SolidWorks is a parametric 3D CAD (Computer Aided Design) software, it’s widely respected and adopted by major design firms worldwide, according to Wikipedia SolidWorks is currently used by over 2 million engineers and designers at more than 165,000 companies worldwide.

SolidWorks isn’t only used for 3D modelling, but it’s many other features built inside it like; stress analysis, flow simulation, and mechanisms animation. Learning SolidWorks is not helpful but vital for mechanical engineers and designer as it’s one of the requirement/skill required to join any design firm.

This post is a road map for anyone willing to start learning SolidWorks online for free from scratch, the post will present and compare between the best online sources where beginners can start from and follow along, the sources stated in this post are full structured courses so you won’t find a link to a single video or a group of unrelated tutorials.

Start Learning SolidWorks Online for Free from Scratch

SolidWorks Lessons

SolidWorks Lessons is the first free online outlet where beginners can start learning SolidWorks, the lessons are mainly text-based but there’s a videos section (but I’ve to warn you that many of the videos in the videos section just doesn’t work).

Structure: The course is divided into 7 sections; each section is divided into pages that cover certain topics in that section about SolidWorks.

Interface: The interface is very simple, just click on the section you’re interested in and you’ll be directed to the section’s page where you can start.

Now, the pros and cons:

Pros

Free. The course is well-structured and organized for beginners.

Cons

The video section has some problems (e.g. sometimes you’re directed to an empty page). The course covers an old version of SolidWorks; though that might not be a big problem for beginners.

Verdict: This is the best place for beginners who prefer text-tutorials to start learning SolidWorks.

SolidWorks Tutorials

SolidWorks Tutorials is the second free online outlet where beginners can start learning SolidWorks, the course consists of text based tutorials and there are no videos at all.

Structure: The course is divided into 27 lessons; each lesson covers certain topics in SolidWorks. The course is more of a “learn by doing” course.

Interface: The interface is very simple, just click on the lesson you’re interested in and you’ll be directed to the lesson’s page.

Now, the pros and cons:

Pros

Free. The course is well-structured for beginners.

Cons

The course covers an old version of SolidWorks, but that might not a problem for many beginners.

Verdict: This is a good outlet for beginners to start learning SolidWorks, it’s more suitable for beginners who prefer the “learn by doing” style.

University of Limerick

University of Limerick is the third free online outlet where beginners can start learning SolidWorks through video tutorials.

Structure: The course is divided into 12 sections; each section is divided into lessons and these lessons cover various topics in SolidWorks.

Interface: The interface is quite simple, select the lesson you’re interested in from the lessons sub-menu and the video tutorial will load directly.

Now, the pros and cons:

Pros

Free. The course is well-organized for beginners.

Cons

The course covers a very old version of SolidWorks.

Verdict: This is the best place where beginners can start learning SolidWorks through video tutorials.

SolidWorks Tutorials YouTube Channel

SolidWorks Tutorials YouTube Channel is the fourth free online outlet where beginners can start learning SolidWorks through video tutorials.

Structure: The training is divided into 70 video lessons and each video lesson covers a certain topic in SolidWorks.

Now, the pros and cons:

Pros

Free. The training is well-structured for beginners.

Cons

The training isn’t well-organization for beginners. The training covers a very old version of SolidWorks.

Verdict: This is a good source to start learning SolidWorks, but it covers an old version and there’s a problem in the lessons organization.

Bottom Line

The recipe for learning SolidWorks

SolidWorks Lessons is the best place to start learning SolidWorks through text-based tutorials. SolidWorks Tutorials is the best place to start learning SolidWorks for beginners who prefer the “learn by doing” tutorials style. University of Limerick is the best place for beginners to start learning SolidWorks through video tutorials. For those who prefer books then the free book Introduction to SolidWorks is the place to start from.

Remember that the first step is always the toughest step, and the aim of this post is to provide you with resources that will help you take your first step in SolidWorks.

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