shouldiuse.io

New check

Comparison

Solidworks vs Onshape

Solidworks and Onshape both land on Depends.

Solidworks versus Onshape
CompareSolidworksOnshape
VerdictDependsDepends
Best forFull-time mechanical and product designersDistributed mechanical engineering teams
Who it's not forOccasional users . subscription cost outpaces rare useSolo hobbyists . paid tiers cost more than the work justifies
PrivacyMultiple 2026 CVEs (desktop RCE, eDrawings buffer overflow, path traversal) plus a reported 2021 breach; patch discipline required.⁸No known public vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed.
Support qualityNo usable support evidence foundOnly vendor marketing pages; no independent data
Public sentimentEngineers praise its depth and industry grip, but many gripe about yearly price hikes and how hostile it is to occasional users.¹G2 and Endorsal reviewers praise ease of use and cloud collaboration, while Reddit power users coming from SolidWorks are more divided.14
Biggest gotchaUsers report ~25% yearly subscription increases; costs compound every renewal³Annual-only billing at $1,500/user adds up fast for small teams13

Pick Solidworks when

  • Full-time mechanical and product designers
  • Engineering teams needing simulation plus PDM
  • Startups via the SOLIDWORKS startup program
  • Hobbyists at the $48 Maker tier

When Solidworks is not a fit

  • Occasional users . subscription cost outpaces rare use
  • Casual makers wanting simple, cheap tools
  • Mac-only teams . desktop CAD is Windows-bound
  • Buyers demanding transparent public pricing

Pick Onshape when

  • Distributed mechanical engineering teams
  • Hardware startups
  • Educators and students
  • Teams replacing desktop CAD plus PDM

When Onshape is not a fit

  • Solo hobbyists . paid tiers cost more than the work justifies
  • Offline-first users; cloud-only means constant internet dependency
  • Small shops balking at $1,500 per user annually
  • Teams standardized on SolidWorks with large legacy file libraries

Sources

  1. SOLIDWORKS Reviews . G2g2.com
    review
  2. Solidworks is the worst occasional use software . Redditreddit.com
    review
  3. Subscriptions have gone up 25% from last year . Redditreddit.com
    review
  4. SolidWorks 2025 review . Creative Bloqcreativebloq.com
    review
  5. SOLIDWORKS for Makers ($48 hobbyist license)solidworks.com
    official
  6. SOLIDWORKS Design plans and pricingsolidworks.com
    official
  7. 2026 SOLIDWORKS Buying Guide . Hawk Ridge Systemshawkridgesys.com
    official
  8. CVE-2026-3476: SOLIDWORKS Desktop RCE . SentinelOnesentinelone.com
    security
  9. Dassault Systèmes Security Advisories3ds.com
    security
  10. solidworks.com data breach in 2021 . Breachsensebreachsense.com
    security
  11. Companies that use Solidworks . TheirStacktheirstack.com
    news
  12. Onshape as a SOLIDWORKS alternativeonshape.com
    news
  13. Onshape Plans and Pricingonshape.com
    official
  14. Onshape Reviews 2026 . G2g2.com
    review
  15. Onshape Reviews & Testimonials . Endorsalendorsal.io
    review
  16. Onshape is....bad? . Redditreddit.com
    review