Skip to content
effecthub

Gleek vs Lucidchart

Two fact sheets from our own research, side by side — pricing, platforms, API access and status re-checked by us rather than quoted from the vendors. Gleek starts at $6.95, Lucidchart at $7.95. Both have a free tier. Only Lucidchart ships a public API.

GleekType diagrams instead of dragging boxes: a keyboard-first syntax for flowcharts, UML, ERDs and GanttLucidchartBrowser diagramming for flowcharts, org charts and architecture, with data-linked shapes and AI generation.

Side by side

FactGleekLucidchart
CategoryDiagramming & WhiteboardsDiagramming & Whiteboards
Pricing modelFreemiumFreemium
Starts at$6.95 month$7.95 seat_month
Public APINoYes
PlatformsWebWeb, iOS, Android, API
CompanyBlocshopLucid Software Inc.
Last verifiedSep 6, 2026Sep 6, 2026

What our research says

Gleek

If you think in text, Gleek is faster than any drag-and-drop canvas, and at $6.95 a month it undercuts the diagramming tools people usually reach for. The cost of the approach is its own syntax — not Mermaid, not PlantUML — so what you write here stays here.

Pros

  • Its own terse syntax covering flowcharts, UML, ERD, Gantt and user journeys
  • AI chat drafts the syntax when you do not know it
  • Git connection, shareable links and custom themes
  • Usable free tier, and Premium at $6.95/month or $58.40/year

Cons

  • Proprietary syntax rather than Mermaid or PlantUML, so diagrams are not portable
  • Free tier caps you at five files, 40 objects each, and PNG export only
  • No API and no desktop application

Lucidchart

The default choice for team diagramming: data-linked shapes and layers handle diagrams that outgrow a whiteboard tool, and the integration list means the diagram ends up where the work already happens. Per-seat pricing with a three-user minimum on Team makes it expensive for small groups, and Lucid keeps moving the product's URLs around.

Pros

  • Data-linked shapes with conditional formatting
  • Layers for managing dense diagrams
  • Lucid AI generates and summarises diagrams from prompts
  • Over 100 integrations including Jira, Confluence, Slack and AWS

Cons

  • Free tier caps editable documents to a handful
  • Team plan carries a three-seat minimum
  • Per-seat pricing, and published figures differ across Lucid's own pages

Which one fits

Choose Gleek if you need

  • Developers and architects who would rather type than drag
  • Keeping diagrams close to code through the Git connection
  • Teams needing UML, ERD and sequence diagrams on a small budget

Choose Lucidchart if you need

  • Engineering and ops teams documenting systems
  • Org charts driven from an HR spreadsheet
  • Companies already on Jira, Confluence or Teams

More comparisons

Browse all Diagramming & Whiteboards →