AutoCAD vs. Autodesk BIM Collaborate Pro

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
AutoCAD
Score 8.4 out of 10
N/A
AutoCAD is a CAD product from Autodesk. It allows designers to work in 2D and 3D, and is available on Windows and Mac, but with extensive online collaboration tools.
$245
per month
Autodesk BIM Collaborate Pro
Score 9.3 out of 10
N/A
Autodesk BIM Collaborate Pro (formerly BIM360) is a construction software for project managers, site managers, and Building Information Modelling (BIM) managers. It is designed to connect the office and site components of construction, providing cloud-based access to plans and models.
$480
per user/per year
Pricing
AutoCADAutodesk BIM Collaborate Pro
Editions & Modules
Monthly Subscription
$245
per month per user
Yearly Subscription
$1975
per year per user
3-Year Subscription
$5925
3 years per user
Autodesk Bim 360
$480.00
per user/per year
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
AutoCADAutodesk BIM Collaborate Pro
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
AutoCADAutodesk BIM Collaborate Pro
Considered Both Products
AutoCAD
Chose AutoCAD
As we all know that AutoCAD is a basic Drafting software used to drawing all of 2D object so all above softwares mentioned as as used as 2nd one after developing the plan on AutoCAD. So I do prepare plans on AutoCAD and develops them on above software. So basically my first …
Chose AutoCAD
Honestly, we have never used another program, or even evaluated one. we do use SketchUp for quick modeling but have always relied on AutoCAD for design and production.
Autodesk BIM Collaborate Pro
Chose Autodesk BIM Collaborate Pro
Storing and managing the project data in one location is not different that Autodesk Vault which is also a data management software. However, Autodesk Vault is slow in accessing and dealing with big Revit projects and files. Even if they are similar, we decided to use only …
Chose Autodesk BIM Collaborate Pro
I have never used anything against BIM Collaborate, as it's our primary collaboration domain.
Chose Autodesk BIM Collaborate Pro
This software streamlines BIM project workflows better than other software. It Saves time, reduces risk, and mitigates errors in construction projects. It will Help to improve quality & safety. The feature of clash detection is the best one and most useful. This software will …
Top Pros
Top Cons
Features
AutoCADAutodesk BIM Collaborate Pro
Computer-Aided Design Software
Comparison of Computer-Aided Design Software features of Product A and Product B
AutoCAD
6.1
3 Ratings
12% below category average
Autodesk BIM Collaborate Pro
-
Ratings
3D Modeling6.03 Ratings00 Ratings
2D Drafting9.03 Ratings00 Ratings
Rendering and Visualization5.33 Ratings00 Ratings
Parametric Design4.73 Ratings00 Ratings
Collaboration and Sharing5.73 Ratings00 Ratings
Compatibility with other software and formats8.03 Ratings00 Ratings
Assembly Design5.33 Ratings00 Ratings
Simulation and Analysis1.02 Ratings00 Ratings
Documentation and Annotation7.73 Ratings00 Ratings
Customization and Extensions8.33 Ratings00 Ratings
Asset Management
Comparison of Asset Management features of Product A and Product B
AutoCAD
-
Ratings
Autodesk BIM Collaborate Pro
6.0
1 Ratings
18% below category average
Tracking of all physical assets00 Ratings6.01 Ratings
Reporting & Analytics
Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of Product A and Product B
AutoCAD
-
Ratings
Autodesk BIM Collaborate Pro
7.1
4 Ratings
10% below category average
Dashboards00 Ratings6.04 Ratings
Standard reports00 Ratings7.54 Ratings
Custom reports00 Ratings7.54 Ratings
Data exportability00 Ratings7.54 Ratings
Construction Project & Field Management
Comparison of Construction Project & Field Management features of Product A and Product B
AutoCAD
-
Ratings
Autodesk BIM Collaborate Pro
7.6
13 Ratings
1% above category average
Plan distribution & viewing00 Ratings9.513 Ratings
Plan markups & sharing00 Ratings10.013 Ratings
Issue tracking & punchlists00 Ratings9.012 Ratings
Photo documentation00 Ratings7.012 Ratings
Jobsite reports00 Ratings6.511 Ratings
Document sharing00 Ratings10.012 Ratings
RFI tools00 Ratings6.011 Ratings
Collaboration & approvals00 Ratings9.012 Ratings
As-built drawings00 Ratings6.510 Ratings
Mobile app00 Ratings3.011 Ratings
Submittal design and management00 Ratings7.510 Ratings
Checklists00 Ratings6.54 Ratings
Meeting Minutes00 Ratings9.02 Ratings
Specifications00 Ratings7.04 Ratings
Change orders00 Ratings8.02 Ratings
Estimating
Comparison of Estimating features of Product A and Product B
AutoCAD
-
Ratings
Autodesk BIM Collaborate Pro
5.7
3 Ratings
34% below category average
