Free online CAD for control panels and schematics

The editor above is the whole thing. No account, no download, no trial period and no watermark. It draws the two dimensional electrical and panel drawings an automation project actually produces, and exports DXF so nothing you draw is trapped here.

What free usually means, and what it means here

Most free CAD is free with a condition attached, and the condition is the thing worth knowing before you spend an evening on a drawing. Some are thirty day trials. Some are free for personal use and licensed the moment the drawing is for a client. Some watermark the output. Some are free to draw in and paid to export from, which is the one that hurts.

This one is free to open, free to draw in, free to export from, and there is no paid tier of it. What an account adds is somewhere central to keep drawings and a project to file them against, alongside the PLC program and the documents. The drawing tools are the same either way.

What it will not do

• No 3D. It is a two dimensional drafting tool for electrical and layout drawings.
• No parametric constraints or assemblies. It is not a mechanical CAD package.
• No DXF import yet. Export works; opening an existing drawing is the next thing on the list.
• No plotting to paper sizes with a print driver. Export SVG or DXF and print from there.

Questions

Is this CAD really free?

Yes, and free in the way that is usually meant and rarely delivered: no account, no download, no trial period, no watermark and no expiry. The drawing runs in your browser and is saved in your browser. There is no paid tier of this editor to upgrade to.

Do I need to create an account?

No. Open the page and draw. An account only matters when you want a drawing to follow you between machines and sit alongside a project, its documents and its PLC program, which is what the signed-in version adds.

Can I export to DXF?

Yes, DXF and SVG both. DXF is the point: it opens in AutoCAD, DraftSight, QElectroTech, LibreCAD and every other package that reads a drawing, so nothing you draw here is trapped here.

What can it draw?

Lines, rectangles, circles, arcs, polylines, text and dimensions, with object snap and typed commands, on named layers. Eleven templates come with it, numbered the way a control package is read: cover, index, legend, power distribution, control supply, PLC digital and analogue cards, safety, panel general arrangement and terminal schedule.

Is it a full AutoCAD replacement?

No, and it does not try to be. There is no 3D, no parametric constraints, no blocks library beyond the electrical symbols, and no drawing import yet. It is for the two dimensional electrical and panel drawings an automation project actually produces.

Does my drawing get uploaded anywhere?

No. Everything runs in the browser and the drawing is stored in the browser. Nothing is sent to a server, which also means clearing your browser data clears the drawing, so export anything you want to keep.