# Zeplin — Design

Zeplin by Zeplin, Inc. holds a panel rating of 2.5/5 from 6 AI judges (category median 2.5/5), as of 2026-11-04. Provenance: provenance unknown; sovereignty: not determined.

- Vendor: Zeplin, Inc. (https://zeplin.io)
- Category: [Design](https://whats-best.ai/software/design.md)
- Provenance (editorial classification): provenance unknown
- Canonical page: https://whats-best.ai/software/design/zeplin
- Alternatives: https://whats-best.ai/software/design/zeplin/alternatives ([markdown](https://whats-best.ai/software/design/zeplin/alternatives.md))
- Data as of: 2026-11-04 · evaluated 2026-11-04 · oldest source captured 2026-11-03

**AI-generated.** Every score, rationale and verdict here is written by a panel of AI judges from public evidence — an analysis, not a hands-on test. Every fact quotes the vendor page it was read from. No score can be bought. How scores are made: https://whats-best.ai/methodology

## At a glance

- Vendor: Zeplin, Inc.
- Headquarters: Not stated on the vendor’s pages as of 3 Nov 2026
- Data hosting: Not stated on the vendor’s pages as of 3 Nov 2026
- Free plan: Not stated on the vendor’s pages as of 3 Nov 2026

## The panel's verdict

Zeplin is a handoff product you publish designs into from Figma, Sketch, Adobe XD or Photoshop. Strongest is collaboration and handoff, scored 7–8: inspect panels auto-generate measurements, assets and platform-tailored code snippets, Connected Components link finalized designs to codebase components, and a documented API with webhooks and integrations including Jira, Storybook, VS Code, Slack and Microsoft Teams. Design and prototyping clusters at 6–7 — global styleguides with parent-child inheritance and JSON design tokens are credited, but we found no public information on a drawing canvas or interactive prototyping. AI and content rights, at 6–7, has unusually plain terms: no training on Customer Data, third-party AI providers contractually barred from training, opt-in features, input and output are Customer Data. Weakest is sovereignty at 0–1: Zeplin, Inc. under California law, data transferred to the United States, personal information may be stored anywhere in the world on Amazon Web Services. Brand asset governance sits at 3–4 and file ownership and portability at 4; no criterion splits by more than a point. On pricing, the captured pages show only "Try for free today".

**Speaks for it:**
- Collaboration and handoff scores 7–8 on inspect panels that auto-generate measurements, assets and platform-tailored code snippets.
- Connected Components link finalized designs to components in the codebase, with code snippets visible during inspection.
- A documented API with webhooks and buildable extensions sits alongside named Jira, Azure DevOps, Storybook, GitHub, VS Code, Slack and Microsoft Teams integrations.
- The AI terms exclude training on Customer Data, contractually bar third-party AI providers from training, keep the features opt-in and treat input and output as the customer's Customer Data.
- Global styleguides with parent-child inheritance hold components, colors, text styles and spacing tokens exportable as JSON, with version diff between published versions.

**Held against it:**
- Sovereignty scores 0–1: the contracting entity is Zeplin, Inc. under California law, data is transferred to the United States, and personal information may be stored anywhere in the world on Amazon Web Services.
- We found no public information on whether guests or reviewers can comment without a paid seat.
- We found no public information on exporting whole projects with their structure or on what happens to files after a downgrade or cancelled contract.
- Brand asset governance scores 3–4, with no public information on locked templates, guidelines published in the tool, or rights and expiry metadata on assets.
- We found no public information on the AI model providers, where AI processing runs, an admin control to switch AI off for an organisation, or any IP indemnity.

**Best for:**
- You hand off finalized designs from Figma, Sketch, Adobe XD or Photoshop to developers who need measurements, assets and platform-tailored code snippets.
- You manage a design system across projects through global styleguides with inheritance and want design tokens exported as JSON.
- You want AI terms in writing: no training on Customer Data, opt-in features, input and output as your Customer Data.
- Your developers work in Jira, Azure DevOps, Storybook, VS Code, Slack or Teams and you want a documented API with webhooks.

**Avoid if:**
- You require EU residency or a European contracting entity — the captured pages show Zeplin, Inc. under California law, transfer of data to the United States, and storage anywhere in the world on Amazon Web Services.
- You need to draw or prototype inside the tool — the documented workflow is publishing in frames made in Figma, Sketch, Adobe XD or Photoshop.
- Your non-designers need locked brand templates or licence and expiry metadata on assets — the documented styleguides hold components, colors, text styles and spacing tokens.
- You need to export whole projects with their structure — the documented exports are design tokens as JSON and React Native code snippets.

