Top Wireframing Tools for Designers: Features, Pricing & Use Cases

How do you optimize your time and efforts as a UX designer? By starting every project with a wireframe. 

Of course, you could create a fully designed first draft, but you will likely go through dozens of iterations before landing on the final version, and constantly re-designing everything is not the best use of your resources. 

Instead, UX designers make use of wireframes. Wireframing is a way to quickly note down how you want your app or website to look, function and flow. When you start with a rough outline of your ideas, it’s easy to test them, move things around and make improvements.

UX projects generally go through several different stages of wireframing, increasing in the level of detail with each one. You can start with a low-fidelity wireframe—a simple black-and-white sketch—and eventually move to a more high-fidelity wireframe, which typically resembles a mockup of the final product. 

Ideas flow quickly in a wireframing session, so it’s best to invest in a tool that can keep up. More importantly, a dedicated wireframing tool will let you move seamlessly from low-fidelity wireframes to interactive prototypes all in one place. 

To help you choose the best wireframing tool for your user experience and user interface projects, let’s take a look at six popular options. We’ll give an overview of their features and pricing, so you can make an informed decision. If you’re looking for free wireframing tools, most of the options listed offer a free lite plan or free trial. 

Ready to streamline your design process? Let’s find a wireframing tool that will help you do just that. 

1. Figma

Overview: Figma is a web-based design tool, primarily known for its collaboration features, which let multiple team members work on a design simultaneously. It allows wireframing at any fidelity, supports vector graphics, offers robust prototyping capabilities and has a highly customizable, intuitive interface. There’s even Dev Mode, which helps bridge the gap between designers and developers. 

Pricing: Figma offers a limited free version, ideal for personal use. Premium plans start at $15/user/month, though their Professional plan is free for students and educators. 

Best for: Teams that require real-time collaboration and designers looking for powerful design and prototyping tools. 

Learning resources: Figma provides a comprehensive help center, detailed tutorials, webinars and an active community forum. There’s also a growing number of third-party courses, YouTube tutorials and Skillshare classes on how to use Figma. The abundance of resources makes it easy for beginners to get up to speed quickly.

2. Miro

Overview: Miro is a versatile, cloud-based collaborative whiteboard platform widely used for brainstorming, planning, wireframing and creating user flows. Its flexible, user-friendly whiteboard interface is suitable for a diverse range of both synchronous and asynchronous collaborative tasks.

Pricing: The free plan is limited to a single workspace with three editable boards. Premium plans start at $10/user/month and offer more robust features such as unlimited boards, collaboration tools, high-level security and advanced integrations.

Best for: Teams looking for a multi-purpose tool for collaboration, brainstorming, and basic wireframing. Its intuitive design and ease of use make it suitable for designers, product managers, and even non-design roles to contribute to the ideation and wireframing process.

Learning resources: Enroll in Miro Academy to take free courses, watch tutorials and attend live trainings. There’s also a comprehensive help center, a rich online community and plenty of third-party courses to help users maximize their use of the platform.

3. Moqups

Overview: Moqups is an online design tool that simplifies UX design with a drag-and-drop interface and variety of wireframe templates. It’s designed to be an all-in-one tool that balances ease of use with sufficient functionality for most design needs.

Pricing: The free lite plan is limited to two projects and 400 objects. Premium plans start at $13/month for individuals and $23/month for teams of up to five people. 

Best for: Individuals or small teams needing a straightforward, all-in-one tool for wireframing and prototyping.

Learning resources: Moqups offers a help center with detailed articles, as well as an educational blog. 

4. Balsamiq

Overview: Balsamiq is a low-fidelity wireframing tool that mimics the experience of sketching on a whiteboard, prioritizing simplicity and speed. This focus on low fidelity helps users concentrate on layout and functionality without getting bogged down with design details. 

Pricing: Balsamiq does not offer a free lite plan, although there is a free 30-day trial. Plans are tiered based on how many projects you can work on at the same time. They range from $9/month for two projects to $199/month for 200. 

Best for: UX designers looking to quickly create and iterate on low-fidelity wireframes. 

Learning resources: Balsamiq provides a wealth of resources, including detailed documentation, video tutorials, webinars and an active community forum. 

5. MockFlow

Overview: MockFlow is an intuitive, user-friendly suite of tools designed for wireframing, site mapping and prototyping. Its simplicity and focused feature set enable users to quickly create wireframes without a steep learning curve.

Pricing: The free lite plan is limited to one design space and is ideal for personal use. Premium plans start at $19/month and include commercial licensing, AI tools and other advanced features. 

Best for: Teams and individuals who need a straightforward tool for wireframing and basic design tasks. 

Learning resources: MockFlow provides tutorials, a help center and community forums. 

6. Justinmind

Overview: Justinmind is a versatile design tool, downloadable for Windows and MacOS. A simple drag-and-drop interface and pre-built UI kits allow users to create wireframes and clickable prototypes for web, as well as iOS and Android mobile devices. 

Pricing: Justinmind offers a free version, which includes unlimited projects and viewers, but restricts certain features. Premium plans start at $9/editor/month. There are also perpetual licenses starting at $245 per editor. 

Best for: UX, UI and product designers looking for an affordable, yet feature-rich tool for designing, testing and iterating on interactive prototypes. 

Learning resources: Justinmind has official tutorials, documentation, an educational blog and an active user community, making it accessible for both beginners and advanced users.

Develop Your UX Design Skills with Skillshare

Finding the right wireframing tool is one of the first steps to designing effective user experiences. To dive in deeper, be sure to check out the UX design classes on Skillshare. You’ll learn how to use the tool you’ve chosen, optimize your workflow and take your project all the way from concept to interactive prototype. You’ll also find plenty of practical project management tips and advice from experienced professionals on how to launch your career in UX or UI design. 

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Written By

Sayana Lam

Sayana is a musician, writer and graphic designer based in Toronto, Canada.

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