Axure vs Sketch

Updated March 6, 2023

Difference Between Axure and Sketch

Axure RP Pro or Axure is wireframing, rapid prototyping, and documentation and specification software tool aimed at web and desktop applications. It offers drag and drops placement, resizing, and formatting of widgets. A sketch is essentially a graphic design tool. It is a prototyping tool with excellent plug-in support. Axure and sketch are both prototyping tools. Axure is a more complicated tool compared to a sketch. The latter is usually used with Axure for projects. Both sketch vs axure has their own strengths. While axure is used for interaction designing and functional prototyping, a sketch is a graphic design tool.

Below is a table listing the strengths and features of both acute and sketch.

	Axure	Sketch
Click-through	✔
Interactive Prototypes	✔
Conditional Logic	✔
Dedicated Flow Diagramming	✔
Animations	✔
Data-Driven Content	✔
Functions (Math, Time and Date, Etc.)	✔
Working Form Elements	✔
Animations and Spec Export	✔
Sitemap and Large Project Capability	✔
Team Projects	✔
Adaptive Design	✔
Canvas-Based Editing	✔	✔
Grids and Guides	✔	✔
Cloud Hosting	✔	✔
View on Device	✔	✔
Artboards		✔
Non-Destructive Vector Editing		✔
Pixel Precision and High zoom factor		✔
Syncing Symbol Libraries		✔
Export Production Graphics and CSS		✔
Community of Integrations		✔

Head To Head Comparisons Between Axure and Sketch (Infographics)

Below is the top difference between Axure vs Sketch

Key Differences Between Axure and sketch

Both are popular choices in the market; let us discuss some of the major difference:

• Axure is used for interaction designing and functional prototyping, whereas sketch is a design toolkit. Axure is usually used with or without a sketch.
• Axure is far more complicated in terms of features compared to sketch. A sketch is known for its simplicity of usage, which makes it fun.
• Generalists like visual designers usually use a sketch whereas axure is used by a range of specialists who have their own technical specializations like interaction designers, product managers, functional designers, information architects, business analysts, and others.
• Since functional design issues are more important compared to visual design, Axure has usually considered a more useful tool as it helps users provide a functional app or web experience. Sketch, on the other hand, is more of a visual design tool.
• In the case of axure, every action of designing is done by programming and not by dragging or moving things. So it is not possible to view the design as such. Whereas in the case of a sketch, all actions are done by duplicating the actions in the artboard. Hence the entire process of designing is available to see as you work.

Axure vs Sketch Comparison Table

Here are some of the Comparison between Axure vs Sketch

Comparison Parameter	Axure PRO	Sketch
Usage	Axure PRO supports complicated HTML designs which are accessible for both websites and mobile applications.	A sketch is a highly popular tool amongst developers and used in everything ranging from iPhone frames to iOS/Android UI elements and icons.
Features to Advantage	Sharing work is very easy as there are a lot of options to do so. We can save wireframes out to Word and convert notes to annotations. In axure, the components or widgets are reusable and can be used over and over again. Axure Pro is available for use on Windows and Mac. The project can be collaborated with check-in/out systems like SVN to work with others. Axure Pro has a good amount of online training material available to help users get proficient with the software.	Sketch artboards are great for viewing multiple artboards at the same time. A sketch is pixel aware, and so you can adjust the grid and scales for retina designs and high-quality icons and artwork. It has a built-in exporter that supports PDF, JPG, and PNG. Sketch allows you to duplicate designs in multiple places and, at the same time, work with Text styles to cater to the needs of the website. The Mirror lets users connect to the iPhone and easily test designs on multiple devices.
Features to disadvantage	It has a moderate learning curve. Axure PRO is expensive as the standard edition costs $289, and the PRO edition is priced at $589.	A sketch is available only on MAC and is not available on LINUX. Sketch has moved from a license-free version to a version that charges $99. Sketch has no Windows support. Since the release of versions is very fast, users have to keep updating. If users need features that are more complicated than vector masking of images, they have to look for other options. Sketch has limited compatibility with Photoshop and illustrator.

Conclusion

Given the various features, usage, pros and cons of sketch vs axure, we can conclude that axure is by far a more complicated tool compared to sketch, making it suitable for projects that require more functional detail. On the other hand, Sketch is preferred for its simplicity and has its own set of followers. Axure is more expensive than a sketch. Importantly Axure is supported by both Windows and Linux, whereas sketch is supported only by Linux. Keeping these main factors in mind will help developers use the right tool for their projects.

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