lint vs Make Real Tldraw
Side-by-side comparison of features, pricing, and ratings
At a glance
| Dimension | lint | Make Real Tldraw |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free (open-source) | Free (bring your own model API key) |
| What it is | @shadcn/lint — an ESLint/Oxlint plugin for Tailwind design-system rules | A Tldraw canvas app that turns sketches into clickable HTML/CSS/JS |
| Core mechanism | Contract-based lint rules (pattern/allow/deny) producing agent-readable fix messages | Select canvas shapes → Make Real → model generates a prototype |
| Input | Tailwind v4 + shadcn/ui codebases | Hand-drawn shapes, text and arrows on a canvas |
| Output | Lint errors with suggested fixes drawn from your components, variants and theme | Rendered clickable prototype plus copyable HTML/CSS/JS |
| Model / integrations | ESLint, Oxlint, Tailwind CSS v4, shadcn/ui | OpenAI, Anthropic, Google via your own API key |
An agent-first ESLint and Oxlint plugin that turns Tailwind design-system violations into fix instructions a coding agent can act on.
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Sketch a UI on a canvas, click Make Real, and get clickable HTML/CSS/JS — a free experiment from the Tldraw team.
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The two tools differ in kind, not degree. @shadcn/lint is a repo-level linter built on a contract model: you declare what your design system allows, and rules such as shadcn/no-restyle take per-component contracts with pattern, allow and deny lists — so CardTitle can change typography while CardContent changes spacing. shadcn/no-arbitrary-values keeps classes on your theme's spacing scale. The differentiator is that error messages are instructions: they name the violation and point at a fix drawn from your components, variants and theme, with custom messages and contracts attaching your design system's own guidance. It ships as both an ESLint and an Oxlint integration, targets Tailwind v4 with no rewrite, and shadcn/ui is not required to adopt it. Make Real Tldraw is a canvas tool on the Tldraw engine: draw with shapes, text and arrows, select what you want converted, click Make Real, and get a rendered clickable preview plus copyable HTML/CSS/JS. You bring your own key and switch between OpenAI, Anthropic and Google, with an editable system prompt. It has no component library, no design-system enforcement and no multi-page or data-driven output. One constrains code that exists; the other drafts UI that doesn't.
Pricing compared
Both are free, but 'free' means different things here. @shadcn/lint is open-source and installed as a repo-level linter through an agent-oriented setup prompt that reads SETUP.md and installs @shadcn/lint — there is no hosted service, dashboard or CI product, and no per-seat cost, so the cost of adoption is your time encoding design-system rules you've already defined. Make Real Tldraw is a free browser experiment from the Tldraw team, but generation runs on your own account: you supply an API key for whichever provider you use (OpenAI, Anthropic or Google) and pick a named model in the settings panel, so your real spend is token usage billed by that provider, not by Tldraw. Neither tool gates features behind a paid tier in the data provided. The practical budget question is therefore inverted: lint costs engineering hours up front and scales free across the team, while Make Real costs nothing to open but meters every sketch you generate. If you have no model API access, Make Real is effectively unusable regardless of price.
Who should pick which
- Frontend team running coding agents on Tailwind v4Pick: lint
Contract rules plus agent-readable fix messages mean agent-written UI stays on your components, variants and theme scale instead of drifting into arbitrary values.
- Design system maintainerPick: lint
Per-component contracts with pattern, allow and deny lists turn prose guidelines into enforceable rules — and it works whether or not you use shadcn/ui.
- UI/UX designer sketching a layout ideaPick: Make Real Tldraw
Draw shapes, text and arrows on the Tldraw canvas, select them, click Make Real and get a clickable prototype you can show immediately.
- Product manager visualizing a concept in a meetingPick: Make Real Tldraw
The canvas-to-prototype loop is fast enough to run live, and the editable system prompt lets you steer the output's style mid-session.
- Team on Tailwind v3 or with no design system definedPick: Make Real Tldraw
lint explicitly targets Tailwind v4 and assumes rules exist to encode — until both are true, the sketch-to-code tool is the one that does something for you today.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use both together?
Yes, and they don't overlap. Sketch a layout in Make Real Tldraw to get HTML/CSS/JS, paste it into your Tailwind v4 repo, then let @shadcn/lint flag the classes that violate your component contracts and theme spacing scale. One drafts, the other disciplines.
Does Make Real Tldraw need my own API key?
Yes. The settings panel covers OpenAI, Anthropic and Google, and generation runs on your account, with a model picker and an editable system prompt you can reset. Without provider API access, the tool has nothing to generate with.
Is @shadcn/lint only for shadcn/ui users?
No. shadcn/ui is not required to adopt the linter, and the contract model is yours to define — but it does require Tailwind v4 and a design system with rules worth encoding.
Do either of these need a hosted account?
No. lint is a repo-level integration for ESLint and Oxlint with no dashboard or CI product, and Make Real runs in the browser against your own provider key. Neither has a seat-based plan to manage.
Can Make Real Tldraw build a production app?
It is positioned as an experiment, and its output is a single clickable prototype with copyable code — not multi-page or data-driven interfaces, and with no shared design file, versioning or review workflow. Treat it as a starting sketch, not a release.
How does setup differ?
lint ships an agent-oriented setup prompt that reads SETUP.md and installs @shadcn/lint into your project. Make Real requires no install at all — you open it and pick a provider key and model.
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Last reviewed: September 29, 2026