Free, open-source grid plugin for designers and creators: column, modular and baseline grids, golden ratio and composition guides, magazine page layouts, social media safe zones, and one-click snap-to-grid.
Download · Grid types · Magazine layouts · Clean-up tools · Features · FAQ · PortableStudio (brand guidelines)
PortableGrid is a free Adobe Illustrator grid plugin and Photoshop guides extension. Set up columns, rows, gutters and margins (or pick one of 33 presets, or build a harmonious grid from your text size), see a live preview, and draw the grid as guides, cells, lines or artboards. Then let it do the tedious part: build magazine pages on the grid, snap messy objects onto it, score how clean your layout is, and mark where Instagram, TikTok and YouTube buttons will cover your design.
It's a free, open-source alternative to paid guide and grid plugins: no subscription, no account, and it works in both Illustrator and Photoshop.
| Platform | File | Install |
|---|---|---|
| Windows 10/11 | PortableGrid-setup.exe |
Run the installer (no admin rights needed) |
| macOS (Intel & Apple silicon) | PortableGrid.pkg |
Open the package and follow the steps |
| Any ZXP installer | PortableGrid.zxp |
Signed Adobe extension |
Then restart Illustrator/Photoshop and open Window › Extensions › PortableGrid (Photoshop: Window › Extensions (Legacy)). Requires Illustrator 2021+ and/or Photoshop 2021+.
| Layout grids | Composition guides | Drawing grids |
|---|---|---|
| Column grid: any number of columns, gutters and margins | Rule of thirds | Square grid (graph paper, 8pt grid) |
| Modular grid: columns × rows of cells | Phi grid (golden sections) | Dot grid |
| Baseline grid for type, with offset | Golden spiral (flip to any corner) | Isometric grid (30°) |
Hierarchical grid: uneven tracks like 2fr 1fr or 240px auto |
Golden triangles | Triangle grid (60°) |
| Manuscript grid and the Van de Graaf canon | Harmonic armature and diagonals | Hexagon grid |
| Fixed-width web containers (Bootstrap 1320 px, 12 / 8 / 4 columns) | Centre cross | |
| Facing pages: margins mirror on every second artboard |
Pick a layout and PortableGrid builds the page on your grid in Illustrator: image frames, a kicker,
headline, standfirst, threaded body columns, captions, pull quotes, running heads and page numbers
on the outside edges of facing pages, and full-bleed images that never cross the spine. Every text frame
puts its first baseline on the baseline grid, and everything is styled with editable PG paragraph
styles, so changing one style restyles the whole magazine.
Layouts: article, feature opener, spread (image left, story right), news page, photo grid and cover (masthead, full-bleed image, cover lines).
- Harmonious grid from one number. Type your body text size: baseline, margins, gutters and rows are derived from it and locked to the baseline, the Swiss-grid method in one click.
- Snap to grid. Select messy objects and click Snap: edges move to the nearest columns and rows, text snaps its first baseline to the baseline grid. Move & resize also fits objects to whole columns.
- Grid check. Scores how much of your page sits on the grid ("80% on grid") and outlines everything that doesn't, a design QA pass before you send work to a client.
- Type styles on the grid. Paragraph styles from a modular type scale (minor third to golden ratio) whose leading is always a whole number of baselines.
Presets for Instagram Story and Reels, TikTok, YouTube Shorts, the YouTube thumbnail and channel banner, and the Instagram 4:5 profile-grid crop. One click adds an artboard (or a Photoshop document) at the right size and marks where profile bars, captions and buttons will cover your design. Platforms change their apps, so treat the zones as a close guide.
- Live preview of the grid on your artboard, canvas or selection, updated as you type.
- Any unit in any field:
20,20px,5mm,12pt,0.5inor10%. - Draw it your way: guides, coloured cells, styled lines (colour, weight, opacity) or, in Illustrator, everything as guides. Grids go on their own layer and can be cleared or replaced in one click.
- Where you need it: the active artboard, all artboards, the selection, or each selected object.
- Artboard per cell (Illustrator): turn a grid into artboards for carousels, social posts or contact sheets.
