FreeCAD vs. Rhino 3D

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
FreeCAD
Score 7.8 out of 10
N/A
FreeCAD is an open-source CAD software that specialized in 3D design. New features are added to FreeCAD by an active community of developers.N/A
Rhino
Score 8.7 out of 10
N/A
Robert McNeel and Associates headquartered in Seattle offers Rhinoceros 3D (or Rhino 3D), a 3D modeling and design application. Rhino can create, edit, analyze, document, render, animate, and translate NURBS curves, surfaces and solids, subdivision geometry (SubD), point clouds, and polygon meshes.
$995
one-time fee
Pricing
FreeCADRhino 3D
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
Rhino 3D for Windows & Mac
$995
one-time fee
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
FreeCADRhino
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details—Discount available for students and faculty.
More Pricing Information
Features
FreeCADRhino 3D
Computer-Aided Design Software
Comparison of Computer-Aided Design Software features of Product A and Product B
FreeCAD
-
Ratings
Rhino 3D
4.5
1 Ratings
38% below category average
3D Modeling00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
2D Drafting00 Ratings2.01 Ratings
Rendering and Visualization00 Ratings4.01 Ratings
Parametric Design00 Ratings5.01 Ratings
Collaboration and Sharing00 Ratings1.01 Ratings
Compatibility with other software and formats00 Ratings7.01 Ratings
Assembly Design00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Simulation and Analysis00 Ratings1.01 Ratings
Documentation and Annotation00 Ratings1.01 Ratings
Customization and Extensions00 Ratings4.01 Ratings
Best Alternatives
FreeCADRhino 3D
Small Businesses
Onshape
Onshape
Score 9.3 out of 10
Onshape
Onshape
Score 9.3 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Onshape
Onshape
Score 9.3 out of 10
Onshape
Onshape
Score 9.3 out of 10
Enterprises
Rhino
Rhino
Score 8.7 out of 10
AutoCAD
AutoCAD
Score 8.6 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
FreeCADRhino 3D
Likelihood to Recommend
8.0
(1 ratings)
8.0
(9 ratings)
Support Rating
-
(0 ratings)
7.5
(4 ratings)
User Testimonials
FreeCADRhino 3D
Likelihood to Recommend
FreeCAD
It is a great cad software if you are wanting to try something without the commitment of a payment plan. It has the ability to do most of what other cad systems do and has some functionality that is way superior to other cad systems. It could be better with things like assemblies and larger part count developments
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Robert McNeel and Associates
One of the main highlights of Rhino is the built-in visual programming system "Grasshopper". It is widely used for parametric architectural design, by a variety of world-class architectural offices. It is also very popular within architectural schools and universities. Its usefulness has increased a lot by having add-ins, plug-ins, scripts, and integrations with Revit and ARCHICAD for BIM workflows.
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Pros
FreeCAD
  • Importing CAD formats
  • Converting mesh formats to solid and surface objects geometry
  • Fixing errors in geometry cad
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Robert McNeel and Associates
  • Parametric Modeling - Grasshopper allows for easy/rapid iterative process
  • White box renders display - looks great as a quick diagram export with no post-production required.
  • robust command prompts - rhino was originally made for industrial design and it flexes a lot of unique modeling commands that put it up there with SolidWorks
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Cons
FreeCAD
  • Would be great if it was cloud based
  • If it had some basic analysis tools
  • Had a rendering function
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Robert McNeel and Associates
  • Rhino has very limited sheet layout tools.
  • Grasshopper could be better integrated into the main interface.
  • Lack of backwards file compatibility can be frustrating.
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Support Rating
FreeCAD
No answers on this topic
Robert McNeel and Associates
A majority of the support for Rhinoceros 3D does not come from the company itself, but from online forums and boards where other Rhinoceros 3D users outline their issues and solutions. The Rhinoceros 3D website does not offer much in-depth support and just outlines general how to's. At the same time, online forums allow for more specific issues to be addressed and solved by the Rhinoceros 3D community.
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Alternatives Considered
FreeCAD
Freecad is used often when receiving files from multiple sources and the need to work with cad in various forms from meshes to solid cad. Often when receiving scans of 3d objects the format is easy to work with and convert to traditional cad later on. There is no other cad that can bridge the gap between all the cad formats that we found yet.
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Robert McNeel and Associates
It's hard to compare Rhino to other modeling software as Rhino is in a niche of its own. No other software (to my knowledge) is as customizable/programmable and has such a large community and such a large amount of free, open-source addons. Rhino (and Grasshopper) can be intimidating at first but once you get familiar with it and grow your toolbox with your own scripts, so much time will be saved
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Return on Investment
FreeCAD
  • It has allowed us to do some cad work that no other systems has allowed us to do and is key to getting that done fast
  • It has lots of online support through forums and blogs for trouble shooting
  • It could have an updated interface to make the functionality more user friendly for first time users
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Robert McNeel and Associates
  • Right away Rhino3D is useful for simple and accurate 3D model import, repair and export all in a variety of formats.
  • Rhino3D is easy to use and learn. The time to productivity is very short with this modeling tool.
  • The price is low for the value received, a great investment.
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ScreenShots