Compare the Top Free CAD Software as of October 2026

What is Free CAD Software?

Computer-Aided Design (CAD) software is software used by engineers, architects, and designers to create precise 2D and 3D models. It enables users to design, visualize, and simulate their projects with high accuracy, facilitating efficient prototyping and problem-solving. CAD software supports a variety of industries, including manufacturing, construction, and product design, by offering features like parametric modeling, rendering, and automated drafting. Its intuitive interfaces and integration with other engineering tools make it a cornerstone of modern design workflows. By streamlining the design process, CAD software helps reduce development time, improve collaboration, and bring innovative ideas to life. Compare and read user reviews of the best Free CAD software currently available using the table below. This list is updated regularly.

  • 1
    SkyCiv Structural 3D

    SkyCiv Structural 3D

    SkyCiv Engineering

    SkyCiv Structural 3D is a cloud-based Structural Analysis software that allows users to model, analyze and design complex 3D structures. It is completely online; requiring no installation to use. SkyCiv Structural 3D offers the very best in online structural analysis. It includes the following: - Powerful Analysis: Linear, P-Delta, Cables, Buckling, Plates, Frequency, RS - Integrated Design checks for steel, wood, connections, foundations, wind (AISC, NSD, AISI, EN, AS, CSA, BS plus more...)
    Starting Price: $79/month/user
  • 2
    Designcenter Solid Edge
    Designcenter Solid Edge is a Siemens product development portfolio that provides tools for mechanical design, electrical design, simulation, manufacturing, technical publications, data management, and collaboration. It combines the speed of direct modeling with the control of parametric design through synchronous technology. The software helps teams create 2D drawings, 3D models, electrical systems, simulations, manufacturing outputs, 3D printing workflows, and technical documentation. Designcenter Solid Edge is designed to be affordable, easy to learn, and scalable for different product development needs. It supports faster design changes, reuse of supplier CAD parts, realistic 3D modeling, and collaboration across engineering and manufacturing teams. With its complete portfolio of connected tools, Designcenter Solid Edge helps companies bring better products to market more efficiently.
    Starting Price: $75/month/user
  • 3
    Pointcarré

    Pointcarré

    Pointcarre Textile Software

    Pointcarre is a professional textile CAD software running natively on both Mac and PC in a single application. It covers Jacquard and dobby weaving, digital, rotary and screen printing, jersey knitting, tufting and carpet design, plus 3D mapping to visualize fabrics on photographs. The software includes over 4,000 weave structures and free Pantone, ColorCSI and Archroma color libraries. It connects directly to industrial looms (Stäubli, Bonas, Itema, Picanol, Dornier), tufting machines (CMC, Tuftco, Vandewiele) and knitting machines (Stoll, Karl Mayer). Pointcarre is the only textile CAD with built-in AI and was the first to integrate it, with Design Maker generating patterns from an inspiration image to match the designer's style, Repeat Maker for automatic seamless repeats and AI Upscaling for resolution enhancement. Exclusive features include Jacquard Maker and Natural Blend Color simulation. Support and online training available through Pointcarre Academy.
    Starting Price: $3000/user/year
  • 4
    nanoCAD

    nanoCAD

    Nanosoft

    nanoCAD is a modern computer-aided design (CAD) platform that provides designers with powerful capabilities in 2D drafting and 3D modeling. nanoCAD can be used on its own as a cost-effective DWG-editor, or customized with essential modules: Construction, Mechanica, Raster, Topoplan and 3D Solid Modeling. 2D drawings and 3D solid models with 2D and 3D parametric constraints, and dynamic UCS for effortless sketching on 3D faces. Documentation drawings link to 3D models. Fully DWG compatible.
    Starting Price: $180.00/year/user
  • 5
    Canvas

    Canvas

    Occipital

    The new power tool for home improvement. Fast, easy, mobile 3D scanning for home service pros and DIY warriors. Powered by the world’s first mobile depth sensor, the Structure Sensor, Canvas makes capturing a 3D model of a room delightfully easy. Simply tap scan, walk around the room, and watch as a scale-accurate model is built in real-time, right on your iPad. No more busting out the measuring tape and converting scribbles into floor plans later – Canvas captures tens of thousands of measurements all at once, and then pieces it together into an interactive 3D model. Your 3D model is saved on your iPad, so you can go back and revisit any space, at any time. Whether you just need to refresh your memory of a given viewpoint or capture a forgotten measurement, you're never more than a few taps away. Save hours with professional-grade CAD output. With our Scan To CAD service, we’ll convert your scan into an editable, professional-grade, CAD file.
    Starting Price: $10
  • 6
    Onshape
    Onshape is a cloud-native CAD and PDM system designed to help product development teams design, collaborate, and manage data from any device. It runs in a browser or mobile app, eliminating the need for installations, upgrades, or local hardware requirements. The platform includes professional CAD tools, built-in product data management, real-time collaboration, branching and merging, version control, and a complete audit trail. Onshape helps teams avoid common desktop CAD issues such as crashes, corrupted files, file syncing problems, and outdated software versions. It supports distributed engineering teams by allowing users to work securely from different locations without emailing files or managing duplicate copies. With frequent updates, education options, startup programs, and integrations such as the Onshape Altium Connector, Onshape gives designers and manufacturers a modern way to build products faster.
    Starting Price: $125.00/month/user
  • 7
    RFEM

