Revit vs Inventor

Introduction

The digital transformation has transformed many existing aspects of the design and build processes in construction. The AEC sector is more affected by this than most, with powerful software platforms and virtual environments replacing physical prototypes and drafting tables, offering improved precision and an abundance of other advantages.

Autodesk is a software provider positioned at the forefront of this transformation, dominating several important markets with its software offerings. Two of the most noteworthy options here are Revit and Inventor, which share Autodesk’s general structure and parametric modeling philosophy but serve completely different purposes.

Navigating the capabilities of each solution in the AEC market can be very challenging. Features often overlap, confusing a lot of users about which platform is the best for specific workflows or project types. The scattered nature of this information adds more fuel to the fire, making it difficult to gather all the relevant information across all the documentation, community forums, professional reviews, etc.

The goal of our comparison is to significantly reduce this complexity, examining Revit and Inventor side-by-side in multiple dimensions: core functionality, pricing, hardware requirements, usability, sustainability, and many others. In this, we aim to help professionals make informed decisions about which platform fits their narrow range of needs and requirements.

Revit vs Inventor

Revit

Revit is the flagship building information platform of Autodesk. It transforms the way architects and engineers approach building design with the help of collaborative elements and parametric components. It can maintain complete project coherence across all the floor plans, elevations, and 3D visualizations, propagating every single change to the original model to every element of the project.

There is also an abundance of specialized tools for MEP systems, structural engineering, and construction documentation, making Revit one of the best options for complex building projects that require multidisciplinary coordination. In addition to its technical capabilities, Revit also aims to shift the design paradigm from traditional drafting methods to a more comprehensive approach where the entire building can exist as a detailed digital twin before any construction processes begin.

BIM models like this allow stakeholders to extract precise material quantities, analyze energy performance, and detect potential conflicts early on in the design process, removing the need to fix these issues on-site (which is usually a lot more resource intensive). Revit’s substantial emphasis on intelligent objects motivates teams to embed crucial design information within every object in the model, whether they are walls, windows, structural elements, and more, creating a comprehensive information ecosystem that can be extended throughout the building’s lifecycle.

Inventor

Inventor is Autodesk’s core application for mechanical design purposes, providing parametric modeling capabilities that were made for manufacturing and product development workflows. It excels in creating highly detailed machine components, as well as complex assemblies and production-ready documentation while also maintaining bidirectional relationships between parts so that both can be automatically updated when a modification is made to one of them.

Inventor also boasts substantial simulation capabilities to help engineers validate designs by subjecting virtual prototypes to various real-life conditions, which substantially reduces physical testing requirements. Inventor’s biggest specialization is in discrete products, with advanced features for sheet metal design, motion studies, and stress analysis in a versatile environment.

The platform provides comprehensive metal libraries and manufacturing-specific toolsets to assist designers in specifying how components can be fabricated with impressive precision for CNC machining parameters, injection molding considerations, and so on. Inventor uses a digital prototyping philosophy that extends beyond regular visualization to create a comprehensive digital representation of a product that can optimize material use, predict performance, and streamline production.

Features and pricing of Revit and Inventor

Revit

The parametric components used in Revit allow elements to be adjusted automatically when related objects are changed in some way, maintaining design integrity across the board. This bidirectional associativity helps ensure that modifications in any view are propagated to all other views to eliminate any inconsistencies and avoid miscommunication.

The built-in collaboration tools of Revit help team members work on the same model simultaneously, while its comprehensive scheduling capabilities can generate precise material quantities and component lists automatically. Its analysis tools offer an abundance of insights into building performance, while the system of families allows for the creation of custom parametric components that can maintain company standards and also adapt to project-specific requirements when necessary.

Autodesk Revit can be officially purchased using two separate pricing models: a subscription-based model and Autodesk Flex.

An Autodesk Revit subscription has only one tier with three different intervals for subscription purchase:

• $365 for one month
• $2,910 for one year
• $8,730 for three years

Autodesk Flex is a pay-as-you-go pricing model with tokens that provide access to a variety of Autodesk products without an actual purchase. The price of Autodesk Revit is 10 tokens per day, and there are several different token packages that users can purchase on the Autodesk website:

• $300 for 100 tokens
• $1,500 for 500 tokens
• Custom token amounts

Inventor

The adaptive modeling environment of Inventor creates intelligent relationships between elements, allowing designers to explore more than one configuration without recreating components from scratch. The solution’s assembly management tools can handle complex products with thousands of parts, along with information about how components interact and operate relative to one another.

