Autodesk Fusion is a cloud-based 3D CAD, CAM, and CAE tool which integrates design, modeling, and simulation capabilities.
$70
per month
SOLIDWORKS
Score 8.4 out of 10
N/A
Dassault Systemes offers SOLIDWORKS, a computer-aided design (CAD) system for education and manufacturing supporting 2D or 3D design, electrical design, simulations, and product development with collaboration tools.
$1,295
per year
Pricing
Autodesk Fusion
SOLIDWORKS
Editions & Modules
Fusion 360 - Paid Monthly
$70
per month per user
Fusion 360 - Paid Annually
$545
per year per user
Fusion 360 - 3 Years
$1635
3 years per user
Solidworks Annual Subscription
1,295
per year
Solidworks Standard
3,996
per standalone license
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Autodesk Fusion
SOLIDWORKS
Free Trial
Yes
No
Free/Freemium Version
Yes
No
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
No
No
Entry-level Setup Fee
No setup fee
No setup fee
Additional Details
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More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Autodesk Fusion
SOLIDWORKS
Considered Both Products
Autodesk Fusion
Verified User
Former Employee
Chose Autodesk Fusion
Fusion 360 is the most modern and robust professional CAD program on the market. It has its quirks (as with any robust piece of software), but overall it provides a lot more functionality than the traditional CAD programs -- SOLIDWORKS, Creo, and Autodesk Inventor. If it …
Fusion 360 is the second-most powerful software of the three, SOLIDWORKS being the best. Fusion 360 is an excellent step into making 3D CAD available to more people, but there are definitely still kinks they need to work out. The software gets sluggish and slow at times, but …
Both [Autodesk] Fusion 360 and SOLIDWORKS are far beyond any open source project or 2-D oriented software. Compared to SOLIDWORKS, [Autodesk] Fusion 360 comes packaged with more functionality without needing to purchase additional add-ons for each function.
SOLIDWORKS wins hands down. I will be cancelling Fusion 360 as I have realised Fusion 360 is a budget package with no support.
Verified User
Engineer
Chose Autodesk Fusion
They are mainly related to CAD-type software, which is useful for modeling/design, although in a different area. In this case, Fusion is used because it is for mechanical-type models used in prototyping that are not related to some aspect of electronics, which differentiates it …
Fusion 360 is a cloud-based CAD software with built-in rendering, simulation, and CAM programming functionality. SOLIDWORKS has all of these options at an additional cost. Fusion 360 may be a cheaper option; however, being in the cloud, simulations are costly and larger …
Solidworks is easier to use than Creo, but not as usable as Inventor. It is superior to Onshape and Fusion, however, Onshape is better for collaboration.
It's very good. SolidWorks has a great marketing budget and really reaches college students. My loyalty actually is to Inventor by AutoDesk, but honestly, they do the same things equally as well. I think that the user interface is better in Inventor and allows me to be …
SOLIDWORKS is so much more advanced than either of the other programs. Fusion 360 and Inventor are great programs, but once you get to more complicated models, they do not stack up. There are so many more functions and ways to customize files in SOLIDWORKS for users to create …
SOLIDWORKS has been around much longer than Fusion 360...and in many realms they aren't even comparable. Fusion 360 is great for small product development projects... but really can't handle large files like SOLIDWORKS can. SOLIDWORKS overall has better and more simulation …
This software has been so easy to use from day one! I couldn't be more thrilled with it. Being an SME, it is offered on an annual basis free of charge. My network of engineers are amazed I am able to accomplish what I have using this software when the companies they come from are paying thousands for licensing. I also would like to note that Autodesk offer an incredible specialization to really round out your skills via Coursera.
As a mechanical engineer, it is one of the best tools to just start modeling and engineering with. The UI tools are intuitive and engineering analysis such Mold Analysis, FEA, are great! Other 3D CAD modeling tools have a longer learning curve to master. All in all, if you're not planning to design an entire airplane with large assembly files, then Solidworks is your tool!
The first PRO of Fusion 360 that always comes to mind is how versatile it is. Fusion 360 is the first CAD/CAM software that also includes other key features that CAD programs of this size don't have.
