QCAD
A free, open-source 2D CAD application (with a paid Pro trial/add-ons) for drafting plans, parts, and schematics.
Vaporware Risk
3.2 /5 composite score
Solo-friendly for low-cost 2D drafting -- free to start, and the cheap Pro upgrade plus DWG plugin are worth it if you exchange DWGs with clients.
Rubric Scorecard
| Criterion | Score | Rationale |
|---|---|---|
| Maturity | 3/5 | Long-running project from RibbonSoft and the codebase LibreCAD itself forked from. |
| AEC Specificity | 2/5 | Strong general 2D drafting toolset but no AEC-specific features. |
| Integration | 3/5 | Native DXF; DWG support requires a proprietary plugin, so DWG interop is an add-on not built in. |
| Value / Pricing | 4/5 | Free Community Edition plus a low-cost Pro license offers good value, with mostly transparent pricing. |
| Evidence | 4/5 | Independent Wikipedia and review coverage confirm licensing, features, and the DWG-plugin caveat. |
How we verified this: we checked QCAD against its live site and an independent source — en.wikipedia.org. Nothing on this page is listed from memory. See how we review.
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