QCAD
2D drafting program with a free community edition and a paid professional add-on.
Our verdict
QCAD is the tidiest 2D drafting program on Linux and the one most likely to feel professional rather than hobbyist. The download from qcad.org runs in professional trial mode, and when the trial ends you can either buy the add-on or turn it off and keep using the free community edition indefinitely.
Drawing happens in DXF. If you are coming from AutoCAD, export your drawings to DXF before you leave Windows. QCAD's professional add-on can handle .dwg, but paying for a converter to read files you already own is worth knowing about in advance rather than discovering later.
It is 2D only. If you need 3D, FreeCAD is the free option and it is a different kind of program.
What's good
- Clean, modern drafting interface that suits someone coming from AutoCAD LT
- Community edition is free and the paid add-on is a one-off purchase rather than a subscription
- Works in DXF, the open format AutoCAD can also save to
What to know first
- Not on Flathub, so you download it from the QCAD website instead of the app store
- Several features, including the .dwg converter and some tools, sit behind the paid professional add-on
- The free community edition is obtained by removing the trial add-on, which is a confusing first run
The details
- Cost
- Free with paid extras
- Open source
- Yes (GPL-3.0 (community edition))
- How you install it
- App store (Flatpak), Built-in app store
Windows apps it can replace
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