# Compare SolidWorks Premium vs FreeCAD 2026 | Capterra > Unsure of what to choose? Check Capterra to compare SolidWorks Premium and FreeCAD based on pricing, features, product details, and verified reviews. Source: https://www.capterra.com/compare/93121-167527/SolidWorks-Premium-vs-FreeCAD --- # SolidWorks Premium vs FreeCAD Features and Cost Comparison Last updated December 29th, 2025 Provider data verified by our Software Research team, and reviews moderated by our Reviews Verification team.[Learn more](https://www.capterra.com/our-story/) Your comparison: SolidWorks PremiumFreeCAD2/4 selected [SolidWorks Premium](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/)[4.6 (756)](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/reviews/) [FreeCAD](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/)[4.3 (142)](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/reviews/) [## SolidWorks Premium](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/)[4.6 (756)](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/reviews/) Starting Price Contact vendor Value-for-Money 4.1 Functionality 4.6 Ease of Use 4.3 Customer Service 4.2 Reviews Sentiment Based on [756 reviews](#user-reviews) Positive 730 Neutral 18 Negative 8 [## FreeCAD](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/)[4.3 (142)](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/reviews/) Starting Price Contact vendor Value-for-Money 4.7 Functionality 4.1 Ease of Use 3.9 Customer Service 3.8 Reviews Sentiment Based on [142 reviews](#user-reviews) Positive 123 Neutral 14 Negative 5 ## Not a match? Find software alternatives tailored to your priorities. These software suggestions are similar to those you’re currently comparing. ### IronCAD 4.3 (60) * * * Starting Price $1.00 Per Year Free Trial Free Version * * * User rating 90% of reviewers rated it above 4 stars * * * ### Onshape 4.5 (342) * * * Starting Price $1500.00 Per User,Per Year Free Trial Free Version * * * User rating 94% of reviewers rated it above 4 stars * * * ### Altium Develop 4.6 (181) * * * Starting Price Contact vendor for pricing Free Trial Free Version * * * User rating 94% of reviewers rated it above 4 stars * * * Highest Rated ### CET Material Handling 5.0 (1) * * * Starting Price $2495.00 Per User,Per Year Free Trial Free Version * * * User rating 100% of reviewers rated it above 4 stars * * * ## Send this comparison chart to my inbox ### Fill out the form and we'll send a list of the top-rated software based on real user reviews directly to your inbox. What’s your intended use case? ## Summary * * * Key features rated by users Features selected based on 2,897 reviews from 3d cad software users. about the Fit Score methodology. Fit Score methodology Our Fit Score reflects how reviewers rate a product’s performance against a set of features reviewers rate as most important. A higher score indicates the product is rated better in delivering what reviewers most care about. If the Fit Score is not shown for a specific product, that only means there are currently not enough relevant data points to develop a meaningful score. It does not indicate that the product should be excluded from further evaluation. Best for Methodology 82%Fit High performer Feature ratings 3D Design & Modeling 4.7 Data Import/Export 4.3 2D Drawing 4.4 Annotations 4.3 Component Library 4.5 68%Fit Missing features Feature ratings 3D Design & Modeling 4.3 Data Import/Export 4.0 2D Drawing 4.0 Annotations 3.9 Component Library NA User satisfaction User satisfaction 4.6 User reviews[756](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/reviews/) Ease of use 4.3 Functionality 4.6 Value for money 4.1 Customer support 4.2 User satisfaction 4.3 User reviews[142](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/reviews/) Ease of use 3.9 Functionality 4.1 Value for money 4.7 Customer support 3.8 Price starts from Price starts from \-- - Free version - Free trial Price starts from \-- - Free version - Free trial Best for Best for On-premise and cloud-based manufacturing design platform that allows individuals and enterprises of all sizes to create and collaborate 2D drafts, 3D designs, CAD models, animations and more. Best for On-premise 3D parametric modeler platform that enables architects, programmers, and teachers to make machine tools and architectural designs in 2D and 3D thereby creating production-ready drawings. ## User reviews Pros & cons CI Chris I. CTO > "Powerful design capabilities: Robust tools for 3D modeling, simulation, and rendering." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6821136) CI Chris I. CTO > "Recent changes to their subscription model make it feel even more expensive and less customer-friendly on price." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6821136) VR Verified Reviewer Sales Engineer > "Amazing and intuitive design software with an abundance of features that allows you to bring a design to life with ease!" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6837536) NK Nicholas K. Chief Research Officer > "Also the lack of compatibility with older versions can make it difficult to collaborate to institutions that canot afford the latest model..