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AutoCAD

AutoCAD

Overview

What is AutoCAD?

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.

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Recent Reviews

TrustRadius Insights

AutoCAD is a versatile software widely used in various industries for its ability to create detailed 2D and 3D models. Many users rely on …
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AutoCAD Review

10 out of 10
October 26, 2023
AutoCAD is one of the most used software for desigining and and preparing the civil Engineering design in my firm. As of AutoCAD I use it …
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A review of AutoCAD

9 out of 10
September 18, 2023
We use AutoCAD for 2D drafting, and creating drawing deliverables for multiple clients. We import data from other engineering/design …
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Well oriented tool

8 out of 10
December 27, 2021
This is one of the best software for preparing engineering drawings. It has many features for preparing drawings for clients. 1. Preparing …
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Awards

Products that are considered exceptional by their customers based on a variety of criteria win TrustRadius awards. Learn more about the types of TrustRadius awards to make the best purchase decision. More about TrustRadius Awards

Reviewer Pros & Cons

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Pricing

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Monthly Subscription

$245

On Premise
per month per user

Yearly Subscription

$1975

On Premise
per year per user

3-Year Subscription

$5925

On Premise
3 years per user

Entry-level set up fee?

  • No setup fee
For the latest information on pricing, visithttps://www.autodesk.com/products/autoc…

Offerings

  • Free Trial
  • Free/Freemium Version
  • Premium Consulting/Integration Services

Starting price (does not include set up fee)

  • $245 per month
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Product Demos

AutoCAD 2010 Demo: Block Tables

YouTube

AutoCAD 2010 Demo: 3D Printing

YouTube

Demo AutoCAD 2010 en Español

YouTube

AutoCAD 2010 Demo: PDF Output

YouTube

AutoCAD 2010 Demo: PDF Underlay

YouTube

AutoCAD Architecture 2010 Demo

YouTube
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Product Details

What is AutoCAD?

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.

It can be used to
  • Design and annotate 2D geometry and 3D models with solids, surfaces, and mesh objects
  • Automate tasks such as comparing drawings, replacing blocks, counting objects, creating schedules, and more
  • Create a customized workspace to maximize productivity with add-on apps and API

AutoCAD includes 7 toolsets:

  • Architecture toolset
  • Mechanical toolset
  • Map 3D toolset
  • MEP toolset
  • Electrical toolset
  • Plant 3D toolset
  • Raster Design toolset

Key Features of AutoCAD 2024 now include:

  • Smart Blocks - Automatically place blocks based on previous placements or quickly find and replace existing blocks
  • My Insights - Faster project completion with helpful tips and features from My Insights
  • Floating windows - Displays drawing windows side by side or on multiple monitors within the same instance of AutoCAD
  • Activity Insights - Keeps the user informed of recent changes to a shared DWG through an activity log
  • Drawing History - Comparison of past and present versions of a drawing to see how work has evolved
  • Sharing - A controlled copy of a drawing can be sent to teammates and colleagues for viewing or editing from anywhere
  • Markup Import and Markup Assist - Imported feedback from paper or PDFs and add changes automatically, without altering an existing drawing
  • AutoCAD anytime, anywhere - CAD drawings can be created, edited, and viewed with a browser using AutoCAD on mobile or on web
  • Push to Autodesk Docs - CAD drawing sheets can be pushed as PDFs directly from AutoCAD to Autodesk Docs

AutoCAD Videos

Introducing AutoCAD
Introducing AutoCAD 2023
Introducing AutoCAD 2024

AutoCAD Competitors

AutoCAD Technical Details

Deployment TypesOn-premise
Operating SystemsWindows, Mac
Mobile ApplicationNo

Frequently Asked Questions

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.

AutoCAD starts at $245.

ZWCAD, BricsCAD, and FreeCAD are common alternatives for AutoCAD.

Reviewers rate Usability highest, with a score of 8.

The most common users of AutoCAD are from Small Businesses (1-50 employees).
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Comparisons

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Reviews and Ratings

(549)

Community Insights

TrustRadius Insights are summaries of user sentiment data from TrustRadius reviews and, when necessary, 3rd-party data sources. Have feedback on this content? Let us know!

AutoCAD is a versatile software widely used in various industries for its ability to create detailed 2D and 3D models. Many users rely on AutoCAD for Bim modeling, specifically for creating 3D models of building services like HVAC, plumbing, and fire protection. Engineers and architects appreciate its features in preparing engineering drawings, such as spool drawings, 2D sheets for construction sites, and detailed connections of plumbing and HVAC. Its ease of use and fast documentation make it a favorite among professionals for managing multiple project drawings.

AutoCAD is highly regarded for its role in architectural and interior projects, allowing designers to create high-quality and easy-to-interpret engineering drawings. Architects, engineers, and designers also utilize AutoCAD to exchange files between teams seamlessly. The software's versatility extends beyond construction-related projects as well; it is used for vehicle turn radius studies, traffic flow analysis, PCB mechanical drawings, panel forms, electrical meter items in 2D, and editing and cleaning up drawings received from customers.

Additionally, AutoCAD plays a primary role in design teams' processes by producing engineering drawings for client approval and construction purposes. It is also extensively used in educational settings to prepare students for their field of study. Its applications reach beyond designing and drafting; AutoCAD is utilized in laser cutting for precise design verification before sending the designs to the laser cutter. With compatibility with other file formats and seamless integration with other Autodesk software packages, AutoCAD has become a staple tool in many organizations across different disciplines.

Users highly recommend AutoCAD for various design purposes, including 2D drawing generation, detailing, plumbing, and electrical plans production. It is particularly recommended for architectural and engineering professionals.

Users suggest considering if AutoCAD is suitable for GIS users and checking its compatibility with other third-party tools. They also highlight that AutoCAD is considered the industry standard for 2D drawings.

Overall, users recommend using AutoCAD due to its extensive capabilities, industry reputation, and suitability for different design tasks.

Attribute Ratings

Reviews

(1-14 of 14)
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Score 7 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
AutoDesk customer support is notoriously bad. Feature requests and bugs often go unaddressed for years. With a near-monopoly, AutoDesk seems to have no incentive to improve their software based on user input. Most "support" is found on user forums, which can be helpful but often contain out-of-date information based on previous versions. For the most part, you're on your own.
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
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.
February 15, 2020

AutoCAD for 2D Drafters

Score 6 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
A majority of support for AutoCAD comes from online tutorials and videos from third parties, not AutoDesk itself. This goes in hand with its lack of an intuitive user interface, which causes people to seek out third party help to do simple tasks. The complex functions are completely elusive, and I feel many people are not using AutoCAD to its fullest potential because of that.
January 15, 2020

Great for 2D!

Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
It is usually easy to find solutions to problems in Autodesk forums, I don't think customer service gets back to you very quickly with more specific/personal issues though.
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
AutoCAD support is very easy to find. The official Autodesk support is very helpful and can easily answer common questions. The best help is searching community groups online and finding users who are experiencing the same problem. I have always found a user with the same issue and almost every time someone had a solution that worked.
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Some of the help options are confusing and/or you need to read through feeds to find what you are looking for, but the answer is usually out there. I find that I tend to just google a question than use the AutoDesk help or other help options that are provided by AutoCAD since some of the dialog is a bit too technical for me.
August 30, 2017

Autocad Pros And Cons

Nelson David Sanchez Villasmil | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
To be honest I give this rating because when looking for support they have always been very kind and effective in solving the issue. But in some cases there has been a lack of support feedback. But I think that also the issues were not common. So there it felt like a little neglect on the support, but again those were minor cases.
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