Carveco vs TiaraCAD

Carveco is Windows CAD and CNC machining software for designing and manufacturing artistic 2D and 3D products. Maker targets hobbyists, woodworkers, sign-makers, and small businesses using CNC routers or engravers; it includes vector editing, bitmap-to-vector conversion, relief design, machining strategies, toolpath simulation, and export. Maker Plus adds relief sculpting, nesting, drill banks, batch calculations, and toolpath operations. Pro is for professional decorative work from individual pieces to production at scale. Carveco says it directly supports over 300 CNC machine tools and has dedicated post-processors for many machines. It exports formats including G-Code, STL, AI, DXF, SVG, PDF, OBJ, IGES, STEP, and 3DM. It does not include CNC controller or G-Code sending and streaming software, so a separate compatible controller application is needed. Maker subscriptions start at $17.50 a month, with a 30-day trial for new customers that converts to paid unless cancelled. Subscription software requires internet for activation and must reconnect to its licensing server at least once every 21 days.

TiaraCAD is jewellery CAD software for designing rings, necklaces, bracelets, earrings, and custom diamond jewellery. It works as a plugin for Rhino, and Rhino 8 is required to evaluate it. The product describes its design approach as “Stone-First,” building metal around a stone and generating only the metal required by the design. Its tools include gem settings, modular design, detailing, and support for multiple open files. Users can import company gem charts, metal density charts, and setting parameters for default use. TiaraCAD can generate a bill of material report for a quotation in one click, and release notes say version 2.6.5 added JewelCAD file import. It is offered for macOS and Windows; the features page says TiaraCAD 2.0 works natively on macOS. A 15-day evaluation is available, with no free plan. Continuous internet access is not required, though license validation needs an internet connection once, or once every 14 days with Cloud Licensing. Listed one-time plans include TiaraCAD 2 for Rhino 8 users at $995, paid once, and TiaraCAD 2 with Rhino 8 Commercial at $1,990, paid once.