There are literally hundred of UML tools. So, no way to even try to look for any complete comparison among them. Instead, I’ll aim to give you links to the most relevant tools (at least in my opinion) grouped in a number of different categories. I also maintain a twitter list of UML / modeling tools that could be useful in your search.
But before we start, let me give you my advice when choosing a UML2 tool: think carefully what you need the tool for!. There is no one size fits all UML tool. A UML tool with strong code generation capabilities may not offer a good collaborative modeling environment or be too strict to be used for drawing some informal models during the early stages of the development process.
After this word of caution, let’s start with our lists of UML tools (remember that if you feel overwhelmed and want some UML pro help, you can always check our consulting services).
There is no one-size-fits-all UML2 tool. Think carefully about what you need the tool for (documentation?, code-generation?, early design?...) and then look for a tool that excels at that Click To TweetContents
My top five all-purpose UML tools
In no particular order, these are the five tools I’d start checking first. I’ve “played” and liked all of them
- MagicDraw: I love the usability of MagicDraw. But I even like more its strong UML execution and simulation capabilities. NoMagic (the company behind MagicDraw) was recently bought by Dassault Systems . As a result, we can expect MagicDraw to become even better at modeling for systems engineering.
- Papyrus UML. It’s the “de facto” UML modeling tool for the Eclipse environment. Free and open source, it’s your go-to tool if you are an Eclipse user or need to integrate your modeling tool with other Eclipse-based tools as part of full development pipeline. While Papyrus is for sure not the most simple and intuitive tool out there, it is making good efforts in adapting its interface to the user profile and needs (e.g. see the Papyrus for Information Modeling or the Papyrus for real-time specializations).
- Modelio. A very powerful tool organized as a core open source modeler to be extended by premium (mostly commercial) modules available in the modelio store. This allows you to adapt and evolve your modeling needs. For instance, you can start by modeling the system for free and then decide to buy an extension to be able to generate automatically its implementation in C#.
- ArgoUML. Ok, now you’ll think I went nuts. Yes, I agree, ArgoUML is one of the ugliest UML tools you’ve ever seen and has not been updated at all in the last few years. But ArgoUML wins them all in the “sentimental UML tool” category. It was the first UML tool I used and they did an excellent job at a time where there were basically no free / open source UML tools available. I believe ArgoUML deserves some credit for that!.
- StarUML: If Grady Booch itself endorses it (see below), StarUML had to make it to the top 5. This is your best option if you’re looking for a quick, easy-to-use, simple and reasonably cheap UML modeling tool.
I use StarUML myself (together with CLion) https://t.co/4jemEENM7S
— Grady Booch (@Grady_Booch) December 23, 2016
Btw, if I wasn’t so sentimental (as I say above, the only reason why ArgoUML is on the list), Enterprise Architect would also be on the top 5. It’s also a great tool with a greater emphasis on information / business / strategic modeling aspects than the others.
Textual UML tools
Sometimes old plain text triumphs over nice cool graphics. If you think graphical UML editors are too slow or cumbersome, there are plenty of textual UML tools available (and some of them rather successful).
All textual UML tools offer some kind of (mostly) simple language to describe your UML class, sequence, activity ,… diagrams. You can use this textual UML description to store and compare your models but you can still visualize teh resulting diagram since all of them are able to automatically display the corresponding graphical UML diagram from its textual description.
Wanna know more? see our complete list of textual modeling tools.
Executable UML tools
Executable UML (check the new Executable UML standards fuml and Alf) aims at defining UML models with a behavioral specification precise enough to be effectively executed. In its purest state, Executable UML eliminates the need of programming the software system.
Several executable UML tools
are now available. Check the full list of Executable UML tools we have discovered so far!.
Online UML tools
Web-based UML tools are the fastest growing market in the UML tools segment. Not really a surprise, we are seeing the same trend everywhere (e.g. cloud-based programming IDEs).
