excalidraw-ai

Generate Excalidraw diagrams by writing JSON directly. No templates needed - you have full control over every element.

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when you need to:

• Create architecture diagrams, flowcharts, or mind maps
• Visualize system designs, data flows, or processes
• Generate diagrams from code analysis or documentation
• Create custom diagrams with precise control over layout and styling

Excalidraw JSON Schema

An Excalidraw file is a JSON object with this structure:

{
  "type": "excalidraw",
  "version": 2,
  "source": "https://excalidraw.com",
  "elements": [ /* array of element objects */ ],
  "appState": {
    "viewBackgroundColor": "#ffffff",
    "gridSize": null
  },
  "files": {}
}

Element Types

Rectangle

{
  "id": "unique-id-1",
  "type": "rectangle",
  "x": 100,
  "y": 100,
  "width": 200,
  "height": 100,
  "strokeColor": "#1971c2",
  "backgroundColor": "#a5d8ff",
  "fillStyle": "solid",
  "strokeWidth": 2,
  "strokeStyle": "solid",
  "roughness": 1,
  "opacity": 100,
  "groupIds": [],
  "angle": 0,
  "seed": 12345,
  "isDeleted": false
}

Ellipse

{
  "id": "unique-id-2",
  "type": "ellipse",
  "x": 100,
  "y": 100,
  "width": 150,
  "height": 100,
  "strokeColor": "#7c3aed",
  "backgroundColor": "#ede9fe",
  "fillStyle": "solid",
  "strokeWidth": 2,
  "roughness": 1
}

Diamond

{
  "id": "unique-id-3",
  "type": "diamond",
  "x": 100,
  "y": 100,
  "width": 120,
  "height": 120,
  "strokeColor": "#dc2626",
  "backgroundColor": "#fee2e2",
  "fillStyle": "solid"
}

Text

{
  "id": "unique-id-4",
  "type": "text",
  "x": 110,
  "y": 140,
  "width": 180,
  "height": 25,
  "text": "Your Label Here",
  "fontSize": 20,
  "fontFamily": 1,
  "textAlign": "center",
  "verticalAlign": "middle",
  "strokeColor": "#1e1e1e",
  "backgroundColor": "transparent"
}

Arrow

{
  "id": "unique-id-5",
  "type": "arrow",
  "x": 300,
  "y": 150,
  "width": 100,
  "height": 50,
  "strokeColor": "#1971c2",
  "strokeWidth": 2,
  "points": [[0, 0], [100, 50]],
  "startBinding": {
    "elementId": "source-element-id",
    "focus": 0.5,
    "gap": 5
  },
  "endBinding": {
    "elementId": "target-element-id",
    "focus": 0.5,
    "gap": 5
  },
  "startArrowhead": null,
  "endArrowhead": "arrow"
}

Line

{
  "id": "unique-id-6",
  "type": "line",
  "x": 100,
  "y": 100,
  "width": 200,
  "height": 0,
  "strokeColor": "#868e96",
  "strokeWidth": 1,
  "points": [[0, 0], [200, 0]],
  "startArrowhead": null,
  "endArrowhead": null
}

Element Properties Reference

Property	Type	Description
id	string	Unique identifier (use UUID or similar)
type	string	rectangle, ellipse, diamond, text, arrow, line
x, y	number	Position coordinates
width, height	number	Dimensions
strokeColor	string	Border/stroke color (hex)
backgroundColor	string	Fill color (hex) or "transparent"
fillStyle	string	"solid", "hachure", "cross-hatch"
strokeWidth	number	Line thickness (1, 2, 4)
strokeStyle	string	"solid", "dashed", "dotted"
roughness	number	0 = sharp, 1 = normal, 2 = sketchy
opacity	number	0-100
angle	number	Rotation in radians
groupIds	array	Group element IDs together
seed	number	Random seed for hand-drawn effect

Text Properties

Property	Type	Description
text	string	The text content
fontSize	number	Font size in pixels
fontFamily	number	1 = Virgil (hand-drawn), 2 = Helvetica, 3 = Cascadia
textAlign	string	"left", "center", "right"
verticalAlign	string	"top", "middle"

Arrow Properties

Property	Type	Description
points	array	Array of [x, y] coordinates relative to element origin
startBinding	object	Connection to source element
endBinding	object	Connection to target element
startArrowhead	string	null, "arrow", "bar", "dot", "triangle"
endArrowhead	string	null, "arrow", "bar", "dot", "triangle"

Color Palette Reference

Component-Based Colors (Recommended for Architecture Diagrams)

Component Type	Stroke	Background	Use For
Database	#7c3aed	#ede9fe	PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB
Cache	#dc2626	#fee2e2	Redis, Memcached
Queue	#16a34a	#dcfce7	Kafka, RabbitMQ, SQS
Load Balancer	#0891b2	#cffafe	Nginx, HAProxy, ALB
Gateway	#475569	#f1f5f9	API Gateway, Kong
CDN	#06b6d4	#e0f2fe	CloudFront, Fastly
Auth	#e11d48	#ffe4e6	OAuth, IAM, Cognito
Storage	#d97706	#fef3c7	S3, Blob Storage
Service	#2563eb	#dbeafe	Backend services, APIs
Container	#0284c7	#bae6fd	Docker, Kubernetes
Function	#f59e0b	#fef3c7	Lambda, Serverless
Monitoring	#84cc16	#ecfccb	Prometheus, Grafana
Web App	#4f46e5	#e0e7ff	React, Vue, Frontend
Mobile	#6366f1	#eef2ff	iOS, Android

