AutoCAD vs. Autodesk Inventor

AutoCAD

559 Reviews and Ratings

Autodesk Inventor

89 Reviews and Ratings

Overview
Product	Rating	Most Used By	Product Summary	Starting Price
AutoCAD	Score7.8 out of 10	N/A	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.	$245 per month
Autodesk Inventor	Score8 out of 10	N/A	Autodesk Inventor 3D CAD software offers professional-grade 3D mechanical design, documentation, and product simulation tools. These blend parametric, direct, freeform, and rules-based design capabilities. Inventor includes integrated tools for sheet metal, frame design, tube and pipe, cable & harness, presentations, rendering, simulation, and machine design. It also features TrustedDWG® compatibility and Model-Based Definition capabilities for embedding manufacturing information directly in…	$300 12 days over 1 year via Flex pricing 100 tokens

Pricing

AutoCAD

Autodesk Inventor

Monthly Subscription: $245
per month per user
Yearly Subscription: $1975
per year per user
3-Year Subscription: $5925
3 years per user

Subscription - Monthly: $305
per month per user
Subscription - Yearly: $2440
per year per user
Subscription - 3 Years: $7320
3 years per user

Pricing Offerings
AutoCAD	Autodesk Inventor
Free Trial
Yes	Yes
Free/Freemium Version
No	No
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
No	No

No setup fee

No setup fee

—

Also available for limited use through tokens on a Flex plan.

Community Pulse
Key User Insights
	AutoCAD	Autodesk Inventor
Considered Both Products	Autodesk DHIRAJ PATEL Floor Manager in Engineering at lasertech cutting solution (Mechanical Or Industrial Engineering, 51-200 employees) Chose AutoCAD AutoCAD is improving day by day and update by update. Making their [features] smooth and more [efficient] with every update and it is very efficient in the things that it does. [The] functions that they provide are very useful and easy to use. [The] interface of AutoCAD is … Incentivized Helpful? radu stancescu IT in Information Technology at Mitek (Construction, 1001-5000 employees) Chose AutoCAD It's the best solution for a 2D drawing. Much easier to create 2D plans when you [don't] need to create 3D components. Stable and Functional. Easy to use and remember. All commands are located where they make the best sense. Various access [to] commands is awesome!!! You can … Incentivized Helpful? Tony Dang EDMS Administrator in Engineering at Synertec (Mechanical or Industrial Engineering, 11-50 employees) Chose AutoCAD AutoCAD has a more user-friendly approach to drawing, and the interface is easy to use and is understandable. BricsCAD is an exact replica of AutoCAD in terms of user commands, however, it is cheaper to license. The industry that we work in, though, expects a certain file type … Incentivized Helpful? Todd Butts Manager in Engineering at BDA Associates (Computer & Network Security, 1-10 employees) Chose AutoCAD AutoCAD is the only drafting program that I have ever used, so i cannot compare. Incentivized Helpful?	Autodesk Verified User Chose Autodesk Inventor When it comes to solid modeling, the bad choices died out years ago. So we looked at the total ecosystem and chose Autodesk Inventor because of the integration with Nastran, HSM (machining), Autodesk CFD, MoldFlow, and AutoCAD. This means our legacy data (2D) is still a valid … Incentivized Helpful? Verified User Chose Autodesk Inventor Inventor and SOLIDWORKS compare nicely with it coming down to user preference. Both are great modeling tools, with Autodesk providing more flexibility through its subscription add-ons. Although AutoCAD exists in a different environment it is still used for design although less … Incentivized Helpful? Craig West CEO (Chief Executive Officer) in Corporate at Psychwest, Clinical & Forensic Psychology, Inc. (Mental Health Care, 11-50 employees) Chose Autodesk Inventor AutoCAD is difficult to use and adapt to while Inventor is easier to use. AutoCAD works based on designing and discovering new items while Inventor targets users who want to test something in motion. Incentivized Helpful? Fran Benson Senior Piping Designer/ BIM Coordinator at AC Corporation - Greensboro, NC (Mechanical or Industrial Engineering, 201-500 employees) Chose Autodesk Inventor Inventor is a more detailed modeling software then Revit or Fabrication. AutoCAD of course has been around for many years and will continue to have a place because it seems to be the base for all of the modeling software using .dwg file types. Inventor has the ability using the … Incentivized Helpful? Verified User Chose Autodesk Inventor I believe Autodesk Inventor is the easiest 3D modeling software to use, but it might not be the most cost effective though. The best thing about Inventor is the learning curve. It makes bringing new people up to speed much easier. I do believe that SOLIDWORKS has better … Incentivized Helpful? Rehan Akram Mechanical Design Engineer in Engineering at Ciclo Fze (Mechanical Or Industrial Engineering, 11-50 employees) Chose Autodesk Inventor I used to work on SOLIDWORKS CAD modeling software. but now, I am working with Autodesk Inventor. Inventor in budget software for new start-up companies. and Inventor provide a product bundle in one. So, you will get the other beneficial software also. and we can also design … Incentivized Helpful? Matt Wipf CNC Programmer in Manufacturing at GR Manufacturing (Construction, 11-50 employees) Chose Autodesk Inventor none Incentivized Helpful? Verified User Chose Autodesk Inventor As previously mentioned in an earlier question, Autodesk Inventor has found the happy middle ground for my 3D CAD needs. Autodesk is easy to pick up but complex enough to allow for all our CAD needs to be filled. I personally didn't select Autodesk Inventor (it was what the … Incentivized Helpful? Tony Dang Draftsperson in Engineering at Synertec (Mechanical or Industrial Engineering, 11-50 employees) Chose Autodesk Inventor Inventor is more intuitive and directional when it comes to the creation of parts and assemblies. The commands are also simpler and easier to understand than SOLIDWORKS. Inventor also has the support and presence in the market that allows for it to be utilized for different … Incentivized Helpful? Andrew McLeod Mechanical Designer in Engineering at Gemcor (Mechanical or Industrial Engineering, 51-200 employees) Chose Autodesk Inventor I've listed SOLIDWORKS, SDRC Ideas and Pro/Engineer as alternative and comparable applications. SDRC Ideas is an extinct product, and Pro/E is available as it's descendent, PTC Creo, I think. Of the two alternatives, SOLIDWORKS is easier for me to use and I can do more with it, … Incentivized Helpful?
	Would buy again
	No answers on this topic	No answers on this topic
	Delivers good value for the price
	No answers on this topic	No answers on this topic
	Happy with the feature set
	No answers on this topic	No answers on this topic
	Lived up to sales and marketing promises
	No answers on this topic	No answers on this topic
	Implementation went as expected
No answers on this topic	No answers on this topic

