwiftUI, etc.). The inspect experience is integrated into the same file designers work in, eliminating the sync step.

Sketch provides developer inspect through its web app. Developers can measure spacing, extract CSS values, and download assets without a Sketch license. The experience is clean but requires the design to be pushed to Sketch's cloud.

Adobe XD generates design specs automatically and shares them via links. The specs include spacing, colors, and assets. It works adequately but offers less depth than Figma's Dev Mode.

Performance and Reliability

Figma runs in the browser, which means performance depends on the browser engine and available memory. Large files with hundreds of frames can slow down, particularly on lower-spec machines. Figma has improved performance significantly with WebGL rendering and incremental loading, but the browser constraint remains.

Sketch, as a native macOS app, generally performs better with large files on Mac hardware. The trade-off is platform lock-in. If your team includes Windows or Linux users, Sketch is not an option.

Adobe XD's desktop app performs well for individual files but has received fewer performance optimizations in recent years as development focus has shifted.

Plugin Ecosystem

Figma's plugin marketplace has thousands of plugins covering everything from icon libraries to AI-powered design generation. The plugin API is well-documented, and the community is active. Widgets (interactive plugins that live on the canvas) add another dimension.

Sketch's plugin ecosystem is mature, with long-standing plugins for design systems, asset management, and code export. Many Sketch plugins have been maintained for years and are deeply integrated into professional workflows.

Adobe XD's plugin ecosystem is the smallest of the three. While Adobe has promoted plugin development, the slower pace of XD updates has dampened third-party investment.