# Pele compared

> Honest comparisons of Pele with Mermaid.js, D2 and Excalidraw: speed, size, syntax, theming, phones, safety, and when each is the better pick.

Source: https://pele.wiki/pages/compare.html · Last updated 2026-10-17

Pick Pele when you already write Mermaid and want it drawn fast, themed by CSS and readable on phones. Pick something else when you need a different language, hand-placed shapes or Mermaid's exact look. The pages below go through each honestly.



## At a glance

| Question | Pele | Mermaid.js | D2 | Excalidraw |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| You write | Mermaid text | Mermaid text | D2 text | Nothing: you draw |
| Runs | In JS, sync, browser or Node | In the browser, async | Go program or WebAssembly | In the browser, as an editor |
| Look | Clean, CSS-themed | Mermaid themes | Several themes, sketch mode | Hand-drawn |
| Best at | Fast, live, themed diagrams | Widest Mermaid support and plugins | Big architecture diagrams, fine layout control | Whiteboarding |