10 Best Product Wireframe Tools in 2022
A surprising number of important design decisions have been made by drawing a fantastic idea of what is at hand.
Wireframe Tools is visual macro software that outlines the structure of your apps, website, or landing page. These applications have a simple and easy-to-use GUI that can be used without knowing any coding. These programs allow you to collaborate and share your site design with colleagues in real-time.
These quick sketches formed the basis of something huge that could be refined and redone until it became a design icon or a prosperous aviation business.
Wireframe tools give designers a consistent choice, which allows them to roughly express their ideas and obtain basic construction modules, thus evaluating and refining the overall design.
Fortunately, there are many excellent wireframe tools on the market. To help you, we have compiled a list of the top 10. The list includes both open-source (free) and commercial (paid) software.
What are wireframe tools?
Wireframe tools allow designers to mock the exterior of a design as quickly and efficiently as possible.
Designers can drag and drop placeholders for images, captions and content and easily move them to create the first draft and then redo it.
Why use Wireframe tools?
Here are important reasons for using Wireframe tools:
- They help you to create a prototype with natural language.
- Such programs help you to collaborate and share your site design with colleagues in real-time.
- It enables you to communicate your ideas visually.
- You can design the basic design of the website or mobile application with ease.
What makes a good wireframe tool?
You do not need a technically specialized wireframe tool – a Flosart application will work just fine. But some of the functions of a good wireframe tool can greatly benefit the web designer.
These include:
- Built-in or Uploadable UI Kit: Ideally, you want to choose a wireframe application with a built-in UI component library or the ability to upload your own.
- Scalable Mock Fidelity: Good wireframe applications give you the freedom to measure between incredibly basic gray-scale low-confidence mockups and highly graphically complex high-confidence mockups.
- Collaborative work: We all live in a post-epidemic working world, where the ability to share work digitally and allow others to make changes or express feedback is an increasingly important function of any wireframe tool.
- Export Options: Ideally, once you have completed your module, you can export parts of it as HTML or gain access to the basic CSS code, so you can quickly upgrade.
10 Best Wireframe Tools for 2022
Here’s a list of wireframe tools designed to help you craft that perfect idea.
1. Figma
Figma ranks first among us because of the combination of powerful cloud-based design software and the fact that users can create up to three plans for free before choosing one of their payment plans.
Using Figma is as simple and straightforward as you want it to be. Although Figma does not have its own built-in UI components, it does come with the option to upload your own or use a pre-designed kit.
However, creating artboards, adding basic shapes and texts and making prototypes of a certain size is remarkably easy.
All design settings are handled in a single panel, allowing you to quickly navigate between different artboards, layers and pages.
Built-in Figma controls show how each element responds to different sized screens, making it much easier to enhance your user experience for mobile devices.
When it comes to collaborative work, Figma allows multiple team members to access, edit, and publish ideas. When done, you can access the CSS code and export the individual components.
Features:
- You can easily convert your workflows into detailed components.
- Work with the same file without worrying about the version.
- It can automatically animate your items.
- Create multiple layers of content that you have created.
- This allows you to comment on your model.
- Support for Dropbox and Notion.
2. Adobe XD
Adobe XD is a vector-based design tool designed to work with other Adobe products such as Photoshop, Illustrator, Adobe Fonts and Adobe Stock, and is one of the best-paying tools on the market.
Adobe XD focuses on streamlining and making the wireframe process easier for designers, with a full set of simple tools and prototype tools for creating site maps, flow charts and storyboards.
As part of Adobe XD’s focus on providing designers with faster design capabilities, the operating system includes repeatable grid options, auto-animation and voice triggers, and a full set of collaborative tools.
It is available for both Microsoft Windows and MacOS.
The only drawback of Adobe XD is that you need an Adobe subscription to access all of its functions.
Features:
- Designers can import files from their Adobe tools without any hassle.
- It allows you to integrate Photoshop and many of its After Effects products.
- This tool allows you to comment on your prototypes while sharing live and viewing designs in real-time on real devices.
- The software helps to visualize design ideas.
- This allows you to resize the group of objects in different sizes.
3. Sketch
When it first hit the market in 2010, it revolutionized what could be done with a sketch wireframing tool.
Although not available for Windows, Sketch’s simple and intuitive interface and focus on creating useful UIs and icon vector design make it essential for Mac-based designers.
Unlike Figma, Sketch does not come with its own built-in UI library, but, due to its popularity, a large number of third-party UI kits are available and easy to upload.
One of the unique features of Sketch is its logo function, which allows you to create automatically repeating elements throughout your layout.
Sketch offers free testing. After that, you can buy the whole plan for a single fee, rather than paying the current subscription fee.
Features:
- Very flexible in operation
- Creating prototypes is easy
- Create icons and reusable assets
- This makes it easier to share your prototype.
- You can customize your workflows using plug-ins like Bitmap Compressor and SVGO Compressor.
- Supports sharing and comments.
Link: https://www.sketch.com/
4. Balsamiq Wireframes
Balsamiq Wireframes, a simple web-based tool available on both Mac and Windows, is a simple and effective wireframe tool that allows designers to create quick wireframe designs.
Compared to some of the more complete tools on this list, Balsamiq Wireframes can be described as being quick and dirty with a hand-drawn style, turning to the design drawn on the napkin idea.
Most of the components in Balsamiq Wireframes are drag and drop, and designers have the option of using the drag and drop editor to organize pre-configured widgets, which really reduces the learning curve.
Numerous example extensions and wireframe skins are available for a variety of designs such as desktop apps, mobile apps and websites. Balsamiq Wireframes also has a large library of UI components.
