Mermaid vs Excalidraw vs Graphviz for Confluence
Looking for the best diagram tool for Confluence? Confluence has no built-in diagramming, so every team adds a Marketplace app — but the right choice depends entirely on what you draw and how you prefer to work. This guide compares the three strongest options — Mermaid Plus Diagrams & AI Agent for Confluence, Excalidraw Plus Whiteboards & AI Agent for Confluence, and Graphviz Charts for Confluence — so you can pick the diagram tool that fits your team instead of guessing.
For most Confluence teams, Mermaid Plus is the best diagram tool — it covers the widest range (30 diagram types), is the easiest to learn, and renders text into diagrams that version cleanly with your docs. Pick Excalidraw Plus if you need freehand whiteboarding and wireframes. Pick Graphviz Charts for dense network and dependency graphs. Many teams install more than one.
- Which diagram tool fits each type of Confluence team
- The strengths and trade-offs of Mermaid, Excalidraw, and Graphviz
- Pricing, hosting, and integration differences
- A decision framework so you can choose in under a minute
Why Confluence needs a dedicated diagram tool
Confluence's native editor handles text, tables, and images — but it cannot draw. There is no flowchart builder, no UML support, no whiteboard, and no way to render a diagram from text. Any team that documents architecture, processes, or systems ends up pasting screenshots from external tools, where they go stale the moment the source changes.
A dedicated Confluence diagram tool fixes this by embedding the editor directly in the page, so diagrams live next to the text they illustrate, update in place, and export with the rest of the document. The question is which one — and the three below cover essentially every diagramming need a Confluence team has.
Quick comparison: the three diagram tools at a glance
| Feature | Mermaid Plus | Excalidraw Plus | Graphviz Charts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Input method | Text / code editor | Visual canvas (drag & drop) | Text / DOT language |
| Diagram types | 29 (flowcharts, sequence, class, Gantt, ER, mindmaps…) | Freeform drawing, wireframes, sketches | Directed/undirected graphs, network diagrams |
| Live preview | Yes | Yes (real-time canvas) | Yes |
| Templates | Built-in, one-click per type | 220+ shape packs | DOT snippets |
| Visual style | Clean, modern, themeable | Hand-drawn, freeform | Technical, utilitarian |
| Best for | Structured diagrams, documentation | Brainstorming, wireframes, whiteboarding | Technical network and dependency diagrams |
| Free tier | Free for ≤10 users | Free for ≤10 users | Free for ≤10 users |
Mermaid Plus Diagrams & AI Agent for Confluence — structured diagrams from text
Mermaid Plus Diagrams & AI Agent for Confluence lets you write diagram code and renders it instantly. It supports 30 diagram types including flowcharts, sequence diagrams, class diagrams, Gantt charts, pie charts, mindmaps, timelines, and more.
When to choose Mermaid Plus:
- You want to version and diff diagrams alongside documentation
- You need many standardized diagram types (flowcharts, sequence, ER, Gantt)
- Your team prefers text-based editing over drag-and-drop
Read the step-by-step guide: Create Mermaid diagrams in Confluence.
Other Mermaid apps: reliability notes
If you came here because your current Mermaid app misbehaves, you are not imagining it. Two long-standing options have public, unresolved complaints from this year:
- Mermaid Diagrams for Confluence (weweave) — January 2026 review: "I'm unable to insert a diagram using text directly in confluence. When I insert a diagram in the special popup editor, it refuses to publish my diagram."
- Mermaid diagrams viewer — January 2026 review: "After successful installation the app is not working."
Switching cost is low when the source is text: paste the same Mermaid code into a Mermaid Plus macro and the diagram re-renders — nothing to redraw. The step-by-step guide above covers the insertion and preview workflow.
Data from Atlassian Marketplace public reviews, retrieved October 2026.
Excalidraw Plus Whiteboards & AI Agent for Confluence — freeform whiteboarding
Excalidraw Plus Whiteboards & AI Agent for Confluence provides a visual canvas where you draw freely with shapes, lines, and text. It ships with 220+ shape libraries covering flowcharts, UML, wireframes, network diagrams, and more, plus a Rovo AI agent that draws and edits whiteboards from Confluence chat.
When to choose Excalidraw Plus:
- You need freeform drawing and brainstorming
- You want to sketch wireframes or mockups
- Your team prefers a drag-and-drop visual editor
- You want an AI agent to keep whiteboards current instead of redrawing them by hand
- You also need whiteboards in Jira — try Excalidraw Diagrams plus Whiteboards for Jira
Read the step-by-step guide: Excalidraw AI Agent for Confluence.
Excalidraw vs draw.io? If you're weighing Excalidraw against draw.io (diagrams.net) specifically, see our dedicated Excalidraw vs draw.io for Confluence comparison — it covers whiteboarding vs structured UML, Mermaid support, shape libraries, and pricing side by side.
Graphviz Charts for Confluence — technical graph diagrams
Graphviz Charts for Confluence uses the DOT language to generate directed and undirected graphs. It excels at rendering complex dependency trees, network topologies, and state machines.
When to choose Graphviz Charts:
- You need automatic layout of complex node-and-edge graphs
- You are documenting network topologies, dependency trees, or state machines
- You prefer specifying relationships in text and letting the engine handle layout
Want both Excalidraw AND Mermaid?
The Excalidraw & Mermaid Diagrams for Confluence combines both tools in a single macro — freeform drawing on one tab, structured Mermaid diagrams on the other. See the documentation.
Which should you install?
