Adobe XDvsAffinity Designer

App

Score Comparison

Overall

Pricing

Usability

Performance

Support

Reliability

Onboarding

Mobile

Security

Integrations

Adobe XDAffinity Designer

Signals Comparison

Reliability

Adobe XD

Product discontinued and in maintenance mode(10/10)
Cloud sync problems and endless syncing(6/10)
Crashes and instability on Windows(7/10)
No longer available for new users(9/10)

Affinity Designer

SVG and PDF export bugs(8/10)
Frequent crashes on Windows(8/10)
Intermittent interface bugs and focus issues(5/10)

Performance

Adobe XD

Slow performance with large files(8/10)

Affinity Designer

Slow performance with large or complex files(7/10)

Usability

Adobe XD

Limited prototyping interactions(7/10)
Cannot organize projects into pages(6/10)
Difficult animation and transition creation(6/10)

Affinity Designer

No image trace / auto-trace feature(9/10)
Steep learning curve for beginners(6/10)
No plugin or extension support(6/10)
Vector brushes are actually pixel brushes(7/10)
Cannot merge vectors into one layer(5/10)
Artboard layer management is confusing(5/10)
No built-in templates or shape library(4/10)

Integrations

Adobe XD

Limited real-time collaboration features(8/10)
Limited plugin ecosystem and API restrictions(5/10)

Affinity Designer

Cannot export to Adobe Illustrator AI format(7/10)

Pricing

Adobe XD

No standalone purchase available(7/10)
50% early termination fee for cancellation(7/10)

Affinity Designer

No signals

Mobile

Adobe XD

Android live preview broken(6/10)

Affinity Designer

iPad version has gesture conflicts(6/10)

Support

Adobe XD

Poor Adobe customer support(7/10)

Affinity Designer

No signals

Onboarding

Adobe XD

Small community makes learning harder(5/10)

Affinity Designer

Updater requires manual download(3/10)

Security

Adobe XD

No signals

Affinity Designer

Concerns about Canva ownership and AI data usage(6/10)

Pricing Comparison

Adobe XD

Creative Cloud Standard

$54.99/mo

Users: 1 user

Storage: 100GB cloud storage

Limits: Limited Firefly AI credits, XD in maintenance mode only, no new XD features, web/mobile app access limited

50% early termination fee for annual plans cancelled early, no standalone XD option available, XD only for existing subscribers

Creative Cloud Pro

Popular

$69.99/mo

Users: 1 user

Storage: 100GB cloud storage

Limits: XD receives no new development, must maintain subscription to access files, no perpetual license option

50% early termination fee for annual plans, higher price than Standard with primary benefit being AI credits not relevant to XD, XD still in maintenance mode

Affinity Designer

Free (Current)

Popular

Free

Users: Unlimited

Storage: Local storage only

Limits: Must have Canva account, V1/V2 perpetual licenses no longer receive updates, AI features locked behind Canva Pro

Canva AI features (like AI Studio) require Canva Pro subscription at $120/year

Canva Pro (for AI features)

$120/yr

Users: 1 user

Storage: 1TB cloud storage (Canva)

Limits: AI features require Canva ecosystem, data shared with Canva platform

Monthly billing is $15/month ($180/year), team plans cost more

Legacy V2 (No longer sold)

$69.99/mo

Users: 1 user per platform

Storage: Local storage only

Limits: No longer sold, existing licenses work but won't receive new features, V2 Universal was $169.99

Separate purchase required for each platform (Mac, Windows, iPad)

Feature Comparison

Feature	Adobe XD	Affinity Designer
Collaboration
Real-time collaboration Limited co-editing, not as seamless as Figma
Version history Via Creative Cloud, no automatic versioning in-app
Core Features
Vector editing Comprehensive vector tools
Raster/Pixel editing Via Pixel Persona
Image trace / Auto-trace Major missing feature
Usability
Offline mode Requires 30-day license validation
Pricing
Free tier Requires Creative Cloud subscription
Accessibility
Browser-based access Desktop app only
Cross-platform macOS and Windows only
Extensibility
Plugin/Extension support Not supported
Design
Component variants Supported via component states
Auto-layout Called 'Stack' in XD, less powerful than Figma
File Formats
Adobe AI file export Can open but not save
SVG export Some reported issues
PDF export Including PDF/X
Prototyping
Prototyping Basic interactions only, limited compared to competitors
Development
Developer handoff Basic specs, no dedicated Dev Mode like Figma
Platforms
iPad version Full-featured
Windows version Some stability issues
Mac version Native Apple Silicon
Integrations
Plugin ecosystem Limited plugins, many developers have moved to Figma
Support
Active development Maintenance mode only, no new features
Cloud Features
Cloud sync Local files only

