Paper vs pen.dev

Paper is a connected design canvas for teams working with agents, code, and data. Its HTML/CSS canvas exports designs as code and supports a workflow between the canvas and code. Agents can read and write the canvas to work on responsive layouts, style variations, and consistency checks. Paper MCP also lets agents generate layouts, use real content, and convert selected frames into code, with setup paths for Claude, Codex, Cursor, OpenCode, Antigravity, GitHub Copilot, VS Code, and others. The Snapshot extension copies web components into Paper as editable layers. Figma selections can also be copied as editable layers, though components, variables, masks, and rich text are not fully supported. The Free plan includes unlimited viewers and editors and 100 MCP tool calls per week. Pro is listed at $2,016 a month, billed yearly; paid plans keep viewer seats free. Paper is available on the web and Linux, macOS, and Windows, with an extension. Its DPA describes security controls and restricts specified categories of customer data.

pen.dev is a canvas for building software and a vector design tool integrated with development environments. Its editor works with components, variables, themes, scripts and shaders, and can import Figma files and HTML. It can export to HTML, CSS and Tailwind, as well as PNG, JPEG, WEBP and PDF. Users can work with its integrated agent or connect external agents through MCP; the available plans specify how many agents can run in parallel. Documented integrations include Claude Code, Codex, Gemini CLI, Antigravity, OpenCode, Kiro and Claude Desktop. Integrated provider options include OpenAI, Anthropic, Google Gemini, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, xAI, OpenRouter and other API-key providers. Its.pen design file is open JSON with an open schema. Tools include a Chrome extension for importing webpages, IDE extensions and an npm-installed CLI requiring Node.js 22.19 or later. The pricing page says pen.dev stays free until plans launch. The Free plan is free; Pro is $16 a month; Ultra is $48 a month.