Life & fun · alternatives · 2026
24 alternatives to Physics-based CAD
Physics-based CAD is a design tool that combines computer-aided design with physics simulation. It allows users to create and test objects with realistic physical properties built into the modeling process. The… Below are 24 products that do a similar job, ranked by how close each is in meaning and then by launch-day votes. Prices are shown for the 1 we have checked on their own sites, 1 of them free or with a free tier. Physics-based CAD launched in 2016; newer entries below may have overtaken it.
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2018 · pbr-book.org · its alternatives →
- 2FP
Hello HN users, This is a CAD by code project I have been working on on my free time for more than year now. I built it with 3 goals in mind: - It should be familiar to CAD designers who have used other programs. Same workflow, same terminology. - Reduce the mental effort required to create models as much as possible. This is achieved by: - Provide live rendering and visual guidance as you type. - Allow the user to reference existing edges/faces on the scene instead of having to calculate everything. - Provide interactive mouse helpers for features that are hard to write by code: Only 3…
Apr 2026 · fluidcad.io · its alternatives →
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Pure C# 3D real time physics simulation library, now with a higher version number. - bepu/bepuphysics2
2019 · github.com · its alternatives →
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Hey HN. Over the last half a year I have been working on a 3D CAD programming language called DSLCAD. Today I am here to show my first release! It is heavily inspired by OpenSCAD which got me hooked on the idea of a CAD programming language and what it can do. Please let me know what you think. Ill be in the thread to answer any questions you may have.
2023 · github.com · its alternatives →
- 5RT
The library to build browser based 3D models with code.
2023 · replicad.xyz · its alternatives →
- 6
I built a synthesizer based on 3D physicsfree tier, from $99/mo▲512I've been working on the Anukari 3D Physics Synthesizer for a little over two years now. It's one of the earliest virtual instruments to rely on the GPU for audio processing, which has been incredibly challenging and fun. In the end, predictably, the GUI for manipulating the 3D system actually ended up being a lot more work than the physics simulation. So far I am only selling it direct on my website, which seems to be working well. I hope to turn it into a sustainable business, and ideally I'd have enough revenue to hire folks to help with it. So far it's been 99% a solo project, with…
2025 · anukari.com · its alternatives →
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2020 · pakastin.github.io · its alternatives →
- 8A2
2017 · htmlpreview.github.io · its alternatives →
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agentcad▲110A CAD design tool for coding agents (free + open source)
Jun 2026 · agentcad.dev · its alternatives →
- 10
Interactive notes for algebra based physics with explorable explanations
2020 · landgreen.github.io · its alternatives →
- 11
Hey HN! I'm Zach from Adam (https://adam.new/). We’re building an AI co-pilot for mechanical CAD software. As part of our broader research, we built a browser-based Text-to-CAD app (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44182206) and are now open sourcing it. This is a React SPA with a Supabase backend. What it does: * Generates parametric 3D models from natural language descriptions, with support for both text prompts and image references * Outputs OpenSCAD code with automatically extracted parameters that surface as interactive sliders for instant dimension…
2025 · github.com · its alternatives →
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FreeCAD 1.1▲218Extremely powerful, completely free 3D CAD modeling
Mar 2026 · wiki.freecad.org · its alternatives →
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Whisker▲94Create and edit CAD models into production-ready prototypes
Mar 2026 · whisker.spatialkittens.com · its alternatives →
- 14
Cadseer is in the same genre as: solidworks, inventor, freecad etc... Cadseer is alpha software, so lots of missing features, bugs, crashes, file incompatibilities etc... About me: I spent 15 years designing stamping dies on a high end cad system. During that time, I also developed and marketed extensions/plugins toward that cad system. Through that experience, I came disillusioned with 'vendor lock-in' and proprietary software in general. I basically retired, took the vow of poverty and moved all my computing to open source. I have since, and continue to, try and improve the open…
2023 · gitlab.com · its alternatives →
- 15SA
污污的视频高h,中文字幕 另类,久久精品波多野结衣合集,成功精品影院,在线成人
2017 · scratchworktool.com · its alternatives →
- 16
SolidCraft: an open-source parametric 3D CAD application built in pure Rust. Desktop, web, and automation through MCP. - bherbruck/solidcraft
9d ago · github.com · its alternatives →
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AI CAD Harness▲101Hi HN, I'm Zach, one of the co-founders of Adam (https://adam.new). We've been on HN twice before with text-to-CAD/3D experiments [1][2]. The honest takeaway from those threads: prompt-to-3D model web apps are fun, but serious mechanical engineers don't want a black box that spits out an STL. They want help inside the CAD tool they already use, with full visibility and control over the feature tree. So we built that. Adam is now a harness that integrates directly with your CAD. It reads your parts, understands the existing feature tree, and edits it for you agentically. We are…
May 2026 · fusion.adam.new · its alternatives →
- 19
Your fast and friendly physics-based animation system. - yapstudios/YapAnimator
2017 · github.com · its alternatives →
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A 2D rigid-body dynamics simulator with some cool features for generating beautiful animations. - diegomacario/Dyna-Kinematics
2020 · github.com · its alternatives →
- 23
A prototype implementation of cloth simulation. It uses the soft body dynamics support in ammo.js.
2020 · playcanv.as · its alternatives →
- 24
CADWOLF▲70Collaborative engineering. A Github for engineering
2019 · cadwolf.com · its alternatives →
Also compare
- Physically Based Rendering – Online Edition alternatives
- FluidCAD – Parametric CAD with JavaScript alternatives
- BepuPhysics – 3D real-time physics simulation library in C# alternatives
- DSLCad – a programming language and interpreter for building 3D models alternatives
- Replicad, the Library for CAD in the Browser alternatives
- I built a synthesizer based on 3D physics alternatives
Ranked by how close each launch is in meaning, then by votes. Prices were read from each product’s own site when checked and can change. Refine with your own description →