- Documentation-heavy teams: Mermaid Plus — structured diagrams that are easy to maintain
- Design and product teams: Excalidraw Plus — visual brainstorming and wireframes
- DevOps and engineering: Graphviz Charts — automated layout of technical graphs
- Need everything: Install all three — each serves a different purpose
All three apps are available on the Atlassian Marketplace with free trials.
Decision framework: pick your diagram tool in 60 seconds
Not sure which Confluence diagram tool to choose? Answer these in order:
- Do you draw mostly freehand sketches and wireframes? → Yes: Excalidraw Plus. Its hand-drawn canvas is purpose-built for brainstorming and early-stage design.
- Do you diagram dense networks, dependencies, or call graphs with many nodes? → Yes: Graphviz Charts. Its auto-layout engine handles complexity that breaks manual editors.
- Do you want standardized, maintainable diagrams (flowcharts, sequence, ER, Gantt) that diff cleanly? → Yes (the most common answer): Mermaid Plus. Text-based diagrams version with your docs and cover 30 types.
If you answered "yes" to more than one, install the matching combination — the three apps do not conflict and each owns a different category.
Diagram tool by use case
| If you need to draw… | Best diagram tool | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Flowcharts and process diagrams | Mermaid Plus | Text syntax + templates, diffs in version control |
| Architecture and system design | Mermaid Plus or Graphviz | Mermaid for C4/sequence; Graphviz for dependency maps |
| Wireframes and UI mockups | Excalidraw Plus | Freehand canvas with shape libraries |
| Sequence and class diagrams | Mermaid Plus | First-class UML support, 30 types |
| Network topology | Graphviz Charts | Auto-layout of nodes and edges at scale |
| Gantt and project timelines | Mermaid Plus | Native Gantt syntax |
| Whiteboarding and brainstorming | Excalidraw Plus | Real-time multi-user freehand canvas |
| Entity-relationship diagrams | Mermaid Plus | ER syntax with cardinality |
Which is the best Confluence app for architecture design?
For the question we hear most — which app should I use to draw architecture diagrams? — the answer is: Mermaid Plus if your architecture lives in documents, Excalidraw Plus if it lives in workshops.
- Mermaid Plus is the default answer for software architecture: C4 system context and container diagrams, sequence diagrams for request flows, ER diagrams for data models — all as text you can review, diff and update when the design changes. Architecture docs that stay in sync with reality beat prettier diagrams that don't. Start with the C4 system architecture guide or the general architecture diagrams how-to.
- Excalidraw Plus wins when the architecture is still being argued about — freeform boxes and arrows in a workshop, reshaped live with the team, formalized later (often by re-drawing it as Mermaid once it settles).
- Graphviz Charts for the specific case of dependency maps too large to lay out by hand.
And if the question is where — the same three tools run in both products: on Confluence pages via the macro/editor, and on Jira issues through the Jira editions (Mermaid Plus for Jira, Excalidraw for Jira), with whiteboarding sessions spanning both when the design discussion moves between them.
Pricing and hosting
All three diagram tools run on Atlassian Forge (Cloud-only) and are free for up to 10 users — so small teams can adopt them at no cost. Paid tiers scale with team size and are billed through the Atlassian Marketplace. None of the three requires a separate server, external rendering service, or self-hosted component; everything renders client-side or via Forge compute, which keeps diagrams inside your Confluence security boundary.
Frequently asked questions
Does Confluence have a built-in diagram tool?
No. Confluence's native editor cannot draw diagrams — there is no flowchart, UML, or whiteboard feature. You add diagramming through a Marketplace app. The three recommended above (Mermaid Plus, Excalidraw Plus, Graphviz Charts) are the most capable options for Confluence Cloud.
What is the best free diagram tool for Confluence?
For teams of 10 users or fewer, Mermaid Plus, Excalidraw Plus, and Graphviz Charts are all free. Mermaid Plus is the best starting point because it covers the widest range of diagram types (29) with the easiest learning curve. See our free diagram plugin guide for more.
Can I use draw.io or Lucidchart instead?
You can, but they have trade-offs. draw.io (diagrams.net) is structured and precise, with deep cloud and network shape libraries — and since 2026 it also inserts Mermaid, so the real question is text-native versus shapes; see draw.io vs Mermaid in Confluence and our Excalidraw vs draw.io comparison. The NGPILOT tools above are Forge-native, run entirely inside Confluence, and are free for small teams.
Which diagram tool is best for developers?
Developers generally prefer Mermaid Plus — diagrams are plain text, so they diff in pull requests, live in version control, and render the same way in Confluence as in GitHub. For dense infrastructure graphs, add Graphviz Charts.
Ready to add diagrams to your Confluence? Try our diagram tools with free trials →
Related resources
- Mermaid Plus Diagrams & AI Agent for Confluence — marketplace | documentation
- Excalidraw Plus Whiteboards & AI Agent for Confluence — marketplace | documentation
- Excalidraw & Mermaid Diagrams for Confluence — marketplace | documentation
- Create Mermaid diagrams in Confluence — how-to guide with examples
- All 30 Mermaid diagram types — complete reference: C4, flowchart, sequence, Gantt, swimlane, and more
- ER diagrams in Confluence — embed database schemas with Mermaid erDiagram syntax
- Excalidraw best practices FAQ
- Excalidraw vs draw.io for Confluence — freehand whiteboarding vs structured UML diagrams
- draw.io vs Mermaid in Confluence — when the source text stays the diagram, and when shapes win
- Mermaid troubleshooting FAQ
- Best Confluence apps for developers — the full 2026 comparison