Is Figma the UX/UI Industry Standard? And What About Adobe XD?

Figma seems to rule the design world, but why? Is Adobe XD really out of the game? And what’s next for interface design in the AI era?

21.09.2025 BY Jakub

Is Figma the UX/UI Industry Standard? And What About Adobe XD? header image

Introduction

Adobe XD Was (and Still Is) Good ↓ Other Competitors? ↓ 🤫 Hidden Realities Designers Know ↓ 🤖 What If AI Kills Them All? ↓ Summary ↓

Is Figma Really the Industry Standard?

Ask a UX/UI designer what tool they use, and nine times out of ten, the answer is: Figma.

But why is that?

Let’s break it down. Figma didn’t just show up with pretty UI — it changed the way teams work. It’s web-based, real-time collaborative, cross-platform (Mac/Windows/Linux), and totally removed the “final_final_version_v23.sketch” chaos from design life.

Figma’s history is rooted in solving collaboration headaches. Launched in 2016, it was one of the first to offer simultaneous multi-user editing, much like Google Docs but for design. This meant designers, developers, product managers, and stakeholders could all work together in one place without endless file versions or confusing handoffs.

Beyond collaboration, Figma’s thriving community has built thousands of plugins and widgets that extend functionality—from accessibility checkers to icon sets—making it highly customizable and adaptable to any workflow.

Another key feature is its developer handoff capabilities. Figma generates clean, inspectable code snippets and CSS directly from designs, bridging the gap between design and development seamlessly. This reduces friction and accelerates product launches.

Adobe XD Was (and Still Is) Good

Adobe XD launched with a clean, fast interface. Lightweight. Simple. Loved by many.

But Adobe was late to the game. And their collaboration model felt like a bolt-on, not a native feature. That’s where Figma won. While Adobe focused on the Creative Suite, Figma quietly became the Slack of UX design — multiplayer, browser-native, and perfect for remote teams.

Adobe’s strategy centered on integrating XD tightly with Photoshop, Illustrator, and other Creative Cloud apps, aiming to attract designers already embedded in Adobe’s ecosystem. However, this integration came at the cost of flexibility and cross-platform accessibility, limiting XD’s appeal outside Adobe-heavy shops.

XD also struggled with collaboration features; its cloud sync and coediting lagged behind Figma’s real-time editing, causing teams to stick with Figma or other tools. Despite that, Adobe XD still fits well in workflows where high-fidelity prototyping and animation within the Adobe ecosystem are priorities, especially in agencies and studios deeply invested in Adobe products.

Other Competitors?

Here’s the current tool map:

Tool	Platform	Notes
Figma	Web, Desktop	Most adopted; free for small teams
Adobe XD	Desktop	Best for Adobe users
Sketch	macOS only	Mac-only; once dominant
Framer	Web	Advanced motion; dev-friendly
Penpot	Web, OpenSrc	Free, open-source
UXPin	Web	Design + code workflows

🤫 Hidden Realities Designers Know

Figma’s “free” tier is powerful enough for small teams — that’s how they gained massive adoption fast.
Adobe XD integrates better with Photoshop/Illustrator — still useful in creative agency pipelines.
Framer and UXPin are quietly taking over the “design-to-code” automation space — where dev handoff is not just a PDF.
Penpot is open-source and growing in the EU and edu sectors due to privacy-first and self-hosting options.
Google Docs-style commenting and version history in Figma make asynchronous feedback painless.
Design system libraries and shared components in Figma foster consistency across large teams and enterprises.
Many large organizations have adopted Figma enterprise plans for centralized control, security, and advanced workflow integrations.

🤖 What If AI Kills Them All?

That’s not fantasy. It’s a real scenario.

If AI tools (like Uizard, Galileo AI, or even Copilot inside Figma) evolve fast enough to:

Convert prompts into real UI prototypes
Suggest better flows based on heatmap data
Auto-improve accessibility and spacing
Learn from your brand and auto-skin mockups

“…then traditional tools must evolve fast or die.”

Real-world examples show how fast AI is becoming “the designer”:

Uizard can transform hand-drawn wireframes or text prompts into interactive prototypes in minutes.
Galileo AI analyzes user behavior data to recommend optimized navigation flows and layouts.
Relume AI generates entire website components and templates tailored to brand guidelines automatically.

Right now, AI is a feature. In a few years, it could be the whole tool.

Summary

For freelancers, lightweight tools with strong prototyping and easy sharing (like Figma’s free tier) are ideal. Small teams benefit from tools that balance collaboration with cost-effectiveness, such as Figma or Penpot. Enterprises require robust governance, security, and integration features—where Figma Enterprise or Adobe XD’s Creative Cloud integration still shine.

“Figma earned its crown because it solved real collaboration pain, not because it had the best features. Adobe XD is still good, especially for people deep in the Adobe ecosystem. Other tools like Framer and UXPin are now pushing design into design+dev fusion, and AI is starting to walk around.”

Sources:

figma.com adobe.com sketch.com invisionapp.com framer.com uxdesign.cc

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