Searching for solidworks craft usually means SOLIDWORKS versus SolidCraft, and SolidCraft does not replace it. SOLIDWORKS is paid commercial CAD; SolidCraft is open-source parametric CAD from Tangency Labs, and the project calls it early but usable for simple parts.
Side by side
A paid Windows CAD suite on one side, an open-source program with more systems on the other.
| SolidCraft | SOLIDWORKS | |
|---|---|---|
| Maker | Tangency Labs | Dassault Systèmes |
| Licence | Open source: MIT or Apache-2.0, at your option | Proprietary |
| Price | No price published | Paid. At the time of writing (October 2026), USA yearly list prices were Standard $2,820, Professional $3,456 and Premium $4,716, before local tax. The official pricing page lists quarterly and yearly subscriptions. |
| Desktop systems | Windows, macOS, Linux, FreeBSD | 64-bit Windows 10 and Windows 11 for the desktop client |
| Browser | A browser version is included | SOLIDWORKS xDesign is a separate browser product |
| Scope | Parametric CAD. "Early but usable for simple parts." At the time of writing (October 2026): v0.16.2 | Parts, assemblies and production drawings. Simulation, rendering and CAM depend on the package |
What each side actually commits to
Use the published limit, not a guess about missing features.
- SolidCraft publishes no price. The program licence is MIT or Apache-2.0, at your option. SolidCore, the geometry kernel, is Apache-2.0.
- At the time of writing (October 2026) the latest GitHub release was v0.16.2, dated 19 October 2026. The project's scope line is "early but usable for simple parts." On a public set of 76 reference parts, 75 results matched.
- Desktop builds are Windows (x64, ARM64, x86), macOS (universal, Apple silicon and Intel), Linux (x86_64 and aarch64) and FreeBSD (x86_64), plus a browser version. solidcraft-cli and a local MCP server are included. Installers were not signed yet at that date.
- Versions through 0.7 were named SolveCraft. That older name is not SOLIDWORKS.
- SOLIDWORKS Design is sold as Standard, Professional and Premium yearly terms. The official pricing page lists quarterly and yearly subscriptions. The USA yearly list prices above were the published figures at the time of writing (October 2026), before local tax.
- Those packages include parts, assemblies and drawings. Higher tiers add tools such as linear static analysis and routing. Simulation, rendering and CAM are package-dependent.
- The SOLIDWORKS desktop client is documented for 64-bit Windows 10 and Windows 11. xDesign is a separate browser product, not the desktop installer.
Which should you use?
Match the program to the job and the computer.
- Choose SolidCraft if you want open-source parametric CAD, simple parts fit "early but usable for simple parts," and you need Windows, macOS, Linux, FreeBSD or a browser. Start with SolidCraft parametric CAD and the SolidCraft download page.
- Choose SOLIDWORKS if you need production drawings and the commercial suite, including simulation or CAM on the packages that include them, and you can run paid software on 64-bit Windows.
- A nearby commercial comparison is SolidCraft vs Fusion 360. The other open-source comparison is SolidCraft vs FreeCAD.