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6545287) Steven P. CEO > "I liked the 3DExperience cloud PDM fonctionnalities that are now available in my package" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___7108353) CD Craig D. Mechanical Design Engineer > "SolidWorks crashes very often." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___7094844) Caleb T. Mechanical Engineer > "It also has one of the most straightforward UIs of any CAD software." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6869396) AA Amine A. Senior Mechanical Engineer > "The 3D experience is terrible i've paid like for 2 years it's plugging with solidworks it has 0 efficiency only cloud problems" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6670590) VR Verified Reviewer Senior analyst and consultant > "Best software for engineering cad design and products innovation." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6855107) CI Chris I. CTO > "Expensive: The cost is simply very high compared to alternatives like Fusion 360." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6821136) Subhair S. Senior Mechanical Design Engineer > "Solidworks simulation tools help us to do stress analysis with that data we can easily able to design stress carrying members." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4893081) SG Shan G. CTO > "Also it lacks AI upgrade." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6772826) SM Steve M. product design engineer > "I started using SolidWorks in my second year as an undergraduate , it's was very easy to learn meaning you spend less time learning and..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___5029451) TK Thomas K. Engineer > "The changes between model years can be frustrating." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6488671) EB Edgar B. Design Engineering > "The Libraries are a very valuable resource for engineers and designers, providing a wide range of components that improve the efficiency..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4899990) Slim B. teacher > "unfortunately, although Solidworks is a tick font software, it remains not affordable, in fact, its cost is very high, which is a major..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4987406) JK Jacob K. Process Engineer > "SolidWorks let me translate my ideas into something other people can understand exactly how I do." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6627678) AJ Amjad J. Technical Support > "SolidWorks Premium is a powerful CAD software that offers a range of advanced design and simulation tools, but it may not be the best fit for..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4759824) SM Steve M. product design engineer > "As a product development engineer ,using solidworks enables me to develop and test 3D CAD designs easily and effectively." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___5029451) TL Trevor L. Controls Engineer > "With Solidworks we use the collaboration database which is great for revision control and collaboration but it causes all sorts of issues. If..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4192056) Subhair S. Senior Mechanical Design Engineer > "Solidworks Sheetmetal and part modeling has many tools for making complex shapes and models easily." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4893081) BS Bertin S. Sr. PCB Design Engineer > "Sometimes it takes a bit too long to perform some commands and the assemblies can be a little tricky." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6239350) SD Swarnim D. Associate Engineer > "I appreciate SolidWorks Premium for its robust modeling and simulation features, which help streamline product development." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___5036986) RM Rajiv M. Senior design engineer > "Solidwork drawing is quite boring end not so effective it got crash when you use for long time without saving." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6013094) NK Ngiria K. Mechanical design engineer > "its amazing architecture and incredible features like solid cam" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6591108) CW Cindy W. Bill of Materials Technician II > "Sometimes finding the error when trying to fully define a part/assembly." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4998487) DK Dev K. Design Engineer > "It has all the tools you need for 3D modeling, drawings, and analysis." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6119193) Miguel P. Software Enginner > "Sometimes it shutdowns, other times it breaks the relations I set up before." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4808726) RM Rajiv M. Senior design engineer > "Multi body feature in a part modelling is very helpful for me , top to bottom assembly is so easy , it's sketching tools are are very..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6013094) VR Verified Reviewer Industrial Designer > "Organic surfaces and volumes are hard to figure out how to model in Solidworks (specially comparing to other 3D modelling softwares used in..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___3695257) JLI Jean-Louis I. President > "It remains the industry standard so is a must-have for any design agency." