What are the best mind mapping tools?

Question

44

Options
Considered

385

User
Recs.

Apr 7, 2021

Last
Updated

Here’s the Deal

The Best 2 of 37 OptionsWhy?

Best mind mapping tools	Price	Platforms	Collaborative
93 Mindjet MindManager	$ 204.01 after 30 days	-	-
92 XMind	$0-129	-	-
-- Freeplane	Free	Windows, Linux, Mac	-
68 MindMeister	$6 - $15 / mo	-	-
-- SimpleMind	Paid	Windows, Mac, Android, iOS	-

See Full List

XMind

Top Pro

Clean, easy to use UI

XMind's interface is uncluttered and easy to overview. It allows for quick, intuitive navigation and use. For example, Enter adds more items to a node, Tab adds a child node, all commonly used shortcuts works as expected, etc. See More

Top Con

Expensive

VigilantAeternitas's Experience

形式很僵硬，不能自由组合 See More

Top Pro

Free and open source

XMind, except for Plus and Pro features, is open source with code available on GitHub. See More

Top Con

No offline capability

If the Internet goes down, you cannot use this XMind. This is painful on the iOS phone where data link must be online before you can use it. See More

Yanis's Experience

The reference in term of mind mapping See More

Top Pro

Built-in Gantt view

XMind has a build-in Gantt chart view and with the pro version, XMind allows synchronizing it. See More

Top Con

Newer versions become heavyweight and bloated

Even though there are more features, starting with version 8 application is very unstable. A lot of users still prefer version 7.5 or 6.5. See More

egberts's Experience

I've used it for many mapping. It's ability to forward the diagram via iOS Send To menu option is very good (PDF, email, DropBox, local files, local Photo). Only downside is if data-link is offline, XMind app will not start... at all. Nonetheless, not disappointed at all. See More

Top Pro

A wide variety of templates available

XMind has preset templates available that allow getting started quickly. There are templates for project planning, status reports, dashboards, organizational charts, swot analysis, timelines, decision trees, weekly plans, among others. See More

Top Con

Used to offer their NOT-free products

Top Pro

Extremely flexible

XMind is capable of displaying information in a multitude of ways (classic mindmaps, charts, timelines, decision trees, etc), it can add labels, clip-art, notes, files, audio recordings, it can then take the project and export it in a variety of ways including an synced gantt chart. See More

Top Con

FreeMind files sometimes don't work

XMind claims it can read FreeMind files, but certain .mm file saves from Freeplane or MindMup generate an error on open. See More

Top Pro

Can copy entire hierarchy to/from Word with a simple copy/paste action

XMind allows quickly copying over structure of the mindmap as a tab-indented list starting at the node selected. It can also take a tab-indented list and create a mindmap from it. See More

Top Pro

Task management (pro)

Top Pro

Very good performance

The app is incredible complete, flexible, and fast. See More

Top Pro

Cross-platform

Works on Windows, OS X and Linux. See More

Top Pro

Local Network Sharing

Top Pro

XMind Plus & Pro adds more export options

XMind Plus & Pro can export to Word, PowerPoint, PDF, SVG & MindManager. See More

Top Pro

Audio recording (pro)

See All

35 Other Options Considered

MindMeister

Top Pro

Web and mobile versions available

In addition to web software, MindMeister is available on iOS and Android mobile platforms as well. See More

Top Con

No good offline mode

You can only work completely offline when using an iOS or Android device. For your browser there's only a clumsy 'offline mode' available. If you didn't hit the switch before you have the need for working offline (for instance: in a meeting, at a customer's location, in a plane, etc.) than your out of luck... no tool for note taking. Especially with all those HTML5-capable browsers and the Chrome App store (including Desktop apps), this limits the usage of this commercial product. See More

Top Pro

Notes can be shared and collaborated on in real-time

MindMeister allows sharing maps with an unlimited number of collaborators so it's possible to take notes and brainstorm together. Mind maps can be shared by inviting people either directly via email or by sending them a link to the map. Even people without a MindMeister account can access the maps and even edit them. See More

Top Con

Expensive compared to the competition

A basic monthly subscription ($92 USD) gives you no more than XMind FREE except PDF exporting. XMind paid with PDF export is $79. $20 less for lifetime use of an app with more features as of writing. See More

Top Pro

Comments and votes

Users can create polls and have collaborators vote individual topics up or down, or comment on them. See More

Top Con

Free option limited to 3 mind maps

A free XMind app/online account or MindMup account both provide unlimited mind maps. See More

Top Pro

Various layouts

User can switch between classical mind map layout, a layout where all topics are aligned on the left or the right, and org chart layout. See More

