Adobe debuts free starter plan for Adobe XD, sets up $10M design fund

Adobe is betting on its UI/UX design and prototype solution Adobe XD to be as big as its flagship product Photoshop in the forthcoming future.

To support this vision, the US software giant has launched a free starter plan for Adobe XD to reach out to students, aspiring designers and professionals who are involved in the design process of websites and mobile apps.

Adobe said the starter plan will offer all the functionality of Adobe XD, including the Mac and Windows apps, mobile apps for iOS and Android, and integration with Creative Cloud Libraries to enable users design, prototype and share user experiences with colleagues.

Users will however be restricted to share or collaborate only a single project at a time and will only have 2GB of cloud storage. They will also have access to a limited set of fonts through Typekit.

"The new Starter plan for Adobe XD supports Adobe’s vision to give everyone—from emerging artists to enterprise brands—everything they need to design and deliver exceptional digital experiences and explore the rapidly expanding field of UX design with no financial commitment." said Scott Belsky, chief product officer and executive vice president, Creative Cloud at Adobe.

Adobe said that users can later upgrade to a $9.99 single app monthly plan to get the ability to share unlimited shared prototypes and design specs along with access to unlimited fonts.



Adobe is also setting up a $10 million design fund to build an ecosystem of integrations in its Creative Cloud suite starting with Adobe XD.

The fund will be distributed in the form of grants and equity investments to designers and developers who are building products and services that will help "shape the future of creativity and design."

Vijay Vachani, director, head of partner platform and ecosystem, Adobe Creative Cloud said the fund will focus on individuals and early-stage companies who are either building products for creative and design customers or creating plug-ins and integrations to Adobe applications with a focus on experience design space and Adobe XD.

"We are going to start by focusing on screen design and Adobe XD CC, our all-in-one design and prototyping app, because designers are increasingly crucial to businesses and the needs of design teams are progressing rapidly." Vachani said.

Apart from the financial support, the software giant will also provide access to Adobe and industry experts, free Adobe products, early access to technology, and partnership and marketing opportunities.