## Scores by judge and criterion

Scores out of 5, each judge scoring independently against the published rubric (v2). "n/r" = not rated: the vendor publishes no price, or the judge found no public information on that criterion.

| Criterion | The Product Designer | The Frontend Engineer | The Brand Marketer | The Agency Owner | The Data Protection Officer | The Skeptic |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Design, prototyping & design systems | 3/5 | 3/5 | 3/5 | 3/5 | 3.5/5 | 3/5 |
| Collaboration, review & developer handoff | 4/5 | 3.5/5 | 3.5/5 | 3.5/5 | 4/5 | 3.5/5 |
| Brand assets & governance | 1.5/5 | 2/5 | 1.5/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 |
| Files, formats & portability | 2/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 |
| AI features & rights to the work | 3/5 | 3/5 | 3.5/5 | 3/5 | 3/5 | 3/5 |
| European sovereignty | 0.5/5 | 0/5 | 0.5/5 | 0.5/5 | 0/5 | 0.5/5 |
| Pricing transparency | n/r | n/r | n/r | n/r | n/r | n/r |
| **Weighted verdict** | **3/5** | **2.5/5** | **2.5/5** | **2.5/5** | **2/5** | **2.5/5** |

### The judges

- **The Product Designer** (v1.0): Owns the design system of a B2B software product. Wants components with variants, tokens with modes, prototypes that test a real flow, and library releases that are versioned and reviewable — a design system is a product, not a page of nicely arranged buttons.
- **The Frontend Engineer** (v1.0): Turns the designs into code and gets the ticket when they disagree. Wants an inspect mode without a paid seat, tokens exported in a documented format, components mapped to the code ones, and an API that reads the whole file rather than a screenshot of it.
- **The Brand Marketer** (v1.0): Keeps the brand consistent across twelve sales offices that make their own flyers. Wants locked templates non-designers can use, guidelines inside the tool, licence and expiry dates on every stock image, and a clear answer on whether a generated image may go on a trade-fair stand.
- **The Agency Owner** (v1.0): Runs a design agency of fifteen and hands every project over to the client at the end. Wants files that export with layers and components intact, guests who are not billed as editors, and terms that say the client owns the work — and what happens to it after a cancellation.
- **The Data Protection Officer** (v1.0): Reviews every tool where unreleased products, customer screenshots and employee photos end up. Wants the contracting entity and hosting region named, the AI providers on the subprocessor list, and training on customer files excluded for the whole organisation in the terms — not behind a toggle each user has to find.
- **The Skeptic** (v1.0): Has read "free for viewers", "commercially safe AI" and "export anytime" on every page in this category. Reads instead for the click that turns a reviewer into a billed editor, the plan the IP indemnity actually covers, and whether the export keeps a single component.

## European sovereignty — proven facts

Built only from facts on the vendor's own pages; a dimension we could not prove is left open, never scored as zero. Headline: not determined.

| Dimension | Finding | Points | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Legal entity | Not determined | — | — |
| Hosting location | Not determined | — | — |
| Hosting options | Not determined | — | — |
| Open source | Not determined | — | — |
| Data processing agreement | Not determined | — | — |
| Transfer impact assessment | Not determined | — | — |

## Key facts

Each fact is the vendor's own statement, cited to the source page it was read from ([S*n*] → Sources).

**Compliance**
- AI DPA governs processing: yes [S11]
- Breach notification: yes [S2]
- California disclosure list: 0 · yes · once a year [S2]
- Children: 13 [S2]
- Data sale: yes [S2]
- Dnt: no [S2]
- International transfer US: data transferred to the United States [S2]
- Transfer mechanism: EU · Switzerland · US · EU Standard Contractual Clauses (Decision EU 2021/914) [S2]

**Data**
- Advertising opt out: 0 · yes [S2]
- Portability rights: yes · yes · yes · yes [S2]
- Retention: retained as long as user uses Services or as necessary for stated purposes [S2]
- Sharing employer: Personal Information shared with employer/organization administrators [S2]

**Hosting**
- Provider: Amazon Web Services · processing, data storage and other additional services [S2]
- Region: stored anywhere in the world including US and EU [S2]

