Sketch

Sketch is the macOS-native design tool that pioneered the modern product design workflow, founded in 2010 by Pieter Omvlee in The Hague. Before Figma, Sketch was the design tool — used by every major product team from 2014 to 2018 as the Photoshop alternative built specifically for UI design. Then Figma's browser-based real-time collaboration ate Sketch's lunch and the conversation flipped: Sketch became 'the legacy tool', Figma became 'the future'. That narrative is incomplete. Sketch in 2026 is a genuinely strong product, especially for designers who prefer native macOS performance over browser-based tools. It now has cloud collaboration (Workspaces), design system management, prototyping, developer handoff, and a vibrant plugin ecosystem. The catch: it's still macOS-only, which kills it for any team with even one Windows or Linux designer. The core feature set: • **Vector design** — Bezier curves, symbols, components, variants, auto-layout. The design-tool primitives, executed cleanly. • **Symbols + libraries** — design system management with cross-document libraries and version control. Comparable depth to Figma's components. • **Cloud workspaces** — Sketch Workspaces enable browser-based viewing, commenting, and inspection (the part Figma made famous). Real-time editing still requires the native app. • **Prototyping** — interactive flows with transitions, variables, and overlays. Less elaborate than Figma's prototyping but functional. • **Developer handoff** — Inspector lets developers pull CSS, dimensions, colors, assets without the native app. Free for viewers. • **Plugin ecosystem** — 500+ plugins for icon libraries, design system tools, workflow automation, Lottie export, etc. • **Native macOS performance** — handles large files faster than Figma in many cases. No browser tab overhead. • **Variables + tokens** — design tokens with cross-document syncing, useful for design system teams For designers + teams the use cases: • **macOS-native shop wanting performance** — large file design, brand work, marketing assets where Figma's browser performance lags • **Design teams committed to Apple ecosystem** — works beautifully with iCloud, Shortcuts, macOS productivity • **Design system management for established teams** — Sketch's libraries are mature and well-architected • **Solo designers or small studios** — one-time purchase option ($120/year personal) is cheaper than Figma at scale • **Print + brand design with developer handoff** — Sketch handles vector work for branding better than Figma's UI-focused vectors The pricing is interesting: Sketch offers both subscription and standalone licenses. Standard subscription at $10/editor/month gets cloud workspaces + collaboration. Personal one-time license at $120/year is unique — you own a perpetual Mac license + first year of updates, perfect for solo designers who don't need cloud collab. Business at $20/editor/month adds advanced admin + SSO + audit logs. Where Sketch wins: native macOS performance is meaningfully faster than browser-based Figma, the design tool primitives are excellent and uncluttered, plugin ecosystem is mature, one-time license option is genuinely useful for solo designers, design system libraries are battle-tested. Where it loses: macOS-only kills it for any cross-platform team (which is most teams), real-time collaboration still lags Figma, the narrative momentum is entirely with Figma — new hires and contractors default to Figma, design schools teach Figma, design system reference implementations are Figma-first. My take: Sketch is the right call in a narrow but real set of situations. If you're a solo designer or small Mac-only studio who prefers native performance and dislikes browser apps, Sketch is genuinely better than Figma for daily work. If you're a team with any Windows users, contractors who might not have Sketch licenses, or new designers fresh out of school — Figma is the safe default. The category is settled: Figma won the team-design wars. Sketch survives and thrives as the connoisseur's choice for individual designers who value craft and performance over collaboration breadth.