Which Autocad version is the best

[Anonymous]

Hello, 

I would like to ask you from Autocad 2014, 2015 and 2016, which version do you think is the best.

I used to use the 2010 version, but it expired and not available anymore. 

I think the materials were easier to use, than these new versions.

Thank you very much 

[Anonymous]

---

@Anonymous wrote:

Hello, 

I would like to ask you from Autocad 2014, 2015 and 2016, which version do you think is the best.

I used to use the 2010 version, but it expired and not available anymore. 

I think the materials were easier to use, than these new versions.

Thank you very much 

---

That's a really subjective question; you'll mainly get opinions about personal preferences for your answer here.  Not that that is a bad thing, it's just that different people prefer different things for different reasons and it may be difficult to parse out a specific answer.  

[pendean · Accepted solution]

Are you a student? That's the only way 2010 "expires" really.
If so, you want the latest and greatest, AutoCAD2017: no point in learning on an older version. Sign up for it at Educational Website after you create a new account.

[Anonymous]

Thank you very much, I agree with you.

[Anonymous]

AutoCad 2017 is not stable.  Viewbase does not work consistently and is not compatible with files of earlier releases.  No fix has been released yet.  Also, my team has been experiencing graphics glitches with our nVidia Quadro cards; disappearing toolbars, blank screens in the Layer Manager, etc.,  (and yes, we are a bunch of power users and have checked for the latest drivers etc.).  My company recently rolled back to 2016 because of lost productivity.  I would stick with 2016 or 2015.  Every release of AutoCad gets buggier and buggier and we've recently started discussing switching to SolidWorks or some other more stable platform.  Before you invest too much time training further in AutoCad I suggest that you look at the other cad packages out there.  Fewer and fewer businesses that we deal with are using AutoCad.

[RobDraw]

Every release has bugs, some more than others. Just like any other program out there. Calling it unstable is not accurate by any stretch of the imagination. There are thousands of users happily drafting away with 2017.

[polak.sidneypolak]

I'm gathering any version since 2012 and trying it from time to time... But the best, edition I've found and always get back to it is 2014 - the last one before macOS editions which brought many bugs, inconsistencies and instability known till now (current version).

[support103]

I think the version 2014 and 2020.

[timothy_crouse]

From my experience

-2000i

-2014

were solid performers

My Rambling on the Subject . . . 

We could cuss and discuss until the cows come home about there after, none of the versions are bad tools.

They may have hiccups when the next rev hits the street but a patch or two generally clears any problems up, most common complaints of new releases seem to be related to the depreciation of what were viewed as fast tools to something a bit more clumsy until we users get are minds wrapped around how to use the new implementation efficiently, case in point Layer Manager, or Insert Block Dialog.

As long as you get a version that supports sheetsets and PDF import which from a basic drafting tool viewpoint have proved to be really useful tools I would think you would be good to go.  I think you need to go with at least 2018 to get PDF Import.

As was mentioned in a previous reply the education versions are really nice tools to learn with, get that and a Udemy Course and you should be good to go. 

My Limited 2 Cents 🙂

Best Regards

-Tim C.

[pendean]

@timothy_crouse @support103 @polak.sidneypolak you all do realize this is a year2016 post you all are hijacking, right LOL

[RobDraw]

The best version is the one that is required for the your workflow. Your mileage may vary quite a bit based on knowledge and needs.

[polak.sidneypolak]

@pendean, look at it in different angle: we have more to compare since 2016 and in next 5 years we will dig this topic out again to discuss which one is the best. Great option would be make a poll 😉 Thanks to yesterday opinions in this thread I'm considering to test Acad 2020.

[timothy_crouse]

That's odd, why did the post end up at the top of the list?

Sooooo embarrassed 🙂