Altium Develop vs FreeCAD

AutoCAD

SolidWorks Premium

Autodesk Fusion

DraftSight

Civil 3D

PaleBlue

Compare Altium Develop and FreeCAD based on features, pricing, verified reviews, integrations & more on GetApp. Find out which software is best for your business in 2026.

PaleBlue is a cloud-based solution which helps businesses of all sizes manage training processes and streamline workflows using augmented, virtual reality and 3D simulations, enabling users to import 3D models from multiple computer-aided design (CAD) sources to automatically optimize designs.

DraftSight is a 2D CAD drafting and 3D design software for architects, designers, engineers, and builders. The platform allows users to create construction documents, scale drawings, and generate technical illustrations faster. 


Civil 3D is an on-premise engineering CAD software designed to help businesses with surface modeling, construction documentation, and plan production. Managers can create triangulated irregular network (TIN) surfaces, display point cloud data, and create dynamic surfaces.

Altium Develop is a collaborative environment that unifies every stage of electronic product creation, seamlessly connecting requirements, design, supply chain, and manufacturing to streamline workflows, enhance visibility, and accelerate innovation.

2D Drawing

3D Imaging

Access Controls/Permissions

Bills of Material

CAD Tools

Change Management

Collaboration Tools

Compliance Management

Configuration Management

Content Library

Customizable Fields

Data Capture and Transfer

Data Import/Export

Data Visualization

Design Analysis

Design Management

Document Generation

Document Management

Electrical

File Management

Manufacturing Design Data

Mechanical

Mechatronics

Process Control

Project Management

Project Templates

Version Control

Altium Develop

Web-based

Windows

Chief Engineer

Nothing is as unstable and poorly implemented in my opinion as Altium. The fact that they charge so much for it just adds to the insult.

Design engineer 

One of the best tool which is available for the easy of use and good customer support.

PCB Librarian

I work as a librarian and this program is one of my favorite. It's easy to use and the 3d feature is very nice.

Student

I really like the ability to make files of the PCB to send online PCB manufacturing service. Altium supports 3D view and we can clearly see how to fit PCB on my CAD design.

Emmbedded hardware engineer

Simulation tools are really good and natural to use. Altium also have a big community and lots of online resources to solve all issues that you could have.

engineer

The worst thing about Altium Designer software is its high cost compared to some other similar products in the market.

I think it is the best software package available for PCB design. Highly recommend if it's within budget.

I enjoy the ease of use of the features, especially in the drawing schematics.

All the features i need is integrated in the same software which make my work easier. Easy to do nice looking designs.

The routing tools and placement during layout are very, very good.

Electrical Engineer

They're not the first company to have this problem.

Electronic Engineering Undergraduate

As an Electronics Engineering undergraduate, overall design experience with Altium Designer is great. I have used this software to develop many PCBs throughout my academic carrer.

Sr. PCB Design Engineer

Easy to manage licensing. Great tool to work anywhere.

Development Engineering Manager

The suite of products that you can buy beyond the standard schematic capture, layout, and routing, creates ala carte options that nickel and dime you to an annoying degree.

Field Applications Engineer

I would recommend it for both simple designs and also more complex multi layered board designs, it handles everything well and is also very easy to use.

Principal engineer

Ease of use and it’s very intuitive for the comers.

Research assistant

Great PCB designing tool with lot of features.

Easy integration with desktop application and online viewer.

Altium Develop screenshot: 3D View Editor in Altium Develop transforms the standard 2D PCB workspace into a fully interactive, three‑dimensional design environment. Users can toggle between 2D and 3D modes, then zoom, pan, and rotate the board freely.

Altium Develop screenshot: Project History in Altium Develop provides a browser-based, visually chronological timeline of a project's key events such as: creation, commits, releases, clones, and MCAD exchanges offering version control transparency directly within workspace.

Altium Develop screenshot: From schematic capture to PCB layout, routing, and assembly preparation, every step flows seamlessly in one platform. Smart placement and routing features make complex designs faster, easier, and more reliable.