To keep up with the pace of new tools popping up in this UML tools area, we have a dedicated page to cover the top online UML modeling tools (also including web-based tools for ER and BPMN diagrams)
Eclipse UML tools
Eclipse users have Papyrus (mentioned above) to define UML, SysML,… models. But there are other good alternatives as well. Especial mentin to UML designer built with Sirius (a framework to create your own customized modeling environment).
You can find other Eclipse UML2 compatible tools (but take into account that the list is outdated).
Free and Open source UML tools
If you are only interested in free / open source UML tools, then you’re lucky!. Many of the tools mentioned above are open source or have at least a free plan. Price is not an excuse for not learning UML!
And if you need yet more suggestions, I’ll give you one more. Try UMLet.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_UML_tools
Mario Jeckle’s list OF UML tools definitely _was_ a good resource IN 2004 – but, due TO SOME tragic circumstances (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mario_Jeckle), this site will never be updated.
another great resource http://case-tools.org/
regards
Great resource. Another web sites that tries TO maintain a list OF UML tools (BOTH commercial AND OPEN source) IS http://www.umltools.net/
ArgoUML, made in Java and so multiplateform !
http://argouml-downloads.tigris.org/
For Python, see also pyreverse, included in the Pylint source distribution. http://www.logilab.org/project/pylint
Check out Integranova M.E.S. (Model Execution System), the first completely automatic software development solution.
Today Integranova is an international market leader within the Model-Driven Software Development landscape and has built a solid reputation amongst its customers by delivering a complete Model-Driven Arquitecture and Development Platform.
Hola,
estoy buscando algo parecido a PlantUML.
Para mi PlantUML es genial ya que he creado un plugin para dokuwiki y mientras hago la documentación en la wiki tambien realizo los diagramas en UML como texto.
El problema de PlantUML es que necesita un servidor Java.
¿Conoces algo como PlantUML pero que funcione en PHP?
El proyecto de jsUML2 me ha parecido muy interesante ya que se podría añadir como un plugin tambien a dokuwiki y al ser JavaScript funcionaría en cualquier hosting.
He visto la documentación de jsUML2 pero no he visto donde se guarda cada documento que realizo o como ponerlo en formato “solo lectura”, etc.
Gracias.
Para integrar en algo como un wiki lo más útil que he visto es yUML
Para preguntas acerca de jsUML2 mejor que contactes directamente con los autores (que de hecho son de Córdoba con lo que todo queda en casa 🙂 )
There’s a new kid on the block for Mac and iPad.
http://models.wowsystems.pt
How do I get Lucidchart on this list?
It is really easy to make UML diagrams with Lucidchart.
ModelWorld Online modeller and repository.
The first release of modelworld: http://www.modelworld.nl/
Diagramo – http://diagramo.com can be an option too: full HTML5 based and GPL.
http://www.nomnoml.com is a web based textual UML tool which is nice.
Our company also have a tool to create various UML diagrams online. You can draw many UML diagram types and there are plenty of templates to get started as well. Please check out UML software page and consider adding it to the list. Thanks.
Hi…i´m looking for a modeling tool that allows integration with Python. I need to create a meta-model and can have a code generator from the meta-model to Python, same like Eclipse Modeling Framework do. Any recommendation?
Thanks,
Don´t know any tool like the one you ask for but one possible workaround would be to define your metamodel as a UML class diagram and then use a UMLtoPython code-generation tool
I know I arrive a little bit late here (more than 2 years), but anyway. I’ve started working few weeks ago on a kind of EMF Python3 implementation called PyEcore (https://github.com/aranega/pyecore). The idea is to provide the almost equivalent of Java EMF features in Python, but using some of the Python feature as “callable”, “descriptors”, … in order to create a more Pythonic EMF experience:
Example for dynamic metamodel:
>>> from pyecore.ecore import *
>>> A = EClass(‘A’) # Create an A metaclass
>>> a = A() # creates an instance of A
>>> A.eStructuralFeatures.append(EAttribute(‘name’, EString))
>>> a.name = ‘myname’
>>> a.name = 4 # will raise an exception, BadValueError
The project tries to focus on dynamicity and flexibility provided by Python. At the moment, dynamic and static metamodel are supported. The generator for the static part is an Acceleo generator (currently only deals with ‘.ecore’). XMI serialization and deserialization of Eclipse EMF XMI is also supported (partially). Also, I started some experimentation on a kind of M2M using Python >= 3.5 with annotations (inspired by QVTo): https://github.com/aranega/pyecore/blob/feature/refactoring/experimental/m2m/transfo.py
The project is still young and still requires love!
