Piktochart vs Easel.ly: In-Depth Comparison of Infographic Design Tools
Compare Piktochart vs Easel.ly on features, pricing, and use cases. Piktochart stands out for self-serve visual creation across infographics, reports, and presentations.
Introduction
When comparing Piktochart vs Easel.ly, the biggest difference is product model. Piktochart is a self-serve visual communication platform for creating infographics, reports, presentations, posters, and social media graphics, while Easel.ly emphasizes graphic design services for print, signage, and vehicle wraps.
The numbers make that split clear. Piktochart starts at $14 per month for its Pro plan, with a free plan that includes unlimited visual projects, 50 AI credits, and 2 PNG downloads. Easel.ly promotes unlimited graphic design service starting at $200 per month, with part-time or full-time designer options and a 7-day money back guarantee.
For buyers deciding between software and outsourced design support, that distinction matters more than anything else.
Product Overview
Piktochart
Piktochart is an intuitive tool for creating professional visuals like infographics, reports, and presentations. It is a web-based visual communication platform designed for users with or without design experience, helping them produce professional-looking visuals quickly through templates, customization options, and AI-assisted creation.
Its product range covers:
- Infographics
- Reports
- Presentations
- Posters
- Social media graphics
- Brochures
- Flyers
- Flowcharts
- Graphs
- Maps
- Timelines
- Resumes
Piktochart also offers AI design generation across multiple formats, including AI infographic, AI presentation maker, AI report generator, AI document generator, AI brochure maker, AI graph generator, and AI image generator.
Easel.ly
Easel.ly positions itself around making graphic design easy, with a strong emphasis on signs, print, and vehicle wraps. It offers users the option to create a design or hire a designer, and it highlights unlimited graphic design service with access to part-time or full-time designers.
Its messaging is especially oriented toward:
- Print companies
- Sign companies
- Vehicle wrap companies
Easel.ly states that customers can access over 30 designers with 5+ years of experience, up to 20 hours a day, 6 days a week.
Piktochart vs Easel.ly: Feature Comparison
For teams that want to create visuals themselves, Piktochart is the more expansive content-creation platform. Easel.ly is stronger for businesses that want design work handled as a service, especially in print-oriented environments.
| Feature | Piktochart | Easel.ly |
|---|---|---|
| Primary product model | Web-based visual communication tool for self-serve creation | Graphic design platform with designer-for-hire service |
| Main output types | Infographics, reports, presentations, posters, social media graphics, brochures, flyers, diagrams, flowcharts, maps, timelines, resumes | Signs, print designs, vehicle wraps |
| AI creation tools | AI Design Generator with tools for banners, brochures, business plans, carousels, documents, ebooks, flyers, graphs, images, infographics, presentations, reports, posters, social posts, thumbnails, and timelines | Create a design and hire a designer workflow |
| Templates and formats | All templates and formats included on Free plan | Portfolio includes signage, print, and vehicle wraps |
| Business and team branding | Business plan includes Brand Kit with unlimited brand color schemes, custom fonts, logos, and branded templates | Designer access for production-oriented design work |
| Additional media tools | Video Editor, Screen Recorder, Social Media Video Maker, Video Cropper, Video to Text Converter | Design service focus |
Piktochart vs Easel.ly Pricing
Piktochart offers transparent software-style pricing across several plans. Easel.ly is positioned more like a managed design service, with entry pricing centered on designer access.
| Feature | Piktochart | Easel.ly |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free plan available; paid plans start at $14/month | Pricing starts at $200/month |
| Free option | Free plan with unlimited visual projects, 50 AI credits, 2 PNG downloads, all templates and formats, and 100MB storage | Create your free account |
| Entry paid tier | Pro at $14/month with unlimited PNG downloads, 1000 AI credits, premium icons, illustrations and 3D graphics, transparent background downloads, and 100GB storage | Unlimited graphic design service entry point |
| Higher tier | Business at $24/month with unlimited PNG, PDF, and PPT downloads, 3000 AI credits, Brand Kit, branded templates, and 250GB storage | Part-time or full-time designer options |
| Education offering | Education plan at $39.99 | 7-day money back guarantee |
A buyer choosing Piktochart gets a low-cost entry point: $14 per month for Pro and $24 per month for Business. A buyer choosing Easel.ly is stepping into a service relationship starting at $200 per month, aimed at ongoing design capacity rather than occasional visual creation.
