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CAD · head to head

Mari vs MicroSurvey CAD

Mari logo

Mari

CAD

3D painting for film and games

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
MicroSurvey CAD logo

MicroSurvey CAD

CAD

Survey drafting and COGO on an IntelliCAD engine, sold outright rather than by subscription

From
$2945/one-time
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Mari has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Mari the full annual licence is $1,289 paid annually, and a short term quarterly rental is $949 per quarter; MicroSurvey CAD dWG compatibility is file-level, not feature-level, so Civil 3D corridors, pipe networks and other object-enabled entities do not arrive intact and collaboration with engineering consultants remains awkward
  • They diverge on capability: Mari covers High-resolution painting, MicroSurvey CAD covers Coordinate geometry.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Mari and MicroSurvey CAD actually diverge.

Attributes where Mari and MicroSurvey CAD differ
AttributeMariMicroSurvey CAD
Starting priceFree$2945/one-time
Pricing modelsubscriptionOne-time purchase
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWindows, MacOS, LinuxWindows
Founded1996Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (CAD).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Mari

  • High-resolution painting
  • UDIM support
  • Procedural layers
  • Baking
  • Node graph
  • Color management
  • Maya
  • Nuke

Only in MicroSurvey CAD

  • Coordinate geometry
  • Traverse adjustment
  • Field data reduction
  • IntelliCAD drafting
  • Legal descriptions
  • Surface and contours
  • Point cloud viewing

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Mari

  • Painting textures directly onto high complexity 3D assets for film and gamesnot MicroSurvey CAD
  • Handling very large multi-UDIM texture sets in a look development pipelinenot MicroSurvey CAD

MicroSurvey CAD

  • A boundary surveying practice that wants to reduce field data, adjust the traverse and write the legal description in one packagenot Mari
  • A firm that refuses to pay an AutoCAD subscription but must deliver DWG files clients can opennot Mari
  • A survey office standardised on Leica total stations that wants instrument data flowing in without a translation stepnot Mari
  • A two-person practice with irregular workload that wants to own its software outright rather than lose access if it stops payingnot Mari

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Mari

  • The full annual licence is $1,289 paid annually, and a short term quarterly rental is $949 per quarter
  • The cheap $299 per year or $35 per month subscription is restricted to a single licence for people working alone or in small companies
  • Node-locked and floating are separate licence types you must choose between
  • All listed prices are before applicable taxes
  • A separate non-commercial licence exists, so commercial use requires a paid tier

MicroSurvey CAD

  • DWG compatibility is file-level, not feature-level, so Civil 3D corridors, pipe networks and other object-enabled entities do not arrive intact and collaboration with engineering consultants remains awkward
  • Only one price is listed publicly, for the floating network licence, and the differences between the Standard, Premium and Ultimate editions are resolved through a reseller conversation rather than a published comparison
  • It is Windows only and the installed base is concentrated in North America, so support, training material and experienced staff are much harder to find elsewhere
  • IntelliCAD lags AutoCAD on newer drawing format features and on third party plug-in availability, so a firm depending on a specific AutoCAD add-in will not find an equivalent
  • MicroSurvey now sits inside Hexagon alongside Leica Geosystems, which means the product competes for investment with a much larger portfolio, and buyers of a perpetual licence should ask about the release cadence commitment before assuming years of updates

Pricing, plan by plan

Mari

Free
  • Individual Subscription$86/month
    • Solo artists or small companies
    • $689 per year alternative billing
  • Team Subscription$null/year
    • Node-locked or floating licenses
    • Annual payment
  • Team Rental$949/quarter
    • Short-term access
    • Node-locked or floating licenses

MicroSurvey CAD

$2945/one-time
  • MicroSurvey CAD, floating network licence$2945/one-time
    • Perpetual licence, shared use with no USB dongle
    • Includes one year of maintenance and support
    • Standard, Premium and Ultimate editions differ in included modules
  • Edition upgrades and add-ons$undefined/one-time
    • Premium and Ultimate edition pricing quoted by MicroSurvey or a reseller
    • Point cloud and scanning modules priced separately
    • Reseller pricing varies by region

Which should you pick?

Choose Mari if

  • You need high-resolution painting.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows, MacOS, Linux.
  • You also want udim support.
Mari review

Choose MicroSurvey CAD if

  • You need coordinate geometry.
  • You work on Windows.
  • You also want traverse adjustment.
MicroSurvey CAD review

Questions people ask

Is Mari or MicroSurvey CAD better?
Neither clearly leads. Mari starts at Free and MicroSurvey CAD at $2945/one-time, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Mari or MicroSurvey CAD?
Mari has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Mari and $2945/one-time for MicroSurvey CAD.
Does Mari or MicroSurvey CAD run on more platforms?
Mari runs on Windows, MacOS, Linux. MicroSurvey CAD runs on Windows.
Can I use Mari for free?
Yes. Mari has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. MicroSurvey CAD starts at $2945/one-time.
What is Mari best used for?
Mari is most often used for painting textures directly onto high complexity 3d assets for film and games, handling very large multi-udim texture sets in a look development pipeline. Of those, painting textures directly onto high complexity 3d assets for film and games and handling very large multi-udim texture sets in a look development pipeline are not what MicroSurvey CAD is typically brought in for.
What can Mari do that MicroSurvey CAD cannot?
Mari covers High-resolution painting, UDIM support, Procedural layers, Baking. MicroSurvey CAD covers Coordinate geometry, Traverse adjustment, Field data reduction, IntelliCAD drafting.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Mari: What is Mari's pricing?

Individual Subscription costs $689 per year or $86 per month. Team Subscription costs $1,289 per year. Team Rental costs $949 per quarter for short-term access. Both subscriptions support node-locked or floating licenses.

Source
MicroSurvey CAD: Do I need AutoCAD to run it?

No. It is built on the IntelliCAD engine and reads and writes DWG natively without an Autodesk licence.

Mari: Does Mari offer a free trial?

Mari offers a free 30-day trial with unrestricted access to help users evaluate the software before purchasing.

Source
MicroSurvey CAD: Is it a perpetual licence or a subscription?

Perpetual. The listed 2,945 US dollar licence includes one year of maintenance and support, after which maintenance is optional.

Mari: Does Mari offer student pricing?

Yes, Mari offers free or discounted access to all Foundry products for students, as well as free non-commercial licenses for learning and exploration.

Source
MicroSurvey CAD: Who owns MicroSurvey?

Hexagon, the same group that owns Leica Geosystems.

MicroSurvey CAD: Will Civil 3D drawings open correctly?

The geometry will. Civil 3D object data such as corridors and pipe networks will not come through as editable objects.

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