The software’s sheet metal design capabilities can account for material thickness and bend allowances, and the stress analysis module offers engineers an abundance of feedback on structural integrity without the need to perform extensive simulation processes or work with separate software packages. The interoperability of Inventor also supports many other CAD formats to preserve original design intent when working with clients or suppliers using different platforms.

Alternatively, the solution’s automated drawing creation tools can generate comprehensive documentation from existing 3D models, including their tolerances, dimensions, and various manufacturing annotations that can be updated when design elements change.

Autodesk Inventor can be purchased using either the standard subscription model or via Autodesk Flex.

Autodesk Inventor subscriptions have three different prices depending on the length of the subscription:

• $310 for one month
• $2,500 for one year
• $7,505 for three years

Autodesk Flex is a pay-as-you-go pricing model with tokens that provide access to Autodesk products with daily payments without the commitment of a complete purchase. Autodesk Inventor costs 8 tokens per day, and each user can choose between several different token packages available on the Autodesk website:

• $300 for 100 tokens
• $1,500 for 500 tokens
• Custom token amounts

Long-term cost of ownership

The total investment required for design software extends above and beyond the initial licensing fees to also include training, ongoing maintenance, hardware requirements, and even productivity implications. All of these factors must be taken into account when choosing a specific architectural solution for your business.

The enterprise-level deployment of Revit often necessitates substantial hardware investments for both workstations and network infrastructure. Dedicated BIM managers and continuous staff training programs create ongoing personnel expenses in addition to subscription costs. Investments in the customization of Revit also tend to have much longer payback periods, as most of the development processes in this context require substantial upfront time investments.

Inventor takes a modular approach to its add-on functionality, making it possible to scale investment in a more gradual manner, purchasing tools only when they are necessary. The relatively stable interface and command structure over the years tends to reduce general retraining costs during version upgrades, as well, and hardware lifecycle planning for Inventor often allows for a longer workstation replacement interval for standard mechanical design work (even if the advanced simulation capabilities may necessitate more computing resources in certain scenarios).

Certification and training

The landscape of certification and training for design software is an integral part of any career advancement efforts, along with making sure that businesses have properly skilled employees. Despite the fact that both Revit and Inventor are Autodesk solutions, they have many differences in terms of focus areas, specialized knowledge requirements, industry recognition, and more.

Revit

Revit’s certification program reflects the cross-disciplinary nature of the solution by being divided into several distinct paths: architectural, structural, MEP, etc. The most respectable certification option available is Autodesk Certified Professional in Revit for Architectural Design, which focuses heavily on visualization techniques, building documentation, and collaboration workflows specifically in the context of architectural practices.

Its learning curve is on the steeper side, especially for employees with CAD training, due to the need to make a fundamental shift from drafting-based thinking to complex building information concepts. Many industry-specific courses for Revit follow the continuing education requirements of the American Institute of Architects, which makes these courses particularly important for licensed architects who wish to advance their technical skills and maintain professional credentials at the same time.

Inventor

Inventor promotes its own certification pathway with a significant emphasis on mechanical engineering principles and manufacturing processes. There are even separate tracks for assembly design, part modeling, and production documentation. The dedicated Certified Professional exam tests practical knowledge in all of the skills that are directly applicable to mechanical engineering roles, including motion simulation, design optimization, stress analysis, and so on.

Many Inventor-centric training programs incorporate the principles of industry-standard GD&T, which means “geometric dimensioning and tolerancing.” They offer valuable manufacturing knowledge that extends beyond the use of the software. Inventor’s learning resources tend to include a lot of specialized content for rapid prototyping, CNC programming, and tool design, which makes them especially valuable for experts from product development or manufacturing environment teams.

Compatibility and versatility

Software compatibility and versatility has a direct impact on workflow efficiency, determining the success of collaborations between teams using different platforms or from different disciplines. Seamless data exchange with different software tools is often the decisive factor when it comes to selecting a solution for the design ecosystem.

