WBO is a free, open-source online collaborative whiteboard for art, entertainment, design, and teaching. Multiple people can draw on one large board while connected users see real-time updates. Board state is persisted, and collaboration works by sharing the board URL. The public board is open to everyone and its contents are ephemeral. Private boards can use a random link or custom name; anyone who knows that link or name can access them. WBO runs on the web and can be self-hosted with the official Docker image or directly with Node.js. Self-hosted installations support JSON Web Token authentication and roles that control opening, editing, clearing, and read-only access. The server supports OpenTelemetry metrics, logs, and traces through OTLP exporters. A board preview can be downloaded as SVG, although the renderer is not fully faithful. The project is licensed under AGPL-3.0, and its README directs issue reports and feature proposals to GitHub.
Who it is for
WBO suits groups drawing together for teaching, design, art, or entertainment. Self-hosting and JWT controls also fit operators who want to run and manage their own instance.
What is good
- Real-time simultaneous drawing
- Board state is persisted
- Supports private boards and guest collaboration
- Can be self-hosted with Docker or Node.js
- JWT roles include read-only access
What to know first
- Public board contents are ephemeral
- Private access depends on knowing link or name
- SVG renderer is not fully faithful
- Requires self-hosting for server-level controls
Verdict
WBO provides a free collaborative canvas with URL-based sharing and optional self-hosting. Its persistence, permission controls, and open-source license give teams deployment choices, while public-board content remains temporary.
WBO plans and pricing
All plansCompared on online whiteboard tools
- Free plan
- Yes
- Guest collaboration
- Yes
