Adobe PhotoShop vs. DraftSight

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Adobe PhotoShop
Score 9.2 out of 10
N/A
Adobe Photoshop is the best known graphics product on the market.
$20
per month
DraftSight
Score 8.7 out of 10
N/A
DraftSight is a 2D and 3D CAD solution for architects, engineers and construction service providers, as well as professional CAD users, designers, educators and hobbyists. DraftSight lets users create, edit, view, and markup any kind of 2D and 3D DWG file with greater ease, speed, and efficiency. Its familiar user interface helps to facilitate a quick transition from other CAD applications. DraftSight Offerings: DraftSight Professional: the advanced 2D CAD drafting…
$249
per year
Pricing
Adobe PhotoShopDraftSight
Editions & Modules
Single App
$20.00
per month
DraftSight Professional
$249
per year
DraftSight Premium (3D)
$549
per year
DraftSight Enterprise
Contact sales team
DraftSight Enterprise Plus
Contact sales team
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Adobe PhotoShopDraftSight
Free Trial
NoYes
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional DetailsDraftSight Professional, and Premium are available to purchase online directly. DraftSight Enterprise and Enterprise Plus are available to purchase through local resellers.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Adobe PhotoShopDraftSight
Considered Both Products
Adobe PhotoShop

No answer on this topic

DraftSight
Chose DraftSight
We selected DraftSight because Autodesk wanted too much money for their LT software. Initially, I was impressed with the seamless integration, I could use the command line just like AutoCAD. As I became more familiar with DraftSight, and also had more exposure, I started to …
Chose DraftSight
AutoCAD is more comprehensive and more popular, however, the cost is a great deal more, so Draftsight is better value for money for us.
Chose DraftSight
It is useful to combine Excel tables with PDF details on a single DWG. It is very convenient to also be able to insert photos. This way you can provide more detail in your projects. DraftSight can also be used to create advertising labels, including billboards. Being a software …
Chose DraftSight
I have looked at others but most are either viewer programs or full versions that are paid without free trials and I am not willing to to subscribe without trying it first.
Chose DraftSight
AutoCAD: Way too expensive for a one woman band like me with minimal CAD needs.
SketchUP: I don't need quick 3D software so not that appropriate
Draftsight: Affordable for a one-woman band and easy enough to pick up with my existing skills.
Chose DraftSight
For me, DraftSight easily compares favorably with AutoCAD. Not because there is anything wrong with AutoCAD but because the features I need and use everyday are in DraftSight. Yes, AutoCAD has manly more features, but I don't need these and DraftSight is more affordable and …
Chose DraftSight
DraftSight was an easy jump for me from my years of AutoCAD use. It's similar look and functionality make it the obvious competitor. But DraftSight is the clear winner in pricing.
Photoshop is similar to AutoCAD in that it has been around for years and has been considered the …
Chose DraftSight
DraftSight attracted me for being the best free alternative when I've started using. More robust tools like AutoCAD, Vectorworks, SOLIDWORKS have more features, but since I'm not a hardcore user anymore, DraftSight definitely fulfills my needs. Now that it is paid, it is still …
Chose DraftSight
Not in the same league. AutoCAD seems to just work. Draftsight doesnt.
Features
Adobe PhotoShopDraftSight
Computer-Aided Design Software
Comparison of Computer-Aided Design Software features of Product A and Product B
Adobe PhotoShop
-
Ratings
DraftSight
7.1
6 Ratings
4% below category average
3D Modeling00 Ratings7.72 Ratings
2D Drafting00 Ratings8.46 Ratings
Rendering and Visualization00 Ratings6.33 Ratings
Parametric Design00 Ratings7.31 Ratings
Collaboration and Sharing00 Ratings7.55 Ratings
Compatibility with other software and formats00 Ratings8.46 Ratings
Assembly Design00 Ratings7.83 Ratings
Simulation and Analysis00 Ratings4.01 Ratings
Documentation and Annotation00 Ratings6.96 Ratings
Customization and Extensions00 Ratings6.85 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Adobe PhotoShopDraftSight
Small Businesses
CorelDRAW Graphics Suite
CorelDRAW Graphics Suite
Score 7.2 out of 10
Onshape
Onshape
Score 7.6 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
GIMP
GIMP
Score 8.1 out of 10
Onshape
Onshape
Score 7.6 out of 10
Enterprises
CorelDRAW Graphics Suite
CorelDRAW Graphics Suite
Score 7.2 out of 10
Rhino
Rhino
Score 8.4 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Adobe PhotoShopDraftSight
Likelihood to Recommend
8.8
(194 ratings)
9.2
(416 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
9.0
(31 ratings)
9.1
(23 ratings)
Usability
7.7
(19 ratings)
8.3
(23 ratings)
Availability
9.0
(3 ratings)
8.2
(7 ratings)
Performance
9.0
(3 ratings)
8.2
(6 ratings)
Support Rating
