Onshape Reviews & Product Details

They are CONSTANTLY developing the program and I share EVERYTHING to EVERY department with a single link. I am head of RnD in a boiler company. We manufacture every kind of tank there is. When I publish a design I send the same link to marketing, sales, manufacturing even the costumers. The marketing and sales guys get their 3d,tds and renderings and the rollers, punchers, welders, etc get their drawings. I don't have to send a bunch of pdf/dxf/steps/wetf emails and they don't have to install a "free" viewer where you have to give out your phone# and address.... I am talking to you SW! If you have a business it is a no brainer. It is build to look outward and provide people the info they need. It is a multitool. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

I cannot think of a real bummer to be honest, just minor things. It doesn't have an integrated animation tab yet (it would be nice if they integrated it with their renderings tab) and I cannot do holes in the flattened sheet metal YET. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Onshape is a very good and efficient software for 3D design and modeling. One of its standout features is the Mate system used for assemblies—it's intuitive, clean, and makes the assembly process smooth and reliable.

The document-based interface is another strong point. Having all parts, assemblies, and drawings organized within a single document makes design management very easy and efficient. It also simplifies collaboration across teams, especially when multiple people are working on the same project.

Some additional highlights:

Cloud-based access means no installation and seamless work from anywhere.

Version control is excellent—every change is recorded, and it's easy to go back to previous versions.

Real-time collaboration is a huge plus, especially in a team environment.

Custom features and scripting through FeatureScript add a lot of flexibility for advanced users.

Overall, Onshape is a powerful and user-friendly CAD platform, especially well-suited for teams looking for modern, cloud-native design tools. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Performance with Large Assemblies: It can get slow or laggy with very large assemblies or complex models.

Limited Offline Access: There is no real offline mode, which is a limitation in areas with unreliable internet.

Learning Curve for New Users: While the UI is clean, those coming from traditional software like SolidWorks or AutoCAD might need time to adjust.

Cost: The free version is good for hobbyists or education, but professional licenses can be expensive for smaller companies. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

The most powerful feature of Onshape is its foundation in the cloud. Traditional CAD systems are tied to a single machine, creating a tangle of files and version control issues. With Onshape, that complexity is gone. My entire design history, from initial sketches to final assemblies, is all stored in one central, secure location. This allows my team and me to work on the same model simultaneously and in real time, just like editing a document in Google Docs. The days of sending large files back and forth, losing track of revisions, or accidentally overwriting someone else's work are finally over. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

I wish there was some way to work offline, even in a limited format. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

I’ve been using Onshape for over six years and have logged more than 2,000 hours in the platform—and it still impresses me. The interface is clean and intuitive, and the feature set is powerful enough to handle complex design work without feeling overwhelming.

What really sets Onshape apart is its collaborative workflow. Real-time sharing, version control, and branching make working with others seamless, whether you're in the same room or halfway around the world. One feature I especially appreciate is Follow Mode—being able to follow someone’s cursor as they work through a model makes collaboration and review incredibly efficient. It’s the next best thing to sitting side-by-side. As First Robotics Mentor, this feature allows me to follow my students' work in real-time and recognise where they are struggling to better support them on their way to becoming Onshape masters. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

While I love onshape, it is missing a few features that would be useful and keep me from using for every project. Two that come to mind are 3D sketching and surface tools like patching and scultping. Some projects I have encountered recently have required some surface editing. And having a tool that allows for dimension driven surface editing would be incredibly helpful. I edit lots of files from imports and I would love to use onshape for this but it is a noticable weakpoint. Many of the Loft feature that i use to generate surfaces from sketchs often break with the complex geometry I attemp to create with them. 3D sketches would also be incredibly helpful for bridging curves and completing complex surface boundaries. I would also like be able to add points in a part studio with out needing a sketch plane. Just a point that I can use to pattern parts, or connect lines to certain locations would be helpful. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

It is as easy to use as other CAD tools, but as it is online, its really easy to access all designs anywhere. Collaboration tools are also amazing and data management, while not perfect, is really enogh to do a lot. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

It improved a lot over the years. The only dislike now is performance wise on large assemblies. Browsers consume too much ram. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

OnShape is a modern cloudbased mechanical CAD system from the company PTC. As well as full modelling capabilities, OnShape comes included with full version/change control features and integrates well with Arena (also PTC) for producdute lifecycle management. Our team moved over to OnShape from SolidWorks and found the process of implementing the new CAD system very easy, especially compared with systems like SolidWorks PDM which requires 3rd party resellers to help setup.

Unlike oldschool CAD packages, which at best recieve a few small updates every-year, OnShape improves very quickly, having big updates every 3 weeks or so. As a part modeller, on-shape is easily as good if not better than its competitors like SolidWorks. It takes a different approach to assembly modelling, which is more performant. It is catching up quickly with other CAD packages regarding engineering drawing features. It also features some simulation and rendering capabilities; both produce decent results quickly, but are not the main focus of the software. A huge benefit of Onshape being cloud based is that it is far more stable than locally run CAD systems, it virtually never crashes and I have never lost any data having used this extensively amost everyday for over a year.

Our team vastly prefers OnShapes business model compared to that of SolidWorks. Rather than paying a third-party-reseller licences, set-up, PDM server setup (which is a nightmare to maintain and will need continuous 3rd party support to be functional), separate costs for its various licences, and subscription fees, everything is covered under one cost with OnShape, and you deal with the company directly rather than through third parties. This has worked out as far cheaper for our team, with much less of our engieers time spent on admin. Customer support are very helpful and are easy to access through online chats, forums, or teams calls. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Compared to other CAD packages OnShape is the best, although you may not find all of the specific features that you are used to. The OnShape team add features very frequently though (updates every ~3 weeks) and requests for new features can be made and voted on in the forums. Custom features can also be written and shared if you feel that there is a specific feature missing or something that would be useful to automate for your workflow. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

I enjoy that the program is web based, which has opened up many new opportunities not accessible by desktop only systems. This is especially evident when using both the mobile version to review remotely, while making most substantial edits on a desktop. Built in simulation on the pro version is great. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Some of the rendering control when adding customs scenes is something I need to work on more use well. I also wish that there was more customization on the BOM control for the free version, but it can work as is out of the box. The pro version is much more useful, if you can figure out enough code to make it work with your organizational structure. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Onshape allows me to be flexible and not tied to one computer with minimum to zero difference in performance. At work I have a CAD workstation, at home I have a 14 year old PC, with Onshape being a cloud based software, the computing is done in the cloud not on my local computer. In the event I have to work from home, I don't have to worry about lugging around my CAD workstation or invest in a new home computer, I simply log on from home and experience relatively the same performance on my old home PC as I would with a newer, more powerful machine. To add to this Onshape also runs on my phone. I have done some quick edits and even complete CAD models on my phone when I don't even have access to a computer. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

The downside I deal with is that Onshape is still new and lacks some of the functionality more mature CAD software has. This is especially true in the sheet metal side of modeling and documentation. I have experienced this same situation about 20 years ago with traditional CAD software. Back in 2000 when I started using 3D CAD, it seemed sheet metal enhancements were always few and far between. I am optimistic that Onshape, having enhancements added every 3 weeks, will break this trend in the CAD industry. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Often updated with new features without lifting a finger. Everyday it becomes even more valuable. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

In sharing with unlicensed users, have no control over the link. Anyone with the link can get the free access, and no way to take away that access if sharing for a one-time access, or with a vendor, so cannot safely share outside of the business. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Always up to date, never crashes and allows the team to just focus on doing the best design work they can. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

No offline mode, but not a big problem in reality day to day. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.