Core Features 3DS PDF 2 CAD Converter
Turn a plotted CAD PDF back into something you can work with. Open it with its original layers and Xref structure, measure in real model dimensions, and export to DXF or DWG — without AutoCAD, and without sending your drawings anywhere.
Free for everyone — no licence key, no account, no time limit. Runs on your own PC.
Open a Plotted CAD PDF
Load a vector PDF that was plotted from AutoCAD and it opens with its layers intact — the drawing comes back as line work, not as a picture. The PDF is read directly by the program itself; no AutoCAD, no plugin, no conversion step and nothing to install alongside it.
The Xref Structure Comes Back
Plotted layer names carry their origin in front of them, so the drawing can be split back into the aspect models it was built from. You get a tree with a branch per external reference, and a checkbox on each layer, each Xref, or everything at once. Layer colours are the real plot colours, made readable against the background.
Scale, Handled Honestly
The plot scale is read from the measurement viewport that the PDF plotter writes into the file — a number, not a piece of text, so it works whatever language the title block is in. If that is missing, the title block is read as a fallback, following the direction the text runs so a rotated stamp works too. Found nothing? Then the drawing says so instead of quietly showing paper millimetres.
Calibrate on a Known Distance
For a drawing that carries no scale at all, point at two positions you know the real distance between — a grid line, a door width, a dimension already on the sheet — type what it should be, and the whole drawing is set to that scale. Snapping to corner points and midpoints makes hitting the right spot straightforward, and Shift keeps the line straight.
Measure, Section and Grid
Measure distances and areas straight on the drawing, in millimetres or metres, with snapping and an ortho lock. Lay a grid over the sheet at a spacing you choose, isolate what you need, and read coordinates as you move. Nothing is written back into the PDF — every measurement lives in the viewer only.
Export to DXF and DWG
Send everything that is switched on to a single DXF in R12 format, which opens in any CAD package — no AutoCAD needed for that. Or write the drawing out following its Xref structure: the host drawing plus one file per reference in a subfolder, attached at 0,0,0 with relative paths, then converted to DWG. That last step does need AutoCAD on the machine.
Free, Standalone, Nothing Uploaded
Free to use, with no licence key and no account. One installer, Windows 64-bit, and the .NET runtime is inside the package — nothing else to install. Every drawing stays on your own computer. Dutch and English, a light and a dark theme, and the manual is built into the program.
The rest of the toolbox
Download 3DS PDF 2 CAD Converter — free
The full version, free for everyone. Windows 64-bit, one installer, no licence key and no account needed. It checks for a newer version on its own; you decide whether to install it.
Download 3DS PDF 2 CAD Converter — free →