Revit

Revit fully supports and complies with IFC certification, which enables standardized data exchange with other BIM platforms without losing critical building information during transfer. It can be integrated natively with other Autodesk solutions to expand its own functionality, and its open API approach has fostered a strong community that creates third-party add-ins in a designated marketplace, providing specialized tools for practically every feature imaginable.

Dynamo for Revit offers visual programming capabilities, allowing users to create automated routines and custom workflows without the need for traditional coding knowledge, which dramatically expands the solution’s adaptability. Alternatively, Revit’s cloud collaboration capabilities make it easier for geographically distributed teams to work on the same project at the same time, with model referencing, automatic version tracking, and many other capabilities.

Inventor

Inventor has exceptional multi-CAD compatibility, supporting the direct editing of imported geometric shapes from competitors’ formats without requiring the full conversion of native files beforehand. It uses the AnyCAD technology to maintain associative relationships with imported models, updating them automatically when the source files change in any way. The integration with Fusion 360 is another powerful advantage, creating a bridge between cloud-based collaborative design and traditional parametric modeling, leveraging the strengths of both platforms.

Inventor Publisher extends the software’s capabilities in technical documentation, helping users create interactive instructions, maintenance manuals, and exploded-view drawings without performing any redundant modeling actions. Additionally, Inventor can offer specialized environments for mold creation, cable/harness design, and tube/pipe routing, making it even more versatile across multiple manufacturing industries, from consumer electronics to industrial equipment.

Hardware requirements

Hardware requirements are essential for businesses that implement design software, since they directly impact investment costs, along with performance expectations. This information helps businesses plan their IT infrastructure in a much more thoughtful and informed manner.

Minimal hardware requirements

The minimal specifications allow basic functionality but may result in performance limitations when working on complex models or multiple disciplines in the same project file.

Recommended hardware requirements

The recommended specifications dramatically enhance the fluidity of model navigation and create more efficient workflows across all applications.

Community support

Convenient access to community support has a strong impact on user success when it comes to complex design software, offering customization resources, assistance with troubleshooting, and even some innovative workflow solutions. The accessibility and variety of these communities often directly correlate with the speed at which regular users can overcome challenges and maximize their investments in the software.

Revit

Revit users are relatively common on the official Autodesk Community Forums, with thousands of professionals sharing solutions to various workflow bottlenecks or modeling challenges. There is also the Autodesk User Group International, which maintains extensive Revit-centric resources like downloadable families, tutorials, and annual user surveys that may influence future priorities in the development of the software.

Revit is also popular in academic environments, with a steady stream of case studies, research papers, and educational content created and published via various architectural institutions worldwide. Regional user groups also often organize virtual or in-person meetups to exchange techniques and recommendations for navigating the modern BIM landscape. The annual Autodesk University conference, on the other hand, has dedicated Revit learning paths with multiple recorded sessions that remain accessible year-round to offer users various expert insights on a multitude of advanced topics, such as project phasing, interoperability strategies, computational design, and so on.

Inventor

Inventor’s community is most prevalent on specialized forums such as Inventor Tales and various manufacturing-focused user groups. There is a user community called the Product Design & Manufacturing Collection that regularly provides customized templates, libraries of parts, and automation scripts for specific industry challenges. Inventor Customization enthusiasts also work on maintaining repositories of iLogic code snippets to allow the implementation of complex automation workflows without the need for a lot of programming knowledge.

Multiple YouTube channels dedicated to Inventor workflows have amassed millions of views, with many content creators offering step-by-step guidance on practically every topic imaginable, such as simulation setup for different material types, complex surface modeling, etc. Experts certified by Inventor often contribute to various knowledge bases like the Design Academy to offer peer-reviewed methodologies for tackling many different advanced challenges, including design optimization, assembly management, and so on.

User-friendliness

The overall user experience of design software can have a direct impact on not only productivity but also training costs and user satisfaction, determining the value proposition of a solution for different types of businesses.

Revit

Revit uses a ribbon interface to organize its commands contextually based on the current task, but it does often seem overwhelming to most new users due to its abundance of capabilities. There is also a project browser that offers an intuitive hierarchical view of all building elements, views, and sheets for improved navigation. Revit is very consistent when it comes to its approach to selection, modification, and parameter management to create a predictable workflow logic that most users familiar with the software can get used to.

