The Onshape alternative that keeps your designs private.
Zenve3D is an Onshape alternative for makers: the same sketch, constrain, extrude and timeline workflow, running natively on the iPad and the Mac, with your projects on your device and no connection required. Free without making anything public, and Pro is $99.99 a year against Onshape's $1,500.
Zenve3D vs Onshape: feature comparison
What a maker choosing an Onshape alternative actually asks about — who can see the design, whether it works offline, the price and the platforms — side by side.
| Feature | Zenve3D | Onshape |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan privacy | Every project is private — it is a file on your device | Every document is public to all Onshape users |
| Free plan terms | No eligibility form, no non-commercial clause | Non-commercial use only |
| Works offline | The engine runs on your device; a connection is only for sync | Cloud-only — modeling needs a connection |
| Modeling workflow | Sketch, constrain, extrude, edit anything later from the timeline | Sketch, constrain, extrude, edit from the feature list |
| Parameters and expressions | Every dimension field is an expression; a named parameter rebuilds the part | Variables and expressions |
| iPad | Native app, full modeling, Apple Pencil hover and snap | App with full modeling, online |
| Mac | Native on Apple silicon | In the browser |
| Browser | The same engine at app.zenve3d.com, on any machine | Yes — Onshape is browser-first |
| Price of a private document | Free, up to three projects; $99.99 a year beyond | $1,500 a year per user on Standard |
| Paid plans | $99.99 a year, $14.99 a month, or $299.99 once for life | Standard $1,500 a year; Professional $2,500 a year |
| STEP import and export | Both, on the free plan | Both |
| Agent mode and scripting | Your own AI builds parts over MCP; every part is a plain-text script | FeatureScript and a REST API; no agent door |
| Real-time collaboration | One maker's library, synced across devices; teams are planned | Multi-user editing, versions and branches |
| Assemblies | Parts with rigid mates; joints and motion are not built | Mates with degrees of freedom, motion |
| Technical drawings | Not yet | Yes |
| Simulation, rendering, CAM, PDM | Not offered | Professional, $2,500 a year |
Onshape plans, prices and free-plan terms as listed on onshape.com in September 2026 — check there for the current offer. Onshape is a trademark of PTC Inc., which is not affiliated with Zenve3D.
Why makers switch from Onshape to Zenve3D
Four things an Onshape user notices in the first hour with this alternative.
Private by default, not for $1,500
On Onshape Free every document is public to every Onshape user, and the first private one is the Standard plan at $1,500 a year. A Zenve3D project is a file on your iPad or Mac. Nobody sees it unless you send it, on the free plan and on every other.
Works on the train
Onshape is cloud-only: no connection, no modeling. Zenve3D runs its geometry engine on your device, so a sketch, a rebuild and an STL export all happen without asking a server. An account adds sync between the iPad, the Mac and the browser, and gates nothing else.
A fifteenth of the price
Onshape Standard is $1,500 a year per user. Zenve3D Pro is $99.99 a year, and Pro Lifetime is $299.99 once — a year of Onshape buys fifteen years of Zenve3D Pro. Free is the whole app on three projects, with nothing held back.
Native, and scriptable by an agent
A native app with the kernel in-process: Pencil hover shows the snap before the tip lands, and a rebuild does not wait on a round trip. Every part is a plain-text script, so Claude, ChatGPT or any MCP client can build one from a description — free on every plan.
Where Onshape is still the better choice
An honest Onshape alternative page names what it does not do. Onshape is a professional platform built for teams; Zenve3D is the modeling part of it, built for one maker.
- Real-time collaboration, with versions, branches and a history of who changed what. Zenve3D syncs one maker's library; teams are planned.
- Assemblies with proper mates and motion. Zenve3D has parts and rigid mates — a box and its lid, not a gearbox.
- Technical drawings, and on Professional, simulation, rendering, CAM and release management.
- FeatureScript — a whole language for custom features. Zenve3D's script describes parts; it does not extend the modeler.
- Any device with a browser, Windows and Chromebooks included, at full strength. Zenve3D's browser build is the same engine, but the native apps are for iPad and Mac.
