DraftSight
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- Features
- Ease of use
- Ease of management
- Quality of support
- Affordability
- Market presence
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$299 per year
Free Trial
Free version unavailable
Small
Medium
Large
- Construction
- Real estate and property management
- Energy and utilities
What is DraftSight
DraftSight is a 2D CAD drafting and documentation application used to create, edit, and annotate DWG/DXF drawings. It targets engineers, architects, and CAD professionals who need DWG-centric workflows for production drafting, detailing, and drawing revisions. The product focuses on familiar command-based drafting, standards support (layers, blocks, dimensioning), and interoperability with DWG files across teams and suppliers.
Strong DWG/DXF workflow
DraftSight is built around creating and editing DWG and DXF files, which are common exchange formats for 2D CAD deliverables. It supports typical drafting constructs such as layers, blocks, external references, and annotation/dimensioning needed for production drawings. This makes it practical for organizations that receive DWG-based markups from partners and need to maintain drawing fidelity across revisions.
Familiar command-based drafting
The interface and command-line style workflow align with established 2D CAD drafting practices. This can reduce retraining time for teams moving from other DWG-oriented drafting tools. It also supports productivity features such as customization and automation options (e.g., scripts/macros) that suit repetitive drafting tasks.
Suitable for documentation deliverables
DraftSight emphasizes 2D documentation outputs such as plans, sections, details, and shop drawings. It includes tools for precise geometry creation, constraints typical to 2D drafting, and print/plot workflows used for formal drawing packages. For teams whose primary deliverable is a 2D drawing set, this aligns well with day-to-day requirements.
Limited 3D modeling depth
DraftSight is primarily positioned for 2D drafting rather than full parametric 3D mechanical design. Organizations needing advanced 3D part/assembly modeling, simulation, or integrated manufacturing workflows typically require a different class of CAD system. As a result, DraftSight may not cover end-to-end product development needs beyond 2D documentation.
Not a dedicated BIM tool
While it can produce architectural drawings, DraftSight is not a building information modeling platform with object-based building elements and coordinated model views. Teams that require model-driven quantities, clash detection, or BIM-centric collaboration will likely need additional software. This can introduce handoffs between drafting and BIM/modeling environments.
Collaboration features vary by setup
DraftSight’s core value is desktop drafting; real-time multi-user collaboration and cloud-native versioning are not its primary focus. Many teams still rely on external document management practices (shared drives, PDM/PLM, or third-party collaboration tools) to control versions and approvals. This can increase process overhead compared with tools designed around cloud collaboration.
Plan & Pricing
| Plan | Price | Key features & notes |
|---|---|---|
| Professional | $299 USD per year | Create, view and edit DWG, DXF and DGN files; powerful 2D drafting; complete set of edit, design and automation tools (incl. AutoLISP); available as single or network license |
| Premium | $599 USD per year | Advanced 2D and 3D capabilities; Custom Blocks, STEP import, Sheet Set Manager, DGN Export; BIM module; DraftSight Premium has a 30-day free trial (per official site) |
| Network | Starting $399 USD per year | Network (simultaneous-use) licensing for organizations; includes technical support via SOLIDWORKS partners; contact sales for organization/Enterprise pricing |
Seller details
Dassault Systèmes SE
Vélizy-Villacoublay, France
1981
Public
https://www.3ds.com/
https://x.com/3DS
https://www.linkedin.com/company/dassaultsystemes/