Top Con

MindMeister has very poor Evernote integration

Evernote is the number one 'store-everything-archive' when it comes to unstructured data or information. MindMeister markets there Evernote integration as a very cool feature. But this integration is very basic and buggy: only the last 50 (?) notes from Evernote's default notebook are shown in the list, and it takes about 30 seconds to one full minute to generate that list. After that it takes about the same amount of time to add a copy of the selected note as an attachment to a topic. MindMeister support is well aware of this poor implementation, but doesn't put any effort in fixing it. See More

Top Pro

Clear overview without losing any details

The mind mapping format provides with a clear overview of connections, hierarchies and relationships of notes. At the same time, it's possible to add more detailed notes, links, pictures and even whole files to the keywords, so that no important information gets lost. See More

Top Con

Very basic

Top Pro

One node can have marks, emoticons and comments

Top Con

The interface has only very basic features

For example, it lacks the possibility to define a long text under the node title showing it in a permanent way. The software is 1000 less powerful than Microsoft Visio. Meanwhile it should just be more specific. See More

Top Pro

Adding a Table or Matrix

Xmind is one of the few mind maps that allows you to add a table or matrix to your mind map. Very useful when you have content that works better in a table. See More

See All

Freemind

Top Con

Unintuitive interface

The interface and shortcuts are unintuitive and difficult to customize. See More

Top Pro

Free and open source

EmbiggenedShapash's Experience

Looked at dozens of apps. FreeMind was most fluid and easy to use. I can storyboard an entire 80 page presentation and reorganize on the fly without having to do anything but drag & drop. Keyboard shortcuts are a limiting factor. See More

Top Con

Boring visual appearance

Top Pro

Intuitive UI with drag and drop support

For the most part, navigating the editor is pretty intuitive - moving around is done by clicking and dragging the background, clicking on nodes will expand/collapse them, dragging and dropping in files will add them, etc. It also offers shortcuts for power users. For example, ctrl + up/down will rearrange ideas up/down, alt +up/down will zoom in/out, etc. See More

Top Pro

Lots of export options, including html with folding

Freemind offers many choices when exporting. It allows exporting the project as Java Applet, Flash file, Open Office Writer document, picture (png, jpg), PDF, SVG, multiple variants of (x)html, among other options. See More

Top Pro

Can copy entire hierarchy to/from Word with a simple copy/paste action

Freemind allows quickly copying over structure of the mindmap as a bulleted, tab-indented list starting at the node selected. It can also take a bulleted, tab-indented list and create a mindmap from it. See More

Top Pro

Fullscreen mode available with a patch

A user-contributed patch is available that adds fullscreen mode to FreeMind. See More

Top Pro

Good documentation

Top Pro

Cross-platform desktop and mobile

Works on Windows, OS X, Linux, iOS and Android. See More

Top Pro

Revision control

Top Pro

Supports media files, recognizes URLs and commands

Freemind accepts drag-and-drop for any kind of file, URL or command as part of the mindmap. Files it recognizes, like images, will be displayed. Other files will open in a separate, appropriate application. URLs, links to folders, and executable commands pasted in will be recognized and turned in to clickable links. See More

Top Pro

Supports node and map encryption

Top Pro

Multi-user support

See All

MindMup

Top Pro

Free and open source

MindMup is free with source code available on GitHub. See More

Top Con

Node capacity is limited

MindMup is good for mapping out thoughts that could be summarized in bullet points, but longer notes aren't as practical for this service. See More

NeighborlyBirrahgnooloo's Experience

I used it for my post graduate study and being a father-work-student, having these simple-yet-awesome Mind Mup let me do wonder. I solely depend on my MindMup here to store the notes and glanced it through for revision. Highly recommended. See More

Top Pro

Browser-based

MindMup requires no installation. It only requires navigating to the website to use. See More

Top Pro

Easy sharing & presenting

After taking notes, it only takes seconds to share and/or prepare them for presentations. See More

Top Pro

Frictionless interface

MindMup allows focusing on thoughts and productively capture them without getting in the way. See More

Top Pro

Compatible with Google Drive and GitHub

Top Pro

Compatible with Google Drive and Github

Top Pro

Just works

See All

The Brain

Top Pro

Excels at capturing the complex relationships between thoughts

Top Con

High learning curve

There is a little bit of a learning curve with all software, and this is no exception. See More

Ken Blackman's Experience

TheBrain is unique in how it allows items to be linked in complex ways. An item can have multiple parents, multiple children, and multiple side-connections to related items. It's closer to how I actually think than a typical mindmap or outline, both of which inevitably impose a hierarchical structure. In one area I've entered hundreds of talking points and teaching concepts for my workshops. It could be a hopeless sea of info, but in practice it feels very well organized because I was able to capture the rich web of interconnections, so navigating through them feels very natural. As another example, I can show how a single task is related to multiple projects, people, and other tasks. See More