Features

AutoCAD

Autodesk Inventor

Comparison of Computer-Aided Design Software features of AutoCAD and Autodesk Inventor
Feature	AutoCAD 6.1 3 Ratings	Autodesk Inventor 6.8 2 Ratings
3D Modeling	6.03 Ratings	8.52 Ratings
2D Drafting	9.23 Ratings	6.02 Ratings
Rendering and Visualization	5.13 Ratings	6.52 Ratings
Parametric Design	4.83 Ratings	7.52 Ratings
Collaboration and Sharing	5.73 Ratings	6.02 Ratings
Compatibility with other software and formats	8.33 Ratings	7.02 Ratings
Assembly Design	5.33 Ratings	6.52 Ratings
Simulation and Analysis	1.02 Ratings	5.52 Ratings
Documentation and Annotation	7.83 Ratings	6.52 Ratings
Customization and Extensions	8.23 Ratings	7.52 Ratings

User Ratings
	AutoCAD	Autodesk Inventor
Likelihood to Recommend	7.3 (84 ratings)	8.0 (27 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew	8.0 (2 ratings)	9.2 (2 ratings)
Usability	8.5 (5 ratings)	10.0 (1 ratings)
Support Rating	6.9 (13 ratings)	8.1 (12 ratings)
In-Person Training	- (0 ratings)	6.0 (1 ratings)
Implementation Rating	8.0 (2 ratings)	10.0 (1 ratings)
Configurability	- (0 ratings)	10.0 (1 ratings)