We compare the main tools offices evaluate in 2026 by how well they handle IFC, BCF, and IDS, how they license, and how cleanly they fit into multi-discipline model coordination.
One disclosure up front, because it matters for how you read this. Nordic BIM Group is the Archicad distributor in Finland, Norway, and Sweden. We also resell Solibri. We have a commercial interest in Archicad. So we have assessed every tool against the same openBIM criteria, cited our sources, and explained the reasoning. Read it, check the sources, and decide for yourself.
Quick answer
For offices that put openBIM first, Archicad and Vectorworks are the most mature commercial choices. Both were early to buildingSMART IFC4 certification and both treat IFC as a core exchange format rather than an export afterthought. Allplan is a strong openBIM option that sits closer to engineering and detailing. Revit is the most widely used tool in the segment and its IFC handling improved in the 2025 and 2026 releases, but complex geometry export still has documented friction. Bonsai is the only fully IFC-native authoring tool on the list and it is free, but it is not yet a full documentation platform. BricsCAD BIM is a DWG-based route into BIM.
There is no single "best" tool. There is a best fit for how your office works and how much you value an open, vendor-neutral data trail.
What openBIM actually means
openBIM is a way of working where the model and its data move between tools in open, vendor-neutral formats. Three standards from buildingSMART do the heavy lifting.
IFC (Industry Foundation Classes) is the open data model for buildings. It is an international standard, ISO 16739-1:2024, designed to be read and written by any compliant software. BCF (BIM Collaboration Format) is the standard for issue-based communication, so a coordinator can flag a clash, attach a snapshot, assign it, and track the resolution across different tools. IDS (Information Delivery Specification) is the newer standard that lets a project define, in a machine-checkable way, exactly what information a model must contain.
The practical payoff is independence. When your geometry and data live in IFC, you can change tools, bring in a consultant on a different platform, hand a model to a contractor, and keep your information intact.
How we assessed the tools
Six criteria, all openBIM-led, all checkable:
- IFC maturity and certification. Does the tool import and export IFC reliably, and is it certified by buildingSMART?
- BCF support. Can it take part in issue-based coordination across tools?
- IDS readiness. Can it use information requirements written as IDS, and can it check a model against them
- Interoperability beyond IFC. How open is the wider workflow, including links to other authoring and review tools?
- Licensing. Subscription, perpetual, or free, and what happens to your access over time.
- Fit for building design. How the tool handles spatial design, plan generation, documentation, and coordination in design phases.
We did not score on rendering, marketing polish, or feature count. Those matter, but they are not what openBIM is about. We also do not give numeric scores. The evidence behind each row is in the sources at the end.
The comparison at a glance
| Tool |
IFC maturity |
BCF |
IDS |
Licensing |
Primary fit |
Archicad
(Graphisoft) |
High. buildingSMART IFC4 export certified. |
Yes |
Imports IDS (Archicad 28+). Checking in Solibri. |
Subscription |
Building design and documentation |
Vectorworks
(Nemetschek) |
High. First IFC4 RV 1.2 export certification (2019). |
Yes |
Supported |
Subscription |
Architecture, landscape, entertainment |
Revit
(Autodesk) |
Improving. Complex geometry export has friction. |
Yes |
Mainly via plugins |
Subscription |
Multi-discipline, large teams |
Allplan
(Nemetschek) |
High. IFC4 advanced in 2026 release. |
Yes |
Supported |
Subscription |
Architecture, engineering, detailing |
BricsCAD BIM
(Hexagon) |
Capable. IFC on a DWG platform. |
Yes, via cloud |
Not a core feature |
Check Bricsys terms |
DWG offices moving into BIM |
Bonsai
(open source) |
IFC-native. No translation step. |
Yes |
Yes, via IfcTester |
Free, open source |
IFC editing, open-source BIM |
Bentley
(OpenBuildings) |
Capable, infrastructure-leaning. |
Yes |
Varies |
Subscription |
Infrastructure and civil |
SketchUp / Tekla
(Trimble) |
Partial (SketchUp), strong (Tekla). |
Tekla yes |
Varies |
Subscription |
Concept (SketchUp), structural (Tekla) |
The tools, one by one
Archicad (Graphisoft)
Archicad was built by architects, and that shows in how it handles spatial thinking, plan generation, and documentation. Today it is used by architects, house builders, contractors, interior and landscape offices, and retail planners. On openBIM it is mature. Graphisoft holds buildingSMART IFC4 export certification, and IFC and BCF are part of the standard workflow rather than a bolt-on.
On IDS, be precise. Since Archicad 28 you can import an IDS file, and Archicad creates the required properties and classifications and maps them into the IFC export. That gets your model set up to meet the requirements. Checking a finished model against the IDS is done in a model checker such as Solibri.
