> /v1/alternatives/paper
Open source alternatives to Paper[005]
Paper is a digital sketching and drawing app for capturing ideas, diagrams and freehand visual notes on a tablet. Below are 5 self-hostable open source alternatives, ranked by GitHub popularity.
Penpot
The open-source design tool for design and code collaboration
★ STARS
47.4k
⑂ FORKS
2.9k
Graphite
Open source comprehensive 2D content creation tool suite for graphic design, digital art, and interactive real-time motion graphics — featuring node-based procedural editing
★ STARS
25.6k
⑂ FORKS
1.2k
OpenPencil
AI-native design editor. Open-source Figma alternative.
★ STARS
4.8k
⑂ FORKS
410
Quant-UX
Prototype, Test and Learn
★ STARS
2.5k
⑂ FORKS
267
Grida
Open Design
★ STARS
2.5k
⑂ FORKS
131
// EDITOR'S TAKE
Nothing here reproduces the loose freehand feel of a stylus sketchpad, but Graphite comes closest as an actual drawing canvas with brushes and a nondestructive node graph. Penpot is the better pick if your sketches are really wireframes headed for a UI, and Quant-UX only makes sense once you want to click through and test those screens.
// FREQUENTLY ASKED
What is the best open source Paper alternative?
Penpot is the most popular open source Paper alternative by GitHub stars (47,403 stars). The other 4 options are ranked above.
Are these Paper alternatives self-hostable?
Yes — every project listed here is open source and runs on your own infrastructure. Click into a project to see its license, stars, language, and current health status.
Are they free?
All projects shown are free and open source. Check each project's license page for the terms — most are MIT, Apache 2.0, or AGPL.
// PART OF THESE COLLECTIONS