Affinity Designer vs Sketch
Affinity Designer and Sketch are both design tools tools. Affinity Designer is aimed at freelancers and agencies, while Sketch is aimed at agencies and freelancers. Only Affinity Designer has a free plan.
Affinity Designer
Professional vector design app, free since Canva
Sketch
Native Mac design toolkit
| Pricing | Free | Paid · $12 |
| Starting price | Not published | $12/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | No |
| Free trial | — | 30 days |
| Built for | Freelancers, Agencies | Agencies, Freelancers |
| Platforms | macos, windows, ios | macos, web |
| Country | GB · 2014 | NL · 2010 |
| Rating | — | — |
Choose Affinity Designer if
Designers wanting a professional Illustrator alternative.
- Free (2025)
- Professional quality
- Fast performance
Look elsewhere if: Collaborative UI design (Figma).
Choose Sketch if
Mac designers preferring native apps.
- Fast native performance
- Works offline
- One-time license option
Look elsewhere if: Cross-platform collaborative teams (Figma).
Affinity Designer vs Sketch pricing
Affinity Designer
- Affinity$0Free for individuals; org SSO via sales
Sketch
- Standard$12/editor/moBilled yearly; 50GB per editor, unlimited docs
- Professional$24/editor/moBilled yearly; SSO, permission groups
- Enterprise$44/editor/moBilled yearly; unlimited storage, SCIM, BYOK
- Private CloudCustomUS or EU hosting, unlimited workspaces
- Mac-only license$120Per seat, one-time, includes 1 year of updates
Affinity Designer · Key features
- Vector and raster workflows in one app
- Artboards and symbols
- Precise typography and print tools
- iPad version
- PSD, AI, PDF compatibility
- Unified with Photo and Publisher
Cons
- Less collaboration than Figma
- Smaller plugin ecosystem
- Some Adobe file incompatibilities
Sketch · Key features
- Native Mac app with offline work
- Symbols, libraries and smart layout
- Prototyping
- Web app for collaboration and handoff
- Plugin ecosystem
- One-time license option
Cons
- Mac only for editing
- Collaboration behind Figma
- Smaller community now
Affinity Designer vs Sketch: FAQ
Do Affinity Designer and Sketch have a free plan?
Affinity Designer has a free plan. Sketch has no free plan, a 30-day free trial.