Takeoff tools00 Ratings6.53 Ratings
Job costing00 Ratings5.93 Ratings
Cost databases00 Ratings8.02 Ratings
Cost calculator00 Ratings4.93 Ratings
Bid creation00 Ratings3.02 Ratings
Best Alternatives
AutoCADAutodesk BIM Collaborate Pro
Small Businesses
Onshape
Onshape
Score 9.4 out of 10
FollowUp CRM
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Score 10.0 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Onshape
Onshape
Score 9.4 out of 10
Revit
Revit
Score 9.1 out of 10
Enterprises
Rhino
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Score 8.5 out of 10
Revit
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Score 9.1 out of 10
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User Ratings
AutoCADAutodesk BIM Collaborate Pro
Likelihood to Recommend
8.0
(84 ratings)
9.5
(13 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
8.0
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Usability
8.5
(5 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
Support Rating
6.9
(13 ratings)
6.9
(2 ratings)
Implementation Rating
8.0
(2 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
AutoCADAutodesk BIM Collaborate Pro
Likelihood to Recommend
Autodesk
AutoCAD is great for large-scale printing, simple drawing, and manipulating exports from Revit to understand coordinate systems. We often use AutoCAD to create overlays that we then take into Navisworks. Understanding AutoCAD is crucial when working with subcontractor models. I have subs who only work in AutoCAD and I use it to make sure their models will work in my process.
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Autodesk
Autodesk Bim 360 is well suited to the majority of construction projects in my opinion. On the construction side I could see how the straightforward nature of the platform would be well liked. The new update with the widgets is a great touch and allows for ease of site visits by showcasing good to know info like project location on a map and the local weather. You can also customize the "widgets" as you see fit to add more information if necessary to the home screen. From my experience as a LEED consultant, Bim 360 does not differ much from other platforms used for submittal review like Procore. It is easy enough to search for what you want but searches do take a while and you need to move the cursor over every time you search and do not find what you're looking for, which seems very unnecessary. Overall it is fine for reviewing documentation but isn't anything extraordinary.
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Pros
Autodesk
  • The tools are easy to use and the learning curve is fairly minimal to be able to create blueprints.
  • The 3D application is very fun to use and it is nice to be able to see your product instead of having to imagine what it will look like.
  • The speed and accuracy in which students can create plans is a huge bonus. Students can plan their industrial art projects out and use their own set of plans to build them.
Read full review
Autodesk
  • It helps to collaborate on different components of projects that work according to different specifications in one place.
  • With this the client can have all date at once where they can review all things.
  • The place where an architect and other Engineers coordinate to get a full-fledged model.
Read full review
Cons
Autodesk
  • User Interface Customisation: AutoCAD's user interface could benefit from more robust customisation options. Allowing users to rearrange toolbars, menus, and panels according to their specific workflows and preferences would enhance productivity.
  • Enhanced 3D Modeling Tools: While AutoCAD is capable of 3D modeling, it's not as intuitive or feature-rich as dedicated 3D modeling software. Streamlining the process and adding more advanced modeling tools would be a welcome improvement.
  • Enhanced Collaboration and Version Control: AutoCAD could improve its collaboration tools, such as real-time editing and version tracking, to facilitate smoother teamwork, especially in multi-disciplinary projects.
  • Intelligent Object Libraries: AutoCAD could benefit from an expanded and more intelligent library of standard objects and components. This would save time for designers who often have to create custom components from scratch.
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Autodesk
  • Bim360 is extremely unintuitive and frequently confusing to end users.
  • There are multiple avenues of sharing and collaboration for models and information. The advantages/disadvantages of each and how to perform even the most basic of tasks requires extensive training and mentoring for even the most advanced of users.