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6540682) FM Felipe M. Research Associate > "A drawback of SolidWorks Premium is also its steep learning curve." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4834261) NK Ngiria K. Mechanical design engineer > "im impressed to share my good experience using this software as i learned using it within weeks due to its ease of integration." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6591108) TG Tarun G. Mechanical Design Engineer > "The most useless part of this software is its rendering part, I have used its rendering many times, but I never got good results, it seems..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4224363) AM Ash M. Design Engineer > "It is the most commonly used CAD package within manufacturing and has a vast array of plugins." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___5020941) Miguel P. Software Enginner > "When I worked in big assembly projects, I experienced erratic behavior from the program." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4808726) MP Motheo P. Industrial Designer > "D features which enables a user to transform a 2D drawing into 3 dimensional shape,and lastly the rendering tools makes a model look..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___3934110) AM Ash M. Design Engineer > "It is definitely very pricey but generally covers its cost if using it commercially." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___5020941) Eduardo R. Engineering Student > "Solid allows for various types of studies so engineers can optimize, geometries or materials that can result in efficient and quality results..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___3933027) BT Beatriz T. Industrial Management Engineer > "The price becomes a bit high for some companies." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___5077796) Eduardo R. Engineering Student > "SolidWorks is an essential tool for any mechanical engineer who is in a design area, you can run studies to know what to expect on your..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___3933027) DlH Daniël H. Student > "Some tools, like the design study tool which lets you do a FEA of the product is not the most intuitive to use." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___3579912) Mammaye Ousmane T. Student in Industrial Maintenance > "SolidWorks Premium is an effective CAD tool for mechanical product design, it offers robust features such as parametric design tools,..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4458629) DK Dev K. Design Engineer > "It's an expensive tool and Dassault can be a difficult company to work with." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6119193) Caleb T. Mechanical Engineer > "It is a very user-friendly program and super easy to learn." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6869396) SO Sofia O. Student > "At the same time, the software limits a lot the studies of the pieces because it has some bugs." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___3600723) C Cevdet Ö. Project Engineer > "SolidWorks Premium is a powerful CAD software with advanced features for 3D modeling, simulation, and product visualization." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4750224) MH Mohamad H. Freelancer > "Like any 3D engineering drawing software, it requires having dedicated RAM and a good graphics card. If another application is running in the..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___3022819) NK Nizamudin K. Technology innovation fellow > "I like the professional quality and the capacity of solidworks to be used in a wide variety of design types, with engineering and manufacture..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___3693236) YK Yusaku K. Freelancer > "need parcel of memory and processor power, can't be utilized with other programming while at the same time delivering or making complex..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___2871693) VR Verified Reviewer Project Engineer > "Best platform for rendering 3D models (using visual plug-ins).Editing the parts in the assembly is much more convenient when compared to..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4545156) HDS Harsharan Deep S. Marketer > "I would say the price point is a bit on the expensive side and they only issue the software to students or a registered company, others might..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4212800) Richard S. Remote Assistant > "One of the most impressive things about it was the fact that every piece of hardware within the refinery was selectable as a 3D component in..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4289676) PS Prabhat S. Project Leader > "Fails to produce a detailed picture utilising data from the raw," [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___3854603) AA Allanys A. Student > "What I liked most about SolidWorks Premium was that it haves a lot of features to create designs and print them in a 3D printer." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4490779) RP Rafael P. Financial Director > "Features that go beyond the core for 3d modeling, such as rendering, animations and the toolbox, not only lack the intuitiveness as the main..