Pencil vs Smartly

Pencil

The interesting decision here is storing the design as a file in the repository instead of a cloud document — it means a branch carries its own design state and a coding agent can read the canvas through MCP without an export step. That is a real answer to the handoff problem rather than another Figma-to-React exporter. It is also very new, free with no stated business model, and only worth adopting if your team already works with a coding agent in the loop.

Pros

• +Canvas is a .pen file stored locally and versioned with git, not a cloud document
• +Editor extension covers VS Code, Cursor, Windsurf and Antigravity rather than one IDE
• +Ships an MCP server so a coding agent can read the design directly
• +Native desktop builds for macOS (Apple Silicon and Intel), Windows x64 and Linux, plus an npm CLI
• +Free with no credit card at time of check

Cons

• −No pricing at all yet, which means no commitment about what stays free
• −Very young — launched January 2026, so ecosystem, plugins and file-format stability are unproven
• −Local-first storage means collaboration is whatever your git workflow gives you, with no built-in review tooling

Smartly

Smartly is the platform you consider when the problem is hundreds of creative variants across a dozen markets and a media budget large enough that a percentage fee is cheaper than a team. The creative-to-media loop, where performance data feeds the next round of versions, is the part smaller tools do not replicate. It is sold on a demo with enterprise minimums, so a brand spending five figures a month will not get a quote worth taking.

Pros

• +Creative production, media buying and measurement in one platform across social, CTV and open web
• +Performance signals feed creative updates automatically rather than through a separate reporting loop
• +Thirteen years of operation and named enterprise customers on the site
• +API and integrations for feeding product catalogues and data into creative templates

Cons

• −No pricing page and no self-serve tier; everything starts with a demo
• −Enterprise minimums put it out of reach for most SMB advertisers
• −Breadth across three suites means a long onboarding before the automation pays back

Does Pencil or Smartly have a free tier?

Pencil is free to use; Smartly prices on request.

Which has a public API, Pencil or Smartly?

Smartly ships a public API, as of our last verification. A public API for Pencil is not confirmed by us — check its developer docs before you plan an integration.