**Integrations**
- API webhooks: yes · yes [S1]
- API webhooks: yes · yes [S4]
- API webhooks: yes · yes [S6]
- Code frameworks: React · Vue.js · Angular · Swift · Github · Storybook [S3]
- Collaboration tools: Jira · Azure DevOps · Storybook · VS Code · Slack · Microsoft Teams [S1]
- Design tokens API fetch: fetch tokens via API · yes [S9]
- Design tokens extensions: yes · yes [S1]
- Design tools: Figma · Sketch · Adobe XD · Photoshop [S3]
- Design tools: Figma · Sketch · Adobe XD [S1]
- Dev tools: Jira · Azure DevOps · Storybook · VS Code · Slack · Microsoft Teams [S4]
- Extensions: yes [S4]
- Figma: Figma [S4]
- Figma plugin variants: Zeplin Figma plugin publishes variants, auto-organized by type and state [S3]
- Json design tokens: yes [S4]
- React native extension: https://extensions.zeplin.io/zeplin/react-native · yes [S10]
- Sketch xd: Sketch · Adobe XD [S4]
- Sources of documentation: designs can be linked to documentation sources like Storybook and GitHub [S8]
- Storybook: Storybook integration: link Zeplin components to stories or add them directly from Zeplin into Storybook [S8]
- Workflow: Slack · Microsoft Teams · Jira · VS Code · Zapier [S6]

**Legal**
- Effective date: 2025-08-29 [S2]
- Effective date: 2025-08-29 [S11]
- Entity: Zeplin, Inc. [S2]
- Jurisdiction: California law [S2]
- Terms reference: Privacy Policy incorporated by reference into Zeplin Terms of Service [S2]

**Pricing**
- Free trial: yes [S4]

**Product**
- AI built for handoff: Zeplin AI for reviewing designs and organizing screens [S1]
- AI design review: AI Design Review · AI Organize · yes [S1]
- AI design review: AI Design Review automatically catches layout issues, token mismatches, and typos [S12]
- AI design review custom categories: Custom review categories with custom prompts [S12]
- AI features: certain artificial intelligence features or functionality, opt-in [S2]
- AI feedback training: yes [S11]
- AI no training on customer data: no [S11]
- AI optional: yes [S11]
- AI organize: AI Organize organizes screens with AI [S12]
- AI output non unique: yes [S11]
- AI output not verified: no [S11]
- AI ownership: AI Input and Output are customer's Customer Data [S11]
- Annotations: yes [S1]
- Comments annotations: yes · yes · yes · yes [S6]
- Component highlight colors: green · black · blue [S8]
- Component variants single component: Multiple design tool options become one component in Zeplin with cycleable states [S3]
- Components: yes [S6]
- Connect to code: yes [S1]
- Connected code snippets: Code snippets are visible during component inspection for components connected to code [S8]
- Connected components: components visible on mockups and accessible in codebase [S4]
- Connected components: Connected Components links finalized Zeplin designs to components in the codebase [S8]
- Connected components: yes · . · GitHub · GitLab · Storybook [S6]
- Design inspection: Zeplin auto-generates measurements, assets, and code snippets on inspecting a layer, and allows measuring distances on canvas [S6]
- Design system management: yes [S1]
- Design tokens: automatic generation and management of design tokens from any design tool [S4]
- Design tokens export: zip package · clipboard copy · export colors, text styles and spacing tokens as JSON [S9]
- Design tokens export: yes · yes [S6]
- Design tokens json individual files: individual JSON files · yes · color · text style · spacing [S9]
- Desktop apps: yes · yes [S1]
- Extensions buildable: yes [S6]
- Extensions community: community extensions available at https://extensions.zeplin.io [S6]
- Extensions default: Swift · Attributed Strings · HTML · CSS · XML · Zeplin [S6]
- Global styleguides: centralized styleguide catalog for colors, spacing, text styles and components [S4]
- Highlight components: Highlight Components shows all design components and linked codebase information while inspecting a screen [S8]
- Layout specs: yes [S6]
- Platform capabilities: Document designs · Manage workflows · Scale builds · User flows · Version control · Design systems · Connect to code [S4]
- Publish frames: Publish frames from any design tool to separate ready-for-dev designs from in-progress work [S1]
- React native snippets: React Native code snippets generated across Web, iOS, Android, macOS platforms [S10]
- Requirements pinning: Pin product requirements to each screen [S1]
- Screen variants: yes [S6]
- Screen variants toggle: Designers organize screen variants into a single screen; developers can toggle through variants [S3]
- Storybook integration: yes [S6]
- Styleguides: components · colors · text styles · spacing system · yes · yes · yes [S6]
- Styleguides centralized management: Styleguides let teams share components, text styles, colors and spacing tokens in a centralized location [S8]
- Tailored design specs: yes [S1]
- User flows: document designs · map user flows · track version changes [S1]
- Variants auto organization: Zeplin automatically organizes variants of design components and screens [S3]
- Version diff: yes [S6]
- Version history: Versions feature with version history tracking [S1]
- Workspace: Workspaces for organizations with Authorized Users [S2]

