Excalidraw
SuperTokens
| Feature | Excalidraw | SuperTokens |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free / from $7/mo | Free / from $0.02/mo |
| Free Plan | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Rating | 4.7 / 5 | 4.3 / 5 |
| Best For | developers, product-teams, educators, brainstorming-sessions | saas-developers, startups, privacy-focused-apps, self-hosters |
| Founded | 2020 | 2019 |
| Freehand Drawing | ✓ | ✗ |
| Real Time Collaboration | ✓ | ✗ |
| Component Library | ✓ | ✗ |
| Export Options | ✓ | ✗ |
| End To End Encryption | ✓ | ✗ |
| Embeddable | ✓ | ✗ |
| Shapes And Arrows | ✓ | ✗ |
| Email Password | ✗ | ✓ |
| Social Login | ✗ | ✓ |
| Passwordless | ✗ | ✓ |
| Mfa | ✗ | ✓ |
| Session Management | ✗ | ✓ |
| Pre Built Ui | ✗ | ✓ |
| Self Hostable | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Excalidraw Pros
- Beautiful hand-drawn sketch aesthetic
- Completely free and open source core
- Real-time collaboration with shared links
- Library of reusable components and templates
- Embeddable in other applications
✗ Excalidraw Cons
- Limited formatting compared to structured diagramming tools
- No presentation mode built-in
- File management basic without Excalidraw+
✓ SuperTokens Pros
- Open-source with free self-hosting
- Pre-built UI components for quick integration
- Session management with anti-CSRF protection
- Multiple auth methods (email, social, passwordless, MFA)
✗ SuperTokens Cons
- Smaller ecosystem than Auth0 or Firebase Auth
- Documentation has gaps for complex setups
- Limited admin dashboard features
The Verdict
Excalidraw is built for developers and product teams, with a focus on freehand-drawing and real-time-collaboration. SuperTokens targets saas developers and startups and leads with email-password and social-login.
On pricing, SuperTokens is the clear winner for budget-conscious users — starting at $0.02/mo compared to $7/mo for Excalidraw. That $6.98/mo difference adds up quickly for growing teams.
Both offer free plans, so you can test each with your real workflow before committing to a subscription.
Excalidraw edges out on user ratings (4.7 vs 4.3). While both are well-regarded, that gap reflects real differences in user satisfaction worth considering.
Bottom line: Excalidraw has a slight overall edge — but if open-source with free self-hosting matters most to you, SuperTokens may still be the right call.