MindMeister is an online mind mapping app that lets you visualize ideas, collaborate with your team, manage tasks, and share the outcome with the world.
This application has an easy-to-use mind map maker with a massive canvas where you can brainstorm, take notes, plan creative tasks, and more.
The mind map editor allows you to create, share, or even present the mind maps in the browser. In other words, you don’t need to download the app or do a manual app update.
The maps go to cloud storage, and you can access them from a PC. They also have a mobile version to help you take ideas anywhere you go.
When using MindMeister, you can enrich maps by adding links, images, videos, notes, or icons to your ideas. You can upload attachments from various platforms, such as Dropbox and Google Drive. The application also lets you import and export mind maps in various formats.
Having said that, MindMeister has some limitations. While you can brainstorm and plan project data, there’s no task management feature to execute the plan.
The free plan is too limited for creative teams; it only comes with three mind maps and doesn’t allow exporting or attaching images. Besides, MindMeister integrates with only a few tools.
So, if you or your team wants to use a mind mapping tool to implement project tasks, integrate with many apps, create mind maps, and export or manipulate them, MindMeister may not cut it.
You can use the following MindMeister alternatives instead.
Best MindMeister Alternatives
1. ClickUp
ClickUp is our first alternative to MindMeister. The app has Mind Maps that you can use to map out ideas, plan your projects, and organize existing tasks. The Mind Maps feature comes with two modes: the Task Mode and the Blank Mode.
The Task Mode helps you to see how all projects connect. On the other hand, Blank Mode lets you build a mind map from scratch, independent of existing task structures.
Each task has a space for comments, allowing teams to shoot quick task-oriented messages. You can assign a comment to team members if the comment requires action. After completing the task, the team member resolves the comment.
ClickUp features the Notepad, where you can write down ideas that may come to your mind anytime. Next, convert the thoughts into actionable tasks and share them with the team. This feature gives ClickUp an edge over MindMeister.
You can also create knowledge bases, Docs, or wikis and share them with others. One of the most important features in ClickUp’s Mind Maps is the Gantt view that allows you to manage workloads, plan your time, and see the tasks that depend on each other.
ClickUp’s free plan has a wide array of features and allows unlimited users. Premium versions start at $5 per user/month.
2. Microsoft Visio
This diagrammatic tool allows you to make mind maps, org charts, and floor plans. You can connect Visio to your data sources and see an overview of your company’s performance.
The app comes with ready-to-use brainstorming templates, so you don’t have to create some from scratch. The other interesting feature is that Microsoft Visio lets you convert your Excel spreadsheets into charts. Besides, you can customize colors, shapes, and connectors.
Unlike MindMeister, Microsoft Visio allows you to collaborate with your team on a mind map image using Microsoft Teams. You can also access stencils, symbols, and shapes. Additionally, you can view, edit, and share a process map from any device or browser, including an iPad or iPhone.
Visio has two subscription plans: Visio Plan One costs $5 per user/month, and Visio Plan 2 costs $15 per user/month. Do you use Microsoft 365? Visio comes with this subscription, as well.
If you prefer a one-time purchase to subscription plans, you can buy the Visio Standard plan for $309.99 or the Visio Professional plan for $579.99.
3. Xmind
This full-featured brainstorming and mind mapping application provides a complete toolset for creativity and thinking.
The platform’s intuitive features and non-linear mind map allow anyone to unleash creativity and build mind maps for anything.
Xmind has pre-set structures to let you spark and capture any ideas freely. It’s fast but simple.
Use the intuitive tools to organize your thoughts and add multimedia information to your map. You can also apply matching color themes to a mind map and personalize it.
Xmind adds clarity to complexity, making large projects or complex issues easy. How? It lets you combine multiple structures, making your map more balanced and cohesive. MindMeister doesn’t have this functionality.
I like the Outliner – a feature that lets you outline thoughts hierarchically and write down notes. This feature allows you to change a mind map to a linear look with a single click.