    RFEM

    Dlubal Software

    The FEA program RFEM allows for quick and easy modeling, structural and dynamic calculation, as well as the design of models with member, plate, wall, folded plate, shell, and solid elements. Due to the modular software concept, you can connect the main program RFEM with the corresponding add‑ons in order to meet your individual requirements. The structural analysis program RFEM provides structural engineers with a 3D FEA program that meets all requirements in modern civil engineering. Efficient data input and intuitive handling facilitate the modeling of simple and complex structures. The structural analysis program RFEM is the basis of a modular software system. The basic program RFEM is used to define structures, materials, and loads for planar and spatial structural systems consisting of plates, walls, shells, and members. The program also allows you to create combined structures as well as model solid and contact elements.
    Starting Price: €697.50 rent 1 month
  • 8
    HydroCAD

    HydroCAD

    HydroCAD Software Solutions

    HydroCAD Stormwater Modeling provides easy TR-20, TR-55, SBUH, and Rational hydrology, plus TC calculations, pond storage, outlet hydraulics, pump routing, underground storage, pollutant loading, and more. Special features include direct CAD import, dam breach routing, skimmers, tubes, siphons, local rainfall data import, and a constantly expanding chamber library. Interactive graphical environment is fast and intuitive, producing better results in less time on every project.
    Starting Price: $295.00
  • 9
    OnScale Solve
    OnScale is the first Cloud Engineering Simulation platform. It combines powerful multiphysics solver technology with the limitless compute power of cloud supercomputers. With OnScale, engineers can run massive numbers of full 3D multiphysics simulations in parallel to create true Digital Prototypes digital representations of physical high-tech devices that capture the complete behavior of a device over its operating envelope. With OnScale Solve we want to provide you with an awesome Cloud Engineering Simulation experience that’s easy, powerful, and gets the job done. OnScale Solve is built to run on public and private cloud supercomputers and includes a functional web-based UI, an API to efficiently integrate into any design workflow, scripting languages to fully customize engineering simulations, and plugins to enhance its modeling capabilities. OnScale Solve gives engineers the simulation capability necessary to synthetically generate data to train sophisticated AI/ML algorithms.
    Starting Price: $4
  • 10
    PVSketch

    PVSketch

    PVComplete

    PVSketch is an intuitive web app designed to streamline solar project development. A friendly interface allows sales professionals easy access to a precision layout tool with little or no training. PVSketch helps visualize solar energy solutions and creates accurate energy modeling. PVSketch is part of the PVComplete platform. PVComplete allows solar developers, installers and engineers to work together on a single, versatile platform combining efficiency and accuracy. Sales professionals can begin a project quickly online with PVSketch and then transfer the project to PVCAD, our AutoCAD plugin, for a detailed engineering plan. PVSketch makes solar design simple. As little as five clicks and you can create a solar project packed with valuable information. Simple and instinctive drawing tools make accurate solar design accessible to any individual. While a single click can generate an entire layout if you dig deeper you can refine your solar design to create sophisticated designs.
    Starting Price: $50 per month
  • 11
    Hurricane for AutoCAD

    Hurricane for AutoCAD

    74Mph Solutions

    Batch edit your AutoCAD drawings in 3 clicks (or less), Make simple, complex and/or dynamic changes to each drawing. Manage your files to process. Keep lists, save "project" directories. Share these lists and "user-scripts". Combine user scripts to accomplish complex editing tasks. (You can even store scripts specific to each project, and retrieve them easily.) AutoCAD Electrical ".WDP" project file compatibility - Double-click an AutoCAD Electrical .WDP (Project) file within Hurricanes file selector, to quickly load an entire AutoCAD Electrical project into the FileQueue. This means you can EASILY use AutoCAD to Batch Plot your files, Batch Purge, Batch Bind, batch script anything, maximizing your PC's power to perform redundant tasks fast! Add more time-saving batch script functionality to AutoCAD Electrical, Mechanical, and Architectural. Batch all drawings run in a single AutoCAD session (They don't "open-run-close, open-run-close...")
    Starting Price: $99.95 one-time payment
  • 12
    VrLiDAR