Altium Develop screenshot: BOM Portal is a cloud-native, procurement-focused tool within Altium Develop that transforms traditional Excel-like Bill of Materials (BOM) workflows by integrating live supply chain, compliance, and pricing data.

Altium Develop screenshot: Workspace Projects provide a cloud-native, version-controlled hub within Altium Develop that simplifies electronic project management with centralized storage, collaboration, and built-in Git-based version control.

Altium Develop screenshot: The Requirements Portal is a cloud-native, AI‑enhanced requirements engineering platform within Altium Develop that streamlines the definition, breakdown, and management of technical requirements.

Freelancers

Large Enterprises

Mid Size Business

Small Business

Autodesk Fusion is a 3D CAD, CAM, and CAE tool that combines industrial and mechanical design, simulation, collaboration, and machining to connect the entire product development process in an integrated, concept-to-production toolset

SolidWorks Premium is the leading 3D design solution in the industry. It seamlessly integrates powerful design tools-including industry-leading part, assembly, and drawing capabilities with built-in simulation, rendering, animation, product data management, and cost estimation. 

SolidWorks will help you get work done faster and easier than before, using innovative phases of product creation to achieve a more productive 3D design experience.

AutoCAD is a design and drafting platform which supports automated design tasks and offers features such as 2D drafting, drawing and annotation, 3D modeling and visualization, and more.

FreeCAD is an on-premise open-source paramedic 3D modeler, which helps businesses design objects of all sizes. Programmers can sketch constrained 2D shapes and utilize them as a base to create other objects. It supports several file formats such as IGES, SVG, DXF, DE, IFC, STL, STEP, OBJ, and more.


3D Design & Modeling

Annotations

For 3D Printing

For Architects

For Manufacturers

Modeling & Simulation

Reporting/Analytics

FreeCAD

Linux

Hardware Engineer

This is a good software for 3D design. It is for free and there is a great community that can give support to you, with a lot of tutorials in Youtube.

Teaching Assistant

It is free and open-source and that is great for such a useful software. It is lighter that other similar software.

Owner

FreeCAD has been a Godsend for developing and evaluating my ideas and I would definitely recommend it if you are a small business with minimal or no budget for expensive CAD software.

Cost/Project Engineer

Being a community-based free software, it's still seeing lots of improvements. Constant feedback is allowing it to better improve functionality and integration across disciplines.

Amateur engineering designer

It isn't complete (e.g. there is no dimensioning readily available), and suffers from ongoing development that results in occasional crashes.

Project Manager

If you need a drafting tool, get this one. It’s also great to learn what CAD is, and how it can help you draft.

Artist

So, I'll recommend this software for those seeking a classic and quick CAD Drawing and Viewing experience. Thank you so very much for the elegant software.

QC Technician

My problem was I don't have enough time to spend on I was working in a company and my job was not related to CAD.

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.

Especialista

For small design projects it is a very complete tool that helps you solve problems effectively without having to invest a penny.

Greggles

Near no customer service and sometimes sub-par tutorials. Getting the right install location can be difficult.

Although free of charge, the software offered a large variety of tools and preferences, and a user friendly interface.

Graduate Research Assistant

Since the environment is lite, finding the right tools to have extended functions or tasks in modeling will be a little bit difficult. So, the software might be limited in handling complex CAD files.

Industrial and Manufacturing engineer

Overall, a good experience using this software.

The most attractive feature is that it is free to use I am not very good at designing 3D projects but Free Cad seems to be for me a good platform to teach myself.

Research Assistant

Poor and very complicated user interface. 3D surface generation can not react that you desire.

Release Manager

The interface takes a bit to get used to, but its not a huge curve by any means. Geometric constraints work great.

Civil Engineer

The Interface can generate brief difficulty when navigating without representing major inconveniences. You may experience some unstable installation especially on Mac.

Altium Develop vs FreeCAD Comparison (2026)

Altium Develop

FreeCAD

Overview

Video & Screenshots

Pricing

User reviews

Key features

Integrations

Alternatives