Revit vs Solidworks vs Revizto

Introduction

Many industries worldwide have undergone significant changes due to advances in technology. The AEC (Architecture, Engineering, and Construction) industry is a prime example. The introduction of CAD (Computer-Aided Design) software has transformed numerous processes in this field, making them easier, more precise, and more convenient.

In this context, you may frequently come across the term “architectural software”. This term encompasses a wide range of solutions and tools that assist in creating construction projects in various ways. It’s often called an “umbrella term” because it covers an incredible variety of tools, from comprehensive CAD software to sophisticated BIM tools, and even applications that predict how sunlight will affect a building in the future.

BIM and CAD software have plenty of common ground, but there are also plenty of differences between the two. Given the current landscape of the AEC software industry, it can be challenging to find a solution tailored to very specific use cases due to the multitude of options available.

To address this challenge, we aim to partially resolve it by directly comparing several AEC software examples and highlighting their strengths, weaknesses, and feature sets. This approach makes it easier for potential clients to understand what each solution can offer in comparison to similar software. In this specific case, our objective is to compare Revit vs Solidworks vs Revizto.

Revit

Revit, developed by Autodesk, is a powerful tool for construction projects. It helps create better, more efficient buildings while reducing waste and mistakes. Revit can handle various aspects of a project like architectural design, structural engineering, and MEP systems.

As a BIM solution, Revit uses detailed project models that store information for everyone involved in the project. This makes decision-making easier, improves teamwork, and raises the quality of construction. Models created in Revit are always accurate and serve as a reliable source of information about the project’s current status. This reduces misunderstandings and the need for rework, among other benefits.

Revit Main Features

• An impressive set of project management tools, including the ability to modify schedules, plans, sheets, and more
• Use of a single project model that’s always consistent and factual, offering plenty of opportunities for everyone involved to collaborate with each other
• Models themselves are incredibly precise and accurate, giving an excellent preview of a future project’s appearance

Revit Technical Details

• Autodesk Revit works with two of the most recent Windows versions – Windows 10 and Windows 11
• Autodesk Revit does not have a dedicated mobile version of the software

Revit Price

• Autodesk Revit can offer two different pricing models – a subscription-based one and Autodesk Flex.
• Autodesk Revit subscription can be purchased in three different packs:
  • $350 for one month
  • $2,805 for one year
  • $8,415 for three years
• Autodesk Flex is a pay-as-you-go pricing model that uses tokens to provide access to some of Autodesk’s features, including Autodesk Revit. Autodesk Revit’s price in tokens is 10 tokens per day, and there are several different token packages that a user can purchase on Autodesk website:
  • $300 for 300 tokens
  • $1,500 for 1500 tokens
  • A custom token amount

Revit Customer Ratings

• Capterra – 4.6/5 points rating based on 384 customer reviews
• TrustRadius – 8.7/10 points rating based on 189 customer reviews
• G2 – 4.5/5 points rating based on 795 customer reviews

Revit Benefits

• Seamless integration with a wide array of other Autodesk products, be it Navisworks, AutoCAD, etc.
• Impressive precision in both renders and animations due to Revit’s exceptional capabilities in terms of project visualization, offering project models that are as close as it gets to their real-life counterparts
• Wide range of different features in the base version of the solution with the ability to extend the overall functionality using a system of add-ons

Revit Shortcomings

• Revit’s primary target audience is large-scale businesses and enterprises, and Autodesk solutions as a whole have not been on the cheaper side of the market for quite a while now, meaning that there is little chance that Revit can be affordable for SMBs
• The overall complex nature of most BIM solution implies high hardware requirements from the get-go, and Revit is no exception here – a user would have to have quite an expensive workstation in order to be able to operate the software properly
• The range of features that Revit is capable of providing is truly massive – but the software itself is far from easy to work with, there is a rather steep learning curve and most features take months to learn for most customers

Solidworks

First and foremost, Solidworks is a brand within Dassault Systèmes that provides CAD and other similar software types to the architectural market (such as CAE, or Computer-aided Engineering). Solidworks was the developer of the first-ever 3D CAD solution for a personal computer, released back in November 1995, and continues to expand and evolve as a brand and software to this day.

