Don't like it at all, and would like to replace it with alternatives Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

I started using this architectural software when it was minicad 2.5. At that time it was mac only, elegant, intuitive and great to use. A forerunner in its field. Vectorworks is a horrible piece of software that has remained in the 1980s. To do anything one has to open multiple dialogue boxes which are all unintuitive and confusing. It is a case of software engineers being given control of the user interface. Someone, with proper user interface expericen, has to take it back to the basic and rewrite the software from the grounds up.

Also the pricing structure sucks. To be forced to pay $600 every year for a something that does not add anything is unacceptable. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Making pallets of only the tools I use everyday. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

If anything it would have to be the overall cost. However less than AutoCad Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

The all in one integrated platform for 2d, 3d and rendering has significantly increased my productivity and reliance on other applications Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

The releases often feel a little rushed - I'd rather a new version every two years that was rock solid than working through all of the bugs which are almost always a part of their annual releases. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Since the majority of what I do in Vectorworks now involves importing 3-d models from our Engineering job files and creating assembly instructions for the millwork our facility produces, the increased ease with which VW imports and translates ACAD files for me is one of the best features. What I like the best is that I can use layers as they were intended, i.e., working on small sections of a larger structure that can be correctly and easily aligned and assembled when finished with all the smaller sections, or as I most often use it where each layer is a separate page and at whatever scale works best for the item on that page. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

I have been working with this program since the late 1980's early 1990's when it was still MiniCAD. The yearly changes have been, at times, difficult to assimilate since I have been self-taught the entire time in which I have used this program. That being said, the fact that I was able to "catch myself up" so to speak says a lot about the user friendly interface and incredible detail in the hard copy manuals and on-line Help function which I admit to using quite thoroughly at times. The fact that I am a MAC user and MiniCAD and Vectorworks appear to be the best available option for Mac users is nothing to sneeze at and maybe that why it’s so easy to use. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

At our firm we hand sketches at the beginning of every project. Vectorwork lets us import these early on and by adjusting the line styling we can create hybrid drawings of hand and cad details which clients respond very well to. This is most likely the biggest plus for us as we can have a stream line process from sketch to final construction document set. In general we are able to work very quickly and efficiently. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Some of the 3d modeling tools are a little cumbersome. I have experience in Rhino which gives excellent control of 3d objects in general I miss that in Vectorworks. However I understand that they are completely different softwares. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

I've used Vectorworks for about 13 years for everything from renders to sell jobs, permit sets, shop drawings, and output for digital manufacturing. I've even been able to use the BIM functions to keep track of parts and BOM for product design. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

I have had trouble with exporting colored lines requested by my laser cutter, I believe this has been solved in recent versions. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

The interface is fairly straightforward. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Vectorworks contains more bugs that it should. It will also get in a mode where it will not perform the command, but will after several tries.

There are some obvious functions it does not support, such as a cut command for 3D objects that preserves both parts.

3D features not as robust as the leaders AC, SW, ProE. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Veiwports are the bomb. Assembling sheets with drawings created on design layers using viewports keeps everything synced and systematic. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

The 2016 version takes too long to boot up. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

The 2D aspect of the software is great for seeing what your drawing is going to look like before printing. Our firm does not primarily use the 3D side but from what I've used, I have been thrilled with the easy navigation of the tools that the software provides. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

I think the 3D aspect of the software should be able to automatically update 2D drawings when a change is made in the 3D side. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

When it works, it's pretty good.

seems easier to use and more intuitive than auto cad, particularly in WYSIWYG, and organization of layers and classes. Though admittedly, that's just my perception, as I really have very little experience with other programs, except for Sketchup Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

It is FULL of bugs. They claim that all the problems I'm having are unreported by anyone else and may be specific to my setup. I'm on a top of the line Macbook pro from 2015 running yosemite-- not the best, but should be good enough.

A few of the Biggest:

-Actively used files are degrading-- spontaneously losing substantial information

-Doesn't update pallets unless i save, and sometimes not even then

-Doesn't autosave consistently

-Often gets into streaks when an undo takes me back many (10?, 100?) steps and cannot accept a re-do

-Doesn't recognize which of multiple windows are active (e.g. I try to add a layer to the active file, and it adds it instead to a different, open but not active file.

Also, tech support is incredibly available, but incredibly useless for anything other than routine issues Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.