File format comparison
From Wiki.OSArch
This is a file format comparison of popular and widely used file formats for geometry and AEC related data storage.
For descriptions see AEC Open Data Standards Directory
Format | Open Format? | Support | Stores metadata | Stores materials | Stores parametric controls |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
GSM | No | ArchiCAD | Yes (proprietary) | Yes (proprietary) | Yes (proprietary) |
IFC | Yes | ArchiCAD, Autodesk Revit, Blender, FreeCAD, Rhino, SketchUp, Tekla, and over 300 other software. | Yes (ISO-compliant) | Yes (ISO-compliant) | Basic (ISO-compliant) |
RFA | No | Revit, bimrv | Yes (proprietary) | Yes (proprietary) | Yes (proprietary) |
DWG | No | Most proprietary CAD, not compatible with most open source CAD | Basic (proprietary) | Basic (proprietary) | No |
DXF | Yes | Supported by all that support DWG, plus all open source CAD | Basic | Basic | No |
STL | Yes | Blender, FreeCAD, Rhino, SketchUp | No | Possible, but inconvenient | No |
STEP | No | Good | Yes (Most vendor exports don't) | ||
OBJ | Yes | Good | ? | Yes (.mtl) | |
FBX | No | Good | ? | ||
SKP | No | SketchUp | Yes (proprietary) | Yes (proprietary) | Yes (proprietary) |
BLEND | Yes | Blender BlenderBIM_Add-on | Yes | Yes | Yes |