Signals Comparison

Reliability

Adobe XD

Product discontinued and in maintenance mode(10/10)
Cloud sync problems and endless syncing(6/10)
Crashes and instability on Windows(7/10)
No longer available for new users(9/10)

Affinity Designer

SVG and PDF export bugs(8/10)
Frequent crashes on Windows(8/10)
Intermittent interface bugs and focus issues(5/10)

Performance

Adobe XD

Slow performance with large files(8/10)

Affinity Designer

Slow performance with large or complex files(7/10)

Usability

Adobe XD

Limited prototyping interactions(7/10)
Cannot organize projects into pages(6/10)
Difficult animation and transition creation(6/10)

Affinity Designer

No image trace / auto-trace feature(9/10)
Steep learning curve for beginners(6/10)
No plugin or extension support(6/10)
Vector brushes are actually pixel brushes(7/10)
Cannot merge vectors into one layer(5/10)
Artboard layer management is confusing(5/10)
No built-in templates or shape library(4/10)

Integrations

Adobe XD

Limited real-time collaboration features(8/10)
Limited plugin ecosystem and API restrictions(5/10)

Affinity Designer

Cannot export to Adobe Illustrator AI format(7/10)

Pricing

Adobe XD

No standalone purchase available(7/10)
50% early termination fee for cancellation(7/10)

Affinity Designer

No signals

Mobile

Adobe XD

Android live preview broken(6/10)

Affinity Designer

iPad version has gesture conflicts(6/10)

Support

Adobe XD

Poor Adobe customer support(7/10)

Affinity Designer

No signals

Onboarding

Adobe XD

Small community makes learning harder(5/10)

Affinity Designer

Updater requires manual download(3/10)

Security

Adobe XD

No signals

Affinity Designer

Concerns about Canva ownership and AI data usage(6/10)

Pricing Comparison

Adobe XD

Creative Cloud Standard

$54.99/mo

Users: 1 user

Storage: 100GB cloud storage

Limits: Limited Firefly AI credits, XD in maintenance mode only, no new XD features, web/mobile app access limited

50% early termination fee for annual plans cancelled early, no standalone XD option available, XD only for existing subscribers

Creative Cloud Pro

Popular

$69.99/mo

Users: 1 user

Storage: 100GB cloud storage

Limits: XD receives no new development, must maintain subscription to access files, no perpetual license option

50% early termination fee for annual plans, higher price than Standard with primary benefit being AI credits not relevant to XD, XD still in maintenance mode

Affinity Designer

Free (Current)

Popular

Free

Users: Unlimited

Storage: Local storage only

Limits: Must have Canva account, V1/V2 perpetual licenses no longer receive updates, AI features locked behind Canva Pro

Canva AI features (like AI Studio) require Canva Pro subscription at $120/year

Canva Pro (for AI features)

$120/yr

Users: 1 user

Storage: 1TB cloud storage (Canva)

Limits: AI features require Canva ecosystem, data shared with Canva platform

Monthly billing is $15/month ($180/year), team plans cost more

Legacy V2 (No longer sold)

$69.99/mo

Users: 1 user per platform

Storage: Local storage only

Limits: No longer sold, existing licenses work but won't receive new features, V2 Universal was $169.99

Separate purchase required for each platform (Mac, Windows, iPad)

Feature Comparison

Feature	Adobe XD	Affinity Designer
Collaboration
Real-time collaboration Limited co-editing, not as seamless as Figma
Version history Via Creative Cloud, no automatic versioning in-app
Core Features
Vector editing Comprehensive vector tools
Raster/Pixel editing Via Pixel Persona
Image trace / Auto-trace Major missing feature
Usability
Offline mode Requires 30-day license validation
Pricing
Free tier Requires Creative Cloud subscription
Accessibility
Browser-based access Desktop app only
Cross-platform macOS and Windows only
Extensibility
Plugin/Extension support Not supported
Design
Component variants Supported via component states
Auto-layout Called 'Stack' in XD, less powerful than Figma
File Formats
Adobe AI file export Can open but not save
SVG export Some reported issues
PDF export Including PDF/X
Prototyping
Prototyping Basic interactions only, limited compared to competitors
Development
Developer handoff Basic specs, no dedicated Dev Mode like Figma
Platforms
iPad version Full-featured
Windows version Some stability issues
Mac version Native Apple Silicon
Integrations
Plugin ecosystem Limited plugins, many developers have moved to Figma
Support
Active development Maintenance mode only, no new features
Cloud Features
Cloud sync Local files only