The type catalog system Revit uses can streamline the process of applying standards across projects with a high degree of consistency, allowing users to select pre-configured components instead of creating each of them from scratch. There is even a keyboard shortcut manager that allows users to customize access to specific commands to match their own workflow preferences, and these settings can even be imported or exported when necessary.

Inventor

Inventor has a quick-access toolbar with extensive customization capabilities to make it more suitable for working in different design phases, with the ability to put the most frequently used commands within immediate reach. The software uses a dynamic input system to offer contextual information directly at the current cursor position, which reduces the need to shift focus between property panels and the design area. There is even a separate in-canvas manipulation tool that allows for direct interaction with 3D geometry, making Inventor even more intuitive for users who prefer working directly with the 3D environment.

Inventor’s right-click menus are also adaptable, changing based on the object type selected and the current command state, making it easier for users to see the most relevant options without being too overwhelming. The sketch environment of Inventor also features automatic dimensioning with constraint recognition to try and capture design intent as intuitively as possible when users draw. The transition between concept and parametric modeling thus becomes a lot more natural.

Target audiences and customer ratings

General sentiment is very important when it comes to selecting a solution for specific needs, and the same can be said for the target audience of each software application. The latter often decides the development priorities in terms of features and capabilities, while the former tends to simplify collaboration and reduce potential interoperability issues.

Revit

Revit is mostly used by architecture firms, construction companies, and engineering consultants. It works best in multidisciplinary environments where coordination between systems is essential for success. General contractors are especially fond of Revit for its site coordination, quantity takeoffs, and construction planning capabilities, especially since more and more project owners are demanding BIM deliverables for future facility management purposes.

As for customer reviews, here is a general consensus about Revit from multiple review aggregator platforms:

• Capterra – 4.6/5 stars with 466 customer reviews
• TrustRadius – 9.0/10 stars with 230 customer reviews
• G2 – 4.6/5 stars with 906 customer reviews

Inventor

The primary audience for Inventor is mechanical engineers and product designers, with target industries ranging from automotive components and specialized equipment to industrial machinery and even consumer products. Inventor’s manufacturing-oriented toolset works wonders in small and medium-sized fabrication shops, streamlining the transition from design to production in custom projects. Design consultancies that specialize in product development also use Inventor because of its simulation capabilities and parametric flexibility, creating multiple product variants from base designs.

As for customer reviews, here is a general consensus about Inventor from multiple review aggregator platforms:

• Capterra – 4.5/5 stars based on 278 customer reviews
• TrustRadius – 8.3/10 stars based on 91 customer reviews
• G2 – 4.4/5 stars based on 435 customer reviews

Sustainability

Support for sustainable practices is becoming increasingly important as environmental regulations become more strict and businesses attempt to reduce the ecological impact of their construction projects. Facilitating environmentally conscious design decisions can dramatically influence the long-term environmental performance of a project while reinforcing its compliance with green building standards.

Revit has an integrated energy analysis capability to help designers evaluate building performance early in the design process to optimize it in different ways. The solution’s material tracking capabilities allow for precise quantities of materials to be requested, supporting life cycle assessment and documentation for green building certificates. Its daylight analysis capabilities help architects maximize natural illumination and minimize solar heat gain, while its capabilities for coordination with specialized environmental analysis software can help create much more complex sustainability assessments than anything Revit could ever do on its own.

Inventor has its own material optimization capabilities to help engineers reduce waste through more efficient material use. Its simulation capabilities help designers evaluate structural performance with different material types to support efforts to decrease embodied carbon volumes. The Eco Materials Adviser feature can help teams select more sustainable materials, offering environmental impact data alongside regular mechanical properties in design decision processes, and various assembly analysis tools enable design for disassembly approaches, making products easier to repair, upgrade, and recycle in the future.

Customization capabilities

Custom-tailoring of design software to specific workflows or standards greatly affects long-term productivity and can even be a source of competitive advantage for businesses. Being able to embed the intellectual property of the business and its best practices directly into its digital tools can help create a more efficient workflow with consistent outputs.

