We compared Lucidchart and Lucidspark based on our users’ reviews in four categories. After reading all of the collected data, you can find our conclusion below.
Comparison Results: According to the reviews, Lucidspark is a superior solution because it offers more versatility and ease of use.
"The ability for Lucidchart to create database schemas or modify existing data structures is strong. That's what I initially introduced it for in our organization. The script that Lucidchart provides works with other systems like Oracle, SQL Server, and Postgres that I can copy-paste, and get a quick dump of metadata and import into has saved me a ton of steps that I didn't have to manually create these tables. I had a lot of things where I still had to put in the linkages between tables, but I didn't have to type in every field name, every data type, and everything else that came in. That saved me tons of time."
"I like the panel on the left of the screen that has all of the shapes that are available to use in the charts. It's easy to use because you can just drag and drop."
"It is important that Lucidchart accommodates both Mac and PC users because if you support Mac, that means you also support the mobile applications on the iPad... Some of the other employees have access to an iPad, but not all of them do. When we're trying to talk through a process with them on-the-fly, or at the point of occurrence, it's so much nicer if we can both have it up on the iPad. That's why I would say the Mac support is essential."
"The swimlanes feature is one that I use a lot. I have used swimlane diagrams to create business process flows and I think that it does the job pretty well."
"Lucidchart enables me to put down on paper what I was visualizing in my head. It makes it more shareable than only using words."
"The interface is very user-friendly and it is not a hassle to use the site at all. They did a really good job in that regard."
"The sticky notes are among the most valuable features. Also, the fact that it has templates so that I don't have to do things myself, starting from scratch, is very helpful. In addition, it's really easy to use. You can add stuff by clicking, without having to go to the options. You just click on something and the options you can use appear."
"The interface is easy for a layperson to use and adapt to."
"The solution’s virtual whiteboard for brainstorming is great. It feels like I have an endless board where I can zoom out and draw everybody to what I'm looking at. It's invaluable, especially right now when most people work remotely."
"It definitely helps when prioritizing things. For a business problem, you can create many different documents and easily compare them, then you can decide which one that you want to go forward with."
"I like the fact that Lucidspark has got all these templates that we can use."
"The fact that you can have multiple users working at the same time is a really big plus. The fact that we can all collaborate in real-time is a very useful aspect."
"I am a visual person, which is why I like Lucidspark. Its user interface and intuitiveness are pretty good. It is pretty intuitive to understand how we are moving forward and drawing things on the whiteboard. It's very simple, not complicated. The things that I use are mainly the post-it notes and containers, where I can grab a group of post-it notes, then put them in a container and move them around."
"I found the whiteboard very customizable. You can create different stages of a flow chart, for example. You can play around with a lot of variables."
"I find it a whole lot easier for making a flowchart process. Previously, I would use PowerPoint and then have to share the file. It's a lot nicer for collaboration."
"The whiteboard has been very helpful. It's a nice tool. At least for me, as a teacher, that's been very helpful and it's an easy tool. There are specific tools within the whiteboard for drawing. It makes things easier, so I like that."
"It would be helpful if there were different options available for organizing the folders, such as having a high-level display with pictures."
"As far as I know, LucidChart can’t be automated with Visual Basic .Net like Visio."
"I wish there were a lot more automations. For instance, if I'm using a project management software to list out all my WBS [work breakdown structure] I wish Lucidchart had the functionality where it would take all the numbering and generate a tree diagram. Something like that would help so much, but right now it's still a manual task..."
"When I download a flowchart as a PDF file, it breaks it up. I would like to see the continuous display of flow charts, even if they are larger than one page."
"I would like an on-premises version of the software that I can just download and use. I think that it's easier that way."
"When you log in the first time, they ask you a lot of questions, such as what are you going to use it for. Half of the things weren't applicable to me. I couldn't see the skip button, so I picked random things because none of the given options was applicable to me. It is a tech startup, and I am in a consultant role. I use it for a variety of things, but the questions were tailored for HR professionals who are creating org structures or IT professionals who are doing data flow diagrams. What if I do both of them depending on the project I'm working on? I just felt that I am wasting time with those questions and just wanted them to stop asking me these questions and get into charting."
"I would like to have more text boxes to write more comments so I can write a small note below a picture. I would like some flexibility."
"The communication with sales has been pretty poor. They have been spotty in terms of response. So far, that has been our problem with it. We were in contact with one of their representatives, but he just kind of disappeared one day and we couldn't find him anymore. He has not been responsive to email."
"I would like to have a dark mode, but the option is not available."
"Some parts where the arrows flow tend to flow in a strange direction where you want to drag it to, and it requires a lot of adjusting here and there. It's just the flow of the arrow sometimes it gets a little tricky, and then when you move something else, it gets wonky, and then you have to go back and fix it up. That's the only thing that needs improvement."
"When two people are editing, there should be a way to lock the other person's changes to avoid having a person overwrite someone else's changes. When multiple users access the same document, there should be some way of locking others out, possibly by changing user permissions."
"The challenge that I always face with a tool like this is how to convince other people to start trying it out. I can't say if Lucidspark does a better job than other such tools."
"The tracing is inaccurate and we have to do the drawing ourselves."
"There's a little bit of latency with the collaboration bit. Overall it's not quite as fast as Google docs, however, it's really close."
"Sometimes, editing text can be confusing. Changing different fonts and subtitles and the shapes that you're trying to use can be confusing. There isn't that much that I would improve other than just nitpicky user differences."
"One of the things that I struggled with a little bit was navigating around the board. Because it's so big that when you want to find certain sections, it can be a little bit challenging to move the little box in the corner around to find where you are. If there could be more options to move around the board, that might make it easier. It can have a joystick version or something like that so that you could just manually move around, or there should be an option for a picture in the corner on which you click around to locate different items on the board."
Earn 20 points
Lucidchart is ranked 3rd in Visual Collaboration Platforms with 54 reviews while Lucidspark is ranked 4th in Visual Collaboration Platforms with 33 reviews. Lucidchart is rated 8.6, while Lucidspark is rated 8.6. The top reviewer of Lucidchart writes "Good brainstorming features, facilitates collaboration, and keeps us focused on our work". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Lucidspark writes "Facilitates a lot of the productivity of our working and brainstorming sessions". Lucidchart is most compared with Figma, Sparx Systems Enterprise Architect, Visual Paradigm, Visio and erwin Data Modeler by Quest, whereas Lucidspark is most compared with Figma, Miro, MURAL and Jamboard. See our Lucidchart vs. Lucidspark report.
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Hi @Krista Thompson - Yes, LucidSpark is a much more nimble and, in some ways, user-friendly tool than LucidChart. LucidSpark is designed to do a better job managing multiple users participating simultaneously and I've found its ease of use is really helpful when working with clients who likely don't have any previous experience.
I use LucidChart for detailed process maps and flow charts (just me, working alone). I used LucidSpark as a virtual whiteboard for dynamic brainstorming (working collaboratively).
I hope this helps!