Etione vs Archi: which ArchiMate modeling tool fits your team?

Archi is a free, open-source, MIT-licensed desktop tool for manually modeling ArchiMate 3.2 — the same specification version Etione supports — with a Git-native versioning workflow via its coArchi plugin, but no AI generation and no browser access. Etione is a browser-based AI diagramming editor: describe an architecture in plain language and get an editable ArchiMate 3.2, C4, UML, or BPMN draft to refine, with no local install, at the cost of Archi's zero price tag. Facts verified 2026-09-13; we re-verify competitor claims at least every 90 days.

What Etione supports

What is Archi?

Archi is a free, open-source, cross-platform desktop application for ArchiMate enterprise-architecture modeling, built in Java on the Eclipse Rich Client Platform. It supports the ArchiMate 3.2 specification and is maintained by Phillip Beauvoir and Jean-Baptiste Sarrodie with community contributions.

Does Archi use AI to generate diagrams?

No. Archi is a manual modeling tool — you place every element and relationship yourself on the canvas, and there is no prompt-to-diagram or AI generation feature. Etione generates an editable diagram draft directly from a written requirement.

Can Archi models be version-controlled?

Yes — via coArchi, a free official Archi plugin that splits a model into a folder of per-element XML files so Git can diff and merge it, with commit, push, pull, and in-app conflict resolution built for ArchiMate-specific conflicts. Etione diagrams are edited visually; you can export XML or JSON for storage, but it is not a Git-native diagrams-as-code workflow.

Does Etione support the same ArchiMate version as Archi?

Yes. Both support the ArchiMate 3.2 specification — but Archi covers ArchiMate exclusively, while Etione also covers C4, UML, and BPMN in the same editor.

Is Archi really free?

Yes, fully. Archi is MIT-licensed open source with no paid tier, with the project accepting optional donations. Etione's Community tier is also free; its paid tiers add seats and features beyond a single desktop install.

Can Archi and Etione both automate diagram creation?

Archi has jArchi, a jQuery-style JavaScript scripting API for automating model changes, validation, and report generation. Etione's automation is the prompt-to-diagram generation step itself, not a general scripting API layered on an existing model.