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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    PTC Mathcad

    Score8.6 out of 10
    N/APTC Mathcad Prime is a digital engineering notebook enabling engineers, mathematicians, and scientists to solve, analyze, document, and share their calculations. It helps users to solve problems accurately the first time numerically and/or symbolically, and then reuse important intellectual property with templates to save time on the next project.

    $735

    per year per seat

    Rhino

    Score9.1 out of 10
    N/ARobert McNeel and Associates headquartered in Seattle offers Rhinoceros 3D (or Rhino 3D), a 3D modeling and design application. Rhino can create, edit, analyze, document, render, animate, and translate NURBS curves, surfaces and solids, subdivision geometry (SubD), point clouds, and polygon meshes.

    $995

    one-time fee

    Pricing
    PTC MathcadRhino
    Editions & Modules
    Mathcad Prime 10 License
    $735
    per year
    Rhino 3D for Windows & Mac
    $995
    one-time fee
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    PTC MathcadRhino
    Free Trial
    YesNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    YesNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details—Discount available for students and faculty.
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    PTC MathcadRhino
    Considered Both Products
    PTC
    No answer on this topic
    Robert McNeel and Associates
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    No answers on this topic
    100%
    Would buy again
    8 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    No answers on this topic
    100%
    Delivers good value for the price
    7 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    No answers on this topic
    100%
    Happy with the feature set
    8 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    No answers on this topic
    100%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    6 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    No answers on this topic
    100%
    Implementation went as expected
    8 Answers
    Features
    PTC MathcadRhino
    Computer-Aided Design Software
    Comparison of Computer-Aided Design Software features of PTC Mathcad and Rhino 3D
    Feature
    PTC Mathcad
    -
    Ratings
    Rhino 3D
    4.5
    1 Ratings
    45% below category average
    3D Modeling00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    2D Drafting00 Ratings2.01 Ratings
    Rendering and Visualization00 Ratings4.01 Ratings
    Parametric Design00 Ratings5.01 Ratings
    Collaboration and Sharing00 Ratings1.01 Ratings
    Compatibility with other software and formats00 Ratings7.01 Ratings
    Assembly Design00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Simulation and Analysis00 Ratings1.01 Ratings
    Documentation and Annotation00 Ratings1.01 Ratings
    Customization and Extensions00 Ratings4.01 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    PTC MathcadRhino
    Small Businesses
    Onshape
    Score10 out of 10
    Onshape
    Score10 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Onshape
    Score10 out of 10
    Onshape
    Score10 out of 10
    Enterprises
    PTC Creo
    Score5.4 out of 10
    PTC Creo
    Score5.4 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    PTC MathcadRhino
    Likelihood to Recommend
    9.1
    (5 ratings)
    8.0
    (9 ratings)
    Usability
    6.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Support Rating
    -
    (0 ratings)
    7.5
    (4 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    PTC MathcadRhino
    Likelihood to Recommend
    PTC
    It is great for any manual calculation. You can lay it out as you would on paper, but the math is calculated instantly, similar to how it is in excel. It is superior to either method for most engineering calculations. Being able to copy-and-paste is very helpful for considering multiple scenarios. In some situations where you need to do the same calculation on an array of numbers, Excel is still faster.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Robert McNeel and Associates
    One of the main highlights of Rhino is the built-in visual programming system "Grasshopper". It is widely used for parametric architectural design, by a variety of world-class architectural offices. It is also very popular within architectural schools and universities. Its usefulness has increased a lot by having add-ins, plug-ins, scripts, and integrations with Revit and ARCHICAD for BIM workflows.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    PTC
    • Conversion of measurement units (Imperial and Metric)
    • Easy to use for writing detailed engineering worksheets
    • Formulas can be written in the expanded form which facilitates verification
    • Spell Checker feature is life saver.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Robert McNeel and Associates
    • Parametric Modeling - Grasshopper allows for easy/rapid iterative process
    • White box renders display - looks great as a quick diagram export with no post-production required.
    • robust command prompts - rhino was originally made for industrial design and it flexes a lot of unique modeling commands that put it up there with SolidWorks
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    PTC
    • Some of the math and text formatting aspects are a little cumbersome.
    • Converting from older Matchcad versions to the newer Mathcad Prime platform could be made easier. It should be a direct import function.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Robert McNeel and Associates
    • Rhino has very limited sheet layout tools.
    • Grasshopper could be better integrated into the main interface.
    • Lack of backwards file compatibility can be frustrating.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Usability
    PTC
    Higher-order math, despite symbolics, become tedious and variable nomenclature isn't as forgiving as other programs. Due to it's sheet-like nature, the greater the complexity the more bothersome the screen usage becomes. But it's a trade-off between a sketchpad-like interface or lines and lines of code. Pick your poison but MathCad was our choice.
    Incentivized
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    Robert McNeel and Associates
    No answers on this topic
    Support Rating
    PTC
    No answers on this topic
    Robert McNeel and Associates
    A majority of the support for Rhinoceros 3D does not come from the company itself, but from online forums and boards where other Rhinoceros 3D users outline their issues and solutions. The Rhinoceros 3D website does not offer much in-depth support and just outlines general how to's. At the same time, online forums allow for more specific issues to be addressed and solved by the Rhinoceros 3D community.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    PTC
    MathCAD is easier to learn and faster to start with. It has more user-friendly interface and conventional style toolbox and GUI. It is really good for the beginners and those who are afraid of complex math.
    Incentivized
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    Robert McNeel and Associates
    It's hard to compare Rhino to other modeling software as Rhino is in a niche of its own. No other software (to my knowledge) is as customizable/programmable and has such a large community and such a large amount of free, open-source addons. Rhino (and Grasshopper) can be intimidating at first but once you get familiar with it and grow your toolbox with your own scripts, so much time will be saved
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    PTC
    • Speeds up calculations (especially when corrections need to be made near the beginning).
    • Ability to re-use old calculations as a template can save significant time.
    • You can use consistent formatting for all calculations, allowing for more organized, clear calculations.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Robert McNeel and Associates
    • Right away Rhino3D is useful for simple and accurate 3D model import, repair and export all in a variety of formats.
    • Rhino3D is easy to use and learn. The time to productivity is very short with this modeling tool.
    • The price is low for the value received, a great investment.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots