Get in touch

Fill out this form and our team will respond as soon as we can, alternatively email us at mail@icepanel.io

Get in touch

Fill out this form and our team will respond as soon as we can, alternatively email us at mail@icepanel.io

Back to all blogs

Top 9 visual modelling tools for software architecture

The best free and paid tools for visually modelling your software architecture

toolsmodellingsoftware architecture
14 Feb 2023
Blog hero image

⚡ Tl;dr

🚀 Let’s kick-off

Diagramming software architecture provides several benefits to how we communicate complexity. Clear system designs give engineering teams an enhanced understanding of the architecture and plan for future development whilst identifying potential issues.

Modelling tools work best for long-term system design docs. Reusable objects and relationships are stored in the model, which keeps all your diagrams up to date.

1️⃣ IcePanel

IcePanel is a web-based SaaS tool for collaboratively modelling software architectures using the C4 model.

Free and paid.

Best for agile development teams looking for a lightweight collaborative tool to model and document their software architectures.

It includes features such as:

IcePanel screenshot!

2️⃣ Enterprise Architect

Enterprise architect by Sparx Systems is a desktop application for modelling business, IT and software systems.

Paid.

Best for large enterprises that need to create models for a wide range of industry standards.

It includes features such as:

Enterprise architect screenshot!

3️⃣ Visual Paradigm

Visual Paradigm is a desktop application with modelling and diagramming capabilities. It also has a collaborative online version.

Paid.

Best for Enterprise architects who need to produce a wide range of models and diagram types with lots of flexibility.

It includes features such as:

Visual paradigm screenshot!

4️⃣ Archi

Archi is a desktop application for modelling for creating ArchiMate models and sketches.

Free and open source.

Best for individuals looking to create models using the ArchiMate language without spending a budget on expensive tooling.

It includes features such as:

Archi screenshot!

5️⃣ Gaphor

Gaphor is a desktop application for modelling and diagramming for beginners or professionals.

Free and open source.

Best for individuals looking for open-source tools that support a few of the most popular standards in software architecture modelling.

It includes features such as:

Graphor screenshot!

6️⃣ StarUML

StarUML is a desktop application for agile and concise modelling.

Free for evaluation and paid.

Best for individuals in an organization who want to create validated models and generate code/HTML from them.

It includes features such as:

StarUML screenshot!

7️⃣ Archipeg

Archipeg is a cloud-based modelling and diagramming tool for cross-functional teams.

Free and paid.

Best for teams looking to create and visualize a shared knowledgebase or catalog of their enterprise architecture.

It includes features such as:

Archipeg screenshot!

8️⃣ GenMyModel

GenMyModel is an online collaborative modelling, documentation and diagramming tool.

Free and paid.

Best for enterprise teams who want a real-time collaborative view of their architecture and documentation.

It includes features such as:

GenMyModel screenshot!

9️⃣ Aplas

Aplas is a web-based tool for modelling your software landscape and visualizing it in 3D.

Free and paid.

Best for enterprises who want to catalog and visualize their complex landscapes for presenting to stakeholders.

It includes features such as:

Aplas screenshot!

🏁 To wrap up

There are many software architecture modelling tools to choose from, and it’s important to consider which is best suited for your organization.

Some key things to consider:

Stay chill 🧊

Victor

Get in touch

Fill out this form and our team will respond as soon as we can, alternatively email us at mail@icepanel.io