  • There are many enormous limitations and constraints to BIM 360 that are not immediately obvious and even contrary to published marketing materials and even product naming.
  • Development cycles of the product are seemingly monthly, but incredibly minor. This makes the desperately-needed and glaringly obvious massive usability, capability, and performance improvements into deal-breakers and hair pulling events. Change cannot come fast enough.
  • There are no integrations into Microsoft's Azure AD SSO or other 3rd party SSOs available for SMBs. This makes the provided MFA a huge headache for all SMBs.
  • There are no integrations into the Microsoft 365 ecosystem for SharePoint/OneDrive or Outlook. This is desperately needed for most organizations using Bim360.
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Likelihood to Renew
Autodesk
Because rarely we [would] rather wait for a whole year to update, sometimes the new updates don't bring many new features and we are still ok with the current version. Also the change of interface is always something that takes time for every partner in the company to get comfortable with. So those are the main reasons we may want to keep the same version.
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Autodesk
No answers on this topic
Usability
Autodesk
The use case of AutoCAD as a CAD software is highly relevant today as it focuses or targets to tasks types which involve creating 2D drawings of a number of types like electrical drawings, hydraulic drawings, layout diagrams, floor plans, etc. thereby addressing a large number of industries like Mechanical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Electrical Engineering and in most case Architectural Engineering as well
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Autodesk
It's not very difficult to use for majority of all our users. We really like storing and managing all our project data in one location so users have only one option to access the requested information. Managing our architectural engineering projects with two workflows in one system is really a good asset
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Support Rating
Autodesk
AutoCAD has the issue of crashing or slowing down the design procedure once a heavy design that includes several disciplines or multiple families/blocks is involved. Customer services gets the feedback from the crash reports but this issue seems like it has never been addressed in the software updates past several years.
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Autodesk
AutoDesk support is slow and if you are not an enterprise customer they will likely tell you to go to forums and post for help pushing the support on the high-level end-users (some of which are AutoDesk employees). I haven't actually had issues requiring support with docs altough there are some features I wish it had
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Implementation Rating
Autodesk
the implementation was realy easy , to set up our workstation we pay for the licenses we are about to use , there was a little bit of delay to get the payment processed to receive the serial but after that the install runs without any problem , so you can fell secure there will be not issue with the implementation.
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Autodesk
No answers on this topic
Alternatives Considered
Autodesk
I have experience with Autodesk Maya, and am familiar with their user interface with creating 3D objects. AutoCAD while from the same family, requires a steeper learning curve and more in-depth knowledge of the software.
I have experience with this software because it is the industry standard in the jobs that I applied to, and was required to the company that I interviewed for. Part of the interview process was a proof-of-work test to create a mock solution for a client, which would demonstrate knowledge and skill with using AutoCAD.
I have little experience with CorelCAD, but I found AutoCAD to be more in-depth with your options and what you could create.
Read full review
Autodesk
The saving in reduced field changes/mistakes quickly paid for the license plus some. The software allows for easy data collection, especially at project completion for field software by checklist creation. Furthermore, the internal punch-list tracking, tracking completion lists and punch lists created for us by others is optimal compared to the competition. We chose Bim360 over other options due to its ability to import out of other software programs directly into the system, adding reports in one location and then distributing it to subcontractors and internally from there to fix deficiencies. It does the tracking, importing, markups of pictures and document viewing well and fulfills our needs.
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Return on Investment
Autodesk
  • AutoCAD has helped our smaller firm produce lots of finished products matching that of a much larger size firm. With its many features, we have been able to do so much more and meet deadlines that much faster.
  • Since we do use AutoCAD, we're able to work with many other engineering firms to collaborate together to complete various building projects.
  • We have many clients now who expect us to provide for them at the end of a project not just printed construction drawings but also the digital AutoCAD drawing so they can in turn use it for future modifications themselves.
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Autodesk
  • We are able to complete a design quicker.
  • The fact that your files are not on your servers. Anytime that the Autodesk servers go down you are down; it does not happen very often but when it does there is nothing you can do about it except wait.
  • Because of how BIM360 licensing is setup it does force you to manage the personnel on a project closer. This can at times be viewed as a negative but in the long run is positive because with better management comes better profit.
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ScreenShots