**Subprocessors**
- AI third party restricted: yes [S11]
- Analytics google: Google Analytics · website analytics [S2]
- Analytics mixpanel: Mixpanel, Inc. · product analytics [S2]
- Communication intercom: Intercom · customer communications [S2]
- List URL: https://zeplin.io/subprocessors [S2]
- Payment: Stripe · payment processing [S2]

**Support**
- AI SLA third party exclusion: yes [S11]
- Optout URL: https://support.zeplin.io/en/articles/3413009-opt-out [S2]

## Questions

### Is Zeplin European?

Not determined: the vendor’s pages as captured do not say where Zeplin is based.

### Where does Zeplin store data?

Not stated on the vendor’s pages as of 3 Nov 2026.

### Does Zeplin have a free plan?

Not stated on the vendor’s pages as of 3 Nov 2026.

### What are the best alternatives to Zeplin?

As of 4 Nov 2026, the panel rates [Penpot (3.5/5)](https://whats-best.ai/software/design/penpot), [Sketch (3/5)](https://whats-best.ai/software/design/sketch) and [Collaboard (3/5)](https://whats-best.ai/software/design/collaboard) highest among the other 21 Design products evaluated. Ratings that look equal are rounded to half stars; the order uses the unrounded rating, then the name. The highest-rated European alternative is [Penpot](https://whats-best.ai/software/design/penpot) (EU-Made). Ratings are the AI panel’s opinion, formed from public evidence: [how scores are made](https://whats-best.ai/methodology#ordering). The full list, with European products first: [Zeplin alternatives](https://whats-best.ai/software/design/zeplin/alternatives).

## What this page leaves out

- 15 product facts could not be confirmed on the vendor’s page as captured and were left out of this page and of the panel’s material.
- 1 integrations fact could not be confirmed on the vendor’s page as captured and was left out of this page and of the panel’s material.
- 1 pricing fact could not be confirmed on the vendor’s page as captured and was left out of this page and of the panel’s material.
- 1 sovereignty dimension could not be confirmed on the vendor’s own pages and is shown as unknown.

## Sources

- [S1] Vendor page: https://zeplin.io (checked 2026-11-03)
- [S2] Privacy policy — found from the homepage: https://zeplin.io/privacy/ (checked 2026-11-03)
- [S3] Design, prototyping & design systems — found from sitemap: https://zeplin.io/features/variants/ (checked 2026-11-03)
- [S4] Design, prototyping & design systems — found from sitemap: https://zeplin.io/features/design-system/ (checked 2026-11-03)
- [S5] Collaboration, review & developer handoff — found from sitemap: https://support.zeplin.io/en/collections/3666013-collaboration (checked 2026-11-03)
- [S6] Collaboration, review & developer handoff — found from sitemap: https://support.zeplin.io/en/articles/6577298-getting-started-with-zeplin-for-developers (checked 2026-11-03)
- [S7] Brand assets & governance — found from sitemap: https://support.zeplin.io/en/collections/1693612-global-styleguides (checked 2026-11-03)
- [S8] Brand assets & governance — found from sitemap: https://support.zeplin.io/en/articles/6398304-advantages-of-using-styleguides (checked 2026-11-03)
- [S9] Files, formats & portability — found from sitemap: https://support.zeplin.io/en/articles/5160298-exporting-design-tokens (checked 2026-11-03)
- [S10] Files, formats & portability — found from sitemap: https://support.zeplin.io/en/articles/772784-exporting-react-native-code-snippets (checked 2026-11-03)
- [S11] AI features & rights to the work — found from sitemap: https://zeplin.io/terms/ai/ (checked 2026-11-03)
- [S12] AI features & rights to the work — found from sitemap: https://support.zeplin.io/en/collections/15186378-ai-powered-features (checked 2026-11-03)

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Cite as: whats-best.ai, "Zeplin — Design", AI panel analysis, as of 2026-11-04. https://whats-best.ai/software/design/zeplin

Corrections: https://whats-best.ai/correct/1403?target=page