Free alternatives to SolidWorks

Dassault Systèmes' parametric 3D CAD package for mechanical design. Here are 5 free options, most popular first.

FreeCAD

3D & parametric CAD

Open-source parametric 3D modeller for real-life objects

Stars
★ 34.5k
Licence
LGPL-2.1+
Updated

Alternative to SolidWorks, Fusion 360

S

SolveSpace

3D & parametric CAD

Lightweight parametric 2D/3D CAD with a constraint solver

Stars
★ 4.2k
Licence
GPL-3.0
Updated

Alternative to SolidWorks, Fusion 360

Dune 3D

3D & parametric CAD

Modern parametric 3D CAD built on SolveSpace's solver and OpenCascade

Stars
★ 2.1k
Licence
GPL-3.0
Updated

Alternative to Fusion 360, SolidWorks

Onshape Free

3D & parametric CAD

Free plan of PTC's browser-based professional CAD

Licence
Proprietary
Status
Free (proprietary)

Alternative to SolidWorks, Fusion 360

Solid Edge Community Edition

3D & parametric CAD

Free edition of Siemens' professional CAD for hobbyists and makers

Licence
Proprietary
Status
Free (proprietary)

Alternative to SolidWorks, Inventor

Check file compatibility before switching. Free tools import STEP, DXF and other neutral formats well, but native SolidWorks, Altium or Revit files, drawing standards and PDM workflows may not carry over cleanly.