The VanCAD alternative you pay for once
VanPlot is the VanCAD alternative for a one-off project: $39 once instead of VanCAD's $69.99 per year, a free 15-minute trial that saves your work, and weight maths that go past the axle split — live centre of mass, a weight map, a tilt test and the EN 1646-2 reserve. VanCAD is a capable web planner that ships almost weekly — but saving sits behind its paywall, and your build is a project, not a subscription.
| VanPlot | VanCAD | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $39 once, yours forever | $11.99/mo · $3.99/wk · $69.99/yr |
| Cost over a typical 18-month build | $39 | $105–140 (annual/monthly mix) |
| Free trial | 15 min free, full editor, cloud-saved forever | Time-limited sessions, nothing saved |
| Weight planning | Payload, axle split, live centre of mass, weight map, tilt test, EN 1646-2 reserve | Total + per-axle weight in the BOM, top-down weight map (Sep 2026) |
| Power planning | Battery + solar sizing, days of autonomy | Wiring run lengths (no sizing) |
| Design checks | Automatic — clearances, doors, sanity checks | Not included |
| Cut list | Framing exploded to stud-by-stud cuts | Bill of materials with weight per axle; automatic cut lists from raw ply/timber (v3.0.0, Sep 2026) |
| Layout templates | Weekender, Family camper, Mobile office, Modular wet-room, Rear lounge | Not included |
| Van models | 197 variants across 29 vehicles | 180+ traced bodies (their published count, Sep 2026) |
| Wiring & plumbing routing | Typed runs, auto lengths into the Build Sheet | Yes, with run lengths |
| Openings (windows, fans) | User-placeable windows | User-placeable |
| Scene states (bed up/down) | Named states, one-click apply | Groups & states |
| Editing on a phone | View-only on phones — the editor is desktop | Touch toolbar, Transform tab, 5° snap |
| Move / resize several objects at once | Multi-select move, groups | Move and resize without grouping |
Prices from vancad.com (homepage — the pricing page 404s) and features from vancad.com/updates v2.8.0–v3.3.0, checked 27 September 2026 (£/€/$ localisations exist; USD shown). VanCAD is a trademark of HJT Engineering Ltd.
The honest verdict
VanCAD is a genuinely well-built browser planner with impressive velocity. The disagreement is the business model: a camper conversion takes 6–18 months and then it's done — paying $69.99 every year (or $11.99 every month) for a one-off project is the wrong shape, and the free tier won't even save your layout.
VanPlot charges $39 once — less than a single year of VanCAD — and even the free 15-minute trial saves your work to the cloud. On the planning maths that keeps a build safe and on budget, VanPlot goes further today: a live centre of mass, a weight map, a tilt test and the EN 1646-2 reserve on top of the axle split VanCAD added in September 2026, battery and solar sizing rather than cable lengths, automatic design checks, layout templates, and a cut list that explodes framing into individual stud cuts.
Where VanCAD is ahead
Phone editing: since September 2026 VanCAD's editor works on a touchscreen (toolbar, Transform tab, 5° rotation snap); VanPlot's editor needs a desktop-size screen, phones get a viewer. It also moves and resizes several objects at once without grouping, and counts the ply, insulation and floor in the total weight with per-surface thickness. Their van bodies are traced outlines while ours are derived from manufacturer exterior specs — if your exact van matters, check it in both.
Boolean cuts used to sit here. VanPlot's component designer has cut through-holes in box parts since 31 August 2026 (sink cut-outs, cable pass-throughs) — but VanCAD's subtractive modelling is still freer: any shape, any axis, versus one rectangular cutting axis per part in ours. If you sculpt complex custom furniture, VanCAD is still the better designer today — genuinely. If you want the build maths, the bigger catalogue and to pay once, that's us.
Questions people actually ask
What's the VanCAD alternative with no subscription?
VanPlot: $39 once for a lifetime license instead of VanCAD's $69.99 per year or $11.99 per month. A conversion takes 6–18 months and then it's done, so a one-time price is the right shape for it.
Is there a free VanCAD alternative?
VanPlot's 15-minute trial is free, runs the full editor and saves your layout to the cloud for later. VanCAD's free tier is time-limited sessions with nothing saved.
Does VanPlot do everything VanCAD does?
Not everything. VanCAD edits on a phone, resizes several objects at once and models custom parts more freely — any-shape subtractive cuts, where VanPlot cuts rectangular through-holes on box parts. VanPlot goes further on planning: live centre of mass, weight map, tilt test, EN 1646-2 reserve, battery and solar sizing, automatic design checks and a stud-level cut list — for $39 once. Checked September 2026.
Other comparisons
One payment, one build, no meter running
Who makes this
I'm Vladimir. I'm planning my own conversion, and none of the tools I tried could tell me whether a layout would fit or what it would do to the rear axle, so I made this one. I work on it alone. If something's wrong or missing, write to me — the address goes to my inbox.
Vladimir Šterjoski