Scientific Illustration Insights
Tutorials, tool comparisons, and prompt frameworks for researchers creating publication-ready scientific figures.
Articles
3 Minute Thesis Slide: Design Guide (2026)
How to design the single static slide for a Three Minute Thesis, covering the one-idea rule, visual hierarchy, common judging criteria, and what to leave out.
SciFig Team·
Best Free Adobe Illustrator Alternatives for Scientists 2026
Best free Adobe Illustrator alternatives for scientific figures, compared on EPS and PDF export, CMYK, licensing, R and Python plots, and free online options.
SciFig Team·
Applied vs Basic Research: Key Differences
How applied and basic research differ in aim, timeline, funding, and outputs, why the boundary is blurrier than textbooks suggest, and where your work fits.
SciFig Team·
Block Diagram: How to Make One (2026)
How to make a block diagram for a system or process, covering block granularity, signal labelling, feedback loops, and the tools that export publication vector.
SciFig Team·
7 Free Canva Alternatives for Scientific Diagrams (2026)
Free Canva alternatives for scientific diagrams, compared on vector export, template licensing, editability and journal requirements, plus when to keep Canva.
SciFig Team·
Free ChemDraw Alternatives: 7 Tools Compared for 2026
Free ChemDraw alternatives compared on SMILES and MOL support, stereochemistry, reaction schemes, and publication vector export — and which to pick.
SciFig Team·
ColorBrewer Palettes for Scientific Figures
ColorBrewer hex codes for Set2, Dark2, Paired, Blues, RdBu, and RdYlBu, with guidance on picking sequential, diverging, or qualitative for research data.
SciFig Team·
Definition of Terms in Research: How to Write It
How to write the definition of terms section in a thesis or paper, with conceptual versus operational definitions, placement rules, and worked examples.
SciFig Team·
Diagram Software Compared for Research (2026)
Diagram software compared for research: AI-generated, structured and illustrative tools, with export formats, licensing and reproducibility trade-offs.
SciFig Team·
8 Best EdrawMax Alternatives in 2026
EdrawMax alternatives compared on free options, watermark-free export, vector export quality and fit for scientific and engineering diagrams in papers.
SciFig Team·
How to Draw Neural Network Diagrams
How to draw neural network architecture diagrams that reviewers can read, covering layer notation, tensor shapes, common conventions, and tool choices.
SciFig Team·
How to Write a Conceptual Framework
How to write a conceptual framework for a thesis or paper, from identifying variables to diagramming relationships, with a worked example and common mistakes.
SciFig Team·More on scientific figures
SciFig
Free AI Scientific Figure Generator for Illustrations, Images, Charts and Flowcharts
Pricing
View pricing
Tools
Three AI workspaces for figures, charts, and diagrams, plus free tools for every research figure.
Models
Default to GPT Image 2 for journal papers; switch to Nano Banana Pro for slides and posters; pick Nano Banana 2.1 for routine figure work
Tutorials
Seven short walkthroughs of the AI scientific figure generator
Inspiration
Explore publication-ready illustrations, charts and flowcharts. Copy a prompt or open any template as the starting point for your own figure.
The Best Color Palettes for Scientific Figures (2026)
Publication-grade and colorblind-safe color palettes for scientific figures, graphs, pie charts, combo charts, and diagrams, with HEX values.
18 Scientific Poster Examples to Learn From in 2026
18 scientific poster examples across biology, chemistry, medicine, and engineering — plus PhD examples, poster templates, and a poster-maker workflow.
How to Add Figures to a Research Paper
Step-by-step guide to including figures in research papers: placement, captions, DPI, vector formats, and journal-specific rules. Avoid common rejection causes.
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Publication-ready scientific figures, in minutes
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