Fusion 360 has a generous licensing structure that gives those just starting out a place to start with a professional level CAD program. As a result, this has helped build up a huge community and user base around Fusion 360.
Fusion 360 is updated on a monthly basis. This has proven to be a huge advantage over Solidworks (something else I use) which is only updated once a year. The nice thing about monthly updates, other than regular bug fixes, is that the team can adapt quickly and no one is taken by storm with a big overhaul of the UI or features at the beginning of the year.
The collaborative work environment is a cool and useful feature where groups of people can work on the same model at the same time, and SOLIDWORKS ensures that you don't overwrite each other's work.
The ease and amount of customization options are very useful for creating a personalized and intuitive user interface, whether SOLIDWORKS is your native CAD package or not.
It is very easy to quickly edit a model you have already created. The software allows sketch and feature editing without having to take the time to actually enter the sketch/feature environment.
The use of configurations and configurations-specific dimensions in the same sketch is very useful for creating different forms of the same part
Fusion 360 is a very simple program, so once you begin to draw more complex 3D models, the software gets sluggish and loses its fluidity.
It would be really nice if Fusion 360 could output a model as a SolidWorks file so I can begin to draw something out in Fusion 360 and then pick it up in SolidWorks when I need to do some more advanced functions.
Because Fusion 360 is a simpler program, there are a few functions such as 3D sketches that are not intuitive like all the rest of the functions are.
Save DWG 2D files in inches or metric easily, defaults to metric and has to be manually converted to inches
When using the sketch feature, the ability to disable ALL references. If I don't know the exact shape and I want to draw/adapt my design, it harshly interprets the references which have no value to me. The easiest exact is to think about when you have a Microsoft Word document that has a lot of formatting, photos, tabs, etc. If you accidentally hit the "enter" key, you can explode the formatting and everything goes crazy. SW does this to me, I just want to "doodle" my sketches, edit/delete/etc and not be bound by arbitrary references.
For the sketch feature, ability to use a DraftSight plugin of some sort. I'm super fast in DS, if I could draw using the commands in SW then I would probably never open DS again and convert to SW full time. Currently, I only use SW as a way to convert 3D files so I can build everything in DraftSight.
Because the tool is very useful and easy to access, it provides very basic and useful tools to start in the modeling part despite being basic processing aspects. It is also very easy to get a free, temporary, or student license, which makes it a very good CAD tool.
I have been using SOLIDWORKS for around 12 years as of writing this review, so have learned where most things are and how they work. When first starting out it was quite daunting, but the interface is well laid out with like functions near each other which made finding new functions relatively easy.
Support is conducted via internet Q&A boards; newcomers to 3D modeling may find that articulating their questions in the language of CAD software is the tricky part — once they find the right technical term for what they're trying to accomplish, answers come quickly. Autodesk also provides a large library of educational tutorial videos that make the initial process of learning Fusion 360's interface much easier.
We have an unusual arrangement. We don’t pay for support, but we’re partnered with a VAR for second-tier support.
I work with other users if I have questions but when we’ve had to ask the VAR, they always have answers. It appears that all of the VARs have access to a support platform from DS SOLIDWORKS that helps them answer most questions.
Autodesk Inventor excels at daily core engineering tasks. When integrated with Vault management systems and part libraries, Autodesk Inventor is tough to beat when you need a mechanical design solution. When Inventor and Vault are setup properly it allows for a very efficient design workflow. I think it would be difficult to achieve the same amount of workflow efficiency with Autodesk Fusion 360, that said, Autodesk Fusion 360 offers a very good toolset at a much lower cost. I can maintain a yearly subscription of Autodesk Fusion 360 and get about 85% of the functionality that is available via the Inventor design suite for the cost of about 2 months of an Inventor subscription. I then also get access to manufacturing plugins with Autodesk Fusion 360 but lose a lot in the drawing environment. Inventor beats Autodesk Fusion 360 hands down when it comes to documentation.
Onshape is a direct competitor. It has great entry level pricing and it is easy to access with no installation required. Being a web based app there is sometime some lag being based in NZ. Management also have concerns over where the data is stored on the cloud. With SW we can control where it is stored