If you design with other people, or you need drawings and release management, Onshape earns its price. If you design printed parts, enclosures and brackets on your own, and you would rather they stayed yours, keep reading.
Moving from Onshape to Zenve3D
Three steps. The geometry comes across; the history you rebuild where it matters.
- 1
Export STEP from Onshape
Right-click the Part Studio tab, or a part in it, and choose Export ⟩ STEP — available on the Free plan. A STEP file carries the exact solids; the feature list stays in Onshape.
- 2
Import it into Zenve3D as a solid
The STEP file lands as an editable body at its real dimensions, on your device. Sketch on its flat faces, extrude, cut, fillet and shell — the same moves you would make in a Part Studio.
- 3
Rebuild what you will keep editing
An imported body carries no timeline. For the parts you change often, redraw them as recipes — the workflow is the one you know — or describe them to an agent and let it write the script. Parts you only print can stay as imported.
Zenve3D pricing, next to Onshape's
Onshape Standard is $1,500 a year per user and Professional is $2,500; Free is public and non-commercial. Everything below is Zenve3D's list price — the same in the app and in the browser.
Free
The whole app. Nothing is held back — the only limit is how many projects you keep.
Start free- Every feature, unlocked — the same app Pro users run
- 3 projects, synced across iPad, Mac and the browser
- Sketch, constrain, extrude, revolve, sweep, pattern, threads, shell
- STL and STEP export, STEP import
- Agent mode — drive the engine from your own AI over MCP
- ~100 MB for imported geometry
Zenve3D Pro
The same app, with the cap lifted. For the maker whose fourth project is already waiting.
Get Pro- Unlimited projects
- Nothing new to unlock — Free already has every feature
- 1 GB for imported geometry
- Buy in the app or in the browser — one subscription covers both
- Cancel any time; your projects stay readable and downloadable
Pro Lifetime
Pay once. Pro forever, on every platform, with nothing to renew.
Buy Lifetime- Everything in Pro, permanently
- No renewal, no expiry, no card on file
- Works on the iPad, the Mac and the browser
Studio
For a shared library and a model that answers questions. Not for sale yet.
- Team library with check-out — one writer at a time, never a merge
- Hosted AI inside the app, capped per month
- 10 GB for imported geometry
Onshape alternative: the questions
- Is Zenve3D a free Onshape alternative?
- Yes. The free plan is the full app on three synced projects — every sketch tool, every feature, STL and STEP export — and every project is private. Onshape Free is non-commercial and makes every document public to all Onshape users.
- Are my designs private in this Onshape alternative?
- Yes, on every plan. A Zenve3D project is a file on your device. If you turn on sync it is stored under your account and shown to nobody else; a share link is a planned feature you would turn on per project.
- Does Zenve3D work offline, unlike Onshape?
- Yes. The geometry engine runs on your iPad, Mac or in the browser tab, so modeling and export need no connection. Onshape computes in the cloud and needs one for everything.
- How does the iPad compare, Onshape vs Zenve3D?
- Both model on the iPad. Onshape's app is a client for its cloud and needs a connection; Zenve3D is a native app with the engine on the device, Apple Pencil hover, and the same project open on the Mac and in the browser.
- Can I open my Onshape documents in Zenve3D?
- Export STEP from the Part Studio and import it. The geometry arrives as an editable solid; the feature list does not, because it lives in Onshape's cloud.
- What does Zenve3D not do that Onshape does?
- Real-time collaboration, versions and branches, assemblies with motion, drawings, FeatureScript, and the Professional suite of simulation, rendering, CAM and release management. Each one is named on this page rather than hidden.
- How much cheaper is Zenve3D than Onshape?
- Onshape Standard is $1,500 a year and Professional is $2,500. Zenve3D Pro is $99.99 a year or $14.99 a month, and Pro Lifetime is $299.99 once. The free plan is free, and private, for as long as you like.
Ready to try the Onshape alternative?
Zenve3D is free on the iPad, the Mac and the browser, and every project stays yours. Import a STEP file from Onshape, or start a part from a blank sketch — no connection needed.