Engineering software is expensive, badly documented, and almost impossible to compare honestly. Vendors hide prices behind “Contact Sales.” Review sites recycle marketing copy. Forum threads are five years out of date. Engicompass exists to fix that.
What we do
We research and publish plain-English comparisons of engineering software — CAD, CAE, PLM, ERP, EDA, and GIS tools — with real, current pricing attached. Every guide answers the questions vendors avoid: what does this actually cost, what do you give up on the cheaper tier, and is there a free tool that does the same job well enough?
We cover software for mechanical, civil, structural, electrical, and process engineers, as well as students choosing their first toolset.
How we research
We aren’t an engineering firm and we don’t pretend to be. What we do is research, verify, and organise information that’s currently scattered across vendor pages, reseller quotes, procurement disclosures, and practitioner discussions.
Every guide on this site is built the same way:
- Pricing is sourced, not estimated. We pull figures from vendor pricing pages, published reseller rates, and documented transaction data. Where a vendor only quotes privately — as PLM and enterprise ERP vendors usually do — we say so plainly instead of inventing a number.
- Pricing is dated and reviewed. Software pricing moves. Every page shows when it was last updated, and we revisit pricing-heavy pages on a regular schedule rather than letting them go stale.
- We compare features, not marketing claims. If a feature only exists in the top tier, or only works with a paid add-on, that goes in the comparison.
- We recommend free tools when free tools are the right answer. FreeCAD, KiCad, OpenFOAM, QGIS, and LTspice are genuinely capable. We’ll tell you when paying more buys you nothing you need.
- We flag licensing reality. Student licences end at graduation. Perpetual licences still carry maintenance fees. Simulation is often sold separately from CAD. These details cost people money, so we put them up front.
What we don’t do
We don’t accept payment from software vendors in exchange for coverage, placement, or a favourable review. No vendor has approval over anything published here.
We’re also not a substitute for your own due diligence. Prices vary by region, contract length, seat count, and negotiation. Treat our figures as a realistic starting point for a conversation with a vendor — not as a quote.
Why we started
Engicompass began with a simple, frustrating experience: trying to work out what a CAD licence actually costs, and finding no straight answer anywhere. Vendor pages listed a starting price that turned out to exclude the modules you needed. Comparison sites ranked tools without ever mentioning money. Getting a real number meant filling in a sales form and waiting.
That gap is what this site is for. If you’re a student deciding whether to pay for software, a small studio weighing a subscription, or an engineer justifying a purchase to someone holding the budget — the number you need should be one search away, not one sales call away.
Engicompass launched in 2026 and is independently owned and funded.
Corrections and feedback
If a price is wrong, a licence term has changed, or we’ve missed something you’d know from using the tool daily — tell us. We’d rather fix it than defend it. Reach us through our contact page.