CorelCAD vs. MicroStation

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
CorelCAD
Score 10.0 out of 10
N/A
CorelCAD is CAD software providing 2D drafting and 3D design tools, industry-standard file compatibility with .DWG, .STL, .PDF, and .CDR, as well as project collaboration and sharing with optional automation and customization. CorelCAD is compatible with all major CAD programs and users can onboard quickly with familiar commands and toolbar items.N/A
MicroStation
Score 6.0 out of 10
Enterprise companies (1,001+ employees)
Bentley Systems offers the MicroStation application and product family as a 3D and 2D modeling and computer-aided design (CAD) solution for engineers and designers.
$250
Per User Per Month
Pricing
CorelCADMicroStation
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
Microstation
$250.00
Per User Per Month
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
CorelCADMicroStation
Free Trial
NoYes
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
CorelCADMicroStation
Considered Both Products
CorelCAD
Chose CorelCAD
Compared to the big companies like solid works or Solid Edge for 3D modeling, it has most of the basic tools and it is easier to use. It has more tools than some of the smaller companies but still provides the versatility of large brand-name software. CorelCAD offers an …
Chose CorelCAD
AutoCAD compares favorably to TurboCAD at a comparable price point to its mid-line product. TurboCAD offers both higher level and lower level products that expand on the capabilities of CorelCAD, but for the majority of users, CorelCAD offers a good compromise of features to …
MicroStation
Chose MicroStation
Microstation is not intuitive. It is almost impossible for our newest employees to use effectively, and I strongly prefer to start them with Civil 3D, where possible. With MicroStation, you really need to be an intermediate to advanced user to use the program and know where the …
Chose MicroStation
MicroStation is best suited for large infrastructure projects, example: road design projects. Designing 2D and 3D can be done in other software too, but the context of real-life examples is an added advantage of MicroStation.
Chose MicroStation
MicroStation offers great capabilities which enable quick Engineering design and document generation, the view comparison functions is the best among the above tools and the easy of customizing the features.
Chose MicroStation
It seems to be getting good investment with features, and information exchange is working between us and others still.
Chose MicroStation
The only general purpose CAD program that you can compare MicroStation with would be AutoCAD. MicroStation, in my opinion, is a superior product in every way but one. That one issue is that there are just more people who have and know how to use AutoCAD than there are ones …
Chose MicroStation
I prefer MicroStation personally. It is much less taxing on your computer's RAM. However, they all have their pros and cons.
Chose MicroStation
I grew up working on AutoCAD and most recently was training on Microstation. To be honest I like MicroStation but Autodesk has a little bit more refined product. But we utilize MicroStation as mush as possible when needed.
Chose MicroStation
In my opinion, I would recommend AutoCAD Civil 3D over Microstation V8i unless you/your company benefit from using MicroStation due to your contracts requiring you to submit a digital design in MicroStation file type (.dgn). Otherwise, I feel that AutoCAD Civil 3D is actually a …
Best Alternatives
CorelCADMicroStation
Small Businesses
Onshape
Onshape
Score 9.9 out of 10
Revit
Revit
Score 9.4 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Onshape
Onshape
Score 9.9 out of 10
Revit
Revit
Score 9.4 out of 10
Enterprises
Rhino
Rhino
Score 9.0 out of 10
Revit
Revit
Score 9.4 out of 10
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User Ratings
CorelCADMicroStation
Likelihood to Recommend
5.0
(0 ratings)
7.2
(0 ratings)
Usability
-
(0 ratings)
2.0
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
9.0
(0 ratings)
10.0
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
CorelCADMicroStation
Likelihood to Recommend
CorelCAD is ideally suited for creating mechanical 2D drawings for metal parts and assemblies. It is equally suited for architectural drawings. It is less well suited for creating 3D models. It also works well as an intermediary to convert between different CAD systems. CorelCAD offers a compelling and relatively low-cost solution that covers the vast majority of business needs creating both internal use drawings, drawings for fabricated parts, and creating more elaborate drawings to incorporate within CorelDraw documents.
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MicroStation is well suited for environments where animation and 3D modelling is required for designs. It perfectly fits into scenarios where Building Information Modelling (BIM) is used. One should avoid this platform if the budget is low and the overall length of the project is not huge.
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Pros
  • 2D and 3D mechanical drawings
  • Interchange with AutoCAD users and other CAD users.
  • Publish technical data sheets and drawings.
  • Creating PDF documents
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  • MicroStation, as a stand-alone CAD package, is a great plan production tool.
  • MicroStation makes a very good base to build other applications on top of.
  • It has at least, in my opinion, a very easy to use interface.
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Cons
  • Movement for 3D designs.
  • Some tools could be easier to access.
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  • MicroStation's graphic interface appears data in comparison to other CAD software.
  • MicroStation has a tendency to crash if not managed properly during design.
  • MicroStation's transportation design component is separated from the main system which causes occasional complications.
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Usability
No answers on this topic
MicroStation is very hard to use for our newest employees. It is not intuitive, and you need to know where to find the buttons to perform the commands you would like to perform instead of typing in the commands like other similar modeling programs. Also, it has no good traffic turning add-ins. We continue to run ALL our turning in Autoturn, since this is not a usable feature with MicroStation.
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Support Rating
Corel's support has always been outstanding. Technical support is always available to assist with installation and licensing issues and there is generally additional free assistance for a time period after purchase. Corel also offers online tutorials and other self-help resources. Ongoing and available support is one of the outstanding features Corel has always provided.
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We haven't had to use it for many years, so not able to comment.
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Alternatives Considered
Compared to the big companies like solid works or Solid Edge for 3D modeling, it has most of the basic tools and it is easier to use. It has more tools than some of the smaller companies but still provides the versatility of large brand-name software. CorelCAD offers an attractive alternative for those on a tight budget.
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Microstation is not intuitive. It is almost impossible for our newest employees to use effectively, and I strongly prefer to start them with Civil 3D, where possible. With MicroStation, you really need to be an intermediate to advanced user to use the program and know where the buttons to do what you want are located. They need to make their program more command based. Things like snapping to a near point or correcting text size universally are not intuitive like they are in Civil 3D or SOLIDWORKS. For other programs you can just type in commands like "LINE" and draw a line. In Microstation, you need to select between a polyline or smartline from the tools>geometry menu. Why does it need to be so complicated? We ONLY use this program, because we are required to deliver our models in the DGN format to our client. Otherwise, we would use Civil 3D for everything.
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Return on Investment
  • Fast and easy to use
  • Low Memory usage so I can use equipment with not such big technical requirements.
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  • Been beneficial in the current office to have a copy for information exchange.
  • Some of the more "die-hard MicroStation users" often do markups in it over our current software.
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ScreenShots

MicroStation Screenshots

Screenshot of Take advantage of built-in support for 100+ common formats and data types for 2D and 3D raster and vector geometry and associated BIM information, including trusted RealDWGScreenshot of Supporting hundreds of coordinate systems and dozens of geospatial data types, users can reliably integrate existing data quickly and confidently.Screenshot of Produce better documentation, faster, with fully integrated 2D and 3D workflows, creating a single integrated model that allows you to view drawings and other model information directly immersed within the 3D modelScreenshot of You can ensure your design intent while speeding modeling with extremely powerful and flexible constraints and a range of solid, mesh, surface, and topological modeling toolsScreenshot of MicroStation's native support for an unmatched range of file formats and data types means you can leverage any data you have to speed drafting and modeling and decision-makingScreenshot of Turn your models into polished professional presentations to win stakeholder buy-in and speed approvals on your design projects.