This MindMeister alternative is a learning companion with tools for memorizing, note taking, and reaching clarity. Graphic associations like stickers, colors, and shapes help unleash visual memory and stimulate the mind to memorize new details for longer.
Zen Mode is full-screen that hides extra details. This feature allows you to declutter thoughts and focus on the task.
Xmind costs $39.99 every six months or $59.99 annually. They offer special discounts for students, educators, NPOs, NGOs, and government agencies. Besides, they provide customized pricing for teams and enterprises.
4. Google Drawings
This free MindMeister alternative lets you create concept maps, diagrams, flowcharts, and memes. The creation process starts with a blank canvas.
You can use multiple components to make a drawing. For example, you can add images to the canvas along with arrows, text, shapes, scribbles, and more.
This application has many sharing options; you can keep the drawing private, share it publicly on the internet, or share it with select people. And when sharing, you can choose whether users can edit or view the drawing.
Your team members can open a drawing and edit it simultaneously in real-time. It’s also possible to insert your drawing into Google Docs or Sheets.
The app saves drawings automatically as you work on them. Plus, you can download the drawings as PDFs, images, and more. You can even embed the mind maps in a blog post.
While the drawings come with a default transparent background, you can change the background to any color. How? Right-click on the canvas and select the background. Next, select solid color or gradient.
Compared to MindMeister’s limited free version, Google Drawings is free with tons of quality features, including sharing, collaboration, integration with Google Docs and Sheets, and most importantly, the ability to make unlimited mind maps.
5. MindManager
This mind mapping app works well for extensive brainstorming sessions. You can use it to create concept maps, org charts, and flow charts. The drag-and-drop feature lets you build a central idea and derive related ideas effortlessly.
When working with MindManager, you can start the diagram from scratch or select from over 25 in-built templates.
Does your project involve working with numerical figures and algebraic expressions? You can use the MAP 3 add-in to work with algebraic calculations and related functions. This tool also comes with a Gantt chart for mapping project timelines.
Using this tool is a breeze, thanks to their easy step-by-step guides that you can check out to learn how it works.
What makes MindManager better than MindMeister is that it lets you quickly use keyboard shortcuts to create mind maps.
Did I mention you can collaborate in real-time? The co-editing functionality makes that possible.
MindManager has three paid plans. The Essentials Plan costs $99/year, Professional costs $169/year, and Enterprise has a customized price available on request.
6. Miro
Miro is a user-friendly mind map software that lets you unleash creative ideas and use features like images, sticky notes, videos, and drawing tools.
With Miro, you can run a successful brainstorming workshop and let people participate from different locations. Stickies Capture can capture physical boards within seconds before converting them into editable sticky notes.
This alternative to MindMeister has at least 120 pre-built templates to help you move from ideation to execution on one large canvas. Examples of templates include User Story Map, Roadmap, Kanban, Customer Journey Map, and more.
Working with Miro is easy because you can find everything in one place. You can collect references and instantly import relevant data from spreadsheets. Build visuals with drawings, sticky notes, images, gifs, diagrams, and docs. The best part? You can access the visuals from any device.
Do you want to know what others think about your visuals? Miro offers anonymous voting to let you democratize the creation process. This functionality helps you to stay organized and accurate as you engage in tagging, keyword search, mind mapping, and clustering.
Miro has a free plan comprising premade templates, three editable boards, core integrations, and basic attention management. The Team plan costs $8 per member/month, and the Business plan costs $16 per member/month, billed annually. The Enterprise plan comes with customized pricing.
7. Coggle
Coggle is an online application for making and sharing flowcharts and mind maps. It works directly in the browser; you don’t need to install or download anything. You simply need to log in and start diagramming.
Whether planning note-taking, brainstorming, or engaging in another creative activity, Coggle allows you to visualize ideas. You can share the diagrams with colleagues and friends.
The software supports real-time collaboration. Any changes you make appear instantly in your team’s browser, regardless of their geographical location.