For teams, Teamwork on BIMcloud lets several people work in the same project by reserving the elements they edit and sending and receiving changes. Plans, sections, elevations, and schedules come from the model, so they update when the model changes.
Archicad 30 was announced in October 2026, alongside a new Archicad Max subscription tier. The AI Assistant is still under development. MEP Designer, the tool for adding MEP systems to an Archicad model, is launching in more than 40 additional markets.
Where it fits: offices that design and document buildings and want open data without fighting their tool to get it.
Revit (Autodesk)
Revit is the most widely used BIM authoring tool in the segment, especially in larger multi-discipline teams. Its IFC handling has improved. Since the 2025 release, category mapping moved into the main export setup, so you select IFC classes from a dropdown instead of typing them by hand, and the 2026 release continued that work.
The friction is real and documented. When Revit exports complex geometry to IFC, file size and data fidelity can suffer. One worked example showed a swept profile growing from 10 KB to 270 KB, a 27-fold increase, once a filleted corner was added, which is exactly the kind of detail that appears in door and window frames, hardware, and furniture. On import, Revit tries to rebuild native elements from IFC, which works for simple walls and breaks down with complex shapes. IDS work in Revit today relies mainly on third-party plugins.
Revit and Archicad both produce excellent buildings. They are built around different workflows. Revit centers on an engineering and large-team coordination model. The choice is about fit, not about one tool being weak.
Vectorworks (Nemetschek)
Vectorworks was the first software to receive IFC4 Reference View 1.2 export certification, back in 2019, and it has stayed committed to open workflows since. It exports IFC to coordinate with consultants on other platforms and links out to Rhino, SketchUp, Cinema 4D, and other design tools. It is strong for architecture, and it is a common choice for landscape and entertainment design.
On licensing, Vectorworks has moved to subscription. New perpetual licenses stopped in the US, UK, Australia, and Canada on 1 January 2023 and in all other markets by 1 January 2025. Existing perpetual licenses keep working.
Where it fits: design-led offices, including landscape and interior practices, that want openBIM.
Allplan (Nemetschek)
Allplan is a serious openBIM tool that leans toward engineering and detailing alongside architecture. It supports IFC and BCF, links cleanly with other tools including Revit and Archicad, and the 2026 release advanced its IFC4 support and added a new model viewer. It is Windows only. For offices that work tightly with structural and fabrication colleagues, it is worth a look.
BricsCAD BIM adds BIM modelling to a DWG-based CAD platform, so offices with large DWG libraries can move into BIM without leaving familiar workflows. It handles IFC import and export, and its BCF panel connects to Catenda, BIMcollab, and BIM Track for issue-based coordination. One limit: you cannot create a standalone BCF file inside BricsCAD BIM, so issues are created through those cloud services. It runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux.
Where it fits: CAD-heavy offices that want a gradual route into BIM. For documentation-heavy BIM delivery, purpose-built BIM authoring tools go further.
Bonsai, formerly the BlenderBIM add-on, is a free, open-source BIM authoring tool built on Blender. It is IFC-native: you work directly in the IFC data model, so there is no translation between the design file and the exchange file. Through IfcOpenShell's IfcTester it can check models against IDS, which makes it a useful tool even for offices that author in something else.
It is still maturing as a production tool. Documentation output and workflow automation are behind the commercial platforms, there is no commercial support, and the Blender interface takes time for teams used to conventional BIM software.
Where it fits: IFC editing, checking, and experiments with fully open BIM.
Bentley and Trimble tools
Bentley's OpenBuildings and MicroStation are capable and openBIM-aware, but their center of gravity is infrastructure and large civil work rather than building design. Few offices choose them as a primary authoring tool for buildings.
Trimble covers two different jobs. SketchUp is widely used for early concept and massing and plays a supporting role in openBIM through IFC, but it is not a full BIM authoring tool for documentation. Tekla Structures is a strong structural detailing and fabrication tool with solid IFC and BCF support. If your structural consultant uses Tekla, clean IFC from your own tool becomes a practical requirement.
Licensing in 2026: what changed
Most of the commercial market is now subscription only.
Archicad moved to subscription only. Graphisoft stopped selling new perpetual licenses to new customers after the end of 2024, existing customers could buy perpetual through the end of 2025, and active SSA and Forward contracts are serviced through the end of 2026.
Revit has been subscription only for years.
Vectorworks finished its move to subscription in all markets by 1 January 2025.
Allplan, Bentley, and Trimble tools are sold on subscription. Bonsai is free and open source. For BricsCAD, check current Bricsys terms.
Nordic pricing, education terms, and multi-seat agreements differ from international list prices, so get a local quote before you budget.
