The Lucid Visual Collaboration Suite empowers teams to ideate, plan, design, build, and launch game-changing solutions from a shared infinite canvas.
$0
per month
SmartDraw
Score 8.3 out of 10
N/A
SmartDraw is a diagramming and flow chart building tool from SmartDraw Software in San Diego, California.
$131.40
per year (for a single user on an individual plan)
Xmind
Score 8.8 out of 10
N/A
Hong Kong based Xmind offers their diagramming tool featuring a range of templates, alternate brainstorming and presentation modes, a clip art library, and export to a wide variety of file types (e.g. PDF, JPG, Word or Excel, etc.).
Xmind is just a mind mapping application. It was created with that specific purpose, which makes it not so useful for general diagram creation or to strutucte a workflow process. However, there seems to be no application for Android phones, which is something they should work …
SmartDraw's templates appeared to offer more selection and were slightly better. They offer desktop apps for Mac and Windows (if that's your thing). However, we feel that Lucidchart has better sharing and collaboration tools and we opted to go with this software over SmartDraw …
There has never been another tool that has came close for me. None of these tools had the options, ease of use, and performance that Lucidchart has continuously had for me. I have found the other tools to be clunky, unresponsive, and lacking the variety and options that …
Lucidchart when compared to the competition is way ahead of them. It has a good number of features available in the free version and the other thing is that there is none to a little learning curve required to understand the product. It is fairly easy to use when we compare it …
The real-time collaborative editing feature really likes our team compared to tools. We are able to view the most updated diagram at any given point in time without reaching out to other team members. The provided templates are very useful. Specifically, our team uses Cloud …
As noted in first question, SmartDraw has them beat in every category I can think of (except for price; but need to keep in mind the old adage "you get what you pay for"!). This product allows for VASTLY-improved uploading of data than the Lucidchart product, and customer …
As Xmind draws a specific focus on mindmaps its functionality is very clear and easy to use. Other mindmap systems make you connect the topics and arrows yourself which can be very frustrating and finnicky. Its presentation is very clear and displayed cleanly.
I personally think that Lucid Visual Collaboration Suite is the best visual collaboration software out there. I’ve used Canva, Apple Freeform, and Microsoft whiteboarding software, and none of them really measure up. If you want simple, easy, collaborative, and intuitive, then Lucid Visual Collaboration Suite is the best solution. At the same time, if you’re tight on budget, it’s probably not going to be a solution you can afford.
I believe SmartDraw is a great tool for small- to mid-sized organizations for simplifying the production and management of org charts. We've also had the PMO experiment with the use of some of their flow charts as well. If an organization has an HCM with the capability of producing (good!) org charts, that is likely the best option... but many that I have used in my 30-year HR career don't. So there is definitely a need for SmartDraw in the market!
Large number of predefined charts, diagrams, flows
A great repository of various symbols and objects
The easiness of using and manipulating objects and shapes. There is a lot of auto-editing and adjusting which the software does for you which saves a lot of your time.
Easy way of duplicating shapes.
While working with the app everything feels organic and natural. You don't get the clunky/limited feeling which happens with some other similar apps.
I have used the templates before and those are nice! I would like to see more
The ONLY complaint I can come up with is that there has been several times that my screen will lock up and i have to fully refresh it, even when it is a fairly fresh load.
The usability of Lucid Visual Collaboration Suite is bar none and incomparable to any other tool used in the past. There is such a vast offering that covers all the needs of any user in industries far and wide. It is no doubt that this is a firm recommendation for anyone and everyone to utilize this tool for all their needs.
I rated 8 because its simple to use and easy to create network topologies quickly. I liked the drag and drop option which makes designing the network topology and flow chart easier. In general its does what it needs to.
Commands and controls extremely easy to navigate and use. Ability to import mindmaps and collaborate also contribute to a very pleasant usability experience
I would rate the overall support for Lucidchart as a 9. The support provided is generally robust and responsive. Their help center, tutorials, and webinars offer extensive resources for users. The ticket-based support system is effective, providing timely resolutions to most issues. Moreover, they actively gather user feedback, demonstrating a commitment to continuous improvement
They are always very helpful, we get computers every two years and I have to call them to move the license from one computer to another and they do it with a smile in their voice!
The support around a bug in the tool which prevented the correct printing of diagrams. Support came back after a few days, and there was no workaround. Eventually, the bug was fixed in a future release. The company does not pay much attention to user forums. With better support and plugin mechanism for user contributions, the product would be more convincing.
Lucidchart is well beyond Microsoft Visio and is constantly improving. Visio is pretty much stagnant and hasn't been improved for several years, Lucid is constantly adding new functionality like AI powered functions and tools. We have no reason to pay for Visio licenses when Lucid can provide so much more for less.
We have used Corel Draw and Adobe Acrobat. Both of those tools were good when they came out but the abilities of SmartDraw far outweigh both those tools. Corel Draw was also more complex to operate and do tasks, as was Adobe Acrobat in which some basic tasks took additional steps to complete.
It sure has. It has saved me a lot of time. Think of all the time I could have wasted trying to learn a program that does the same thing, whereas Lucidchart just does it with ease, learn as you go, and be a boss at it.
Lucidchart has increased productivity. My diagrams have helped co-workers find connectivity and helped them troubleshoot devices. This has saved time and increased productivity.
SmartDraw has provided good return for our internal purposes. Using it to understand an organization's structure and inner workings has been valuable. On the client side, creating steps and businesses processes has also been a big plus. It has helped decrease confusing reporting structures and has provided a detailed map for individuals to understand where they fit within their organization.
Unfortunately, SmartDraw has been somewhat inefficient with some of the more complex projects on our plate and has really deterred certain employees from even wanting to use it.