Theme Colors

Modern (Default)

• Primary: #1971c2 / #e7f5ff
• Neutral: #64748b / #f1f5f9

Sketchy (Hand-drawn)

• Primary: #495057 / #f8f9fa
• Use roughness: 2 and fontFamily: 3

Technical

• Primary: #2f9e44 / #ebfbee
• Use strokeStyle: "dashed" for connections

Icon Libraries (305 Components Total)

Professional icons are available in .excalidrawlib files in the assets/ directory:

Library	Components	Content
aws-architecture-icons.excalidrawlib	248	AWS service icons (Lambda, S3, EC2, RDS, DynamoDB, SQS, etc.)
system-design.excalidrawlib	24	System design elements (server, database, storage, etc.)
drwnio.excalidrawlib	18	Draw.io style icons
system-design-template.excalidrawlib	8	Pre-built templates (steps, flow, db, etc.)
software-architecture.excalidrawlib	7	Software architecture components

Using Library Components

Library files contain element arrays that can be embedded directly into your diagram. Each library item is an array of Excalidraw elements that form a component.

To use: Parse the library JSON, find the component you need, adjust positions, and include in your diagram's elements array.

Layout Guidelines

Architecture Diagram Layout

Organize components in layers (top to bottom):

Layer 1: Client/External (y: 100)
Layer 2: Edge/CDN (y: 280)
Layer 3: Gateway/Load Balancer (y: 460)
Layer 4: Services (y: 640)
Layer 5: Data/Cache (y: 820)
Layer 6: Infrastructure (y: 1000)

Spacing recommendations:

• Horizontal spacing between components: 240px
• Vertical spacing between layers: 180px
• Component width: 180-220px
• Component height: 80-100px

Flowchart Layout

Arrange left-to-right or top-to-bottom:

• Step spacing: 200px
• Use rectangles for processes
• Use diamonds for decisions
• Use ellipses for start/end

Mind Map Layout

Radial layout from center:

• Center node at (400, 300)
• Child nodes at radius 250px
• Distribute evenly using angle calculations

Complete Example

{
  "type": "excalidraw",
  "version": 2,
  "source": "https://excalidraw.com",
  "elements": [
    {
      "id": "api-gateway",
      "type": "rectangle",
      "x": 100,
      "y": 100,
      "width": 180,
      "height": 80,
      "strokeColor": "#475569",
      "backgroundColor": "#f1f5f9",
      "fillStyle": "solid",
      "strokeWidth": 2,
      "roughness": 0,
      "opacity": 100,
      "groupIds": ["group-1"],
      "seed": 1234
    },
    {
      "id": "api-gateway-label",
      "type": "text",
      "x": 140,
      "y": 130,
      "width": 100,
      "height": 25,
      "text": "API Gateway",
      "fontSize": 16,
      "fontFamily": 1,
      "textAlign": "center",
      "strokeColor": "#1e1e1e",
      "groupIds": ["group-1"]
    },
    {
      "id": "redis",
      "type": "diamond",
      "x": 100,
      "y": 280,
      "width": 180,
      "height": 100,
      "strokeColor": "#dc2626",
      "backgroundColor": "#fee2e2",
      "fillStyle": "solid",
      "strokeWidth": 2,
      "roughness": 0,
      "seed": 5678
    },
    {
      "id": "redis-label",
      "type": "text",
      "x": 155,
      "y": 320,
      "width": 70,
      "height": 20,
      "text": "Redis",
      "fontSize": 16,
      "fontFamily": 1,
      "textAlign": "center",
      "strokeColor": "#1e1e1e"
    },
    {
      "id": "arrow-1",
      "type": "arrow",
      "x": 190,
      "y": 180,
      "width": 0,
      "height": 100,
      "strokeColor": "#64748b",
      "strokeWidth": 2,
      "points": [[0, 0], [0, 100]],
      "startBinding": {"elementId": "api-gateway", "focus": 0.5, "gap": 5},
      "endBinding": {"elementId": "redis", "focus": 0.5, "gap": 5},
      "endArrowhead": "arrow"
    }
  ],
  "appState": {
    "viewBackgroundColor": "#ffffff",
    "gridSize": null
  },
  "files": {}
}

Output

Save your diagram as a .excalidraw or .json file. It can be:

• Imported directly into excalidraw.com
• Embedded in documentation or web apps
• Converted to PNG/SVG using Excalidraw's export features

Tips for AI Agents

1. Generate unique IDs: Use UUIDs or sequential IDs for each element
2. Group related elements: Use groupIds to keep shapes and their labels together
3. Use bindings for arrows: Connect arrows to elements using startBinding and endBinding
4. Apply consistent styling: Use the color palette for component types
5. Calculate text positions: Center text within shapes by adjusting x/y based on text length
6. Set seed values: Use seed: hash(id) for consistent hand-drawn rendering