Quick Comparison Table
| Feature | Bricks (The AI Spreadsheet) | Diagram (AI Design Tools) |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Category | Data Analysis & Reporting | UI/UX & Product Design |
| Core Philosophy | Spreadsheets that build themselves. | Design tools that think with you. |
| AI Capabilities | Formula generation, data cleaning, auto-dashboards. | Text-to-design, AI icon/copy generation, workflow automation. |
| Best For | Data Analysts, PMs, Finance Teams. | UI/UX Designers, Product Designers. |
| Pricing | Free; Teams from $9/user/month. | Integrated into Figma; Plugin-based subscriptions. |
Overview of Each Tool
Bricks is an "AI-first" spreadsheet platform designed to eliminate the manual labor associated with data manipulation and reporting. Unlike traditional spreadsheets like Excel or Google Sheets, Bricks uses natural language processing to help users build complex formulas, clean messy datasets, and generate professional-grade dashboards in seconds. It bridges the gap between raw data and storytelling, allowing users to transform a CSV file into a presentation-ready report without needing advanced technical skills.
Diagram is a suite of AI-powered design utilities—most notably Magician, Genius, and Automator—that integrate directly into Figma. Acquired by Figma in 2023, Diagram focuses on "magical" ways to speed up the product design process. Its tools allow designers to generate unique icons, write UX copy, and even build entire UI components using simple text prompts. The goal of Diagram is to remove the friction from the creative workflow, enabling designers to focus on high-level strategy rather than pixel-pushing.
Detailed Feature Comparison
Data vs. Design Workflow
The fundamental difference between these two tools lies in their environment. Bricks operates in a grid-based environment optimized for numbers, dates, and logic. Its AI acts as a "Data Analyst in a box," capable of understanding a user's intent to "show monthly revenue growth" and instantly generating the necessary pivot tables and charts. In contrast, Diagram lives within the design canvas. Its AI acts as a "Design Companion," offering generative suggestions for layouts, icons, and imagery that fit the specific aesthetic of a Figma project.
AI Implementation
Bricks leverages AI primarily for automation and computation. It features a natural language interface where you can type "Clean this list of emails" or "Predict next month's churn," and the tool executes the underlying logic. It also excels at "Narrative Reporting," where the AI summarizes data trends into written insights. Diagram’s AI is generative and creative. Through its Magician plugin, it can generate SVG icons from text or create placeholder images. Its Genius tool even anticipates a designer’s next move, suggesting UI elements as they work in real-time.
Integrations and Ecosystem
Bricks is built to be the hub for business data, offering integrations with Stripe, SQL databases, and Google Sheets to pull in live data for automated refreshes. This makes it a powerful alternative to heavy BI (Business Intelligence) tools. Diagram, however, is deeply embedded in the Figma ecosystem. Since its acquisition, Diagram’s technology is being woven into Figma’s native AI features, making it the go-to choice for teams already using Figma as their primary design environment.
Pricing Comparison
- Bricks: Offers a generous Free Plan for individuals, which includes unlimited grids and basic AI credits. The Teams Plan starts at approximately $9 per user per month, providing higher AI usage limits, team collaboration features, and advanced data integrations. Enterprise-level pricing is available for organizations requiring custom security and unlimited AI capacity.
- Diagram: Prior to its acquisition, Diagram's tools like Magician were available via separate monthly subscriptions (around $9–$15/month). Currently, much of Diagram’s core technology is being integrated into Figma AI. Users typically access these capabilities through their existing Figma Professional or Organization plans, though some legacy plugins may still carry individual fees.
Use Case Recommendations
Use Bricks if...
- You spend hours every week manually updating charts and reports in Excel or PowerPoint.
- You need to clean large datasets but aren't an expert in complex spreadsheet formulas.
- You want a "live" dashboard that connects to your business data without the cost of Tableau or Power BI.
Use Diagram if...
- You are a UI/UX designer looking to speed up the creation of repetitive assets like icons and copy.
- You want to experiment with AI-generated layouts and components directly within Figma.
- Your team is already standardized on Figma and wants to leverage the latest generative design technology.
Verdict
Comparing Bricks and Diagram is not a matter of which tool is better, but rather which problem you are trying to solve. If your bottleneck is data analysis and reporting, Bricks is the clear winner. It is arguably the most user-friendly AI spreadsheet on the market, turning raw numbers into actionable insights with minimal effort.
However, if your bottleneck is product design and creative execution, Diagram (and the broader Figma AI suite) is the undisputed champion. It brings generative AI into the design canvas in a way that feels intuitive and genuinely "magical." For most modern product teams, these tools are complementary: use Bricks to analyze the metrics and Diagram to design the interface.