Best free SVG editors
The right SVG editor depends on whether you need to edit existing SVG files, illustrate from scratch, or design interfaces. Here are the options that are genuinely free, and where each one falls short.
Quick comparison
| Editor | Runs in | Price | Node editing | Layers | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vectopea | Browser | Free, no account | Yes | Yes | Editing SVG files with clean output |
| Inkscape | Windows, macOS, Linux | Free (open source) | Yes | Yes | Full illustration, print, tracing |
| SVG-Edit | Browser | Free (open source) | Yes | Yes | Self-hosting or embedding an editor |
| Method Draw | Browser | Free (open source) | Yes | No, by design | Very simple drawings |
| Figma | Browser, desktop | Free plan, account required | Yes | Yes | UI design with SVG export |
| Boxy SVG | Browser, desktop | Paid after a 15-day trial | Yes | Yes | A polished SVG-native editor, if you'll pay |
Vectopea: best for editing SVG in the browser
Vectopea treats SVG as the document format, not an export option. The live code panel shows the exact markup you will save, and you can edit it and apply it back to the canvas.
- Strengths: pen tool and node editing, boolean operations, linear and radial gradients, glow/shadow/blur exported as real SVG filters, smart guides, layers whose names become element ids, Illustrator-style shortcuts, and a touch layout for phones and tablets. Files never leave your device.
- Limitations: no PDF/EPS, no CMYK, no bitmap tracing, one artboard per document.
- Try it: open the SVG editor, or use a single-purpose tool such as SVG to PNG or the SVG optimizer.
Inkscape: best free desktop illustration app
Inkscape is a mature, open-source vector editor under the GPL.
- Strengths: a deep feature set, extensions, Trace Bitmap, and PDF/EPS import and export.
- Limitations: you have to install it, the interface has a learning curve, and its default SVG output includes Inkscape-specific metadata (use "Plain" or "Optimized SVG" when saving).
- Online alternative: Inkscape online options.
SVG-Edit: best open-source editor to embed
SVG-Edit is a long-running open-source browser editor (MIT licence), often used as a component inside other apps.
- Strengths: runs anywhere, self-hostable, extensible, supports layers.
- Limitations: the interface is older in style than newer editors.
Method Draw: best for very simple drawings
Method Draw is a fork of SVG-Edit by Mark MacKay that simplifies the interface.
- Strengths: a minimal interface that's quick to learn.
- Limitations: no layers by design, and updates have been infrequent in recent years. See Method Draw alternatives.
Figma: best for UI design
Figma's free plan exports SVG from any frame or layer.
- Strengths: excellent for interface design and collaboration.
- Limitations: requires an account; it isn't an SVG editor at heart. Importing an SVG converts it to Figma layers, and exporting generates new markup, so hand-tuned ids and structure don't survive a round trip.
Boxy SVG: polished, but not free
Boxy SVG is a capable SVG-native editor for the web, macOS, Windows and ChromeOS. It is paid after a 15-day trial (plans from about $9.99; check boxy-svg.com for current pricing). See Boxy SVG alternatives.
Which one should you use?
| If you need to… | Use |
|---|---|
| Edit an SVG quickly on any computer | Vectopea |
| Keep the SVG markup clean and readable | Vectopea or SVG-Edit |
| Do print work or trace a bitmap | Inkscape |
| Design app screens with a team | Figma |
| Convert, recolour or compress without editing | SVG to PNG, color changer, optimizer |