The flagship solution of Solidworks bears the same name as the brand, often followed by the release year (such as Solidworks 2023, which is the latest version of the software). It is a comprehensive CAD toolkit with a massive number of different features, including classic 3D modeling, data management, performance analysis, and many others.

Solidworks Main Features

• A massive number of different tools to choose from, not only CAD-related, but also a number of similar topics within the same field of architectural industry
• The price for this particular solution seems to be slightly less than the market average, which is quite surprising (although there is no public pricing available on the official website)
• The overall learning curve of Solidworks also seems to be considerably less steep than other CAD software on the market

Solidworks Technical Details

• Solidworks 2023 works with only one operating system – Microsoft Windows
• Solidworks 2023 does not have a dedicated mobile version of the software

Solidworks Price

• Solidworks 3D CAD solution is the industry-leading software presented by the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, it includes three different offers
  • “Standard Offer” includes 3D Creator, 3DEXPERIENCE Solidworks Standard, 3DSwymer, and Collaborative Industry Innovator
  • “Professional Offer” adds 3D Creator to the package and changes 3DEXPERIENCE Solidworks version from Standard to Professional
  • “Premium Offer” also modifies the 3DEXPERIENCE Solidworks version to Simulation Designer, while also adding the Premium version of that same solution
• Unfortunately, none of these offers include public pricing, and the only way to obtain such information is to request a quote from the company

Solidworks Customer Ratings

• Capterra – 4.6/5 stars based on 712 customer reviews
• TrustRadius – 8.3/10 stars based on 374 customer reviews
• G2 – 4.4/5 stars based on 518 customer reviews

Solidworks Benefits

• A massive number of different features and tools to work with, including CAD instruments and also plenty of tools that are in the adjacent areas of interest, such as the CAE software
• Managing 2D/3D environments is extremely convenient with Solidworks, it is often considered one of the most useful tools for this particular use case
• Solidworks’ particular specialty in various CAD features makes it extremely useful when it comes to performing simulations using different material types

Solidworks Shortcomings

• The overall license management system seems to be rather complex and not exactly clear-cut, causing unnecessary confusion before the purchase
• A large variety of different tools within the same solution inevitably creates the situation where some tools are far more difficult to get working properly from the start
• Similar to how most of the CAD market operates, Solidworks is quite demanding in terms of customer hardware, and a rather impressive desktop station is required in order for all of the features to work properly

Revizto

Revizto is a BIM solution that’s all about making collaboration easier. It operates as a central hub for project data, cutting down the number of mistakes, improving communication, and reducing conflicts among team members. The ability to use Virtual Reality for design reviews is another noticeable feature or Revizto – making it far easier to find issues, check designs, and work with other tasks within the realms of the virtual space.

Revizto really shines when it comes to tracking issues and spotting clashes to improve collaboration. It plays nicely with other architectural tools, making it valuable for engineers, contractors, architects, and more. The solution in question is also versatile, supporting different data formats, so you can work smoothly with companies using different BIM/CAD software.

Revizto Main Features

• The incorporation of comprehensive automation capabilities, spanning automated reporting, model distribution, version management, and continuous real-time project status monitoring results in heightened operational efficiency across all facets of the project
• Enhanced communication with project stakeholders throughout all project phases combined with uninterrupted access to critical project data makes it easier to maintain stakeholders’ well-informed status regarding the project’s ongoing developments
• The optimization of collaboration processes, simplified management of clashes and issues, and the establishment of enforceable accountability mechanisms collectively contribute to the overarching objective of enhancing project management efficiency

Revizto Technical Details

• Revizto works with both Windows and Mac operating systems
• Revizto offers three mobile applications to its users – an older Android tablet app, a new Android smartphone app, and a dedicated iPad app

Revizto Price

• There is no official pricing information available on the official Revizto website, with the only possible option being a demo request

