nTop vs TopOpt
nTop
ntop.comTopOpt
topopt.mek.dtu.dkSide by side
| Figure | nTop | TopOpt |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | Yes |
| Web | — | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| iOS | — | Yes |
| Android | — | Yes |
| Self-hosted | — | Yes |
| Plans published | 2 | 4 |
| Spec score · Generative Design Software | 7.9 (#8) | 8.2 (#2) |
| Founded | 2015 | 1829 |
| Headquarters | New York City, United States | Kongens Lyngby, Denmark |
| Integrations | The integrations page lists nTop Automate, a PLM connector, and MDO integrations including ModeFrontier, ModelCenter, and ProcesComposer. | The PETSc framework is built upon PETSc, and the page recommends ParaView version 4.0 or newer for visualization. |
| Purpose | nTop is an engineering design platform for generating parametric geometry and exploring many design variants. | TopOpt is an acronym for Topology Optimization, and the DTU group develops and applies density based topology optimization methods. |
Plans
TopOpt
- Free MATLAB and COMSOL photonics codesFree
- Free MATLAB code for buckling optimizationFree
- Free MATLAB code for minimum-compliance problemsFree
- TopOpt apps and softwareFree
In their own words
nTop
nTop is an engineering design platform for generating parametric geometry and exploring design variants. Its implicit modeling represents geometry mathematically, helping models remain stable through substantial parameter changes. Design logic can run across thousands of variants on desktop or distributed cloud compute, while GPU compute and machine learning are described as ways to shorten simulation feedback cycles. The platform supports assembly and surface modeling and imports CAD, mesh, CAE, and other formats, including STEP, Parasolid, CATIA V5, Creo, SolidWorks, STL, OBJ, Abaqus, and ANSYS; listed exports include STEP, Parasolid, STL, and 3MF. The interactive desktop application supports 64-bit Windows 11 Enterprise, Professional, and Education editions; nTop Automate also supports Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.9. The system requirements specify at least 64 GB RAM and an NVIDIA GPU with Volta architecture or newer and 8 GB VRAM. Commercial pricing is on request. Students, educators, and academic researchers can apply for a free non-commercial education version.