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wtf is tldraw?

mellson/tldraw — explained in plain English

Analysis updated 2026-07-18 · repo last pushed 2025-06-02

TypeScriptAudience · developerComplexity · 2/5StaleLicenseSetup · easy

TL;DR

A React library that drops an infinite-canvas drawing whiteboard into your web app, handling drawing, shapes, panning, and zooming out of the box.

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((tldraw))
    What it does
      Infinite canvas drawing
      Single React component
      Customizable monorepo
    Tech Stack
      TypeScript
      React
    Use Cases
      Collaborative whiteboards
      Annotate images
      Visual brainstorming
    Licensing
      Free with watermark
      Paid removes branding
    Audience
      Product teams
      Design platforms

Code map

Detail Auto

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filefunction / class

Why would anyone build with this?

REASON 1

Add a drawing whiteboard to a note-taking or brainstorming app with a single React component

REASON 2

Build a design collaboration tool where users sketch and annotate on an infinite canvas

REASON 3

Add visual annotation to an educational or project management product

REASON 4

Customize the underlying tldraw modules to add new drawing tools or colors

What's in the stack?

TypeScriptReact

How it stacks up

mellson/tldraw0xradioac7iv/tempfs7vignesh/pgpulse
Stars—00
LanguageTypeScriptTypeScriptTypeScript
Last pushed2025-06-02——
MaintenanceStale——
Setup difficultyeasymoderatemoderate
Complexity2/53/54/5
Audiencedeveloperdeveloperdeveloper

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you spin it up?

Difficulty · easy Time to first run · 5min

Free tier shows a 'Made with tldraw' watermark, removing it requires a commercial license.

Free and open source to use, but the free tier shows a 'Made with tldraw' watermark that only a paid commercial license removes.

Yoink these prompts

Prompt 1
Show me how to drop a basic tldraw canvas into a React app with a single component
Prompt 2
How do I remove the 'Made with tldraw' watermark, and what does the commercial license cost?
Prompt 3
Help me customize tldraw's drawing tools and colors using its monorepo modules
Prompt 4
Explain how to save and reload a user's tldraw canvas state in my app

Frequently asked questions

wtf is tldraw?

A React library that drops an infinite-canvas drawing whiteboard into your web app, handling drawing, shapes, panning, and zooming out of the box.

What language is tldraw written in?

Mainly TypeScript. The stack also includes TypeScript, React.

Is tldraw actively maintained?

Stale — no commits in 1-2 years (last push 2025-06-02).

What license does tldraw use?

Free and open source to use, but the free tier shows a 'Made with tldraw' watermark that only a paid commercial license removes.

How hard is tldraw to set up?

Setup difficulty is rated easy, with roughly 5min to a first successful run.

Who is tldraw for?

Mainly developer.

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