Best Mechanical Engineering Software

Compare the Top Mechanical Engineering Software as of April 2025

What is Mechanical Engineering Software?

Mechanical engineering software enables mechanical engineers to design products with detailed accuracy and specifications for the manufacturing and engineering processes. Mechanical engineering software, also known as mechanical CAD (MCAD) or mechanical design automation (MDA), streamlines all aspects of the mechanical engineering and product design process of structures and mechanical parts and products. Compare and read user reviews of the best Mechanical Engineering software currently available using the table below. This list is updated regularly.

  • 1
    AutoCAD

    AutoCAD

    Autodesk

    CAD software to design anything—with time-saving toolsets, web, and mobile apps. AutoCAD® is computer-aided design (CAD) software that architects, engineers, and construction professionals rely on to create precise 2D and 3D drawings. Draft, annotate, and design 2D geometry and 3D models with solids, surfaces, and mesh objects. Automate tasks such as comparing drawings, adding blocks, creating schedules, and more. Customize with add-on apps and APIs. AutoCAD includes industry-specific features and intelligent objects for architecture, mechanical engineering, electrical design, and more. Automate floor plans, sections, and elevations. Draw piping, ducting, and circuiting quickly with parts libraries. Auto-generate annotations, layers, schedules, lists, and tables. Use a rules-driven workflow to accurately enforce industry standards.
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    Starting Price: $1,268 per user per year
  • 2
    SketchUp

    SketchUp

    Trimble

    Design delightfully, collaborate clearly, and build better buildings. The joy of drawing by hand. The ease of super-smart 3D modeling software. Make sustainable buildings. Change the world, hundreds of professionally-developed extensions at your fingertips. Design in 3D. Document in 2D. Make work easier, bring efficiency to your team and the 3D community. A great idea can be its best with the right technology. Draw in 3D, analyze and improve your building’s performance, and creatively document and share your ideas with your class. Integrated with Google Drive and Microsoft OneDrive. Works on Chromebooks or any Internet-connected computer. Students have access to free and intuitive 3D modeling tools. Positioning-centric information is changing the way people, businesses and governments work throughout the world. By applying Trimble's advanced positioning solutions, productivity increases and safety improvements are being realized.
    Starting Price: $119 per year
  • 3
    CATIA

    CATIA

    Dassault Systèmes

    CATIA is the world's leading solution for product design and experience. It is used by leading organizations in multiple industries to develop the products we see and use in our everyday lives. CATIA delivers the unique ability not only to model any product, but to do so in the context of its real-life behavior: design in the age of experience. Systems architects, engineers, designers, construction professionals and all contributors can define, imagine and shape the connected world. A Social design environment built on a single source of truth and accessed through powerful 3D dashboards that drive business intelligence, real-time concurrent design and collaboration across all stakeholders including mobile workers. An Instinctive 3DEXPERIENCE for both experienced and occasional users with world-class 3D modeling and simulation capabilities that optimize the effectiveness of every user. An Inclusive product development platform that is easily integrated with existing processes & tools.
  • 4
    Autodesk Fusion 360
    Fusion 360 unifies design, engineering, electronics, and manufacturing into a single software platform. Get integrated CAD, CAM, CAE & PCB on a single development platform. Also includes EAGLE Premium, HSMWorks, Team Participant, and access to consumptive services, such as generative design, cloud simulation, and cloud rendering. Engineer products with a comprehensive set of modeling tools. Ensure form, fit, and function of your products with various analysis methods. Create and edit sketches with sketch constraints, dimensions, and a powerful suite of sketch tools. Edit or repair imported geometry from non-native file formats. Make design changes without worrying about time-based features. Create and edit complex parametric surfaces for repairing, patching or designing geometry. Create history-based features, including extrude, revolve, loft, sweep, etc., that update with design changes.
    Starting Price: $495 per year
  • 5
    Inventor

    Inventor

    Autodesk

    Professional-grade 3D CAD software for product design and engineering. Inventor® CAD software provides professional-grade 3D mechanical design, documentation, and product simulation tools. Work efficiently with a powerful blend of parametric, direct, freeform, and rules-based design capabilities. Work with anyone, anywhere no matter what CAD software they use. Use cloud-based design reviews to collect feedback from key stakeholders wherever they are. Follow the entire product development lifecycle with one data model. Design efficiently using specialized tools for sheet metal, frame design, and tube and pipe. Enable design, documentation, and process automation powered by iLogic. Access Inventor API to create your own add-ins. Go further by investigating Forge Design Automation API for running your job processes in the cloud.
    Starting Price: $2,190 per year
  • 6
    Creo

    Creo

    PTC

    Imagine, design, create, and innovate your products better with Creo, 3D CAD/CAM/CAE software, and solutions for product design and development. Now, more than ever, product design and manufacturing teams are expected to create products more efficiently and cost effectively, without sacrificing innovation or quality. Fortunately, Creo delivers the most scalable range of 3D CAD product development packages and tools in today’s market. Creo 7.0 has breakthrough innovations in the areas of generative design, real-time simulation, multibody design, additive manufacturing, and others! Take your products from concept to digital prototype efficiently, precisely, and intuitively with Creo—on the cutting edge of CAD for more than 30 years. With Creo 7.0, PTC amply demonstrates its skill at adding compelling new features to an already robust tool-set using smart partnerships to extend its capabilities even further.
  • 7
    ICEM Surf

    ICEM Surf

    Dassault Systèmes

    Often described as the reference system for the creation of Class-A surfaces, ICEM Surf is the industry-leading curve and surface explicit geometry modeling tool for defining, analyzing and performing high-end visualization of complex free-form shape CAD surface models to the highest quality. Used in product design processes throughout automotive, aerospace, consumer goods and press-tool design industries, providing solutions for direct surface modeling, refinement, reconstruction and scan modelling. Advanced tools such as Global modelling and industry-defined analysis tools enable designers to detect subtle surface problems and check for compliances with regulations, whilst simultaneously performing high precision surfacing and experiencing real-time 3D visualization. With the core module you can define complex free-form shapes of a desired aesthetical high end Class-A quality, create, modify and diagnose surfaces and existing designs.
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