- Arrange into cells (Illustrator): drop selected images or objects into the grid, fit, fill and crop, or stretch.
- Split into tiles (Illustrator): cut artwork into clipped tiles, with gutters as gaps.
- Export tiles as numbered PNG/JPEG files: perfect for Instagram 3 × 3 profile grids and seamless carousels.
- Lock rows to the baseline grid so text lines up across every module.
- Drag to adjust: drag the margins or a gutter in the live preview.
- Your guide colour: pick the colour of guides and margins (sets Illustrator's guide colour), or draw them as coloured lines so every grid keeps its own colour.
- Grids live in your document: settings are saved with the file, each artboard can have its own grid, and grids redraw themselves when you resize an artboard.
- One undo removes a whole grid or layout.
- Your own content in layouts: paste or load an article, pick a folder of images, or use a PortableStudio brand's fonts, copy and photos. Text that doesn't fit is flagged with a red +.
- Keyboard shortcuts in the panel, plus Toggle grid, Snap and Grid check in Illustrator's File › Scripts menu.
- Share presets with your team: export and import preset files.
- Update notice when a new version is out (can be turned off).
- 33 presets for web, print, editorial, composition, drawing, creator and social layouts, plus your own saved presets.
- Pick a preset, build a harmonious grid from your text size, or set margins, columns, rows, a baseline, a drawing grid or composition guides.
- Choose where to draw: active artboard, all artboards, selection or each selected object.
- Draw grid. Change anything and draw again: the previous grid is replaced. Clear removes it.
- Design on it: build a page layout, snap objects to the grid, and run Grid check before you export.
git clone https://github.com/vicenet/PortableGrid.git
cd PortableGrid
powershell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File scripts\dev-install.ps1 # Windows
sh scripts/dev-install.sh # macOS
npm test
npm run package # release builds in dist/Plain JavaScript (Adobe CEP panel) and ExtendScript, with no dependencies. See docs/SIGNING.md
for signed installers and docs/ADOBE-EXCHANGE.md for the Adobe Exchange listing. The grid maths lives in
core/grid.js and is fully tested. Releases are built by GitHub Actions: pushing a v* tag
builds the Windows .exe and macOS .pkg.
index.html, css/, js/ Panel UI and live preview
core/grid.js Layout engine: tracks, baselines, drawing grids, composition guides, safe zones
core/layouts.js Magazine page layouts on a grid
host/ ExtendScript for Illustrator / Photoshop
config/presets.json Built-in presets
installer/ Windows (Inno Setup) and macOS (pkgbuild) installers
Is PortableGrid free? Yes. It's free and open source under GPL-3.0, for personal and commercial work.
How is it different from Illustrator's "Split into Grid" or Photoshop's "New Guide Layout"? Those make simple equal grids. PortableGrid adds baseline grids, uneven (hierarchical) columns, golden ratio and composition guides, isometric, hexagon and dot grids, facing pages, presets, a live preview, and works the same in both apps.
Can I use it for Instagram grids and carousels? Yes. Use the Instagram presets, then Export tiles to save each square or slide as a numbered image ready to post.
Can it make magazine layouts? Yes, in Illustrator: set up a grid with a baseline (or use the Magazine spread preset), then Page layouts › Build layout. Text is threaded, aligned to the baseline grid and styled with paragraph styles you can edit. For long documents with many pages, InDesign is still the better tool.
Does it change my artwork? Drawing a grid only adds a PortableGrid layer (Illustrator) or guides and
PortableGrid layers (Photoshop). Arrange and Split change the selected artwork, and can be undone.
Why does Windows/macOS warn when installing? The installers aren't signed with paid developer certificates yet. They're built by GitHub Actions from this public source code.
GPL-3.0. Privacy: no account, no tracking. Found a security problem? See SECURITY.md. PortableGrid is an independent project, not affiliated with Adobe. Illustrator and Photoshop are trademarks of Adobe Inc.
Also by the same author: PortableStudio, a free brand guidelines generator for Illustrator and Photoshop.
⭐ If PortableGrid saves you time, star the repo. It helps other designers find it.