Penpot 2.2 surge and the design tool choice

Penpot attracts teams that want control over their data through self-hosting. While Figma charges $16 per month for Professional Full seats, $12 for Dev seats, and $3 for Collab seats, Penpot provides an open-source entry point with no seat limits for team growth. I see teams choosing Penpot because it uses SVG as its native format. This choice matters for groups that find the proprietary nature of Figma’s cloud-only model too restrictive. Many organizations prefer Penpot because its open-source license and self-hosting options provide data ownership. In contrast, Figma delivers via a browser-based SaaS model. For larger companies, Figma requires more admin work to set up SSO, SCIM, and domain capture.

The move toward SVG-native workflows

The release of Penpot 2.4 introduced versioning and a viewer-only role to the platform. This update follows the 2.3 release that brought the plugin system to users. Developers and designers use the Flex and Grid layouts to ensure designs align with real web behavior. Penpot also works with Tokens Studio to provide native design tokens that follow the W3C Tokens standard. I find the transition to a new render engine particularly interesting for those working on complex files. The team is building a new render engine that uses WebGL to improve stability. This engine helps the prototype viewer and guides run more reliably. Penpot also uses typography tokens in the design sidebar to help teams manage styles. The 2.4 update also includes a .penpot format to streamline the export of files and assets. In version 2.17, Penpot added background blur, which uses the WebGL rendering engine to create frosted-glass effects. This release also added a status button in the top toolbar to control MCP connections. The 2.0 release, which launched on April 6, 2024, introduced a revamped component system and a Grid Layout that remains a standout feature for developers.

Penpot focuses on bridging the gap between designers and developers. It uses SVG as a native format to improve handoff. The platform provides Flex and Grid layouts to mirror web behavior. Users also access a plugin system released in version 2.3. I notice that the version 2.4 release added versioning and viewer-only roles.

Teams migrating from legacy Sketch or Adobe XD libraries often face high implementation efforts because they must rebuild component systems and tokens within the new cloud environment.

The emphasis on developer adoption drives much of the Penpot roadmap. By using the CSS Grid and Flexbox specs, Penpot ensures that what a designer creates translates directly to the browser. This reduces the friction often seen when handing off designs to engineers. I see this as a significant advantage for teams that want to minimize translation errors during the development phase.

Comparing enterprise scale and budget constraints

Figma suits large teams and complex projects because of its established governance and security maturity. The cost of Figma scales quickly as teams add Full, Dev, and Collab seats or buy AI credit add-ons. You already know how much time designing for the web takes, so focus on the tools that respect CSS constraints. Penpot remains a strong contender for budget-conscious projects and open-source enthusiasts. Because it is open-source, Penpot allows for customization and integration with other open-source tools. I notice that Figma’s prototyping features remain more advanced than the options in Penpot. While Figma has a vast plugin ecosystem, Penpot is growing its community-driven library.

Figma’s Dev Mode improves design-to-code alignment for delivery teams. This feature helps bridge the gap between design intent and actual code. I find that Figma excels in real-time collaboration and advanced prototyping for large teams. However, Penpot provides a great alternative for teams that want full control over their data. I observe that Penpot still suffers from performance issues and lag when users work with very large files. Will the new render engine finally solve the lag issues for high-fidelity prototypes? Use Penpot if you need an open-source, self-hosted design system.

Figma’s pricing structure becomes more complex for growing companies. A team starting with a few designers will find the Professional tier affordable, but scaling to hundreds of users necessitates moving to Organization or Enterprise plans. These higher tiers include advanced security and governance controls but significantly increase the monthly spend. Additionally, the use of AI within Figma can lead to unexpected costs because users must manage monthly AI credit allotments. If a team’s usage exceeds these included credits, they must purchase add-on credits to continue their workflows without interruption.