AutoCAD

AutoCAD is a 2D/3D drafting software developed by Autodesk.

A good place to look for alternatives is https://alternativeto.net/software/autocad/

Getting data out of AutoCAD

File formats

AutoCAD has industry specific versions, called verticals, some formats are supported only by one of them

• DXF - Recommended, although not every features can be saved
• DWG - Everything is saved, but not readable by other applications
• IFC - Only in AutoCAD Architecture, Civil3D and MEP

Accessing data in AutoCAD with free software

• Speckle has an AutoCAD connector
• CADPythonShell is an AutoCAD addon for running python code inside AutoCAD. It uses IronPython, MIT license
• AutoCAD Civil3D comes with Dynamo since version 2022. Data in other verticals can be accessed via .NET interop services, more info in this forum

Limitations

Dynamic block custom parameters are not accessible via any method, and not readable from dxf files, visual representation are saved though. This data can be exported with DATAEXTRACTION command to csv or xls files.

See also

• LibreCAD is a free/libre alternative to AutoCAD
• QCAD is a free/libre alternative to AutoCAD

External Resources

• https://www.autodesk.com/products/autocad/overview
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AutoCAD