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___2878290) VR Verified Reviewer Mechanical Development Engineer > "The ease of developing the 3D Model and assembly of the part and easy simulation tool that makes us visualize the defect in the part before..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___3715858) VR Verified Reviewer Mechanical Engineer > "It requires too many computer resources to handle large assemblies." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4245006) TA Tariq A. Student > "One of the best things about solidworks is how it goes way beyond just 3d design all the way to motion study, animation, and excellent..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___3506570) BO Bethany O. Account Representative > "The material library is limited and camera angles feel clunky at times." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4725723) MA Mohammed A. Engineer > "As an engineer i using it for designing the 3d simple and complex modeling its really powerful program and its saving a lot of time and cost ." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4182159) AV Alexandra V. DevOps Developer > "Absolutely found nothing to like least about this product with advanced simulation and analytics to estimate cost." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___3827164) AM Ash M. Design Engineer > "There is a lot of help online so getting community support for niche questions is normally possible." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___5020941) VR Verified Reviewer Research Assistant > "It can't manage the huge design and simulation tasks well" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___3494373) AA Alanis A. Team Manager > "As an engineer it is a must to use this platform and to create assembles." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___5009592) AA Abdullateef A. engineer > "It also needs a large storage space and strong random access memory, as it stops working at times And it may be too expensive for some..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___3398539) Mammaye Ousmane T. Student in Industrial Maintenance > "In conclusion, SolidWorks Premium is an incredibly powerful tool for mechanical product design and is highly recommended for anyone looking..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4458629) VR Verified Reviewer Engineer > "The un- uniform shapes design it's take long time to make accurate" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___3771185) MUA Muhammad Umair A. Quality Engineer > "It's works for designers may be a must have for automotive industry." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___5017346) AJ Amjad J. Technical Support > "SolidWorks Premium is expensive software, and the high cost may not be affordable for some businesses or individuals." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4759824) AV Alexandra V. DevOps Developer > "Easy to manage product data with this solution and it integrates seamlessly with other design tools and also offers excellent drawing..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___3827164) VL Vitor L. Eng > "It consumes a lot of RAM memory." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4692725) TB Thomas B. Media team lead > "Solidworks Premium is extremely intuitive and easy to use." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6557721) BM Biswajit M. CAE and ev engineer > "for low end devices.. it sometimes crash." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___3522728) SN Suvajit N. Senior Design Engineer > "Very intuitive and user friendly interface." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___6390479) VR Verified Reviewer Project Manager > "quite often it crashes and reports an error" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4681697) CW Cindy W. Bill of Materials Technician II > "It has useful features that make designing parts much easier." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4998487) CD Caleb D. Graduate Research Assistant > "SolidWorks is so expensive and it is common for people to post opensource CAD files that are SolidWorks, but if you don't pay for the..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___3112998) TK Tejashree K. Team leader > "The software is great for beginner level and its used in various industry specially for mechanical, designing and electrical also." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___4165630) PS Prabhat S. Project Leader > "These drawbacks are unimportant in light of the price." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#Capterra___3854603) [View Reviews](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/reviews/) JG James G. Library Tech > "This allows students the opportunity to use a parametric 3d modeler to model 3d components that they can then print on a 3d printer and finally actually see..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___5081898) FF Francesco F. Engineer > "The interface may not be as intuitive for beginners; some users have reported stability issues, such as occasional crashes; some specific workbenches in..