Invision vs Sketch: Which is Better?
Both InVision and Sketch are widely recognized tools in the design industry, but they serve different purposes. While there is some overlap, each tool excels in specific areas of the design process. Here’s a detailed comparison of InVision vs Sketch to help you determine which one is better suited for your needs.
1. Overview
🔴 InVision
- Primary Focus: Prototyping, collaboration, and design handoff.
- Founded: 2011
- Target Audience: Designers, product teams, and developers who need to collaborate on designs and prototypes.
- Platform: Web-based (with desktop and mobile apps available).
- Key Features: Interactive prototyping, design collaboration, feedback tools, developer handoff (specs, assets).
🔵 Sketch
- Primary Focus: Vector-based UI/UX design for web and mobile apps.
- Founded: 2010
- Target Audience: Primarily UI/UX designers and product designers.
- Platform: macOS (not available for Windows).
- Key Features: Artboards, symbols, vector editing, plugins, and integrations for creating high-fidelity designs.
2. Core Features Comparison
| Feature | InVision | Sketch |
|---|---|---|
| Prototyping | ✅ Fully interactive prototypes with animations and transitions | ❌ No native prototyping features |
| Design Handoff | ✅ Provides design specs, assets, and code snippets to developers | ❌ Limited handoff capabilities without third-party plugins |
| Vector Editing | ❌ Limited vector editing capabilities | ✅ Full vector editing support (perfect for UI/UX design) |
| Collaboration | ✅ Real-time collaboration, feedback, and commenting on designs | ❌ No native collaboration, relies on plugins or integration with other tools (e.g., InVision) |
| Symbols | ❌ Does not support symbol creation or reuse | ✅ Full support for symbols, reusable design components |
| Plugins | ✅ Offers integrations with tools like Slack, Jira, and Google Drive | ✅ Extensive plugin ecosystem for extended functionality (e.g., Zeplin for handoff) |
| Artboards | ✅ Supports artboards for various screen sizes and devices | ✅ Full support for artboards, particularly useful for web and mobile design |
| Platform | ✅ Web-based, platform-independent (with desktop and mobile apps) | ✅ macOS only, limiting access for teams with mixed platforms |
🏆 Winner: Sketch – Sketch excels in creating detailed designs with vector editing, symbols, and artboards. InVision is better for prototyping, collaboration, and handoff features.
3. Collaboration & Teamwork
InVision
- Real-Time Collaboration: InVision shines in design collaboration, allowing teams to work together on prototypes in real-time. Team members can leave comments and feedback directly on the design.
- Version Control: InVision keeps track of different versions of designs, which is especially useful for teams working on iterative design projects.
- Design Handoff: InVision is known for its seamless handoff features. Developers can access design specs, assets, and even code snippets, which makes collaboration between designers and developers much smoother.
Sketch
- Collaboration: Sketch lacks built-in real-time collaboration tools, which means it’s not ideal for live team feedback. However, you can use Sketch for Teams (cloud-based) or integrate it with tools like Abstract and InVision to enable collaboration.
- Version Control: Sketch has limited native version control. Abstract, a third-party tool, can be used to provide version control and collaboration features, which gives teams a more structured approach to managing design iterations.
- Design Handoff: Sketch does not have built-in handoff features, but plugins like Zeplin or InVision allow for exporting design specifications and assets to make the handoff process easier for developers.
🏆 Winner: InVision – InVision is superior for collaboration, real-time feedback, and design handoff, while Sketch requires third-party tools for collaboration and handoff.
4. Prototyping & Interaction
InVision
- Prototyping: InVision is focused on creating interactive prototypes. You can design simple or complex user flows, add transitions, and animate interactions directly within the platform. This makes InVision ideal for designers who want to show how their app or website will function in a more realistic manner.
- User Testing: InVision provides a platform for user testing, allowing you to share prototypes with users and collect valuable feedback for refinement.
Sketch
- Prototyping: While Sketch is a fantastic tool for static design, it doesn’t offer native prototyping features. However, you can use plugins like Craft by InVision or Flinto to turn Sketch designs into interactive prototypes.
- Limited Animations: Sketch does not offer built-in tools for creating animations or transitions, which means you’ll need to rely on third-party plugins or external tools.
🏆 Winner: InVision – InVision is far better when it comes to prototyping and creating interactive, animated user flows.
5. Platform & Accessibility
InVision
- Platform: InVision is web-based, which makes it accessible from any device with an internet connection. It also offers desktop and mobile apps, providing flexibility for designers and teams to access projects from various devices and locations.
- Cross-Platform: Being a web-based tool, InVision works seamlessly on both Windows and macOS, making it an ideal choice for teams with diverse operating systems.
Sketch
- Platform: Sketch is macOS-only, which limits its accessibility to teams with mixed platforms. However, Sketch’s design tools are optimized for macOS, offering a seamless experience on Apple devices.
- No Windows Support: Teams with Windows-based designers or developers may face challenges working with Sketch, as it is not available for Windows.
🏆 Winner: InVision – InVision’s cross-platform support makes it the more versatile tool for diverse teams, while Sketch is limited to macOS.
6. Pricing
| Feature | InVision | Sketch |
|---|---|---|
| Free Plan | ✅ Yes, limited to 1 active prototype | ✅ Yes, 30-day free trial |
| Paid Plan | Starts at $7.95/month | Starts at $9/month (for individuals) |
| Team Plan | Starts at $15/month per user | Starts at $99/year per user (team plans available) |
🏆 Winner: InVision – InVision’s pricing structure is more flexible for teams, whereas Sketch’s pricing model may be slightly more expensive for individual users.
7. Final Verdict: InVision vs Sketch
When to Choose InVision?
- If you need to create interactive prototypes with real-time collaboration and feedback tools, InVision is the best choice.
- If you’re working with a team and need to hand off design specs and assets easily to developers, InVision is ideal for the design-to-development workflow.
- If you need a tool that works seamlessly on both macOS and Windows for cross-platform collaboration.
When to Choose Sketch?
- If you’re primarily focused on UI/UX design and need vector editing, symbols, and artboards for creating high-fidelity designs.
- If you’re looking for a tool that integrates seamlessly with other design tools and plugins, like Zeplin for design handoff.
- If you’re working on macOS and want a dedicated design tool for creating detailed user interfaces and web designs.
TL;DR:
- InVision is ideal for prototyping, collaboration, and design handoff, making it a perfect fit for teams working on interactive designs and iterative projects.
- Sketch is better suited for high-fidelity design creation, with powerful vector editing, symbols, and integration with other tools for design collaboration.
🖌 Winner: InVision for prototyping and collaboration. Sketch is great for detailed design work on macOS.