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D2lang Review

Worth it

Should I use D2lang?

D2 is a modern DSL that turns text to diagrams. - d2lang.com

· 1 month ago

Buy if your team writes code and wants architecture diagrams that live in version control — it is free and well-regarded. Skip it if you want drag-and-drop diagramming or will not learn a DSL syntax.

Confidence

Medium. Based on ~20 public sources including GitHub, Reddit, Hacker News, and official docs. No review ratings or company-name evidence available.

Ratings

  • Value for money
  • Ease of use
  • Feature depth
  • Support qualityNo support evidence in sources
  • Security postureNo security evidence in sources

Pricing

Free

Open source

ModelNot disclosed
Monthly feesNot disclosed
HardwareNot disclosed
Free tierYes

Best for

  • Dev teams diagramming architecture in Git
  • Docs-as-code workflows
  • Engineers replacing PlantUML or Visio
  • Open-source self-hosters

Not for

  • Non-technical teams wanting drag-and-drop
  • Anyone unwilling to learn diagram syntax
  • Buyers needing paid support SLAs
  • One-off diagrams where a whiteboard suffices

Gotchas - check before you buy

medium

No paid tier means no vendor support — you rely on GitHub issues and community forums.

low

Guess: still pre-v1, so expect occasional syntax changes between releases requiring diagram edits.

low

Searching 'D2' surfaces Diablo II results and forks, complicating docs and hiring.

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Free and open source — no license cost
  • Diagrams live as text, so they version-control and diff cleanly
  • TALA layout engine bundled since v0.9.0
  • VS Code extension catches basic syntax errors while typing
  • Browser playground for trying it before installing

Cons

  • Requires learning a DSL; no drag-and-drop editing
  • CLI must be installed locally for most workflows
  • Confusing 'D2' name, often mixed up with Diablo II tooling
  • Community and donation support only; no enterprise vendor

Sources & method

- 10 sources - No known vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed.

official x4review x4security x1news x1

Key stats

  • Value for money: 5/5

    Rating

  • Free

    Starting price

  • 10

    Sources

  • Analyzed

  • Value for money: 5/5. Completely free, open source
  • Ease of use: 3/5. DSL learning curve; editor tooling helps
  • Feature depth: 4/5. Layers, imports, grids, sequence diagrams, C4
  • Support quality. No support evidence in sources
  • Security posture. No security evidence in sources
  • $0 Starting price Open source; donation-funded
  • Yes Free tier Full language, CLI and layouts, no paywall
  • Non-profit Project status Donation-supported since 2026

Pricing

Open source

Free

  • Full DSL and CLI
  • TALA layout engine included
  • Donation-supported non-profit

Security

No known vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed.

What users say

Users on Reddit and Hacker News praise the diagram output quality while noting the DSL learning curve and the confusing D2 name.

“Holy crap D2 diagrams are impressive”
Reddit, r/selfhosted
“I much prefer d2 https://d2lang.com/ Only downside is ...”
Hacker News
“It's really unfortunate naming this project D2”
Reddit, r/programming

Alternatives

Compare D2lang with each alternative.

  • PlantUML

    Older text-to-diagram standard; huge ecosystem, uglier output.

  • Mermaid

    Guess: renders diagrams natively in Markdown and GitHub.

  • IcePanel

    Visual C4 architecture tool; drag-and-drop, paid.

    D2lang vs IcePanel
Full analysis

Based on ~20 public sources including GitHub, Reddit, Hacker News, and official docs. No review ratings or company-name evidence available.

Free open-source text-to-diagram DSL. Devs love it; non-coders and slide-deck makers should look elsewhere.

Methodology

Based on ~20 public sources including GitHub, Reddit, Hacker News, and official docs. No review ratings or company-name evidence available.

Read how a report is made.

Sources

  1. D2 — GitHub repositorygithub.com
    official
  2. D2 Roadmapd2lang.com
    official
  3. D2 is non-profitd2lang.com
    official
  4. Sponsor D2d2lang.com
    official
  5. D2 product security paged2lang.com
    security
  6. Holy crap D2 diagrams are impressive — r/selfhostedreddit.com
    review
  7. D2: Declarative Diagramming — r/programmingreddit.com
    review
  8. D2 HN launch discussionnews.ycombinator.com
    review
  9. A complete guide to declarative diagramming with D2 — LogRocketblog.logrocket.com
    review
  10. Top 7 diagrams as code tools — IcePanelicepanel.medium.com
    news

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