--- title: "FreeCAD vs SolidWorks: Which is searched more?" description: "Is FreeCAD or SolidWorks more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the CAD software set worldwide. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time." canonical: "https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/categories/cad-software/compare/freecad-vs-solidworks" publisher: "Brandwave" --- # FreeCAD vs SolidWorks: Which is searched more? Is FreeCAD or SolidWorks more popular in search? Compare estimated monthly branded-search demand and Share of Search inside the CAD software set worldwide. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time. ## Key facts - **Compared**: FreeCAD and SolidWorks - **Competitive set**: CAD software - **Market**: Global - **Month measured**: Sep 2026 - **FreeCAD Share of Search**: 3.7% - **SolidWorks Share of Search**: 4.5% ## Is FreeCAD or SolidWorks more popular in search? - In September 2026, SolidWorks had more branded searches than FreeCAD among CAD software worldwide. SolidWorks had about 550,000 branded searches, while FreeCAD had 450,000. SolidWorks made up 4.5% of all CAD software searches we track, and FreeCAD accounted for 3.7%. - SolidWorks was ahead of FreeCAD in every measured month of the 12 months ending September 2026. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, FreeCAD’s share of searches among CAD software worldwide moved from 3.2% to 3.7%, and its estimated monthly branded searches held steady at 450K. - Across the 12 months ending September 2026, SolidWorks’ share of searches among CAD software worldwide moved from 4% to 4.5%, and its estimated monthly branded searches held steady at 550K. ## Top CAD software in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, both FreeCAD and SolidWorks showed up in all five answers. FreeCAD was listed before SolidWorks in three of them. Brands get a higher AI rank if they are mentioned earlier in the answers that list options. | Brand | AI rank | ChatGPT answers that named it | Google AI Overviews that named it | All answers that named it | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Fusion 360 | 1st | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | AutoCAD | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | SolidWorks | 3rd | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | FreeCAD | 4th | 3 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 5 of 5 | | Tinkercad | 5th | 0 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Shapr3D | 6th | 0 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Inventor | 7th | 1 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Onshape | 8th | 2 of 3 | 2 of 2 | 4 of 5 | | OpenSCAD | 9th | 1 of 3 | 1 of 2 | 2 of 5 | | Creo | Not ranked | 0 of 3 | 0 of 2 | 0 of 5 | ## Every AI answer about CAD software - Asked ChatGPT "Which CAD software should I use?": 1. Fusion 360, 2. FreeCAD, 3. Onshape, 4. AutoCAD, 5. SolidWorks - Asked ChatGPT "What are the best CAD software options?": 1. Fusion 360, 2. FreeCAD, 3. SolidWorks, 4. AutoCAD, 5. Onshape, 6. OpenSCAD - Asked ChatGPT "What's the best CAD software for engineering drawings?": 1. AutoCAD, 2. SolidWorks, 3. Inventor, 4. Fusion 360, 5. FreeCAD - Searched Google, AI Overview "cad software": 1. AutoCAD, 2. SolidWorks, 3. Fusion 360, 4. Inventor, 5. Shapr3D, 6. Tinkercad, 7. FreeCAD, 8. OpenSCAD, 9. Onshape - Searched Google, AI Overview "3d cad software": 1. Tinkercad, 2. Shapr3D, 3. Fusion 360, 4. FreeCAD, 5. SolidWorks, 6. Onshape Not named in any answer: Creo. Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in the United States on October 20, 2026. ## How did search popularity change for CAD software worldwide in September 2026? - In September 2026, SolidWorks lost share of searches among CAD software worldwide, from 5.2% to 4.5%. - In September 2026, FreeCAD lost share of searches among CAD software worldwide, from 4.3% to 3.7%. ## Month by month | Month | FreeCAD estimated searches | FreeCAD Share of Search | FreeCAD rank | SolidWorks estimated searches | SolidWorks Share of Search | SolidWorks rank | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Oct 2025 | 450K | 3.2% | 6 | 550K | 4% | 5 | | Nov 2025 | 450K | 3.8% | 6 | 550K | 4.6% | 5 | | Dec 2025 | 450K | 4.5% | 5 | 450K | 4.5% | 6 | | Jan 2026 | 450K | 4.3% | 6 | 550K | 5.2% | 5 | | Feb 2026 | 450K | 3.8% | 6 | 550K | 4.7% | 5 | | Mar 2026 | 450K | 3.7% | 6 | 550K | 4.5% | 5 | | Apr 2026 | 450K | 3.9% | 5 | 450K | 3.9% | 6 | | May 2026 | 368K | 3.2% | 6 | 450K | 3.9% | 5 | | Jun 2026 | 368K | 3.8% | 6 | 450K | 4.6% | 5 | | Jul 2026 | 368K | 5% | 6 | 450K | 6.2% | 5 | | Aug 2026 | 368K | 4.3% | 6 | 450K | 5.2% | 5 | | Sep 2026 | 450K | 3.7% | 5 | 550K | 4.5% | 4 | ## How each brand is measured Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using FreeCAD’s and SolidWorks’ names. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for these branded terms can be used to understand whether interest in the brands is growing, holding steady, or fading. - **FreeCAD**: Measured on the search term “freecad”. - **SolidWorks**: Measured on the search term “solidworks”. - [FreeCAD profile](/demand/global-en/brands/freecad) - [SolidWorks profile](/demand/global-en/brands/solidworks) - [All CAD software worldwide](/demand/global-en/categories/cad-software): The set both shares are measured inside, 10 brands. ## Methodology - [How is the Brand Demand Index measured?](/demand/methodology): Where the figures come from, what they compare, and how they may be reused. ## Frequently asked questions ### Is FreeCAD or SolidWorks more popular in search? In September 2026, SolidWorks had more branded searches than FreeCAD among CAD software worldwide. SolidWorks had about 550,000 branded searches, while FreeCAD had 450,000. SolidWorks made up 4.5% of all CAD software searches we track, and FreeCAD accounted for 3.7%. ## Cite this page Brandwave. "FreeCAD vs SolidWorks: Which is searched more?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/categories/cad-software/compare/freecad-vs-solidworks This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/global-en/categories/cad-software/compare/freecad-vs-solidworks. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.