Relay.app
Zeplin
| Feature | Relay.app | Zeplin |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free / from $16/mo | Free / from $12/mo |
| Free Plan | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Rating | 4.3 / 5 | 4.2 / 5 |
| Best For | operations-teams, agencies, small-businesses, compliance-teams | design-teams, developers, agencies, product-teams |
| Founded | 2021 | 2014 |
| Workflow Builder | ✓ | ✗ |
| Ai Steps | ✓ | ✗ |
| Human Approvals | ✓ | ✗ |
| Multiplayer Editing | ✓ | ✗ |
| Integrations | ✓ | ✗ |
| Conditional Logic | ✓ | ✗ |
| Design Handoff | ✗ | ✓ |
| Style Guide | ✗ | ✓ |
| Components | ✗ | ✓ |
| Code Snippets | ✗ | ✓ |
| Measurements | ✗ | ✓ |
| Version History | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Relay.app Pros
- Human-in-the-loop approvals
- AI steps built in
- Collaborative workflows
- Clean modern interface
✗ Relay.app Cons
- Fewer integrations than Zapier
- Newer platform
- Limited advanced logic
✓ Zeplin Pros
- Great handoff tool
- Developer-friendly
- Design system support
- Multi-platform
✗ Zeplin Cons
- Figma reducing need
- Limited design editing
- Fewer updates
The Verdict
Relay.app is built for operations teams and agencies, with a focus on workflow-builder and ai-steps. Zeplin targets design teams and developers and leads with design-handoff and style-guide.
Pricing is close: Zeplin starts at $12/mo versus $16/mo for Relay.app — not a deciding factor on its own.
Both offer free plans, so you can test each with your real workflow before committing to a subscription.
Both tools are a solid fit for agencies — in those cases, the decision often comes down to workflow style and how your team prefers to organize work.
This is a genuinely close comparison. If you can, sign up for both free trials (where available) and run a one-week test with your actual team tasks before deciding.