Diagram Design
Focus: agent skills, claude code and architecture diagrams. Shares diagrams with ASCIIFlow. An AI tool, not a web app. Rated 4.6 (ASCIIFlow: 4.5).
AI ToolFreeCross-Platform
4.6Visit
Web App
ASCIIFlow
Draw simple diagrams and boxes in plain text, right in the browser.
Built with love by Shushant Lakhyani. Building bestproductivityresources.com
What is ASCIIFlow?
ASCIIFlow is a free, open-source editor for drawing boxes, arrows and lines as plain text characters. The diagrams can be pasted straight into code comments, README files, emails and chat messages, and your drawings are saved locally in the browser.
Pros
- Diagrams work anywhere text does
- Quick and simple to use
- Free and open source
Cons
- Only basic shapes
- Not suited to large diagrams
Who should use ASCIIFlow
Developers who want quick diagrams inside code comments, docs or plain-text notes.
Who may not need it
People who need polished, colourful diagrams.
ASCIIFlow alternatives
Similar resources to ASCIIFlow, picked from the directory.
Excalidraw CLI
Focus: excalidraw, cli and ai agents. Shares diagrams and developer tools with ASCIIFlow. A framework, not a web app. Adds macOS, Windows and Linux. Rated 4.4 (ASCIIFlow: 4.5).
FrameworkFreemacOS, Windows
4.4Visit
draw.io
Focus: flowcharts, uml and open source. Shares diagrams with ASCIIFlow. Adds Windows, macOS and Linux. Rated 4.7 (ASCIIFlow: 4.5).
Web AppFreeWeb, Windows
4.7Visit
Excalidraw
Focus: whiteboard and open source. Shares diagrams with ASCIIFlow. Freemium (ASCIIFlow: Free). Rated 4.7 (ASCIIFlow: 4.5).
Web AppFree planWeb, Cross-Platform
4.7Visit
Shields.io
Focus: badges, readme and open source. Shares developer tools with ASCIIFlow. Rated 4.7 (ASCIIFlow: 4.5).
Web AppFreeWeb
4.7Visit
Ray.so
Focus: code screenshots, social media and design. Shares developer tools with ASCIIFlow. Rated 4.6 (ASCIIFlow: 4.5).
Web AppFreeWeb
4.6Visit
Free alternatives to ASCIIFlow
Free resources that cover similar ground.
tldraw
Focus: whiteboard, sketching and brainstorming. Shares diagrams with ASCIIFlow. Rated 4.6 (ASCIIFlow: 4.5).
Web AppFreeWeb
4.6Visit
Excalidraw for Obsidian
Focus: obsidian, excalidraw and whiteboard. Shares diagrams with ASCIIFlow. Same 4.5 rating.
OtherFreeCross-Platform
4.5Visit
reladraw
Focus: diagram as code, svg and architecture diagrams. Shares diagrams with ASCIIFlow. A framework, not a web app. Same 4.5 rating.
FrameworkFreeWeb, Cross-Platform
4.5Visit
DialKit
Focus: ui tuning, animation and design engineering. Shares developer tools with ASCIIFlow. A template, not a web app. Rated 4.4 (ASCIIFlow: 4.5).
TemplateFreeWeb
4.4Visit
Adobe Color
Focus: color palettes, color wheel and accessibility. Also in Brainstorming, like ASCIIFlow. Rated 4.6 (ASCIIFlow: 4.5).
Web AppFreeWeb
4.6Visit
Animista
Focus: css animations, web design and front-end. Also in Brainstorming, like ASCIIFlow. Rated 4.6 (ASCIIFlow: 4.5).
Web AppFreeWeb
4.6Visit
Are you the maker of ASCIIFlow?Get a free Featured badge for your site, a share image and ready-to-paste posts. No sign-up.
Free Notion database
1,100+ ways people are making money online
Real online businesses, creators and projects, broken down by how they make money: apps, online stores, AI tools and more. Free on Gumroad.
Get the free databaseFree Notion database
399+ ways to make money online
Hundreds of online income methods in one place, so you can compare options and pick one to try. Free on Gumroad.
Get the free listFor research and ideas only. Results vary and nothing here is a promise of income. See our Disclaimer.
Weekly newsletter
Everything new, every Monday.
One short email every Monday with everything shipped that week: new free tools and websites, new guides, new free browser tools and what's new in my free Gumroad libraries, plus how the site is growing. Free, and you can unsubscribe anytime.
Join the newsletterYou sign up on Gumroad, which stores your email to send the newsletter. See our Privacy Policy.