10.0
(54 ratings)
4.7
(15 ratings)
In-Person Training
10.0
(1 ratings)
9.1
(1 ratings)
Implementation Rating
9.0
(6 ratings)
9.0
(16 ratings)
Configurability
8.0
(1 ratings)
8.3
(6 ratings)
Contract Terms and Pricing Model
-
(0 ratings)
7.3
(1 ratings)
Ease of integration
9.0
(1 ratings)
8.2
(4 ratings)
Product Scalability
4.0
(1 ratings)
7.4
(7 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
9.0
(1 ratings)
9.0
(4 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
9.0
(1 ratings)
8.0
(5 ratings)
User Testimonials
Adobe PhotoShopDraftSight
Likelihood to Recommend
Adobe
Photoshop is a useful tool for everything from creating social media graphics to editing and sizing photos. There is a bit of a learning curve, so you need to have a bit of experience to master it and use it for a variety of tasks. You also need to have a good sense of file organization so you can find files quickly without losing track of them.
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Dassault Systemes
2D design work
3D design work
Large area (500m²+) analysis and assessment
From product design, including production drawings to lay out of large (10m x 1m footprint) layouts DraftSight is a cost effective solution providing all appropriate interfaces for BIM.
The level of detail during rendering (while it can be slow) is good for visualization and for use in installation and training materials
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Pros
Adobe
  • The fact is that you may quickly pick things up on your own by spending time without using any other resources.
  • It is the program that brings the phrase "to make PhotoShop" to almost all languages. It's not just a photo editing program.
  • Practical and beautiful results are filtered by filtering the desired work without drowning in details.
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Dassault Systemes
  • You can easily bring in a dwg format drawing into the programme and it will display the information just as well as AutoCAD.
  • The programme supports shortcut features or one-click buttons for the most commonly used operations.
  • Script files can be used which is a bonus.
Read full review
Cons
Adobe
  • The effect applying time could be faster.
  • There could be a smarter way to make mockups using smart objects, maybe by directly selecting an area, and generative AI can automate a few steps.
  • If Photoshop can suggest the right stock imagery in case the generative AI doesn't get the right answer.
Read full review
Dassault Systemes
  • The text search and replace is very crude and barely works. Needs a major revamping.
  • The layout tabs are very clunky and hard to use. Needs to be fixed.
  • DraftSight will fix a problem in one version, mess it up in another version, then fix it again later on. And so forth, and so forth, and so forth. Very poor software update control.
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Likelihood to Renew
Adobe
We get a lot of use out of this software. It's vital for work with production in our industry and has a lot of cross-functionality - creating social media images, retouching photos, editing photos, creating gradients, and more. It's pretty fuss-free in that we haven't had to reach out to support and the program hasn't crashed on us. We are trained on the software (so again, this isn't for beginners), but for detail-oriented designers and creatives like ourselves - it's a no-brainer.
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Dassault Systemes
It has given us, a small startup, the ability to compete effectively with far larger competitors by evening the playing field at a low cost.
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Usability
Adobe
Adobe PhotoShop is a professional-grade tool that requires months/years to get a grasp of how to use it well. Even then, after over a decade of using Adobe PhotoShop both casually and professionally, I feel like I'm still unfamiliar with a large percentage of the available tools. Without a dedicated training program, it can be extremely overwhelming and/or you may not get good use out of it. That being said, once you do get comfortable with it, the layout and workspace are excellent with myriad shortcuts that speed up your workflow exponentially. Put in the time to learn it, and you'll love it.
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Dassault Systemes
Easy if you know how to use CAD software. But is not very difficult to learn using DraftSight if this is your first CAD software. As soon as you get in to it the work flow will save you a lot of time and its simple interface is very nice.
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Reliability and Availability
Adobe
Adobe Photoshop is very reliable, but is never 100%. There have been times when Adobe Photoshop has had trouble opening, but nothing a little computer restart couldn't fix. I use Adobe Photoshop on a Mac for both work and at home on a daily basis, and I would be lost without it.
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Dassault Systemes