Revizto Customer Ratings

• Capterra – 4.3/5 points rating based on 31 customer reviews
• G2 – 4.2/5 points rating based on 21 customer reviews

Revizto Benefits

• A user-friendly cloud-based issue tracking tool that enhances project performance and makes collaboration among team members smoother
• The ability to assign clashes and issues to specific team members not only holds them accountable but also ensures work is distributed efficiently, leading to better overall performance
• Quick and precise 3D rendering allows for the creation of highly detailed environments in no time

Revizto Shortcomings

• Revizto might slow down a bit when handling intricate and highly detailed project files, so it’s something to keep in mind
• Since Revizto is mainly designed for 3D visualization and virtual reality, its 2D interface isn’t the most convenient or user-friendly, which should not be particularly surprising
• While Revizto does integrate with various third-party BIM/CAD software, some of these connections are quite basic and don’t offer that much in terms of features

Revit vs Solidworks vs Revizto

As we now have plenty of information about each of these solutions, it is as good of a time as any to figure out why you may want to choose each solution on its own merit.

Why Revit?

Autodesk Revit is a powerful Building Information Modeling tool packed with many useful features for a wide range of tasks and use cases. It can be used to simplify collaboration, create detailed information-rich models, improve teamwork, reduce conflicts and errors, and boost overall project efficiency. Although it might seem rather expensive at first, it’s worth the investment for people involved in this industry purely because of its overall feature set, including integrations and add-ons.

Why Solidworks?

Solidworks is an extensive CAD toolkit that tries to be at least somewhat more approachable and easier to use than its competitors. It is a 3D modeling tool that can also have a variety of different features, from material simulations to data management. It is not particularly expensive when compared with the average market price, but its licensing model (as well as license management, in general) can be quite confusing as a whole. It is an interesting CAD solution for customers who may be looking for less complex alternatives to big CAD market players such as AutoCAD.

Why Revizto?

Revizto is a specialized BIM solution that focuses most of its efforts on a single objective – improving collaboration and teamwork by making issue tracking and clash detection easier and more automated. But that is also not the full extent of its features – it can also offer the ability to take virtual tours using VR equipment, as well as plenty of other unconventional capabilities. With its flexibility and rich set of features, it’s an ideal choice for its intended purpose, and it doesn’t have that many downsides in this regard.

Use cases for each solution

Revit is developed and offered by a well-known software provider in the industry – Autodesk. It’s a highly advanced tool with a broad range of features that are well-suited for skilled users. Revit not only provides an extensive set of core functions but also offers the option to add more features through add-ons. It can also be integrated with other Autodesk products like AutoCAD and Navisworks. This makes Revit one of the most comprehensive solutions available for companies in need of a complete BIM solution with a wide array of capabilities.

Solidworks is a CAD toolkit with a variety of different features. Being a CAD solution first and foremost, Solidworks has its own specific audience – but the range of other features and solutions make it far more useful in different circumstances, including data analysis, data management, and computer-aided engineering, to name a few. Solidworks attempts to offer itself as a solution that tries to solve some of the biggest issues of CAD software as a whole – high price and an incredibly steep learning curve. It manages to do so, to a certain degree, but there are still plenty of issues that Solidworks has, from random errors and bugs throughout the system to a confusing license management system.

Revizto may not have that many features when compared with a solution like Revit – but that does not mean the solution itself is useless. On the contrary, Revizto can be incredibly helpful with data management based on various BIM features (issue tracking and clash detection). A solution such as Revizto can be a great asset to practically any company within the architecture industry, improving collaboration, eliminating conflicts and reworks, and even offering rare features such as VR walkthroughs. All of that is also performed using a dedicated centralized data model that every project participant has access to at all times.

Conclusion

Finding software that perfectly matches your specific needs can be challenging, and it’s nearly impossible to find one product that does everything you want. So, for potential customers, the most important thing is to figure out the essential features they require in architectural software. For instance, if a company needs software to handle clash detection or issue tracking while also improving collaboration and project efficiency, Revizto would be the best choice.