Nordic public clients and openBIM
In Finland, Norway, and Sweden, open formats are not only a preference. Large public clients write them into their requirements.
In Norway, Statsbygg's BIM requirements (SIMBA) are written as automatically checkable requirement sets for IFC models, with SIMBA 2.0 set up for IFC4. In Finland, the Common BIM Requirements 2012 (COBIM), developed with Senate Properties and other public and private clients, built IFC-based delivery into Finnish practice. In Sweden, Boverket's 2024 report on BIM points to the need for a common language and for requirements on the information content of BIM deliveries to public clients.
The practical point: if you bid for public work, check the client's BIM requirements early, and test that your tool's IFC output passes them.
A spec sheet will not tell you how a tool behaves on your projects. Before you commit:
- Run a real project. Model a part of a recent project in the tool you are evaluating, not a demo file.
- Round-trip the IFC. Export to IFC, open it in a model checker such as Solibri, and check that geometry, property sets, and classification survive.
- Test against an IDS. If your clients publish information requirements, check the model against them.
- Test teamwork. Have two or three people work on the same model at the same time and see how changes are shared.
- Plan the competence. A switch costs productive time. Budget for training and a structured onboarding, not just licenses.
Model coordination is a team sport
openBIM is not only about your authoring tool. It is about what happens when your model meets the structural, MEP, and contractor models.
This is where BCF and a dedicated coordination tool earn their place. Solibri opens, navigates, and federates IFC models across architectural, structural, and MEP disciplines, runs model checking, and drives issue-based coordination through BCF. The pattern that works: each discipline authors in the tool that fits its work, everyone publishes to IFC, and coordination and clash detection happen on the federated model with issues tracked in BCF. No one is forced onto a single platform, and the audit trail stays intact.
How to choose
If you design and document buildings and want open data, fast plan generation, and model-based documentation, Archicad is the natural fit, and it is the tool we know best.
If you work mainly in landscape or entertainment design, look closely at Vectorworks.
If most of your collaborators are already on Revit and your work is deep multi-discipline engineering coordination, the people and tools around Revit may outweigh its IFC export friction, and IFC still lets you exchange with everyone else.
If you sit close to detailing and fabrication, Allplan deserves a place on your shortlist.
If your office lives in DWG today, BricsCAD BIM is a gradual route in.
If you want to work directly in IFC, or need a free tool to inspect and check IFC files, try Bonsai.
Whatever you author in, plan your coordination layer early. The tool that checks and federates the models matters as much as the tool that creates them.
FAQ
What is the best BIM software for openBIM in 2026?
Among commercial tools, Archicad and Vectorworks lead on openBIM maturity, both backed by buildingSMART IFC4 certification. Revit is the most widely adopted in larger teams. Bonsai is the only fully IFC-native authoring tool and is free, but it is not yet a full documentation platform. The best choice depends on your workflow, your collaborators, and how much you value vendor-neutral data.
Is Revit or Archicad better for openBIM?
Both support IFC and BCF. Archicad treats IFC as a core format, holds IFC4 export certification, and imports IDS natively. Revit's IFC export improved in 2025 and 2026 but still shows documented friction with complex geometry, and its IDS support comes mainly through plugins. For building design work, Archicad is generally the smoother openBIM experience.
Does Archicad support IDS?
Yes. Since Archicad 28 you can import an IDS file, and Archicad sets up the required properties and classifications and maps them into the IFC export. To check a finished model against the IDS, use a model checker such as Solibri.
What does openBIM mean?
openBIM is a way of working where building models and data move between tools in open, vendor-neutral standards, mainly IFC (ISO 16739-1:2024), BCF, and IDS, all defined by buildingSMART. It removes lock-in to any single file format.
Is there a free openBIM tool?
Yes. Bonsai is free and open source, built on Blender, and works directly in IFC. It can also check models against IDS through IfcTester.
Do I still need a separate tool for clash detection?
For multi-discipline coordination, yes. A tool like Solibri federates IFC models from every discipline, runs model checking, and manages issues through BCF, which keeps coordination open rather than tied to one authoring platform.
Can I still buy a perpetual license in 2026?
For the major commercial BIM tools, no. Archicad, Revit, and Vectorworks are all subscription only for new licenses. Bonsai is free and open source.
A note on how we see this
We sell Archicad and Solibri, so we will not pretend to be neutral. What we are is openBIM advocates, because open standards protect the one thing you cannot afford to lose: your data. The right tool is the one that fits your work and keeps your information yours.
If you want help thinking through which setup fits your office in Finland, Norway, or Sweden, talk to us. We can test the workflow against one of your own projects and give you a straight answer, not a sales pitch.
Sources
