OpenFOAM vs U-DaLES
OpenFOAM
openfoam.comU-DaLES
udales.github.ioSide by side
| Figure | OpenFOAM | U-DaLES |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | — |
| Free plan | Yes | — |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | Yes | — |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 0 |
| Spec score · Physics Simulation Software | 8.7 (#5) | 7.4 (#65) |
| Data export | Yes | Yes |
| Delivery mode | desktop | desktop |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Intended users | OpenCFD describes its services for science and engineering companies, consultancies, and universities. | The model documentation describes uses including urban airflow, heat transfer, pollutant dispersion, and urban air-quality studies at building-resolving resolution. |
| License | OpenFOAM is distributed under the GNU General Public Licence (GPL). | The public source repository states that uDALES files are licensed under the GNU General Public License. |
| Platforms | The v2606 release provides Linux packages and source code; Windows users can use WSL, native cross-compiled executables, or Docker, and macOS users can compile from source or use Docker. | The installation guide supports Linux, macOS, and Windows Subsystem for Linux; it also documents builds on HPC clusters. |
| Purpose | OpenFOAM is an open-source computational fluid dynamics toolbox for simulating fluid flow, heat transfer, and related physical processes. | uDALES is an open-source large-eddy simulation model for urban microclimate, airflow, heat, moisture, and pollutant transport. |
| Support | OpenCFD offers a one-year support package covering installation, bug fixes, updates, CFD assistance, and code customisation, with a maximum number of service hours per year. | The project asks users to report issues or unexpected behavior with the new Python package through the uDALES GitHub issue tracker. |
| 3D visuals | Yes | Yes |
Plans
In their own words
OpenFOAM
OpenFOAM is a free, open-source computational fluid dynamics toolbox for simulating fluid flow, heat transfer, and related physical processes. It provides pre-processing, mesh generation, solvers for different flow and physics problems, and post-processing tools. Built-in utilities include blockMesh and snappyHexMesh, and it can convert meshes from external formats. ParaView visualization is supported through the paraFoam launcher, reader modules, VTK conversion, and VTK output during simulations. OpenFOAM runs on Linux, macOS, and Windows, and supports self-hosted use. Its current release is v2606, released on 26 June 2026; GPU offloading is available as a compile-time option, with that work on a separate development track. It is distributed under the GNU General Public Licence. OpenCFD offers a one-year support package for installation, fixes, updates, CFD assistance, and code customization, subject to a yearly service-hours maximum. It does not respond to support queries without a prior package. Training courses are also offered, with prices provided through a schedule or enquiry process.