MicroStation vs. TurboCAD

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
MicroStation
Score 6.0 out of 10
Enterprise companies (1,001+ employees)
Bentley Systems offers the MicroStation application and product family as a 3D and 2D modeling and computer-aided design (CAD) solution for engineers and designers.
$250
Per User Per Month
TurboCAD
Score 9.0 out of 10
N/A
TurboCAD is 2D and 3D CAD software sold in many different editions, including Deluxe, Expert, and ProPlatinum.N/A
Pricing
MicroStationTurboCAD
Editions & Modules
Microstation
$250.00
Per User Per Month
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
MicroStationTurboCAD
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
MicroStationTurboCAD
Features
MicroStationTurboCAD
Computer-Aided Design Software
Comparison of Computer-Aided Design Software features of Product A and Product B
MicroStation
-
Ratings
TurboCAD
9.0
Ratings
23% above category average
2D Drafting00 Ratings9.00 Ratings
Rendering and Visualization00 Ratings8.00 Ratings
Parametric Design00 Ratings9.00 Ratings
Collaboration and Sharing00 Ratings8.00 Ratings
Compatibility with other software and formats00 Ratings10.00 Ratings
Assembly Design00 Ratings10.00 Ratings
Simulation and Analysis00 Ratings7.00 Ratings
Documentation and Annotation00 Ratings10.00 Ratings
Customization and Extensions00 Ratings10.00 Ratings
Best Alternatives
MicroStationTurboCAD
Small Businesses
Revit
Revit
Score 9.4 out of 10
Onshape
Onshape
Score 9.9 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Revit
Revit
Score 9.4 out of 10
Onshape
Onshape
Score 9.9 out of 10
Enterprises
Revit
Revit
Score 9.4 out of 10
Rhino
Rhino
Score 9.0 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
MicroStationTurboCAD
Likelihood to Recommend
7.2
(0 ratings)
9.0
(0 ratings)
Usability
2.0
(0 ratings)
9.0
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
10.0
(0 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
MicroStationTurboCAD
Likelihood to Recommend
MicroStation is well suited for environments where animation and 3D modelling is required for designs. It perfectly fits into scenarios where Building Information Modelling (BIM) is used. One should avoid this platform if the budget is low and the overall length of the project is not huge.
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It is fully capable of all the design work you can give it. I have even designed houses with it. Turbo CAD Pro Platinum is all I have used for going on 3 years now. I don't know if other versions can do or can't do. If you are a graphic designer, you would need to port the files to a higher end program to manipulate the colors and renderings. For engineering and in-house work it is perfect.
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Pros
  • MicroStation, as a stand-alone CAD package, is a great plan production tool.
  • MicroStation makes a very good base to build other applications on top of.
  • It has at least, in my opinion, a very easy to use interface.
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  • Good scale tools
  • Easy to pick up
  • The exporter
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Cons
  • MicroStation's graphic interface appears data in comparison to other CAD software.
  • MicroStation has a tendency to crash if not managed properly during design.
  • MicroStation's transportation design component is separated from the main system which causes occasional complications.
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  • Shortcut keys more in line with AutoCAD.
  • 3D rendering could be simpler.
  • Updated interface.
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Usability
MicroStation is very hard to use for our newest employees. It is not intuitive, and you need to know where to find the buttons to perform the commands you would like to perform instead of typing in the commands like other similar modeling programs. Also, it has no good traffic turning add-ins. We continue to run ALL our turning in Autoturn, since this is not a usable feature with MicroStation.
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TurboCAD does all of the things we need it to do and some. The wide variety of options to create specificity in each of our projects is a large plus. The reason it was given a 9 is because the learning curve can be a little steep and sometimes certain processes are not as intuitive as they could be
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Support Rating
We haven't had to use it for many years, so not able to comment.
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No answers on this topic
Alternatives Considered
Microstation is not intuitive. It is almost impossible for our newest employees to use effectively, and I strongly prefer to start them with Civil 3D, where possible. With MicroStation, you really need to be an intermediate to advanced user to use the program and know where the buttons to do what you want are located. They need to make their program more command based. Things like snapping to a near point or correcting text size universally are not intuitive like they are in Civil 3D or SOLIDWORKS. For other programs you can just type in commands like "LINE" and draw a line. In Microstation, you need to select between a polyline or smartline from the tools>geometry menu. Why does it need to be so complicated? We ONLY use this program, because we are required to deliver our models in the DGN format to our client. Otherwise, we would use Civil 3D for everything.
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TurboCAD is a well-priced solution for a small business, it comes standard with 3D modeling compared to DraftSight which does not. The user interface could be updated along with industry-standard shortcut keys but for the number of drawings we do, this package fills the gap. The DXF / DWG feature could be worked on too, as above, trying to get in line with other packages like AutoCAD & DraftSight would make the whole package better. All in all, I believe that TurboCAD has a valid foothold in the CAD industry.
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Return on Investment
  • Been beneficial in the current office to have a copy for information exchange.
  • Some of the more "die-hard MicroStation users" often do markups in it over our current software.
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  • Our maps stand above other business in our same field
  • The quality and clarity of the maps allow for more precise budgeting
  • Once it the process and program was understood it would take a good hour off of our projects
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ScreenShots

MicroStation Screenshots

Screenshot of Take advantage of built-in support for 100+ common formats and data types for 2D and 3D raster and vector geometry and associated BIM information, including trusted RealDWGScreenshot of Supporting hundreds of coordinate systems and dozens of geospatial data types, users can reliably integrate existing data quickly and confidently.Screenshot of Produce better documentation, faster, with fully integrated 2D and 3D workflows, creating a single integrated model that allows you to view drawings and other model information directly immersed within the 3D modelScreenshot of You can ensure your design intent while speeding modeling with extremely powerful and flexible constraints and a range of solid, mesh, surface, and topological modeling toolsScreenshot of MicroStation's native support for an unmatched range of file formats and data types means you can leverage any data you have to speed drafting and modeling and decision-makingScreenshot of Turn your models into polished professional presentations to win stakeholder buy-in and speed approvals on your design projects.