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___6048821) Rubén E. Hardware Engineer > "Also it has many integrated tools to work with 3D and 2D designs, you can review models, import many file formats and convert some meshes like STL to a solid." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___4073956) VR Verified Reviewer R&D engineer > "One thing I dislike about FreeCAD is that it can be a bit slow at times. When working with large models or assemblies, it can take a while for the software to..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___4330805) Rubén E. Hardware Engineer > "I usually work with non-very complicated designs and I am used to created them from the typical 2D sketches, but I can highlight some features I like and the..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___4073956) JG James G. Library Tech > "Freecad has one major bug that needs to be fixed before I can generally recommend it. " [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___5081898) SB Stuart B. RF & Antenna Specialist > "The active community has done a lot of great work in creating a fully-functional CAD program, with many industry-standard drafting tools and a plethora of..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___3685301) VR Verified Reviewer R&D engineer > "I also find that the rendering can be slow, which can make it difficult to visualize my designs in real-time." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___4330805) Rubén E. Hardware Engineer > "It is for free and there is a great community that can give support to you, with a lot of tutorials in Youtube. Since I am a contributor of other free and..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___4073956) JG James G. Library Tech > "That is the infamous "topological naming problem"." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___5081898) Adedayo F. CAD technician > "I do design 2D and 3D drawings with this software which makes it my favourite,cause I make use of it everyday." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___3667115) LS Luca S. Mechanical engineer > "I have experienced some bugs with elementary features as well, making modeling even simple parts very tiring" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___4536000) FV Fabian V. Civil Engineer > "The easy, efficient and cross-platform tool such as Linux, Windows and Mac, with modules for the most complex 2 and 3D design representations, with import and..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___3379370) FM Felipe M. Research Associate > "It is clear that this software is inferior compared to other more fancy paid options but it gets the job done." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___4751719) LS Luca S. Mechanical engineer > "FreeCAD, as the name suggests, is free and considering alternatives on the market available for free right now, this is the only CAD with so many..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___4536000) FV Fabian V. Civil Engineer > "The Interface can generate brief difficulty when navigating without representing major inconveniences." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___3379370) LS Luca S. Mechanical engineer > "The possibility of having a parametric CAD together with FEM analysis are great." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___4536000) Robson G. Architect and 3D modeler > "There are too many tutorials in their website to know how to use it, but still was hard to me to work with this CAD." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___2959680) VR Verified Reviewer Freecad, 3D drawing for beginners. > "Which thanks to known shapes allow to realize new shapes." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___4014159) JR Jim R. Director > "Tutorials are written for cyborgs not architects." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#SoftwareAdvice___3255057) MK Marius K. Hobbyist > "Can create any part you can imagine, exports to 3d printing friendly formats, sketching and part design workbenches are relatively easy to learn." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___2977569) MV Matthew V. Project Engineer > "This software was much more difficult for me to work with than Inventor or SolidWorks." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___2874065) VR Verified Reviewer R&D engineer > "I love that it's open-source, which means that it's constantly being updated and improved by a dedicated community of users." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___4330805) VR Verified Reviewer Project Engineer / Program Facilitator > "Most of the limited in-software help info is Windows specific, making it difficult because tools can be in different places." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___2192344) VK Vikash K. Architect > "First it is free and you can do almost everything in it that you can do in Autocad." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___4520194) Sooraj N. Graduate Research Assistant > "So, the software might be limited in handling complex CAD files." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___2216347) TM Thomas M. engineer > "Great simulation tools, similar workflow to other CAD." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___4427884) SP Supun P. Undergraduate > "Rendering speed is very low." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___2405490) JC John C. Entrepreneur > "Surprisingly powerful and visually similar to other 3D CAD modelers." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___3523218) RP Rahul P. QC Technician > "For me, it was a hard learning curve because of no previous CAD experience." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___2698211) AL Alessandro L. Technician > "You can create professional documentation and edit problem files imported from other formats saves your life." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___3301484) RP Rahul P. QC Technician > "Not so friendly user interface. Except the learning cure nothing bad in this software." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___2698211) AL Alessandro L. Technician > "Thanks to freecad I was able to modify the file, export it and send it to the cnc machine." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___3301484) AA Andrew A. Administrative > "It is not the best, but not the worst." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#Capterra___2185486) [View Reviews](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/reviews/) ## User interface [SolidWorks Premium](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/) 4.63 (756) [FreeCAD](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/) 4.27 (142) ## Connect with a Capterra advisor for a free 15-minute consultation Get a personalized software list aligned to your business needs with guidance from our expert advisors. Our team has helped 1 million+ businesses like yours find options that fit their needs. ### Features Do these products fit your needs? Prioritize real-user-identified key features according to your needs to find your best fit. \--% Fit vs \--% Fit 2D Drawing 207 Important 3D Design & Modeling 150 Important Activity Dashboard 120 Important SolidWorks Premium Top features 41/44 - 2D Drawing - 3D Design & Modeling - Activity Dashboard - AI Copilot - Animation - Annotations - API - Bill of Materials Management - Collaboration Tools - Compliance Management - Component Library - Configurable Workflow - Configuration Management - Content Library - Customizable Branding - Customizable Templates - Data Capture and Transfer - Data Import/Export - Data Synchronization - Data Visualization - Design Management - Document Generation - Document Management - Drag & Drop - File Management - For 3D Printing - For Architects - For Manufacturers - Generative AI - Image Editing - Modeling & Simulation - Multiple Format Support - Multiple Projects - Projections - Real Time Comparisons - Real-Time Updates - Reference Management - Reporting/Analytics - Rules-Based Workflow - Secure Data Storage - Sketching and Annotation Tools - Third-Party Integrations - Version Control - Workflow Management [See all features](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/#features) FreeCAD 12/44 - 2D Drawing - 3D Design & Modeling - Activity Dashboard - AI Copilot - Animation - Annotations - API - Bill of Materials Management - Collaboration Tools - Compliance Management - Component Library - Configurable Workflow - Configuration Management - Content Library - Customizable Branding - Customizable Templates - Data Capture and Transfer - Data Import/Export - Data Synchronization - Data Visualization - Design Management - Document Generation - Document Management - Drag & Drop - File Management - For 3D Printing - For Architects - For Manufacturers - Generative AI - Image Editing - Modeling & Simulation - Multiple Format Support - Multiple Projects - Projections - Real Time Comparisons - Real-Time Updates - Reference Management - Reporting/Analytics - Rules-Based Workflow - Secure Data Storage - Sketching and Annotation Tools - Third-Party Integrations - Version Control - Workflow Management [See all features](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/#features) ### Recognition No recognitions have been awarded to SolidWorks Premium No recognitions have been awarded to FreeCAD ### Deployment & support SolidWorks Premium Deployment - Cloud, SaaS, Web-Based - Desktop Mac - Desktop Windows - Desktop Linux - On-Premise Windows - On-Premise Linux - Desktop Chromebook - Mobile Android - Mobile iPhone - Mobile iPad Support - Email/Help Desk - FAQs/Forum - Knowledge Base - Phone Support - 24/7 (Live rep) - Chat Training - In Person - Live Online - Webinars - Documentation - Videos FreeCAD Deployment - Cloud, SaaS, Web-Based - Desktop Mac - Desktop Windows - Desktop Linux - On-Premise Windows - On-Premise Linux - Desktop Chromebook - Mobile Android - Mobile iPhone - Mobile iPad Support - Email/Help Desk - FAQs/Forum - Knowledge Base - Phone Support - 24/7 (Live rep) - Chat Training - In Person - Live Online - Webinars - Documentation - Videos ### Company Details SolidWorks Premium - By SolidWorks - Located in United States - Founded in 1993 FreeCAD - By FreeCAD - Located in United States - Founded in ## Popular Comparisons [SolidWorks Premium](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/)[4.63 (756)](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/reviews/) vs [Altium