You can drag and drop images from the desktop to diagrams. Interestingly, you can upload an unlimited number of images.
But that’s not all. Coggle also allows you to add floating images and text. In other words, you can annotate parts of the mind map by adding images and text labels not on the diagram tree.
If your project involves creating flow charts, Coggle will come in handy. It lets you select from various shapes to build expressive flowcharts and other diagrams.
You can create any number of private diagrams, and if you cancel your subscription, the diagrams stay private, and you continue accessing them. MindMeister doesn’t have such a feature.
Moreover, you can create loops and join branches, giving you more flexible and powerful diagrams. The resulting diagrams represent process flows and more advanced processes.
Coggle has a Free Forever plan and two paid plans: Awesome and Organization. Awesome costs $5 per month, while Organization costs $8 per month.
8. SimpleMind
SimpleMind is another great alternative to MindMeister. It lets you create attention-grabbing mind maps. You can add images and color to a mind map, customize lines and topics, and include links, checkboxes, notes, and more.
You can store your complete information in one attractive mind map and share ideas with other users. The software supports image sharing in various formats, including PDF, PNG, .smmx (original), presentation slides, and more.
Their simple interface lets you easily add, restructure, and reorganize topics using the drag and drop feature. The features include progress bars, checkboxes, auto-numbering, call-outs and labels, and horizontal auto layout – ideal for brainstorming.
Unlike MindMeister, which requires signing up to use it, SimpleMind doesn’t require registration. Besides, there are no ads, and you can use this tool on Windows, Mac, iPhone, iPad, and Android.
The software is available in three editions: Free, Pro, and Trial. The Free Edition supports intuitive mind mapping, provides an auto layout and free-form layout, and lets you use one of the 15 or more style sheets. This plan also lets you easily add topics, restructure, and reorganize.
You can use the Pro Edition to make a one-time purchase depending on your platform (macOS, Windows, Android, or iOS). Lastly, the Trial edition is available for Mac and Windows.
9. Lucidchart
This diagrammatic tool visualizes complex systems, processes, and organizational structures. It has over 500 mind map templates to explore, a shape library that you can use to drag and drop various shapes on your maps, and an automated layout to build diagrams from data.
Your team can use Lucidchart to communicate complex ideas and collaborate in real-time. The cloud-based alternative to MindMeister has an intuitive interface that makes it easy for anyone to start diagramming, regardless of their browser, device, or operating system.
Lucidchart improves how teams collaborate. Its collaborative features are superior to MindMeister, including real-time co-authoring, shape-specific comments, in-editor chat, and collaborative cursors.
When using this mind mapping tool, you can see data in context, as it overlays useful metrics on existing diagrams via data linking. It also uses auto-visualization to produce ERDs, org charts, and more.
Lucidchart integrates with your favorite applications, including Slack, Atlassian, Google Workspace, and Microsoft Office.
You can import data to Lucidchart from Zapier, Excel, and Salesforce apps.
This mind mapping app comes with a free plan and three paid plans. The Individual plan costs $7.95 per user/month, the Team plan costs $9 per user/month, and the Enterprise plan has customized pricing available on quote.
Also Read: Best Free Mockup Tools
10. WiseMapping
WiseMapping is an open source, web-based mind mapping tool ideal for collaborative planning, personal note-taking, classroom learning, and teamwork.
The tool mixes new technologies, such as SVG and HTML 5.0, to leverage the power of mind maps. For free, you can use this tool as an individual, business, or school.
The platform is easy to use and has interactive work areas. You can invite others to view your mind maps and collaborate on various projects as a team. While this tool supports collaboration, you still enjoy personal space with your mind maps.
You can also export and print mind maps in FreeMind, SVG, PDF, JPG, and PNG formats. Further, you can embed a mind map in a blog post or web page.
