Free tools and software directory for machine shops

Quote turnaround calculator

See how many hours and dollars your shop spends quoting, and what faster quotes could be worth in won jobs. Your numbers, your assumptions.

Quoting software picker

Answer 7 quick questions about your shop and get 2–3 quoting tools that fit, based on real pricing from each vendor's site.

aPriori

Manufacturing simulation from 3D CAD for should-cost, DFM, cycle time and automated cost estimates, plus AI sourcing assistant.

Pricing

Contact

Works with

3D CAD models; PLM integration

DigiFabster

Instant online quoting and eCommerce storefront for CNC milling, turning, sheet metal and 3D printing shops; customers upload parts and get a price, with order management and payment collection.

Pricing

Annual plans (Essential/Growth; price shown on site) + 4.99% processing fees; Enterprise: Contact; Growth + Marketing from $990/mo

Works with

CNC milling, turning, sheet metal, 3D printing; CRM/accounting integration via API

Machine Research

AI/ML estimating and quoting for machine shops with RFQ import, ShapeSearch part library and ERP/QuickBooks integration.

Pricing

Contact

Works with

STEP/3D CAD viewer; QuickBooks & ERP integrations

Paperless Parts

Quoting software that helps machine shops and fabricators estimate smarter and faster; catches missed operations; ERP integrations.

Pricing

Contact

SmartShopFloor

AI estimator and AI scheduler for job shops and metal fabricators (Australia-focused), with job costing and live shop data.

Pricing

Contact

Works with

SolidWorks; QuickBooks (listed integrations)

Toolpath

AI-powered DFM, quoting and CAM automation for machine shops, from RFQ to spindle.

Pricing

API: Free $0 (100 DFM/10 estimates/mo); Core $400/mo; Pro $1,500/mo (shop plans: Contact)

Works with

Autodesk Fusion CAM

Werk24

AI feature extraction from technical drawings (dimensions, tolerances, materials) via API or Studio for faster quoting.

Pricing

API from €1.25/page pay-as-you-go or €590/mo; Studio from €0 (suppliers), plans from €99/mo

Works with

Technical drawings (PDF/image)

Autodesk Fusion for Manufacturing

Integrated cloud CAD/CAM with automated CAM programming, whole-part strategies and Autodesk Assistant AI.

Pricing

Fusion $57/mo billed annually; Fusion for Manufacturing: see site

Works with

Native CAD/CAM (Fusion)

CloudNC CAM Assist

AI that generates machining strategies and toolpaths inside your CAM and estimates cycle times; Quote Agent in development.

Pricing

Contact (Hobbyist/Small Shop/Job Shop tiers, 12-mo minimum)

Works with

Mastercam 2025-27; Autodesk Fusion; GibbsCAM; SolidCAM 2025 SP4+; Siemens NX

HCL CAMWorks

Feature-based CAM with automatic feature recognition and TechDB knowledge-based machining that reuses your best practices.

Pricing

Contact

Works with

SOLIDWORKS; Solid Edge; 3DEXPERIENCE SOLIDWORKS

Mastercam

CNC programming software adding AI-enabled CAM intelligence and productivity tools.

Pricing

Contact

Works with

Mastercam (native)

SolidCAM

CAD-integrated CAM (iMachining) with an AI CAM offering for CNC shops.

Pricing

Contact

Works with

SOLIDWORKS; Autodesk Inventor; Solid Edge

Fulcrum

Cloud manufacturing ERP with 'Archie' built-in AI, AI uploader, BOM/routing builder, MCP & API.

Pricing

Contact

Global Shop Solutions

Quote-to-cash ERP for manufacturers with AI-integrated ERP features.

Pricing

Contact

JITbase

Production planning and scheduling driven by machine data to raise capacity and workforce efficiency.

Pricing

Free for up to 5 machines (monitoring); Basic $65, Standard $100, Premium $150 per machine/mo; monthly, no commitment

JobBOSS² (ECI)

Job shop ERP centralizing quoting, scheduling and inventory; part of ECI's AI strategy.

Pricing

Contact

Works with

QuickBooks

ProShop ERP

All-in-one ERP/MES/QMS for machine shops with 'Chip', an AI that learns how your shop runs.

Pricing

Contact

1factory

Quality platform for machine shops: OCR auto-ballooning of PDF drawings (GD&T, dims, notes), inspection plans, AS9102 FAI reports, CMM data import, SPC and drawing revision comparison.

