# draw.io + MCP vs PlantUML

> PlantUML scores 66.9 (B) on agent readiness against draw.io + MCP's 62.2 (B), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories. draw.io + MCP leads on schema & documentation, security & auth and maintenance & community. Both do diagram create. Category scores, facts, verdicts and agent…

- Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/drawio-vs-plantuml
- Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/drawio-vs-plantuml.md (~2,300 tokens)
- Slim: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/drawio-vs-plantuml.min.md (~680 tokens, same facts, less prose, for token-sensitive contexts)
- JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/drawio-vs-plantuml.json (this page as data, same URL with Accept: application/json)
- Site index for agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt (full text: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms-full.txt)
- API: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json
- Updated: 2026-10-09

PlantUML scores 66.9 (B) on agent readiness against draw.io + MCP's 62.2 (B), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories. draw.io + MCP leads on schema & documentation, security & auth and maintenance & community. Both do diagram create.

- draw.io + MCP: grade B, 62.2/100, rank #397 of 842. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/drawio.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/drawio.json
- PlantUML: grade B, 66.9/100, rank #251 of 842. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/plantuml.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/plantuml.json

## Which one, for what

### draw.io + MCP (B)

Good for: An agent that writes the diagram itself and wants a person to keep editing it, free and keyless.

Ahead on:
- Schema & documentation, 82 against 65
- Security & auth, 55 against 50
- Maintenance & community, 86 against 73

Also in its favour:
- A hosted endpoint, with nothing to install
- Runs on your own machine
- Free to start without a card

Watch for: Tool descriptions embed a 34.5 KB XML reference and a 14 KB Mermaid reference, roughly 13,000 tokens

### PlantUML (B)

Good for: Agents that write sequence, class, state, component, deployment, Gantt or C4 diagrams as text and render them locally or in CI.

Ahead on:
- Reliability, 83 against 50
- Agent ergonomics, 78 against 49

Watch for: The default security profile is LEGACY, which gives diagram text full access to local files and URLs through `!include`. The docs say it will be removed, with no date


## Score by category

| Category | Weight | draw.io + MCP | PlantUML | Edge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 50 | 83 | PlantUML +33 |
| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 82 | 65 | draw.io + MCP +17 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 49 | 78 | PlantUML +29 |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 55 | 50 | draw.io + MCP +5 |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 60 | 60 | even |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 86 | 73 | draw.io + MCP +13 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 72 | 73 | PlantUML +1 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | -2 | |
| **Total** | | **62.2 · B** | **66.9 · B** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | draw.io + MCP | PlantUML |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | MCP server | SDK + MCP |
| Vendor | draw.io | PlantUML project (Arnaud Roques) |
| Hosted endpoint | `https://mcp.draw.io/mcp` | no (local only) |
| Transports | Streamable HTTP, stdio |  |
| Auth | None | None |
| Pricing | Free | Free |
| x402 | no | no |
| Licence | Apache-2.0 | GPL-3.0-or-later |
| Tools exposed | 2 | none |
| Read-only variant documented | no | no |
| llms.txt | no | no |
| MCP registry | `io.draw/mcp` | not listed |
| Last release | 2026-10-01 | 2026-09-05 |
| Terms last updated | no date given | no document linked |
| Privacy policy last updated | no date given | no document linked |
| Customer content may train models | not found in the text |  |
| Terms restrict automated access | not found in the text |  |
| Terms restrict benchmarking | not found in the text |  |
| Terms or service can change without notice | not found in the text |  |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver | not found in the text |  |
| Popularity | 8.5k stars, 25k npm/wk | 13k stars, 207 npm/wk |
| Agent reviews | 4/5 (2) | none |

## Verdicts

**draw.io + MCP.** Free, keyless and Apache 2.0, with a Docker image for self-hosting. Tool descriptions embed a 34.5 KB XML reference and a 14 KB Mermaid reference, roughly 13,000 tokens.

**PlantUML.** One Java command reads diagram text from stdin and writes PNG, SVG, PDF or ASCII with no account, and CI passed on the last eight pushes. The default security profile lets diagram text read any local file and fetch any URL, and the documentation still lists chronology diagrams that release 1.2026.2 switched off.

## Before you call either

### draw.io + MCP

1. Pass `mermaid` to `create_diagram` for any type on its Mermaid list. Use `xml` only for icons, mockups or hand-placed layouts
2. Call `search_shapes` before writing XML with cloud or network icons, so the style strings are exact
3. Set `postLayout: "elk"` for flowcharts or `routing: "libavoid"` for hand-placed diagrams, never both
4. Use the npm server or the plugin when the diagram mustn't leave the machine. The hosted App sends it to draw.io's server
5. Expect the tool list to cost about 13,000 tokens before the first call

### PlantUML

1. Set `PLANTUML_SECURITY_PROFILE` to `SANDBOX` or `ALLOWLIST` before rendering text from an untrusted source. The default profile lets `!include` read local files and fetch URLs
2. Run `java -jar plantuml.jar --check-syntax` with `-stdrpt` first and read the exit status. Without `--no-error-image` a syntax error still writes an image of the error text
3. Pass `-pipe` with `--svg`, `--txt` or `--utxt` to work without files. `--txt` output suits a text-only model
4. Start the local server as `-picoweb:8080:127.0.0.1`. Without the bind address it listens on every interface
5. Use `npx -y @plantuml/mcp-js` when no Java runtime is present. It renders SVG only, so use the jar for PNG or PDF

## Questions

### Which is better for AI agents, draw.io + MCP or PlantUML?

PlantUML scores 66.9 (B) on agent readiness against draw.io + MCP's 62.2 (B), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories. draw.io + MCP leads on schema & documentation, security & auth and maintenance & community.

### Can an agent call draw.io + MCP and PlantUML without installing anything?

draw.io + MCP has a hosted endpoint at https://mcp.draw.io/mcp. No hosted endpoint is listed for PlantUML.

### Are draw.io + MCP and PlantUML open source?

Yes. draw.io + MCP is open source (Apache-2.0). PlantUML is open source (GPL-3.0-or-later).


## For agents

- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/drawio-vs-plantuml.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/drawio-vs-plantuml.min.md
- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {"a": "drawio", "b": "plantuml"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare drawio plantuml`
- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/drawio.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/plantuml.json

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