Specs

Platforms:Windows, Mac, Android

Top Pro

Cloud syncing

With an account for syncing on their servers, you can run The Brain on multiple computers. See More

Top Con

Expensive

There is either a $15 a month subscription fee or a license that ranges from $219 to $299. There is a 30 day free trial for those who would like to test it before subscribing or purchasing, but overall to use this app it can be pricey. See More

See All

Coggle

Top Pro

Allows easy color-coding of paths

Top Con

Tree relations only; no non-parent links

Coggle's model allows a node to have multiple children, but only one parent, and no other connections of any sort. See More

Top Pro

Collaborative

Coggle allows inviting friends and colleagues to work collaboratively on notes and diagrams in real-time. See More

Top Con

Core features hidden behind paid model

Usually freemium is reasonable, but these so-called "advanced" features should really be standard, and truly advanced/business features should be reserved for the paid version. See More

Top Pro

Pretty

No effort to create beautiful diagrams. See More

Top Con

Constant, endless nagging reminders of things you cannot do with the free version

If one would be reminded every now and then about a feature that is available for paying customers that would be okay, but by having the tools/features available, and every time it is used even accidentally, the warning will pop up. Disable those advanced features and remind occasionally - the constant annoyances of what I couldn't do with Coggle, was precisely why I stopped using Coggle. See More

Top Pro

Collaborative with advanced sharing options

Coggle allows inviting friends and colleagues to work collaboratively on notes and diagrams in real-time. See More

Top Con

Unconventional note taking style

Coggle is a mind mapping application, not a traditional text based note storage platform. See More

Top Pro

Pretty diagrams

No effort to create beautiful diagrams. See More

Top Pro

Lots of export options

Exports to PDF, image, plaintext and .mm files. See More

Top Pro

Free

Top Pro

Supports Markdown (their own variant)

Markdown is a plain text formatting syntax designed so that it can optionally be converted to HTML using a tool by the same name. See More

Top Pro

Optional Chrome store App

Top Pro

Supports LaTeX

LaTeX is a document preparation system and document markup language. It is the de facto standard for the communication and publication of scientific documents. See More

Top Pro

Versioning support

Enter history mode to view all changes to a diagram over time, and make a copy from that point. See More

See All

CmapTools

Top Pro

Web version

Web-based, online version of CmapTools available. It is also possible to install your own CmapServer. See More

PoisedHoragalles's Experience

I like that CMAPTools: Is the same on Windows, linux, iPad, Mac, and cloud Allows a relationship to have multiple beginning and end points. Allows text in a relationship, not just a line. Makes it easy to reorganize your ideas. Can create a text outline following all links. Did you ever create an outline, but have trouble deciding whether to put section x under w or under y? Don't worry, you can create x once and let it be under both w and y. Can automatically redraw your diagram to make it look nicer and can export to JPG and PDF formats. Can create a text file containing a list of all propositions (Concept_X - relationship - Concept_Y ) See More

Specs

Platforms:Windows, Linux, Mac

Top Pro

iPad app

An iPad app is available. See More

RickZeeland's Experience

CmapTools is free for commercial use and allows users to construct, navigate, share, and criticize knowledge models represented as Concept Maps. The toolkit is platform independent and network enabled. See More

See All

Brainio

Top Pro

Cloud based

Top Con

No mobile app

ChattySaubarag's Experience

These are the mind maps Tony Buzan talked about in theory but this is a really practical way to apply them. See More

Specs

Platforms:MacOS, Windows, Web, Linux

Top Pro

Split view

I love that. See More

InquisitiveMandanu's Experience

Great design and features. See More

Top Pro

Markdown support

SuccinctVucubCaquix's Experience

best mind map and note taking app ever. See More

Top Pro

Desktop app

MeticulousHozanek's Experience

Very clean desing and easy to use. See More

MellowSakpata's Experience

Great product. I use it for learning. Very simple. See More

ChattyDaikokuten's Experience

I've been looking for a good knowledge managing tool for some time now and this seems to strike a very good balance between simplicity of use and the features provided. See More

LovelyChronos's Experience

I think Markdown to Mindmap is a really great idea and a pretty way to keep long lists visual. See More

PowerfulVenus's Experience

Amazing app! See More

FearlessPoena's Experience

The project is awesome, but can I just notice how elegant and simple is the website design and UX, absolutely love it. See More

ProudCorymbus's Experience

Wow, this looks really professional! I love the design, I love how clean the UI is, I love how you can even edit the markdown using the mind map. Everything is really nicely made and intuitive. As a first time user, I wasn't sure what the 3 options on the top right slider did until I clicked them. I would add tool tips on the buttons in the slider saying something along the lines of "markdown", "split view", and "mindmap." If possible, I would add the ability to zoom out on the mind map using CTRL and the scroll wheel. Even the verification email was decorated nicely, that surprised me! I'm really curious what stack you're using for the project! I would love to hear more about it See More

StrongPorewit's Experience

Impressive! See More

IntellectualTangotango's Experience

Awesome UI and UX. Very simple and intuitive, with mark down support. Combining notes and mind maps together. It is very easy to organise your thoughts. See More

See All

I Recommend...

