Kumu vs MindMeister (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, MindMeister grades higher than Kumu: 2.2 against 2.0 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 9, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
MindMeister grades higher on platforms. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan, features and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Kumu
Relationship maps for systems, stakeholders and networks
MindMeister
Browser-based mind mapping with real-time collaboration
Which one is for you
Pick Kumu if
- Fits if you map stakeholders or systems and are happy to share the map publicly
- Works for people who start from a spreadsheet of relationships
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if your work is private, because each private project is its own monthly charge
- Watch out: free public projects are visible to everyone and indexed by search engines
- Watch out: all kumu.io customer data lives in one shared database, and sensitive work is pointed to Enterprise
- Watch out: archived private projects cost $20 to unarchive on a Pro workspace
- Skip it if you want a desktop or phone app, as none is listed
Pick MindMeister if
- Fits if your team brainstorms together and wants everyone on the same map at once
- Works for MeisterTask users who want to turn map topics into tasks
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you're staying free, since 3 mind maps is the limit and you can't export or print them
- Not for you if you want a desktop app, because outside the phone apps it runs in a browser
- Skip it if you like paying month by month, as billing is in 6-month or 12-month cycles only
- Pricey if you need Word or PowerPoint exports or Google Workspace, which wait for Pro at €10.50 a month
- Watch out: prices vary by region, and SAML SSO needs Business plus a request to sales
How we grade them
| 2.0GPAKumuFair | 2.2GPAMindMeisterFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CPrivate projects are $9 a month each on Basic, and Pro is $10 a workspace plus $20 a month per private project. That sits in the ordinary range for one project and climbs fast with more. | CPersonal is €6.50 a user a month billed yearly, or €7.50 on 6-month billing, which is the middle of this category. There's no monthly option at all, and Word and PowerPoint exports, branding and Google Workspace wait for Pro at €10.50. |
| Free plan and trial | CRegistration and unlimited public projects are free, but public means anyone can see them. A two-week trial of private projects is offered. | CFree forever, with unlimited collaborators, templates, presentations and the phone apps. But it's 3 mind maps, and no file exports, printing, attachments or version history, so whatever you make stays inside MindMeister. |
| Features | CIt does one job fully: network maps with filters, clustering and spreadsheet import. That is a narrower job than a whiteboard. | CIt does mind maps fully, and that's a smaller job than this category's: drag-and-drop topics with notes, links and images, mind map, org chart and list layouts, live co-editing with comments, presentation and outline modes, and AI map-building that's still in beta. No freeform canvas, no stickies, no drawing. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. You import data and set up decorations before a map reads well. | C4.4 from 1,269 App Store ratings, in the middle of the range. Nothing to install on a computer, and focus mode hides the menus when you want to think, but a blank map is still yours to build and arrange. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWeb only, with no apps and no integrations listed. | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with MeisterTask, Microsoft Teams, Google Workspace and a Claude connector. There's no desktop app at all, so on a computer it's a browser tab, and Teams needs Personal while Google Workspace needs Pro. |
| Best for | mapping stakeholder and systems networks | mind mapping together in a browser |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Kumu and MindMeister. How we grade
Price against what you get
Kumu starts at $9 a month and scores 2.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. MindMeister starts at about $7.26 a month for each person and scores 2.3.
MindMeister scores higher and starts $1.74 a month lower. Of the other whiteboard and mind map tools on the chart, 28 score higher than Kumu for less, and 13 score higher than MindMeister for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Kumu also covers diagrams.
- MindMeister also covers templates and presentations.
At a glance
| Kumu | MindMeister | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $9 per month per private project | €6.50 per user / month, billed yearly |
| Free plan | Free registration and unlimited public projects, with unlimited collaborators, maps and views. | Up to 3 mind maps with unlimited collaborators, templates, presentations, outline and focus modes and the mobile apps. No file exports, printing, attachments or version history. |
| Free trial | Two-week free trial of private projects | None listed |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Kumu | MeisterLabs GmbH |
| Price read from | kumu.io | mindmeister.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Oct 9, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Kumu
- Private projects are billed per project, so the monthly cost rises with each one: $9 on Basic, $20 on Pro.
- All kumu.io customer data lives in one shared database; the vendor points sensitive work to Kumu Enterprise.
- The Free workspace's public projects are visible to everyone and indexed by search engines.
- Archived private projects cost $20 to unarchive on a Pro workspace.