Develop](https://www.capterra.com/p/175058/Altium-Designer/)[4.56 (181)](https://www.capterra.com/p/175058/Altium-Designer/reviews/) Contact vendor for pricing Price Contact vendor for pricing 4.6 Features 4.6 4.3 Ease of Use 4.3 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/93121-175058/SolidWorks-Premium-vs-Altium-Designer) [FreeCAD](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/)[4.27 (142)](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/reviews/) vs [AutoCAD](https://www.capterra.com/p/265024/AutoCAD/)[4.65 (3,207)](https://www.capterra.com/p/265024/AutoCAD/reviews/) Contact vendor for pricing Price $250/month 4.1 Features 4.6 3.9 Ease of Use 4.1 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/167527-265024/FreeCAD-vs-AutoCAD) [SolidWorks Premium](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/)[4.63 (756)](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/reviews/) vs [AutoCAD](https://www.capterra.com/p/265024/AutoCAD/)[4.65 (3,207)](https://www.capterra.com/p/265024/AutoCAD/reviews/) Contact vendor for pricing Price $250/month 4.6 Features 4.6 4.3 Ease of Use 4.1 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/93121-265024/SolidWorks-Premium-vs-AutoCAD) [FreeCAD](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/)[4.27 (142)](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/reviews/) vs [Altium Develop](https://www.capterra.com/p/175058/Altium-Designer/)[4.56 (181)](https://www.capterra.com/p/175058/Altium-Designer/reviews/) Contact vendor for pricing Price Contact vendor for pricing 4.1 Features 4.6 3.9 Ease of Use 4.3 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/167527-175058/FreeCAD-vs-Altium-Designer) [SolidWorks Premium](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/)[4.63 (756)](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/reviews/) vs [Alibre Design](https://www.capterra.com/p/172312/Alibre-Design/)[4.69 (182)](https://www.capterra.com/p/172312/Alibre-Design/reviews/) Contact vendor for pricing Price $10/month 4.6 Features 4.6 4.3 Ease of Use 4.6 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/93121-172312/SolidWorks-Premium-vs-Alibre-Design) [FreeCAD](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/)[4.27 (142)](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/reviews/) vs [Alibre Design](https://www.capterra.com/p/172312/Alibre-Design/)[4.69 (182)](https://www.capterra.com/p/172312/Alibre-Design/reviews/) Contact vendor for pricing Price $10/month 4.1 Features 4.6 3.9 Ease of Use 4.6 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/167527-172312/FreeCAD-vs-Alibre-Design) [SolidWorks Premium](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/)[4.63 (756)](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/reviews/) vs [Creo](https://www.capterra.com/p/164678/Creo/)[4.38 (126)](https://www.capterra.com/p/164678/Creo/reviews/) Contact vendor for pricing Price $3190/year 4.6 Features 4.3 4.3 Ease of Use 3.8 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/93121-164678/SolidWorks-Premium-vs-Creo) [FreeCAD](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/)[4.27 (142)](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/reviews/) vs [Onshape](https://www.capterra.com/p/164681/Onshape/)[4.51 (342)](https://www.capterra.com/p/164681/Onshape/reviews/) Contact vendor for pricing Price $1500/year 4.1 Features 4.1 3.9 Ease of Use 4.5 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/164681-167527/Onshape-vs-FreeCAD) [SolidWorks Premium](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/)[4.63 (756)](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/reviews/) vs [MATLAB](https://www.capterra.com/p/125813/MATLAB/)[4.60 (2,090)](https://www.capterra.com/p/125813/MATLAB/reviews/) Contact vendor for pricing Price $203.63/year 4.6 Features 4.6 4.3 Ease of Use 4.0 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/93121-125813/SolidWorks-Premium-vs-MATLAB) [FreeCAD](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/)[4.27 (142)](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/reviews/) vs [Inventor](https://www.capterra.com/p/236745/Inventor/)[4.53 (277)](https://www.capterra.com/p/236745/Inventor/reviews/) Contact vendor for pricing Price $310/month 4.1 Features 4.5 3.9 Ease of Use 4.2 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/167527-236745/FreeCAD-vs-Inventor) [SolidWorks Premium](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/)[4.63 (756)](https://www.capterra.com/p/93121/SolidWorks-Premium/reviews/) vs [Inventor](https://www.capterra.com/p/236745/Inventor/)[4.53 (277)](https://www.capterra.com/p/236745/Inventor/reviews/) Contact vendor for pricing Price $310/month 4.6 Features 4.5 4.3 Ease of Use 4.2 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/93121-236745/SolidWorks-Premium-vs-Inventor) [FreeCAD](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/)[4.27 (142)](https://www.capterra.com/p/167527/FreeCAD/reviews/) vs [MATLAB](https://www.capterra.com/p/125813/MATLAB/)[4.60 (2,090)](https://www.capterra.com/p/125813/MATLAB/reviews/) Contact vendor for pricing Price $203.63/year 4.1 Features 4.6 3.9 Ease of Use 4.0 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/125813-167527/MATLAB-vs-FreeCAD)