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Mindjet MindManager

Top Con

Mac version has severely limited functionality

Top Pro

Business oriented

Business oriented, mind maps look professional. See More

Top Con

Lacks elegant ability to be able to connect ideas in the reverse order or different direction

This isn't uncommon, but there are mind mapping software that will let you connect a number of ideas that branched off from one idea, back to one idea again. Usually the branching analogy of the details getting more as you go further away from the main branch works, but occasionally it is nice to map multiple ideas back to a single idea or loop back to a previous idea. This can be done with connections, but if you want to see something that gives true freedom, look at the examples of the application Coggle. See More

Top Pro

MS Outlook strong integration

Top Con

Very expensive compared to all other alternatives

Not really viable for personal mind mapping, as the high cost clearly targets the business market. See More

Top Pro

Integrates with multiple web services

Top Con

No free/personal version

It is has so many great features, but this comes with the pricetag of the only version of this software. A lighter version, with many advanced business features removed would be ideal for a free/freemium version See More

Top Pro

Real-time Gantt charts

Top Con

Odd UI interaction conventions

Some conventions used to interact with the software are either questionable or simply going against what's commonly accepted. For example, right-click + drag will move around, holding down the right-click will open up the context-menu and left-click in an open space will start a new unconnected node. What this results in is constant accidental opening of context-menu then accidental creation of a new node trying to get out of the context-menu. See More

Top Pro

MS Projects and Sharepoint integration

Top Pro

Excellent team collaboration support

Top Pro

Cross-platform desktop and mobile, and web versions available

Works on Windows, OS X, iOS, Android and Web. See More

See All

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The Best 2 of 37 OptionsWhy?

My Recommendation for Mindjet MindManager

My Recommendation for Mindjet MindManager

Mac version has severely limited functionality

Business oriented

Lacks elegant ability to be able to connect ideas in the reverse order or different direction

MS Outlook strong integration

Very expensive compared to all other alternatives

Integrates with multiple web services

No free/personal version

Real-time Gantt charts

Odd UI interaction conventions

MS Projects and Sharepoint integration

Excellent team collaboration support

Cross-platform desktop and mobile, and web versions available

My Recommendation for XMind

My Recommendation for XMind

Clean, easy to use UI

Expensive

Free and open source

No offline capability

Built-in Gantt view

Newer versions become heavyweight and bloated

A wide variety of templates available

Used to offer their NOT-free products

Extremely flexible

FreeMind files sometimes don't work

Can copy entire hierarchy to/from Word with a simple copy/paste action

Task management (pro)

Very good performance

Cross-platform

Local Network Sharing

XMind Plus & Pro adds more export options

Audio recording (pro)

35 Other Options Considered

My Recommendation for Freeplane

My Recommendation for Freeplane

Free and open-source (FOSS)

Not as beautiful as XMind

Easy to use

Does not have a mobile counterpart

Supports most used *.mm file format

Possesses all Freemind pros and more

Developed by veteran FreeMind devs

My Recommendation for MindMeister

My Recommendation for MindMeister

Web and mobile versions available

No good offline mode

Notes can be shared and collaborated on in real-time

Expensive compared to the competition

Comments and votes

Free option limited to 3 mind maps

Various layouts

MindMeister has very poor Evernote integration

Clear overview without losing any details

Very basic

One node can have marks, emoticons and comments

The interface has only very basic features

Adding a Table or Matrix

My Recommendation for SimpleMind

My Recommendation for SimpleMind

Basic but very user friendly

Version for Linux not available

Supports Google Drive for storage

Proficient editing tools

Windows, iOS, Android, and Mac versions

Ability to create diagram with multiple topic nodes

My Recommendation for Freemind

My Recommendation for Freemind

Unintuitive interface

Free and open source

Boring visual appearance

Intuitive UI with drag and drop support

Lots of export options, including html with folding

Can copy entire hierarchy to/from Word with a simple copy/paste action

Fullscreen mode available with a patch

Good documentation

Cross-platform desktop and mobile

Revision control

Supports media files, recognizes URLs and commands