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CAD Viewer
What it is
CAD Viewer is a free, open-source browser tool for viewing and editing DWG and DXF drawings. Its WebGL runtime displays model space, layouts, layers, blocks, and external references. In write mode, users can create, change, or delete drawing entities with AutoCAD-style commands; review tools place annotations over a read-only drawing background. Measurements cover distance, area, angle, and arc length, and can be exported as a JSON sidecar file. The viewer can produce a self-contained HTML file for offline use with pan, zoom, layer controls, and distance measurement; that export can be password- and expiry-protected. The maker says drawing parsing and rendering happen on the client, without drawings being uploaded, cached, or mirrored to a server. Embedding options include iframe or npm, and a Google Drive integration opens drawings from Drive. The responsive interface adapts to phones, tablets, and desktops. Read-only mode disables markup, drawing, and modification commands.
For and against
For
- Free and open source
- Supports DWG and DXF
- Exports measurements as JSON
- Offline HTML export supports pan and zoom
- Responsive on phones, tablets, and desktops
Against
- Read-only mode disables markup and editing commands
- Write mode is needed to modify drawings
The verdict
CAD Viewer combines drawing display, editing, review, measurement, and offline export in a browser-based tool. Its mode distinction matters: read-only use disables markup and modification commands.
Who it suits
CAD Viewer suits people who need browser access to DWG or DXF drawings, including developers building web editing workflows. It also fits reviewers who want measurement and markup tools or an offline HTML viewer.
Plans and prices
Free
Free browser CAD for viewing, review, and editing · open-source toolkit
Read 4 Oct 2026 · mlightcad.com
On the record
- Company details
- The opened maker pages identify the product as MLightCAD but do not state its headquarters or founding year.mlightcad.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Drawing support
- It displays model space, layouts, layers, blocks, and external references.mlightcad.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Editing
- Write mode supports creating, editing, and deleting drawing entities, with AutoCAD-style drawing and modification commands.mlightcad.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Exports
- The examples include HTML and PDF export from the full viewer, and lazy-loaded HTML, PDF, and SVG export plugins in the simple viewer.mlightcad.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Integrations
- The maker describes embedding through iframe or npm and lists a Google Drive integration for opening drawings from Drive.mlightcad.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Intended users
- The maker presents CAD Viewer as a free browser CAD product and open-source toolkit for people building web editing workflows.mlightcad.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Languages
- The documentation lists English, Chinese, Arabic, Czech, Turkish, Japanese, and Korean interfaces.mlightcad.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Measurements
- Measurement tools include distance, area, angle, and arc-length measurements, which can be exported as a JSON sidecar file.mlightcad.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Notable limit
- Read-only mode disables markup, drawing, and modification commands.mlightcad.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Offline export
- It can export a self-contained HTML viewer that opens offline and supports pan, zoom, layers, and distance measurement; the export can be password- and expiry-protected.mlightcad.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Privacy
- The product says drawing parsing and rendering happen on the client and drawings are not uploaded, cached, or mirrored to a server.mlightcad.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Purpose
- CAD Viewer is a browser-based WebGL runtime for viewing and editing DWG/DXF drawings.mlightcad.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Review
- Review tools add markups such as arrows, text, clouds, rectangles, circles, and callouts over a read-only drawing background.mlightcad.com · read 4 Oct 2026
- Supported devices
- The responsive interface adapts to phones, tablets, and desktops and documents touch operations for mobile.mlightcad.com · read 4 Oct 2026
