# Free AI CAD: what the free tier actually gets you > Four different things get called free in AI CAD, and they are not equivalent. What CADABRA’s free plan includes, where it stops, and what free never covers regardless of vendor. URL: https://cadabrai.com/free-ai-cad/ Updated: 2026-08-14 --- # Free AI CAD, and where it stops. Four different arrangements get sold as free, and the difference decides whether you can use the output commercially. ## Four things called free. **Free forever with limits.** A permanent plan with a usage ceiling. You can plan around it. **Free credits.** A monthly allowance that resets; useful, but the ceiling arrives mid-task. **Free trial.** Full capability for a fixed period, then nothing. **Open source.** Genuinely free software you host and maintain yourself, where your cost is time rather than money. Only the first supports ongoing work. ## What CADABRA’s free plan includes. No card required. It is a permanent plan, not a trial. ### Baseline monthly usage Every paid plan is a multiple of this baseline. ### Ask Mode Questions about your open model: geometry, features, materials, mass properties. ### Live web search Material data, process information, and component pricing without leaving SOLIDWORKS. ### Read-only model understanding It can explain the model, not change it. ## Where free stops, and what that costs. Free is read-only. Agent Mode, which performs the actual edits, starts on [Student at $15/month](https://cadabrai.com/solutions-students/) with a valid academic address, and [Professional at $99/month](https://cadabrai.com/pricing/) for commercial use. Drawings Mode with your own standards is part of Enterprise. ## What no free tier covers, anywhere. Your title blocks, your drawing standards, and your naming conventions, because configuring them is per-customer work. Support with a response time. And, on some tools, isolation of your geometry: **check whether a free tier trains on what you upload** before you put a real part into one. Ours does by default, and [one setting turns it off](https://cadabrai.com/security/) on any plan, at no charge. ## Free plans, answered. ### Is there a free version? Yes. The Free plan needs no card and includes baseline monthly usage, Ask Mode against your CAD model, live web search, and read-only model understanding. Every paid plan is a multiple of that baseline usage. ### Who qualifies for student pricing? Students with a valid academic email address in a supported region. The plan is $15/month, includes four times the usage of Free plus Plan, Agent and Debug Mode, and is licensed for non-commercial coursework. It is not currently offered in the EU, EEA, United Kingdom, or Switzerland; students there should use the Free plan or Professional. If your institution’s address is academic but is not recognised at sign-up, email us and we will check it. ### How much does CADABRA cost? CADABRA has a free plan with no card required. Student is $15/month with a valid .edu address, Professional is $99/month for commercial use by an individual engineer, and Enterprise is custom priced with Drawings Mode, custom standards, SSO, zero-retention handling, and a dedicated engineer. ### Can I cancel any time? Yes. Paid plans are month to month and can be cancelled from the dashboard at any time. Checkout and billing run through Stripe. ### Do you train on my CAD files? By default on Free, Student, and Professional, yes: the EULA and privacy policy state that CAD geometry, prompts, and metadata may be used to operate, maintain, and improve CADABRA and its AI models. You can stop it at any time with the data setting in your dashboard, which takes effect from the moment you turn it on rather than retroactively. On Enterprise, zero-retention handling is configured as part of the agreement. ### Do I need my own SOLIDWORKS license? Yes. CADABRA is an add-in, not a CAD system. You keep your existing SOLIDWORKS license, files, libraries, and PDM, and CADABRA works inside them. ## Start on the free plan. No card. Install the add-in and ask your model a question. ## Keep reading - [PricingFree, Student, Professional, and Enterprise plans.](https://cadabrai.com/pricing/) - [StudentsGuided learning inside SOLIDWORKS, $15/month with a .edu address.](https://cadabrai.com/solutions-students/) - [Text to CADPrompts that resolve into native SOLIDWORKS features, not an imported mesh.](https://cadabrai.com/text-to-cad/) - [AI CAD GeneratorImage, mesh, or native features. Only one of them is a part.](https://cadabrai.com/ai-cad-generator/)