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11 Open-source Free Infinite Canvas Apps and Libraries for Drawing, Note-taking, and Mind mapping Design

Hazem Abbas

Feb 9, 2024 — 8 min read

What is an infinite canvas?

An infinite canvas refers to a digital space that allows users to expand their work area indefinitely in any direction. Unlike traditional paper or limited digital screens, an infinite canvas provides unlimited space for drawing, note-taking, and mind mapping.

Users can freely navigate, zoom in and out, and create without any restrictions or boundaries. It offers a seamless and expansive environment for expressing ideas, organizing information, and unleashing creativity without the limitations of physical space.

In this blog post, we will explore 11 remarkable open-source apps and libraries that provide a range of features for drawing, note-taking, and mind mapping.

From highly performant controls for node-based editors to sleek note apps designed for math-related work, these tools offer a diverse set of functionalities to cater to various needs.

1. Loren

Lorien is an incredibly powerful free app for drawing and note-taking with infinite canvas support. It utilizes points to efficiently store brush strokes and renders them seamlessly in real-time. This app is perfect for creating digital notebooks and facilitating brainstorming sessions.

2. Deepnotes

DeepNotes is an amazing platform that offers high-level security, infinite canvases for note creation and organization, deep page nesting for easy navigation, realtime collaboration, flexible note customization, and lifelong storage, combining functionality, security, and convenience.

3. Rnote

Rnote is an open-source vector-based drawing app designed for sketching, note-taking, and annotating.

It supports Infinite canvas, importing and exporting PDFs and pictures, has an infinite canvas, and an adaptive UI for different screen sizes.

It is written in Rust and GTK4, and features an adaptive UI for stylus input, pressure-sensitive stylus input with configurable stroke styles, and the ability to create various shapes with the shape tool.

4. Nodify

Nodify is a collection of highly performant controls for node-based editors designed for MVVM.

It is free and open-source, with infinite canvas support, and is modular and designed for data-binding.

5. Milton

Milton is an open source application that allows you to draw, sketch, and paint with infinite detail using vectors.

It is not an image editor or a vector graphics editor, but a program with persistent work and unlimited undo capabilities.

6. RichCanvas

This is n open-source library that support Infinite canvas with panning, zooming, scrolling and other customizable functions, designed for MVVM.

Features

Designed for MVVM
No dependencies other than WPF
Optimized for interactions with hundreds of elements
Zoom, Pan, Scroll and other out of the box functionalities
Select and Move elements
Lots of configurable dependency properties
Ready to draw

7. Mitten

Mitten is a free drawing app with many features. Use left click to draw, shift + left click for lines, control + shift + left click to change brush size, alt + hover to select color, and control + alt + hover to select background color.

Use the camera to drag and zoom, dot and comma to rotate, and space for hyper zoom.

Save and load camera positions, undo and redo with ctrl + Z and control + shift + Z, and use F11 and alt + enter for fullscreen modes.

8. Tela

Tela is free and open-source infinite canvas Svelte-based library.

9. InfinityBoard

InfinityBoard is a digital canvas with real-time collaborative editing for sharing pictures and text. Its infinite panning feature ensures unlimited collaborative and creative space.