Pricing

Quality Control: $75 per QC user/mo, 5-user minimum, billed annually (1-year minimum)

Works with

PDF drawings; CMM data from Zeiss, Mitutoyo, PC-DMIS, Renishaw, Micro-Vu, Keyence

DISCUS Software

Quality engineering tools for TDP, FAI/AS9102, PPAP and CMM with IDA AI that extracts data from drawings.

Pricing

Contact

Elementary

AI vision inspection system for automated quality control on production lines.

Pricing

Contact

High QA

Quality and metrology workflow from design through inspection (ballooning, FAI) via Inspection Manager / 360 CORE.

Pricing

Contact

Instrumental

AI manufacturing acceleration platform that finds defects and improves yield (electronics focus).

Pricing

Contact

Lumafield

Industrial CT scanning plus AI that gives manufacturers visibility inside parts to catch defects.

Pricing

Contact

Overview.ai

Deep-learning vision inspection on edge cameras; train models in hours with few images, no cloud dependency.

Pricing

Contact

Amper (ECI)

IoT sensor-based production monitoring tracking machine uptime and downtime in real time.

Pricing

Contact

CADDi

AI data platform that analyzes and connects drawings and manufacturing data across departments for sourcing and reuse.

Pricing

Contact

Works with

Drawings / manufacturing data

Datanomix

No-operator-input production monitoring with real-time insights, using AI to flag issues while there is time to act.

Pricing

Contact

MachineMetrics

AI-powered manufacturing operations platform connecting every machine, with 'Max AI' and machine monitoring.

Pricing

Contact

MaintainX

Maintenance work orders, preventive maintenance and downtime tracking on phone or web, with the MaintainX Assist AI (formerly CoPilot) for searching machine manuals and repair history.

Pricing

Basic free; Essential $20/user/mo billed annually ($25 monthly); Premium & Enterprise: Contact (MaintainX Assist AI on Enterprise)

Works with

REST API (Premium+); Zapier; OT data via Ignition/MQTT connectors

Make

Visual no-code automation for AI and agentic workflows across 1,000+ apps.

Pricing

Free plan (1,000 credits/mo); paid plans on site

n8n

Workflow automation with AI agents and integrations; self-hostable; good for RFQ intake, quote follow-up and status emails.

Pricing

Starter €20/mo, Pro €50/mo, Business €667/mo (billed annually); free self-hosted Community Edition

Shoplogix

Connects to any shop-floor machine to surface bottlenecks, with an AI assistant for manufacturing.

Pricing

Contact

Tulip

Composable AI-native frontline operations platform for production tracking, quality and traceability apps.

Pricing

Entry tier $100/mo per interface; Professional $250/mo per interface (billed annually)

Vention

Cloud platform to design, automate, order and deploy manufacturing equipment and robot cells, with physical AI.

Pricing

Contact

Works with

Browser-based machine design

Zapier

AI workflow and agent automation across 9,000+ apps.

Pricing

Free $0; Professional from $19.99/mo; Team from $69/mo

Adam

AI mechanical engineer / CAD copilot to create and edit models and prepare drawings with existing CAD tools.

Pricing

Free; Pro, Max, Team (per seat), Enterprise (prices on site)

Works with

Works with existing CAD tools (per site)

Backflip

AI copilot that 'CADs like a human' to speed CAD and 3D modeling; from the Markforged founders.

Pricing

Builder $20/mo; Pro $50/mo; Business $380/mo (credit-based)

Works with

Fusion; Onshape; STEP

Leo AI

Engineering-grade AI copilot for mechanical engineers: verified technical answers, part search, concept 3D models.

Pricing

Contact

Works with

SOLIDWORKS; Onshape; Siemens NX; Fusion (per site)

MecAgent

AI CAD copilot that models parts, generates drawings and runs automations/macros inside SolidWorks.

Pricing

Free $0; Starter $125/mo ($84 yearly); Advanced+ $625/mo/seat ($417 yearly); Enterprise: Contact

Works with

SOLIDWORKS; Autodesk Inventor

Prompt2CAD

Turns plain-language briefs into editable CAD for parts and products.

Pricing

Contact

Works with

STEP, DXF, STL, 3MF export

Zoo

AI-native CAD (Zoo Design Studio + Zookeeper agent) with editable B-rep geometry, code and API.

Pricing

Free plan; metered AI/API usage (see site)

Works with

STEP, glTF, OBJ, STL export (per TexoCAD test)