Other than a bug created by a VAR tech support that didn't get resolved until I installed the next version, DraftSight has worked fine.
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Performance
Adobe
Speed can be an issue when you are dealing with large files for large format printing or billboards. When working on web images, speed is not an issue.
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Dassault Systemes
In general it's very quick to load drawings...now it depends a lot on the file we're opening or working on.
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Support Rating
Adobe
While I never contacted Adobe directly, there is so much content out there in the form of YouTube videos, Lynda/LinkedIn learning that almost any issue, including bugs, can be worked around (and this method is generally faster as there's no turnaround time involved).
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Dassault Systemes
Technical support seems to be overseas with broken English and difficulty to read English. I asked for a trial license to try the fix but it was declined. Ask pratiksha.dahotre and gayatri.keskar for details. In summary, they released a broken version, I helped to fix by providing feedback and error logs. They claimed it is fixed but I can't test it.
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In-Person Training
Adobe
So, I received the training at the HQ and it was train the trainer training. A good time, I spent a week at their campus
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Dassault Systemes
Based on some knowledge of AutoCad, using Draftsight took a short time before I felt comfortable using it.
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Implementation Rating
Adobe
I took a course so it really helped. I didn’t take the course until much later after beginning to use it, so I wish work would have sent me right off the bat. It would have alleviated a lot of frustratinon
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Dassault Systemes
Take time to get used to where commands are and how the interface can be customized to suit your needs and work style. The keyboard commands are very helpful and can make work more efficient if time is taken to learn them.
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Alternatives Considered
Adobe
[Adobe] Photoshop offers the best photo editing as well as content creation. The layer-by-layer approach of [Adobe] Photoshop helps to work between two apps or even two PCs of entirely different Creative Cloud apps seamlessly. The stability and the speed of the tools in photoshop make it even better to make a canvas of creativity.
Read full review
Dassault Systemes
While SketchUp is free, DraftSights cost is minimal and its abilities are much greater. It is so much easier to layout and modifies a system design. Since DraftSight is compatible with all versions of CAD, it makes it easy to collaborate with customers on their specific system design. We spend less time and see greater sales on our projects.
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Contract Terms and Pricing Model
Adobe
No answers on this topic
Dassault Systemes
It's a typical contract for cad software. It was inexpensive at the time I started. But now the more useful features are on the more premium (priced) version.
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Scalability
Adobe
It seems expensive compared to the free/cheap programs now available
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Dassault Systemes
As a startup, we really appreciate scalable software or tools, and because we use it for diverse types of projects, flexibility is key.
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Professional Services
Adobe
No answers on this topic
Dassault Systemes
Quite responsive when I have an issue, and with little to no delay in responding. They are professional and know the software so have been able to solve all of the issues that I have had with both using the software and also with making revisions as required. Non-technical issues like invoices have also been resolved quickly.
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Return on Investment
Adobe
  • Adobe PhotoShop in general is a great time saver.
  • It does take a long time for the program to start up, however
  • The most difficult task is onboarding new employees into Adobe PhotoShop who don't have experience with it. It's an investment for their future so we see value in it.
Read full review
Dassault Systemes
  • Draftsight has been very cost effective, it was free a few years ago then £79 a year, which it still is if you have the standard version. Now the minium level is Profession edition at £159+ VAT per year. Which is still very good value for money, just more that what we currently pay with the standard licences we have.
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ScreenShots

DraftSight Screenshots

Screenshot of Plate InsertScreenshot of Image TraceScreenshot of 2D and 3D DWG filesScreenshot of HomeByMe Integration