    VrLiDAR

    Cardinal Systems

    The task remains the same which is to extract intelligent data from images and (or) point cloud data (LiDAR, DSM, point clouds) in the form of vectors and attributes for various disciplines. VrThree (VrLiDAR) offers the ability for photogrammetry firms to utilize existing personnel and software while offering new and powerful tools for other mapping disciplines such as architecture, all types of surveying and engineering. VrThree (VrLiDAR) is software that integrates point cloud data into the time tested Vr Mapping Software packages, VrOne® and VrTwo. This package allows the display and editing of LiDAR point data in 2D and in true three-dimensional stereo. The four configurations available in VrThree enable vector, symbol and text entities to be collected and edited using the extensive VrOne®/VrTwo mapping tools. Mapping professionals now not only need the ability to collect three dimensional vector data from traditional photogrammetric sources.
    Starting Price: $2500.00/one-time/user
  • 13
    ODOP:Spring

    ODOP:Spring

    SpringDesignSoftware

    More than a Spring Calculator. ODOP:Spring is a spring design application of the problem-independent Open Design Optimization Platform (ODOP) software. It finds solutions for demanding spring application requirements in mechanical engineering and machine design. Most coil spring calculators require users to manually input values – such as wire diameter, coil diameter, free length and number of coils – and then repeatedly re-analyze until an acceptable solution is reached. ODOP’s ability to invert formula relationships removes that guesswork. Spring design equations are backsolved to meet constraints placed on the problem variables. Need to identify the lightest-possible material weight? Ensure a long spring life and low risk of failure? Our helical coil spring design software can find the constrained extreme of any variable, whether independent or dependent.
  • 14
    ALCAD

    ALCAD

    ALCADS

    ALCAD 2D/3D is the best AutoCAD Alternative. Same interface and functions as AutoCAD. This product only includes the CAD. Compare-Table ALCAD with AutoCAD here: Compare ALCAD | ALCAD (alcads.com) ALCAD – the fully compatible DWG-CAD CAD Interface and functions same as AutoCAD. ALCAD 2025 Professional 2D/3D is available as annual licence 199€ or one-time permanent licence for 349€.
    Starting Price: $199
  • 15
    Creo

    Creo

    PTC

    Imagine, design, create, and innovate your products better with Creo, 3D CAD/CAM/CAE software, and solutions for product design and development. Now, more than ever, product design and manufacturing teams are expected to create products more efficiently and cost effectively, without sacrificing innovation or quality. Fortunately, Creo delivers the most scalable range of 3D CAD product development packages and tools in today’s market. Creo 7.0 has breakthrough innovations in the areas of generative design, real-time simulation, multibody design, additive manufacturing, and others! Take your products from concept to digital prototype efficiently, precisely, and intuitively with Creo—on the cutting edge of CAD for more than 30 years. With Creo 7.0, PTC amply demonstrates its skill at adding compelling new features to an already robust tool-set using smart partnerships to extend its capabilities even further.
  • 16
    MechDesigner
    PSMotion Ltd is the developer of the world-leading machine design software - MechDesigner - the best software for cam, mechanism, and motion design of multi-axis machines. You can use MechDesigner to build, with confidence, the best possible packaging, assembly, and textile machines. You can also engage us at any stage of your machine design to quickly build your models, and, additionally, use all of our Motion-Design and Cam-Design expertise to give you the best possible machine performance within your design constraints. You can edit, update, and instantly observe changes, as the model continuously cycles, synchronized to a machine 'clock'. This working environment allows you to design a machine with optimal operating performance. You can collate important design parameters and their limits into one dialog, so you, or others, can review and edit your design at any time in the future.
  • 17
    SolidFace

    SolidFace

    SolidFace Technology

    Built-in version control and simple management tools solve the costly need for a separate PDM system. Your team and you always on the latest design data. Every modification made by every user is captured and recorded and can be reversed at any time, providing unlimited undo/redo and a documented audit trail. Branching and merging enable many product ideas to be developed in parallel. The parameterization capability is one of the most significant advantages of SolidFace, and it is present in all design steps. 3D Motion simulation is no different; the simulation is updated simultaneously with the movement. Another important capability is the simulation of 2D mechanisms, which can be performed either in 2D drawing or in 3D sketch module. Directly available through SolidFace's software interface, this new online part library features over 100 million part numbers from hundreds of leading component manufacturers and distributors and thousands of ISO, ANSI, DIN, NF, GB, ASME, and more.
    Starting Price: $89 per quarter
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