The Mind Map Editor allows for adding, modifying, and deleting topics, and changing topic shapes, fonts, colors, and borders. You can also insert notes, icons, and HTTP links. The other features include zooming in/out, auto-saving, and history recovery.
The supported browsers are Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and Opera. What gives WiseMapping an edge over MindMeister is that it’s a completely free and open-source tool.
Check Out: Wireframe vs Mockup
11. GitMind
This brainstorming and mind mapping tool helps capture important ideas, boost productivity, and enhance creativity.
GitMind has powerful features that make mind mapping a breeze. The Outline mode allows you to switch between your outline and mind map, ensuring all your thoughts translate into visuals.
Slide Show allows you to present your mind maps with great transitions, making it easy for your team to understand.
Team collaboration is another outstanding feature of this app; it lets you co-create mind maps with team members and share insights while at it.
The collaboration accelerates personal progress and drives business growth. You can record and grow every small idea and unleash your team’s creativity.
OCR Recognition is one of the features that set GitMind apart. If images have a long text, the feature extracts it instantly and allows you to add it to a mind map. I haven’t seen this functionality on MindMeister.
GitMind features pre-made stylish themes that you can use to build spectacular mind maps. You can depict whatever you want to think, solve, and learn on a beautiful canvas.
The tool’s pricing includes a free Basic plan and two premium plans. One costs $9 a month, and the other ones $4.08 annually. Teams can contact support for the Business plan’s pricing.
Check Out: Best Word Cloud Generators
12. MindNode
Whether you plan a holiday, outline the next best-seller, or brainstorm an office meeting, MindNote comes in handy to help turn those beautiful thoughts into a vivid image of your ideas.
MindNode is feature-galore. One of the most impressive features lets you keep tabs on your progress. You can transform nodes into tasks and sync your research deadlines, weekend plans, and shopping list with Apple Reminders. Next, tick off the completed tasks.
The Outline feature lets you brainstorm in a structured and organized fashion. You can mind-map and outline exclusively or side-by-side.
Use Visual Tags to categorize and contextualize your thoughts. You can also prioritize specific ideas and add focus to a set of ideas that may not be connected.
When projects grow, distractions can arise and cause us to lose focus. Luckily, MindNode has Focus Mode that focuses on a specific branch, allowing you to finalize your thoughts. This feature is one of the reasons MindNode outshines MindMeister.
This tool comes with 250+ stickers that you can use to add clarity to a mind map. You can adjust each sticker to match your branch’s color. The Sticker Search is there to help you find a suitable sticker.
MindNode has a Free Editor with limited features, and MindNode Plus costs $2.49 per month or $19.99 per year.
Worth Reading: High Fidelity vs Low Fidelity Wireframes
13. TheBrain
This tool lets you organize, capture, and share notes, web links, and files across devices. You can seamlessly sync across iOS, Windows, Android, and macOS devices.
As you drift focus from one topic to the next, TheBrain moves with you, displaying your information and the connections made. Your thinking’s natural extension shows you how things connect to each other so that you don’t lose any ideas.
This mind mapping helps you find anything. You are seconds away from any unique digital information from projects and people to task lists and ideas.
You can access web pages, images, notes, documents, and more quickly and use them to create mind maps. MindMeister lacks such functionality.
TheBrain allows you to add web links to mind maps and connect your digital resources, no matter the source. You can also attach folders and files with the application. Besides, you can create custom tags with icons and colors for instant recognition, quick access, and custom reporting.
TheBrain has a free plan. It also has three paid versions: Pro Service costs $15 per month, Pro Combo costs $299 for the first year, and Pro License has a $219 one-off fee.
Wrapping Up
From the above list of MindMeister alternatives, GitMind takes the trophy. It comes with the OCR recognition you’ll hardly find in other tools.
Slide Show makes the presentation attractive and Color Theme makes mind map customization a piece of cake. Plus, Outline helps you stick to your ideas while creating magnificent mind maps.
One would expect a hefty price tag for an app with such spectacular features, but this one is an absolute steal.