Thanks Jordi..i´m working with EMF to create a meta-model…EMF has a code generator for Java, but no for Phyton…i wondering about a tool that allows the same think but for Phyton… I think EMF is a good tool to create meta-model, i´m to check UMLtoPhyton to see how work´s.
One question, if i create a meta-model, i can use it to create a data base?? Is a good practice do that?
Thanks,
Metamodel are models as well. My point in my previous comment was that if you plan to use your metamodel to create a set of database tables, you could get the same effect drawing your metamodel as a UML class diagram and finding a tool that offers some kind of UML to python (and UML to database) generation option.
Conceptually, clearly different. In practice, same result
Exactly Jordi…that´s what i thinkig to do…create a UML class diagram and then, use it to create a set of database tables…
I tried with PyUML but do not work…this is a plug-in for a old versión of Eclipse (3.2)
I check some of the others UML to Python tools, but I did not found any that work well…
I will check then UML to DB to see if i can find the right tool.
Thanks for yours comments,
Exactly Jordi…that´s what i think to do…create a UML class diagram and then, use it to create a set of database tables…
I tried with PyUML but do not work…this is a plug-in for a old versión of Eclipse (3.2)
I check some of the others UML to Python tools, but I did not found any that work well…
I will check then UML to DB to see if i can find the right tool.
Thanks for yours comments,
hi. a blind programming student doing certificate iv programming. now i use a screen reader jaws for windows from http://www.freedomscientific.com. now need do a core subject assignment where i need to create model diagrams, or use the visual studio modelling projects. now, my lectuer suggested xml diagrams tools, need to create uml, state, use, case, class and sequence diagrams. now need some way for my screen reader to read the output. any ideas, come across this senario. let me know. need a tool to complete the assignment. so, any ideas. marvin.
Hi,
A new UML to Ruby code generator is available in GenMyModel http://blog.genmymodel.com/let-uml-shine-using-ruby.html
This generator is released under the MIT licence. Feel free to comment and/or contribute.
Hi! You are missing one free Textual UML tool for sequence diagrams: http://sequencediagram.org
I have created a VSCode extension for generating offline UML diagrams based on the yUML syntax. See: https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=JaimeOlivares.yuml
In my opinion there’s little which can beat Visual Paradigm (http://visual-paradigm.com/) when it comes to user friendliness and overall flexibility. It is a commercial product (with a freely to use community version) and one of its best features (in my opinion of course) is that you can integrate it into most popular IDE’s (Eclipse, NetBeans, IntelliJ and Visual Studio).
Of course in the end it’s all personal preference, but the workflow which VP provides can easily match that of Microsoft Visio itself in my opinion. But UML design is really really easy with this.
(for context sake: I’ve been using VP ever since NetBeans 4.1 came out, which is roughly 8 years).
The yUML extension for VSCode now supports sequence diagrams and embedding into markdown documents: https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=JaimeOlivares.yuml
Nice to come across your site, thanks for keeping this list! I have been developing this for the last few years https://www.continuity.kiwi.nz/ after 20+ years in the IT industry and not finding tools I’ve been completely happy with. It’s been quite a project and I give it away free for personal or commercial use simply because I think the industry needs a paradigm shift in the way we work away from documents. All the best, Martin.