Usage & User Experience
Piktochart
Piktochart is built for users who want to create visuals directly inside a browser-based editor. Its positioning centers on ease of use for people without design experience, which makes it approachable for marketers, educators, internal communications teams, HR, nonprofits, and business users who need quick turnaround on visual content.
The experience is likely to feel closest to a template-first design workflow, with AI support layered in to speed up draft creation and iteration across multiple content types.
Easel.ly
Easel.ly combines a create-your-own option with a stronger push toward hiring a designer. Its workflow is clearly service-led: select a designer, complete a brief, and receive your design. That is a good fit for companies that need external production support and want to scale output without hiring additional in-house staff.
The testimonials and service messaging are heavily tied to production environments where turnaround time, technical print knowledge, and overflow support matter.
Best Use Cases
Choose Piktochart if you need:
- Infographics for business communication or education
- Reports and presentations created in-house
- Social media graphics and visual documents
- AI-assisted design generation across many content formats
- Brand-controlled visual creation for teams
- A lower-cost self-serve Easel.ly alternative
Choose Easel.ly if you need:
- Ongoing outsourced design support
- Signage, print, or vehicle wrap design
- Additional design capacity for a print or sign business
- A service model with designer assignment and briefing workflow
- Access to a larger designer pool without adding staff
Is Piktochart a Good Easel.ly Alternative?
Yes, if your goal is to create visual content yourself rather than outsource the work.
Piktochart is a strong Easel.ly alternative for teams that want direct control over infographics, reports, presentations, and social media visuals at software-level pricing. Easel.ly is better aligned with companies that need external designers to support print, signage, and wrap production.
In short, Piktochart is the better fit for self-serve visual communication, while Easel.ly is the better fit for design-as-a-service.
Who Should Choose Which
Pick Piktochart when:
- Your team wants to design visuals internally
- You need broad format coverage beyond print production
- You value AI design assistance
- You want clear plan-based pricing from free to business tiers
- You need branding controls such as custom fonts, logos, and brand color schemes
Pick Easel.ly when:
- Your business depends on print, signage, or vehicle wraps
- You need overflow design capacity
- You prefer briefing a designer instead of building assets yourself
- You want access to a bench of 30+ designers
- You are evaluating design support in monthly service terms
Conclusion
Piktochart vs Easel.ly is ultimately a comparison between self-serve visual creation and outsourced design support. Piktochart covers a much wider range of business visual formats, includes AI generation tools, and starts at a far lower price point, making it the stronger choice for most teams creating infographics, reports, presentations, and branded content in-house. Easel.ly stands out for companies that need recurring design help in print, signage, and vehicle wrap workflows.
If you want a practical, lower-cost way to create professional visuals yourself, try Piktochart.
FAQ
What is the main difference between Piktochart and Easel.ly?
Piktochart is a web-based tool for creating visual content yourself, including infographics, reports, presentations, posters, and social media graphics. Easel.ly focuses more heavily on graphic design services, especially for signs, print, and vehicle wraps.
Is Piktochart cheaper than Easel.ly?
Yes. Piktochart has a free plan and paid plans starting at $14 per month, while Easel.ly starts at $200 per month. That makes Piktochart much more accessible for individuals and teams that want software rather than managed design services.
Which is better for infographics: Piktochart or Easel.ly?
Piktochart is the stronger choice for infographics. It is specifically positioned around professional infographic creation and also supports reports, presentations, charts, timelines, and other visual communication formats.
Which platform is better for print and signage businesses?
Easel.ly is better aligned with print, signage, and vehicle wrap businesses. Its service model, portfolio focus, and customer messaging all center on supporting production companies with outsourced design capacity.
Does Piktochart include AI tools?
Yes. Piktochart includes an AI Design Generator with tools for content such as infographics, presentations, reports, brochures, documents, graphs, posters, images, and social posts. Its plans also include AI credits, with 50 credits on Free, 1000 on Pro, and 3000 on Business.
Who should use Piktochart as an Easel.ly alternative?
Teams that want to create branded visuals in-house should consider Piktochart as an Easel.ly alternative. It is especially suitable for business communications, education, HR, marketing, nonprofits, and other teams that need fast, professional visual content without relying on a designer-for-hire workflow.