Eraser vs IcePanel (2026): which should you pick?

Pick Eraser if

• Fits if you're an engineer who'd rather type a diagram than drag boxes around
• Works for teams whose diagrams have to follow the code, since it reads a connected Git repo

Look elsewhere if

• Pricey if you just want a team whiteboard, at $45 a member a month billed annually or $60 monthly
• Tight if you're staying free, with 3 files, 3 AI credits, 7 days of history, no private files and no GitHub integration
• Watch out: AI past your monthly credits is $60 per 100, and API calls are billed on top of the plan
• Skip it if you need SAML SSO for a small team, as it's on Business Plus, $42 a member a month and sold from 10 seats
• Not for you if you want a desktop or phone app, as Eraser only runs in a browser

Pick IcePanel if

• Fits if your engineers document architecture in the C4 style
• Works for teams where product and engineering read the same diagrams

Look elsewhere if

• Pricey if you have several editors: $40 each a month, and $80 each on Scale
• Tight if you stay free: 1 editor and 100 model objects
• Skip it if you want a freeform whiteboard
• Watch out: the monthly-billing price couldn't be read, and Scale is listed for 20 or more editors

Eraser

• The Free plan stops at 3 files and 3 AI credits, keeps 7 days of version history and has no private files or GitHub integration.
• AI use beyond a plan's monthly credits costs $60 per 100 credits, and only on paid plans with usage-based pricing switched on.
• API calls are billed by usage on top of a paid plan: $80 per 100 prompt-to-diagram calls and $20 per 100 code-to-diagram calls.
• The vendor's site lists no desktop or mobile app; Eraser runs in a browser, and SAML SSO needs Business Plus, sold from 10 seats.

IcePanel

• The free plan stops at 100 model objects and 1 editor.
• Pricing is per editor; the pricing page shows the annual-billing figure, and the monthly-billing price could not be read.
• Scale is listed for 20 or more editors and Enterprise for 50 or more.
• It is an architecture-modeling tool, not a freeform whiteboard.

Eraser

AI diagram generation

A prompt, an image or a file such as Terraform or a database schema is turned into an editable diagram, which can then be refined through AI chat or by hand in the visual editor.

Diagram-as-code

Architecture, sequence, flowchart, ERD and BPMN diagrams each have a text syntax, so a diagram can be read, compared and edited as code. It is included on every plan.

Canvas with Markdown notes

A file holds one infinite canvas and a note editor with Markdown support. Figures from the canvas can be embedded in the document, and files export to PDF, PNG, SVG or Markdown.

Codebase diagrams and Eraserbot

Diagrams can be generated from a connected Git repository. Eraserbot watches chosen files and comments on pull requests with updated diagrams when they change.

REST API and MCP server

The API renders a diagram from a prompt or from Eraser's diagram code. The MCP server lets Claude, Cursor or ChatGPT create, search, update and export diagrams.

Real-time collaboration and guests

Members edit together in real time and leave comments and mentions. Guests are free on every plan and can edit or comment only on files they are invited to.

IcePanel

Shared architecture model

Systems, domains and connections are modeled once and reused across diagrams, so a change in the model shows up everywhere.

C4 model diagrams

The product is built around the C4 model for zooming from system context down to components.

Flows

Step-by-step flows between objects show how requests move through a system; the free plan allows 1 flow per diagram.

Draft future designs

Growth and above can draft future-state designs next to the current model, and record decision records.

API and webhooks

Growth has basic API usage; Scale adds advanced API usage and webhooks for syncing the model with other systems.

Sharing and access

Viewers are unlimited on every plan, and Growth adds protected share links and one SSO domain.

Eraser

• Free$0

  3 files, 3 AI credits and 7-day version history, with unlimited guests, diagram-as-code and Markdown notes.

• Business$45

  per member / month, billed annually ($60 billed monthly)

  Unlimited files, 100 AI credits a month, unlimited version history, private files, 100 custom icons, 1 Git repo and 1 data source.

• Business Plus$42

  per member / month, billed annually, minimum 10 seats

  Everything in Business, plus 250 AI credits a month, 3 Git repos and 3 data sources, SAML SSO and unlimited custom icons. Sold from 10 seats.

• EnterpriseCustom

  Unlimited AI credits, Git repos and data sources, custom hosting, SCIM, SIEM logging, a customer success manager and payment by ACH or wire.

IcePanel

• Free$0

  1 editor, unlimited viewers and diagrams, up to 100 model objects, 2 tag groups and 1 flow per diagram.

• Growth$40

  per editor / month, billed annually

  Unlimited objects, overlays and flows, domains, draft future designs, basic API, decision records and 1 SSO domain.

• Scale$80

  per editor / month, billed annually

  For 20 or more editors: audit logs, advanced API, webhooks, priority support and unlimited SSO domains.

• EnterpriseCustom

  For 50 or more editors: single-tenant environment, custom data residency, customer encryption keys and a custom domain.

Eraser

• Annual discount

  25% less with annual billing

  Business is $45 per member a month billed annually against $60 billed monthly, 25% cheaper. Business Plus is sold on annual billing only.

• Education

  Education discount on request

  Eraser's docs say discounts are available to education users, who request one by filling out a form. The size of the discount is not published.

• Nonprofit

  Nonprofit discount on request

  Non-profit users can request a discount through the same form linked from the pricing page FAQ and the docs. The size of the discount is not published.

IcePanel

No public discounts listed.