MindMeister
- The Free plan stops at 3 mind maps and has no file exports, printing, attachments or version history.
- Plans are billed in 6-month or 12-month cycles with no monthly option, and prices vary by region; the figures here are the vendor's EUR reference prices.
- Word and PowerPoint exports, custom branding and Google Workspace need Pro; SAML SSO needs Business and a request to the sales team.
- No desktop apps are listed: outside the iOS and Android apps, MindMeister runs in a browser.
Key features
Kumu
- Relationship maps
- Data about people, organizations or concepts is drawn as a network, with decorations, filters and clustering applied on top.
- Spreadsheet import
- Maps can be built from imported spreadsheets rather than drawn by hand, which suits larger datasets.
- Public and private projects
- Projects can be public and visible to everyone, or private with access given to named people. Maps can be embedded on other sites.
- Workspaces
- Projects are grouped into workspaces, each with its own name and billing profile. Pro workspaces add view-only roles and branding.
- Use cases
- The vendor's examples include stakeholder maps, systems maps and causal loop diagrams, and social network maps.
MindMeister
- Mind map editor
- Topics are arranged by drag and drop and can carry links, notes, emojis and images. Layouts include mind maps, org charts and lists, with themes and color schemes.
- Real-time collaboration
- Collaborators invited by link edit the same map at once, comment on topics and @mention each other. Every plan, including Free, allows unlimited collaborators.
- Presentation mode
- A map can be shown as a presentation directly from the editor, so a team can be walked through the ideas without building separate slides.
- Outline and focus modes
- Outline mode switches a map to structured bullet points, and focus mode hides menus, toolbars and icons in the editor.
- AI map creation (beta)
- A prompt or an uploaded file such as a PDF, presentation, spreadsheet or image produces a map, which AI can then expand or tidy. It is listed as beta on every plan.
- Exports and integrations
- Topics convert into MeisterTask tasks on any plan. Image and PDF exports and Microsoft Teams start at Personal; Word and PowerPoint exports and Google Workspace at Pro.
Plans
Kumu
Basic workspace$0
Unlimited public projects; private projects cost $9 per month each; daily backups.
Pro workspace$10
per workspace / month, plus $20 per month per private project
View-only access control, custom branding, activity feeds, real-time comments, hourly backups, private project archiving.
EnterpriseCustom
Self-hosted or cloud-hosted private instance with SAML single sign-on and a 99.95% uptime SLA. Sold through sales.
MindMeister
Free€0
Up to 3 mind maps, unlimited collaborators, templates, presentations, outline and focus modes, the MeisterTask integration and AI map creation in beta.
Personal€6.50
per user / month, billed yearly (€7.50 on 6-month billing)
Unlimited mind maps, PNG, JPG and PDF exports, printing, 2 attachments per map, 7-day version history and the Microsoft Teams integration.
Pro€10.50
per user / month, billed yearly (€12.50 on 6-month billing)
Unlimited attachments, all-time version history, multiple admins, Word and PowerPoint exports, custom branding and the Google Workspace integration.
Business€15.50
per user / month, billed yearly (€19 on 6-month billing)
Group sharing, compliance exports and backups, IP restriction, SAML SSO on request, priority email and phone support and a customer success manager.
Ways to pay less
Kumu
- Education
Private projects for students
Students doing classroom work or doctoral research can email from a .edu address to get 3 private projects at no charge.
MindMeister
- Annual discount
13 to 18% lower on 12-month billing
MindMeister's pricing file says the 12-month billing cycle costs approximately 13 to 18% less than the 6-month cycle, for example €6.50 against €7.50 per user a month on Personal.
- Education
50% off for students and educators
Students, educators and educational institutions get a 50% discount, applied by contacting the support team.
- Nonprofit
50% off for nonprofits
The same 50% discount is listed for non-profit organizations, also arranged through the support team.
- By country
Lower price shown to buyers in India
MindMeister says it uses geo-based pricing. On 9 October 2026 its pricing page showed Personal to a reader in India at $3.50 per user a month on yearly billing, against a reference price of €6.50 for most of Europe.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Kumu or MindMeister?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Kumu starts at $9 per month per private project, and MindMeister starts at €6.50 per user / month, billed yearly. One is priced for each person and the other is not, so which costs less depends on how many of you use it.
Which has a free plan, Kumu or MindMeister?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Kumu and MindMeister have a free plan.
Which platforms do Kumu and MindMeister run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only MindMeister lists iOS and Android apps. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.