The main drawback of balsamic wireframes is the lack of highly reliable animations, making them unsuitable for making large-scale prototypes of any kind.
Features:
- This allows you to create approximate sketches of the prototype for customers.
- This tool is easy to collaborate on your wireframes and get quick feedback.
- Balsamic reflects the speed and convenience of making moccasins on paper, but also as a digital medium.
- It helps to create simple and stable wireframes.
Link: https://balsamiq.com/
5. Justinmind
Justinmind is a wireframe tool for Mac and Windows designed for low-tech designers. The site is easier to learn and somewhat less complicated than other options like Figma or Sketch.
Just because the UI is so simple does not mean that JustMind does not have functionality. The operating system is configured to allow you to create wireframes that can be tested as prototypes from the beginning and includes many interactive emulator components.
Justinmind has a range of built-in UI components and a range of widgets for iOS, SAP and Android. You can use custom styling options to edit the added elements or import your own.
When you are done, you can export the template as HTML.
Features:
- This will export your prototype to a fully functional HTML document and make it easy to view in any web browser.
- Create wireframes for websites and web applications that adapt to multiple screen resolutions for desktop and mobile
- It provides access to use products from UI libraries and to download many add-ons.
- You can easily design a fully interactive prototype.
- It offers a visual design that can be easily adapted to any screen.
6. Lucidchart
Lucidchart is a great wireframe software option that comes with a great collaboration for mapping and data visualization.
The interface’s drag and drop functionality is set up to allow you to organize the working elements on mobile devices and websites. Lucidchart has a complete UI format library with all the basic elements you need, including search boxes, sitemap icons and text editors.
If you are new to wireframing, Lucidchart has a wide range of templates that are compatible with both mobile and desktop.
To help you and your team work together, Lucidchart has an excellent collection of real-time collaboration tools. Create your own URL and use it to allow collaborators, partners and customers to comment or edit your content.
When presenting your work, Lucidchart also includes presentation mode and is fully compatible with Google Slide.
Features:
- Helps increase security and make it easier to manage user accounts
- It can be integrated seamlessly with MS Office, G Suite and more.
- LooseCard follows the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) for data protection.
- It provides templates to launch your wireframe.
- This application can be used for mobile phones, tablets and PCs.
- E-commerce streams, registration pages, pricing pages and homepages.
7. MockFlow
Available for both Mac and Windows, MockFlow acts as a digital whiteboard. The web-based operating system comes with a large number of components for numerous user interfaces, including the iPhone, iPad, Android phone, Apple Watch and Android Watch.
One of the main advantages of MockFlow is its large user community and the sheer range of wireframe templates and UI packs created and uploaded by them.
Once created, these wireframes can be easily exported in a wide range of formats from HTML and Wire to Microsoft Word and Adobe PDF.
MockFlow comes with a set of tools like real-time editing options and repeatable annotation ideas.
The basic version of MockFlow is completely free, but there are payment options available that include more functionality.
Features:
- It provides a preview mode for viewing your maps.
- This application has a lot of built-in layouts for drawing UI.
- You can create a style guide document.
- The software allows you to share a design with others.
- Supports commenting on your design.
8. Moqups
Moqups is a web application that allows users to create wireframes, Moqups and prototypes. Moqups is a cloud-based operating system that allows you and your team to collaborate from anywhere with an easy-to-learn and intuitive interface.
The primary advantage of using Moqups is that it allows users to switch between maps, wireframes and prototypes without having to change sites.
Moqups comes with a large library of templates, stencils, icon sets, fonts and fully customizable objects.
The main purpose of Moqups is to create an integrated workflow without the hassle of constantly switching between a range of single-use applications.
Moqups does not offer a free option, but the only difference between pro and unlimited pricing plans is the number of users it can support.
Features:
- Drag and Drop elements from a comprehensive library of widgets and easy to configure smart-shapes.
- Turn your wireframes or final designs into live prototypes by adding interactions or hotspots.
- Professional diagramming features for creating flowcharts, decision trees, sitemaps, use-cases, and more.
- It offers a built-in library with thousands of icons from the most popular icon sets.
9. Framer
Available on Windows and Mac, Framer is a web-based tool that comes with a very comprehensive free option as a professional emulator tool.
The frame’s insert menu comes with a large selection of components that can be quickly and easily added to your wireframe with a simple drag and drop interface.
The prototype elements included with the frame show different visual positions so you can see exactly what the actual elements look like. You can customize the added elements to control how they are animated throughout the screen transitions.
When it comes to sharing and presenting your work, all you have to do is share a link. Presentation mode also allows you to use custom backgrounds, device frames, and device hands.
Framer is one of the best free wireframe tools on the market, with the ability to create three projects in two versions.
10) Microsoft Visio
Microsoft Visio is a mapping tool that allows you to create simple and complex maps to suit your business needs. Visio lets you create detailed organizational charts, floor plans, pivot maps, etc.
Features:
- It offers more formats than the previous version.
- The metro-style format supports Windows 8.
- It allows you to comment and share maps, both static and data connected by a web browser.
- Quick access quickly changes any shape on the floating bar map.
- It allows others to add comments to the map through the browser using Visio services.
Conclusion
By now, you must have a good grip on what you do and do not need in your ideal wireframe tool. Most of the apps featured here have dedicated tools for wireframing, though some have higher prototyping capabilities and support advanced designing functions too.
Our favourite from the list is Adobe XD because of the user-centric approach, large supportive community, and updates. However, if it doesn’t sail your boat, we still suggest you base your selection on usability, prototyping facilities, the app’s web presence, and team collaboration.
And, if you’ve not yet started your wireframing process and still manually brainstorming the ideas for your dream app, we can help build your app and bring your vision to reality!
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