Revit’s family editor is a complex environment for creating parametric building components capable of responding intelligently to different design conditions while keeping up pre-existing company standards for performance and appearance. It boasts extensive API support for custom add-in development in various programming languages to help firms create specialized tools for unique project challenges. Dynamo visual programming capability also helps Revit in extending its capabilities without the need to know traditional coding languages, making it possible to create complex geometric forms and entire data workflows using a node-based interface. Revit even has a template system to help organizations standardize their project setups by pre-configuring schedules, sheets, views, annotation styles, and so on.

Inventor has a system called iLogic that enables rule-based design and is accessible to users without advanced programming capabilities, and its extensive API support also offers application development opportunities using .NET frameworks, creating tools for specific industries or purposes. Its Content Center has a customizable library system where companies are free to store parts and templates with their own standards in mind, and the ability to create custom user interfaces via simplified ribbons helps businesses streamline more complex workflows for specific project types or user roles.

Noteworthy shortcomings

The proper acknowledgment of each software application’s limitations and shortcomings is necessary for proper implementation planning with appropriate workarounds. Understanding all the potential challenges helps businesses prepare in an adequate manner, adjusting workflows and finding supplementary tools to minimize disruption and maximize the return on their investments in software.

Revit has a file-based workflow that tends to create collaboration challenges for large teams, creating complexities with coordination and even performance issues in some cases. Handling curved and complex geometries in Revit is more difficult than in most competitors’ software, and most of its customization capabilities are impossible without substantial programming skills. It is also not the best option for rendering and visualization, lagging behind most dedicated visualization solutions in terms of both quality and performance.

Inventor tends to struggle with large assembly management and complex products, necessitating careful use of representations and simplification techniques in order to maintain proper performance. Its surface modeling capabilities are adequate at best, and version compatibility issues arise on a regular basis when sharing files between different releases of Inventor. Its customization capabilities (as well as some advanced features) are also somewhat reduced due to lackluster documentation, necessitating the use of community solutions on a regular basis instead of official guidance

Which option is better for newcomers?

The initial learning experience correlates directly with the speed that value is realized from investments in software. Both institutional commitment and individual perception of software are often influenced by the accessibility of fundamental concepts and early productivity milestones, among other factors.

Revit’s complexity and steep initial learning curve are both commonly known and accepted factors, with its building-centric approach necessitating a good understanding of parametric relationships and component behavior, and not just simple geometry. Learning to navigate the interface of Revit is not enough, and each user must understand industry terminology, construction methodology, and the way different systems interact with each other in this environment. Revit does have a lot of documentation for a lot of its capabilities, but the process itself is still very slow and difficult, with initial progress often feeling a lot slower than most alternatives.

Inventor is, comparably, a much more approachable solution than Revit, with its part-by-part modeling approach being a lot closer in logic to physical object construction and traditional manufacturing. It uses a sketch-based workflow to offer immediate visual feedback on any changes while also facilitating a much more intuitive construction logic that helps newcomers build up confidence with earlier successes. Inventor also offers an abundance of tutorials and guided exercises that help train foundational skills with straightforward progression paths and even the possibility of self-directed learning.

Conclusion

The choice between Revit and Inventor is, ultimately, about industry needs and project requirements.

Revit is an amazing building information modeling solution that practically dominates the market for BIM software despite its complexity and high cost. It can create extremely complex digital representations of buildings with structural, mechanical, and architectural elements in the same construction project.

Inventor, on the other hand, has its own niche of product design and manufacturing, in which it easily outpaces a lot of its competitors. It is a precision-focused toolset that brings mechanical components to life with an impressive level of detail. It also uses a completely different methodology than Revit, working with parts and assemblies instead of buildings and spaces, which makes it significantly more accessible in comparison.

The hardware requirements of both options clearly reflect their own approaches to architecture. Revit must scale with project complexity to be able to handle everything in large AEC firms and complex buildings. Inventor is much more predictable in this regard, making a lot of standard mechanical work relatively tame resource-wise, although the hardware requirements spike a lot when working on more advanced simulations or projects.

The overwhelming majority of businesses should decide between the two according to their core business goals: buildings for Revit, and products for Inventor. At the end of the day, it is not about picking the best option of the two, but understanding which option best fits your unique workflow requirements.