Onshape vs FreeCAD

AutoCAD

SketchUp

SolidWorks Premium

Autodesk Fusion

Tinkercad

SAP Enterprise Product Development

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

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.

SketchUp is a design and collaboration solution that helps businesses streamline AEC and interior design workflows. Its intuitive 3D modeler allows users to visualize projects, while its 2D documentation and AR/VR viewing applications keep stakeholders aligned throughout the design-build process.

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

Onshape is a cloud-based 3D CAD solution for agile design & engineering teams, with tools for version control, collaboration, analytics, reporting, and more

2D Drawing

3D Design & Modeling

3D Imaging

Access Controls/Permissions

Activity Dashboard

Animation

Annotations

Bill of Materials Management

Bills of Material

CAD Tools

Change Management

Collaboration Tools

Component Library

Configurable Workflow

Configuration Management

Content Library

Customizable Branding

Customizable Templates

Data Import/Export

Data Visualization

Design Analysis

Design Management

Document Management

Electrical

File Management

For 3D Printing

For Manufacturers

For Solar Companies

Manufacturing Design Data

Mechanical

Mechatronics

Modeling & Simulation

Multiple Format Support

Multiple Projects

Product Data Management

Project Templates

Real Time Comparisons

Real-Time Updates

Reference Management

Reporting/Analytics

Role-Based Permissions

Rules-Based Workflow

Secure Data Storage

Sketching and Annotation Tools

Solar Design

Template Management

Third-Party Integrations

Version Control

Visual Analytics

Workflow Management

Onshape

Android

Linux

Web-based

Windows

iPad

iPhone

Software Engineer

Then I realized that I could myself produce my own 3D models and I found on Onshape the perfect tool for it. It also has great features that allows you to produce perfect models.

Principal Engineer

This is because Onshape is so portable, stable and reliable. It is a solid solid modeler with some very thought through features that are tested with the community before deploying it into the wild.

Designer

I'm sure the best Onshape feature is its super user-friendly interface, very, very good. I loved it an how the software still looking like a CAD software.

Lead Development Engineer

The stability of the software has been flawless, with minor hiccups being rapidly fixed by the outstanding customer support team.

Lack of offline caching causes Models to need to be reloaded when experiencing poor network coverage such as riding down the interstate while working on a customer design.

General manager

Great support; excellent training available; powerful but economical; fairly easy to begin, even for newbies.

Technical Director

It will be great if you organize on site training,  I am sure you can get a good turn out in KL. As a start you can help to build the local Onshape community.

Mechanical Design Engineer

I also love how easy it is to share designs with other members of my team. The import from other CAD file types works great and so far it's just been very easy to use and get used to.

Mechanical Engineer

It offers a lot of lessons for rookies and is generally a great platform for people who are transitioning from a simple CAD software like Tinkercad, to something more complicated.

Senior Engineer

My productivity and efficiency when generating 3D drawings have substantially increased because to the user-friendly interface and comprehensive range of tools.

This software helps generating complex 3D printed objects and smaller architectural projects. It helps with with getting the projects done.

Owner

This software seemed to have the best workflow out of the other similar design products I evaluated.

Engineer

Onshape is perfect for people looking for a funcational CAD without the prohibitive cost. It will do just about all that the major CAD programs will do.

Director

Browser accessibility, live collaboration, app integration. Being able to share with customers instantly is also a great perk.

I love that my designs are cloud-based. I can hop on to any device including my phone and start editing.

Owner / Designer

Printing is a bit of a pain; gotta export / download file and then print.

Director 

It is training and support that differentiates competitors. Onshape training is totally inadequate in my experience.

Machinist

The lack of well-integrated CAM makes the final step in engineering solutions a bit harder than some other packages.

Onshape screenshot: Detailed 3D assembly in Onshape with a section view for internal component design and gear alignment.

Onshape screenshot: Onshape’s structured BOM view with part revisions and ‘where used’ traceability for complex assemblies.

Onshape screenshot: Onshape simulation showing modal analysis with visualization of mode shapes, and excitation energy for individual modes.

Onshape screenshot: Onshape 3D trailer assembly with integrated bill of materials for accurate part tracking and design management.

Onshape screenshot: Onshape version control graph with full history tracking and branching for iterative machine design.

Onshape screenshot: Onshape drawing with an integrated inspection table for precise dimension tracking and quality control.

Onshape screenshot: Photorealistic rendering of a jackhammer created in Onshape’s integrated Render Studio for high-quality visualization.

Freelancers

Large Enterprises

Mid Size Business

Small Business

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.

Tinkercad is a web-based 3D CAD software that enables educational institutes to offer constructive solid geometry courses across K-12 school grades. It allows students to create 3D designs and program, simulate, and assemble electric circuits.

SAP Enterprise Product Development helps enterprises accelerate the development of new products in industries ranging from automotive to petrochemical, from consumer electronics to pharmaceuticals. It provides actionable information so you can make decisions based on real-world data and see the connected results across your network. SAP Enterprise Product Development enables architects, engineers and business users to work together quickly, enabling a dynamic digital thread that is customized fo

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.


For Architects

Project Management

FreeCAD

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.

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.

Onshape vs FreeCAD Comparison (2026)

Onshape

FreeCAD

Overview

Video & Screenshots

Pricing

User reviews

Key features

Integrations

Alternatives