1Your brand here: book this slot2Your brand here: book this slot3Your brand here: book this slot4Your brand here: book this slot5Your brand here: book this slot1Your brand here: book this slot2Your brand here: book this slot3Your brand here: book this slot4Your brand here: book this slot5Your brand here: book this slot
6Your brand here: book this slot7Your brand here: book this slot8Your brand here: book this slot9Your brand here: book this slot10Your brand here: book this slot6Your brand here: book this slot7Your brand here: book this slot8Your brand here: book this slot9Your brand here: book this slot10Your brand here: book this slot
Skip to content
Day 65: new resources are added every day. See what's new
Best Productivity ResourcesBy Shushant LakhyaniVerified creator

Framework

Mermaid

Create flowcharts and diagrams from simple text, right inside your docs.

Visit Mermaid4.7

  • Rating

    4.7 / 5

  • Pricing

    Free

  • Difficulty

    Intermediate

  • Works on

    Web, macOS, Windows

Built with love by Shushant Lakhyani. Building bestproductivityresources.com

Free: 1,100+ ways people make money onlineFree: 399+ ways to make money online

What is Mermaid?

Mermaid is a free, open-source tool that turns short text descriptions into flowcharts, sequence diagrams, Gantt charts and mind maps. It works inside GitHub, Notion, Obsidian and many other apps, so you can sketch a process or plan in seconds and keep it updated as easily as editing a note.

Third-party open-source projects. We are not affiliated with their authors; repositories are provided as-is by their maintainers. Review each project's license, code and security before installing. See our Disclaimer.

Pros: what Mermaid does well

  • Works inside GitHub, Notion and Obsidian
  • Diagrams are easy to edit and version
  • Free and open source

Cons: where it falls short

  • Less layout control than drawing tools
  • Syntax takes a little learning

Who Mermaid is for

People who want quick diagrams that live alongside their notes and docs.

Who can skip it

Anyone who prefers dragging shapes around a canvas.

Mermaid alternatives

Not sold on Mermaid? These do a similar job, and each card says what it has in common.

All Brainstorming resources

Whimsical

Focus: wireframes, mind maps and whiteboard. Shares flowcharts with Mermaid. A web app, not a framework. Freemium (Mermaid: Free). Rated 4.6 (Mermaid: 4.7).

Web AppFree planWeb, macOS
4.6Visit

D2

Focus: diagrams, diagram as code and command line. Shares open source and github with Mermaid. A desktop app, not a framework. Adds Offline. Rated 4.6 (Mermaid: 4.7).

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows
4.6Visit

Huly

Focus: project management, issue tracker and team chat. Shares open source and github with Mermaid. A web app, not a framework. Rated 4.4 (Mermaid: 4.7).

Web AppFreeWeb, Windows
4.4Visit

Figma

Focus: Design, Prototyping and Teamwork. Also in Collaboration and Brainstorming, like Mermaid. A web app, not a framework. Freemium (Mermaid: Free). Rated 4.8 (Mermaid: 4.7).

Web AppFree planWeb, macOS
4.8Visit

MindMeister

Focus: mind mapping, brainstorming and planning. Also in Brainstorming and Project Management, like Mermaid. A web app, not a framework. Freemium (Mermaid: Free). Adds iOS and Android. Rated 4.5 (Mermaid: 4.7).

Web AppFree planWeb, iOS
4.5Visit

Miro

Focus: whiteboard, workshops and diagrams. Also in Brainstorming and Collaboration, like Mermaid. A web app, not a framework. Freemium (Mermaid: Free). Adds iOS and Android. Rated 4.5 (Mermaid: 4.7).

Web AppFree planWeb, macOS
4.5Visit

Free alternatives to Mermaid

Want to spend nothing? These free picks cover similar ground.

reladraw

Focus: diagrams, diagram as code and svg. Shares open source and github with Mermaid. Rated 4.5 (Mermaid: 4.7).

FrameworkFreeWeb, Cross-Platform
4.5Visit

TaskView

Focus: self-hosted, task management and project management. Shares open source with Mermaid. A web app, not a framework. Rated 4.3 (Mermaid: 4.7).

Web AppFreeWeb, Cross-Platform
4.3Visit

WeKan

Focus: kanban, boards and self-hosted. Shares open source with Mermaid. A web app, not a framework. Rated 4.2 (Mermaid: 4.7).

Web AppFreeWeb, Cross-Platform
4.2Visit

lazygit

Focus: git client, terminal ui and developer tool. Shares open source and github with Mermaid. A desktop app, not a framework. Adds Offline. Rated 4.8 (Mermaid: 4.7).

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows
4.8Visit

croc

Focus: file transfer, encryption and command line. Shares open source and github with Mermaid. A desktop app, not a framework. Same 4.7 rating.

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows
4.7Visit

Docmost

Focus: wiki, documentation and confluence alternative. Shares open source and github with Mermaid. A web app, not a framework. Same 4.7 rating.

Web AppFreeWeb, Cross-Platform
4.7Visit
Are you the maker of Mermaid?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 database

Free 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 list

For 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 newsletter

You sign up on Gumroad, which stores your email to send the newsletter. See our Privacy Policy.