#SKETCH VS FIGMA VS ADOBE XD 2020 CODE#

Just like Figma (but unlike Sketch), Adobe XD has a plugin directly built into their app, which is great.Īt the time of writing Adobe has 256 plugins in its directory available to install. There was a time when Adobe XD users might have shunned Figma for not having plugins, but that ended in August 2019, when Figma opened its own plugin directory. I still believe being built on web technologies is a very underrated aspect of Figma, and I would speculate that they will be in a much better spot in the future when rolling out bigger product updates. In terms of actual performance, Figma uses WebGL under the hood and can handle very large design files without seeing much slowdown at all it's notably extremely smooth.Īdobe XD generally performs fairly well, but there are lots of reports from people online who are experiencing slowdowns with larger files or working from the 'cloud' (instead of local files).

This might not be an issue if you're already using the Creative Cloud suite, but it does feel less 'portable' than Figma, which can be spun up on any computer in the web browser (with no other dependencies). While Figma can be run in either the desktop or in the browser, Adobe still requires you to have Adobe Creative Cloud installed and also a Adobe XD desktop app in order to use the software. Again, with Figma, this is not an issue, and the developers are always going to be on the same page (literally) as the designers. However, this does come with a downside, as you'll need to continue making sure the designs are in sync with those 3rd party services, so you add the risk of a developer working off old designs. If you are using XD, then 3rd party 'handoff' services like Zeplin, Avocode or Sympli are likely going to be required, as I don't think the Adobe XD feature is quite streamlined or detailed enough for a developer's normal workflow. This is such a crucial feature that Figma offers, as it means you really don't need to leave the one app and use other 3rd party services.

#SKETCH VS FIGMA VS ADOBE XD 2020 CODE#

These are awesome, as you can literally copy/paste real code directly from Figma into your codebase, without having to translate all the random properties into their respective styles (depending on your codebase). In Figma, you'll be able to invite developers directly into the Figma file, so they can view it in real-time and jump straight into the 'code' panel, where they can view any element's properties broken down into 'CSS', 'iOS' and 'Android' options. In this scenario, I think Figma is still ahead.

This URL essentially loads up the designs in a web browser, and shows you a summary of all the colours and fonts used in the design, as well as letting you click on individual elements and seeing some of the sizing values associated with them. How designers work with developers in Figma vs Adobe XDĪdobe XD has a feature that lets you 'publish design specs' and share a link that you can give to developers. As we'll see later in the article, there are places where XD has an advantage over Sketch or Figma. However, since then, XD has shipped a bunch of new features that have helped bring it into the 'top 3' UI design apps, alongside Figma and Sketch to be a real competitor.Īt this stage, I think the gap has narrowed, and might still make sense if you're trapped in the Adobe Creative Cloud. I've kept an eye on Adobe XD since it was released in its earlier stages, I felt like it really couldn't compete with Sketch, and felt it was kind of 'too little, too late' from Adobe. After a few years under development (as a response to Sketch quickly leaving Photoshop in the dust as the UI design tool of choice in the early 2010s'), Adobe XD was first released (out of BETA) in October 2017.

Sketch vs figma vs adobe xd 2020