The Quick Answer
Choose Design X Go if you scan with a handheld scanner and model mostly mechanical parts. Choose Plus if you work with a portable arm, a laser tracker or a structured light scanner, or you need shell, offset and surface editing tools. Choose Pro if you model organic or freeform shapes, need to open native CAD files, or want to automate repeat work with batch processing.
All three editions are the same Geomagic Design X software with the same way of working. What changes is the depth of the toolset, which scanners you can drive directly and the level of support. The details below come from Geomagic's current plan comparison, as of October 2026.
What Every Edition Includes
Even Design X Go covers the full scan-to-CAD workflow: bring in the scan, clean it up, extract features, build a parametric model, check it against the scan and send it to your CAD system. Every edition includes:
- Neutral data in and out. Point clouds, meshes (STL and others), scanner formats, STEP, IGES and DXF.
- Direct scanner control for popular handheld and portable scanners, so you scan straight into Design X.
- Core solid modelling. Extrude, revolve, sweep, loft, cut, boolean, fillet and chamfer, with sketches fitted to the scan.
- Surfacing for freeform areas. Mesh Fit and Auto Surface.
- Mesh repair. The Healing Wizard, remeshing, hole filling and smoothing.
- The Accuracy Analyzer. Deviation of solids, meshes and sketches against the scan, as you model.
- Live Transfer of the finished model, with its feature tree, to SOLIDWORKS, Siemens NX, Creo, AutoCAD and Inventor.
Go, Plus and Pro Side by Side
| Capability | Design X Go | Design X Plus | Design X Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
| List price (USD) | US$1,900 a year or US$4,990 perpetual | US$4,190 a year or US$12,710 perpetual | US$7,280 a year or US$22,040 perpetual |
| Best suited to | Handheld scanning and mechanical parts | Arms, trackers, probing and more complex parts | Organic shapes, native CAD and repeat work |
| Scanner direct control | Handheld and portable scanners | Adds portable arms, laser trackers and structured light scanners | Same as Plus |
| Probing (LiveAlign, LiveCapture, LiveModel) | No | Yes | Yes |
| Solid tools | Extrude, revolve, sweep, loft, cut, boolean | Adds solid offset, shell and thicken | Same as Plus |
| Surfacing | Mesh Fit and Auto Surface | Adds selective Auto Surface, surface offset, and fill, extend, trim and sew | Adds patch fitting, boundary fit and solidify |
| Modelling wizards | Solid and surface primitives | Same as Go | Adds extrusion, revolution, sweep, loft and pipe wizards |
| Modelling features | Fillet and chamfer | Adds draft, patterns, mirror and transform body | Adds emboss, helix and spiral curves, and move, replace and split face |
| Mesh tools | Healing Wizard, remesh, fill holes, smooth | Adds defeature, trim and shrink wrap | Full suite, including rewrap, Smart Brush and virtual rescan |
| Automatic region detection | No (regions created by hand) | No | Yes, with geometry classification |
| AutoSketch | No | No | Yes |
| Alignment | Interactive alignment | Same as Go | Adds best fit, datum match, the Align Wizard and target registration |
| Native CAD import and export | No | No | Yes (SOLIDWORKS, CATIA, NX, Creo, Inventor, Parasolid and more) |
| Colour and texture editing | No | No | Yes |
| Batch processing | No | No | Yes, with the Process Designer |
| Support | Email, response within 3 business days | Phone, remote and workflow support, response within 1 business day | Same as Plus |
When Design X Go Is Enough
Go is built for teams starting out with reverse engineering, or doing it now and then alongside design work. It is a good fit when:
- You scan with a handheld scanner. Go controls popular handheld and portable scanners directly.
- Your parts are mostly mechanical. Brackets, housings, fixtures and covers, built from planes, cylinders and fillets.
- The model finishes in your CAD system. Live Transfer sends the model and its feature tree to SOLIDWORKS, NX, Creo, AutoCAD or Inventor.
What you give up: there is no probing and no direct control of arms or trackers, no shell or offset tools, and regions are created by hand rather than detected automatically. Support is by email, with a response within three business days.
When to Step Up to Plus
Plus is the edition for teams that reverse engineer as part of production work. Choose it when:
- You use a portable arm, a laser tracker or a structured light scanner, or you want to probe features directly with LiveAlign and LiveCapture.
- Your parts need more modelling tools. Shell, offset, draft, patterns and mirror.
- Your surfaces need editing. Selective Auto Surface, plus extend, trim, untrim and sew.
- You need fast help when you are stuck. Phone, remote and workflow support, with a response within one business day.
When Pro Earns Its Price
Pro is the complete toolset. It pays for itself when:
- You model organic or freeform shapes. Castings, blades, ergonomic parts and sculpted surfaces, where patch fitting and boundary fit turn the scan into precise surfaces.
- Your parts are complex. Automatic region detection and AutoSketch save hours on parts with many features.
- You work with existing CAD. Pro opens native files from SOLIDWORKS, CATIA, NX, Creo, Inventor and more, so you can rebuild or compare against the original design.
- You repeat the same work. Batch processing with the Process Designer automates repeat scan processing.
- Your scans are rough or in colour. The full mesh repair suite and colour and texture editing handle difficult data.
The costly mistake is not buying the cheapest edition. It is buying an edition that cannot drive your scanner or model your parts, and finding out after the first project.
Subscription or Perpetual Licence?
Every edition comes as an annual subscription or a perpetual licence, and a perpetual licence includes the first year of maintenance. Floating licences and multi-seat bundles are quoted on request. Our Geomagic pricing page lists every product, and we quote in Canadian or US dollars, usually within one business day.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Design X edition works with a portable arm?
Design X Plus or Pro. Go controls handheld and portable scanners, while Plus and Pro add portable arms, laser trackers, structured light scanners and probing.
Can Design X Go send models to SOLIDWORKS?
Yes. Every edition includes Live Transfer, which sends the finished model with its feature tree to SOLIDWORKS, Siemens NX, Creo, AutoCAD or Inventor.
Does Design X Go include the Accuracy Analyzer?
Yes. Go checks solids, meshes and sketches against the scan as you model. Plus and Pro include the complete Accuracy Analyzer.
Can Design X open my existing CAD files?
Every edition imports neutral CAD such as STEP and IGES. Native files from SOLIDWORKS, CATIA, NX, Creo, Inventor and others need Design X Pro.
Which edition should I start with if I am not sure?
Start from your scanner and your parts. If you use an arm or tracker, Go is ruled out. If your parts are organic, or you need native CAD, look at Pro. Book a call and we will recommend an edition before you buy.
Do you offer Design X training?
Yes. Our Geomagic Design X course is private to your team and built around your own parts and scan data.
Plan details are from Geomagic's plan comparison as of October 2026 and can change with new releases. Ask us for the current details before you buy.