Excalidraw alternative
The Excalidraw you love, with folders and version history
Excalidraw is the best free canvas for sketching diagrams, but it has no built-in way to organize what you draw or go back to an earlier version. CanvasKeep is the same canvas with those two things added, so your diagrams stay organized and every version is kept.
What people look for when they search for an Excalidraw alternative
Most people who go looking don't actually want to leave Excalidraw. They want the same canvas, minus two specific frustrations:
“I keep losing my diagrams”
Plain Excalidraw has no folders or projects. Diagrams end up scattered across browser tabs, downloaded .excalidraw files, and screenshots. Finding last month's sketch means hunting through your Downloads folder.
“I overwrote the version I needed”
There is no version history. You iterate on a diagram over a few days, then realize the layout you wanted was the one you already changed, with no way back.
What CanvasKeep adds
The same drawing experience, wrapped in the project layer Excalidraw leaves out.
Workspaces & nested folders
Give every diagram a home. Group them into workspaces and nest folders to any depth, so related designs stay together as your library grows.
Named version history
Save a checkpoint before a big change, preview any past version, and restore it in one click. The version you needed is never the one you overwrote.
Cloud sync, no setup
Sign in with Google and your diagrams follow you across devices. No local files to lose, export, or email to yourself.
CanvasKeep vs Excalidraw vs Excalidraw+
CanvasKeep isn't a rival canvas. It's built on the same open-source Excalidraw editor, and this is where it fills the gaps.
| Feature | Excalidraw | Excalidraw+ | CanvasKeep |
|---|---|---|---|
| Excalidraw drawing canvas | |||
| Works in the browser, no install | |||
| Nested folders / workspaces | Limited | ||
| Named version history you control | |||
| Cloud library across devices | |||
| Free core organization features |
Comparison based on each product's publicly documented features and free-plan positioning, as of 2026. Excalidraw and Excalidraw+ are products of the Excalidraw team; CanvasKeep is an independent tool built on their open-source editor.
Frequently asked questions
- Is CanvasKeep free?
- Yes. The free tier includes workspaces, nested folders, and version history, with room for 20 diagrams and 5 saved versions per diagram. No credit card, no trial timer.
- Does CanvasKeep use the real Excalidraw editor?
- Yes. CanvasKeep is built on the open-source Excalidraw canvas, so the drawing experience is exactly the one you already know: shapes, arrows, freehand, text, and the hand-drawn style. CanvasKeep adds the organization and history around it.
- Can I organize my Excalidraw diagrams into folders?
- Yes. That is the main reason CanvasKeep exists. You group diagrams into workspaces and nest folders inside them to any depth, so a growing library stays tidy instead of turning into a pile of loose .excalidraw files.
- Can I go back to an earlier version of a diagram?
- Yes. You save named checkpoints whenever you want, preview any past version, and restore one with a single click, without overwriting the version you are on.
- Do I need to install anything?
- No. CanvasKeep runs in the browser. Sign in with Google and your diagrams sync to the cloud automatically.
- How is CanvasKeep different from Excalidraw+?
- Excalidraw+ focuses on real-time collaboration and sharing. CanvasKeep focuses on keeping a solo or small-team diagram library organized over time: nested folders and named version history are first-class, and the core features are free. There is a full side-by-side breakdown on the CanvasKeep vs Excalidraw+ page.
Keep every diagram you draw
Try the canvas right now, no signup. Sign in when you want to organize and keep it.