Most architecture diagramming tools are great at drawing boxes and connecting them. But that's usually where their understanding of your system ends.
A database is just a rectangle labelled "database". The tool doesn't know if it's replicated, how it handles consistency or what happens when it fails.
I wanted to build something that goes beyond that.
ArchStudio is a free, open-source architecture editor that treats components as more than shapes. It's currently in early beta, and I'd love to get some feedback.
Web app: https://archstudio.app/
Desktop downloads (macOS, Windows, Linux): https://github.com/JamieLivingstone/ArchStudio/releases
GitHub: https://github.com/JamieLivingstone/ArchStudio
Components that actually mean something
In ArchStudio, components have real architectural properties and trade-offs.
Databases have replication, partitioning and consistency settings. Queues have delivery guarantees, ordering and retry policies. Caches have invalidation strategies, TTLs and failure handling.
There are 29 components covering services, data, messaging, identity, observability and more.
You can keep things high-level or go deeper into the decisions that matter. The editor explains the available options and their trade-offs as you design.
The goal is simple: your architecture diagram should describe how your system works, not just what it looks like.
A complete visual editor
ArchStudio isn't just a way to configure components. You can start with a blank canvas and design an entire system from scratch.
Drag in components, connect them, organise services into architectural boundaries and move things around freely.
Connections route around components automatically, and one-click layout helps tidy up complex diagrams. There are also starter templates if you'd rather not begin from scratch.
Everything works without AI.
AI changes you can actually review
Because ArchStudio understands the structure of your architecture, its optional AI assistant can do more than generate a diagram from a prompt.
It can review your design, identify potential issues and propose changes based on your existing components and their configuration.
Rather than silently modifying your work, it shows proposed changes directly on the canvas with a structured diff.
You can inspect what's changing and accept or reject each part individually, much like reviewing a pull request.
The assistant supports OpenAI and Anthropic through your own API key, but it's entirely optional.
Your diagrams, your files
No accounts, subscriptions or mandatory cloud storage.
Diagrams are saved as plain JSON, making them readable, diffable and easy to keep in Git. You can also export PNGs for documentation and presentations.
ArchStudio runs directly in your browser, with desktop apps for macOS, Windows and Linux.
What's coming next
I'm also working towards a few features I'm particularly excited about:
- Whiteboard import: take a photo of an office whiteboard and turn it into a real, editable architecture diagram.
- Interview mode: work through system design problems interactively.
- More AI options: local models through Ollama and additional providers.
- More templates: quicker starting points for common architectures.
Give it a try
ArchStudio is still in early beta, but the core editor is working and available to use today.
You can try it directly in your browser without signing up, or download the desktop app for macOS, Windows and Linux.
Web app: https://archstudio.app/
Desktop downloads: https://github.com/JamieLivingstone/ArchStudio/releases
Source code: https://github.com/JamieLivingstone/ArchStudio
I'd really appreciate feedback from anyone who designs or reviews software systems, particularly around the editing experience, component modelling and anything that could be improved.
Free, open source and MIT licensed.
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