Whimsical

whimsical.com
Team Collaboration
Weekend Project

Where great ideas take shape

How to Replace Whimsical

Overview

Whimsical is a purpose-built collaborative workspace for thinking and planning that combines boards, docs, diagrams, wireframes, and whiteboards. It enables teams to document, communicate, and make decisions together in real-time or asynchronously. The platform helps users capture and share ideas at the speed of thought with tools optimized for speed and efficiency.

Features

46 features across 24 categories

AI(1)

AI ActionsAIPremium

AI-powered actions to assist with content creation and enhancement

Also in: monday.com, Notion, Airtable

Access Control(4)

Admin RolePremium

Designate specific users as administrators

Editors

Grant users full editing capabilities

Role Management

Define and manage user roles and permissions

Viewers

Allow unlimited viewers with view-only access

Also in: Kubernetes Dashboard, Lacework, LastPass

Administration(3)

Domain ManagementPremium

Auto-join users by domain and manage workspace access

Flexible LicensingPremium

Flexible licensing options for enterprise organizations

User Offboarding File TransfersPremium

Transfer files when offboarding users

Also in: Notion, Airtable, Smartsheet

Collaboration(5)

Guests

Invite external users with specified permission levels

Multiplayer Editing

Work together in real-time to keep your momentum going

Real-time Collaboration

See team members' cursors and changes in real-time

TimerPremium

Built-in timer for time-boxed brainstorming sessions

Whiteboards

Brainstorm, organize, and collaborate with your team, no matter where or when

Also in: Notion, Airtable, Obsidian

Communication(2)

Comments

Have focused conversations where the work happens, without the noise of chat apps

Notification Inbox

Centralized inbox for notifications and updates

Also in: Jobber, Jira, Insightly

Content(1)

Images and Video

Upload images or embed videos from Loom, YouTube, and more to provide context

Also in: Squarespace, Hunter, Notion

Core Workspace(1)

Boards

Purpose-built whiteboard for thinking and planning where teams can document, communicate, and make decisions

Customization(1)

Custom Color Themes

Customize the appearance of your workspace with custom color themes

Also in: monday.com, Obsidian, Smartsheet

Decision Making(1)

VotingPremium

Allow team members to vote on ideas and decisions

Documentation(1)

Docs

Clutter-free docs to align your team and move work forward

Export(1)

Export OptionsPremium

Export your boards and diagrams in various formats and resolutions

Ideation(1)

Mind Maps

Expand and organize ideas before refining a solution

Integration(3)

Live Whimsical Embeds

Embed live Whimsical boards in other documents

Slack Integration

Integrate with Slack for notifications and sharing

Third-party Embeds

Embed external content and media in your boards

Management(1)

Version History

View previous versions of your boards and restore them to an earlier state

Organization(3)

Backlinks

Create connections between files and documents

Nested Files

Organize files in nested folder structures

Teams

Create and manage multiple teams within your workspace

Performance(1)

Built for Speed

Optimized for speed and efficiency to keep you in a state of flow

Platform(1)

Desktop App

Native desktop application for offline access and enhanced performance

Product Design(1)

Wireframes

Explore new product ideas and iterate quickly to ship the right solution with drag-and-drop components

Security(6)

Content Security LockPremium

Lock down content to prevent unauthorized modifications

Custom Security ReviewsPremium

On-demand custom security reviews for enterprise

Password Protected FilesPremium

Add password protection to shared files

Private TeamsPremium

Create private teams with restricted access

SAML Single Sign-OnPremium

Enterprise-grade SAML SSO for secure authentication

SCIMPremium

System for Cross-domain Identity Management for user provisioning

Sharing(1)

Public Share Link AccessPremium

Share files publicly with customizable permissions

Storage(1)

File Storage

Cloud storage for uploading and managing files

Support(2)

Dedicated Success ManagerPremium

Dedicated account manager for enterprise customers

Priority SupportPremium

Priority customer support for faster response times

Templates(2)

Custom Templates

Create and use custom templates for your team's workflows

Templates from Experts

Jump start your thought process with a library of helpful templates

Visualization(2)

Diagrams

Quickly capture ideas and create shared understanding with eye-catching diagrams everyone can use

Flowcharts

Explore and validate interaction flows

Pricing

Free

$0/month
  • Unlimited workspace members
  • 3 team boards
  • Unlimited docs
  • 3 teams
  • 10 guests
  • Upload files up to 5MB each
  • 7-day version history
  • 100 AI actions per editor total
  • All file types (Boards and Docs)
  • Desktop app
  • Real-time collaboration
  • Editors
  • Unlimited viewers
  • Custom color themes
  • Custom templates
  • Backlinks
  • Notification inbox
  • Live Whimsical embeds
  • Third-party embeds
  • Slack integration
  • Role management
  • Domain management

Pro

$10/month per editor
  • Everything in Free
  • Unlimited team boards
  • Private teams
  • 6 teams
  • 50 guests
  • Upload files up to 1GB each
  • 90-day version history
  • 500 AI actions per editor per month
  • Voting
  • Timer
  • Password protected files
  • Public share link access with view, comment, and edit
  • Admin role ability to choose who has admin access

Business

$15/month per editor
  • Everything in Pro
  • Unlimited teams
  • 100 guests
  • Upload files up to 5GB each
  • 1-year version history
  • 1000 AI actions per editor per month
  • SAML Single Sign-On (SSO)
  • Priority support

Enterprise

$20/month per editor (billed annually)
  • Everything in Business
  • Starting at 200 guests
  • Upload files up to 10GB each
  • Unlimited version history
  • 2000 AI actions per editor per month
  • SCIM
  • Advanced security controls
  • Priority support
  • Dedicated success manager
  • User offboarding file transfers
  • Flexible licensing
  • Content security lock
  • Custom security reviews
  • Flexible payment terms
  • Negotiable Master Service Agreement
  • Credit card or invoicing

Cost Calculator

Keep Paying Whimsical

Monthly$10/mo
Yearly$120/yr
5-Year Total$600

Build It Yourself

Est. Build Time~3 hrs
Hosting$20/mo
DifficultyVery Easy

Total Cost Comparison

1 Year
SaaS
$120
DIY
$240
3 Years
SaaS
$360
DIY
$720
5 Years
SaaS
$600
DIY
$1.2k

DIY hosting estimate based on Vercel + Supabase free/pro tiers (~$20/mo). Build time estimated from 46 features at very easy complexity.

Build vs Buy

Should you build a Whimsical alternative or buy the subscription? Estimate based on 46 features.

Buy Whimsical

Better Value
Monthly cost$100/mo
3-year total$3,600
Time to deployDays

Build Your Own

Development cost$24,000
Maintenance$360/mo
3-year total$36,960
Dev time~2 months

Buying Whimsical saves ~$33,360 over 3 years vs building.

Estimates based on 46 features and a BuildScore of 5/5. Actual costs vary.

Integrations

3 known integrations

LoomSlackYouTube