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Manufacturing · head to head

LabVIEW vs Oqton

LabVIEW logo

LabVIEW

Manufacturing

Graphical dataflow programming for automated test, measurement and instrument control

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Oqton logo

Oqton

Manufacturing

3D Systems manufacturing operating system for additive, narrowed after Geomagic was sold to Hexagon

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: LabVIEW nI is now part of Emerson, completing in 2023, so LabVIEW sits inside an industrial automation conglomerate rather than being the flagship of a dedicated test company; roadmap priorities and support pricing follow the parent, not the user base.; Oqton 3D Systems sold the Geomagic portfolio to Hexagon in April 2025, so buyers who chose Oqton for an end-to-end scanning-to-production suite now deal with two separate vendors and two roadmaps.
  • They diverge on capability: LabVIEW covers Graphical dataflow programming, Oqton covers Manufacturing OS.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which LabVIEW and Oqton actually diverge.

Attributes where LabVIEW and Oqton differ
AttributeLabVIEWOqton
PlatformsWindows, Linux, macOSWeb, Windows, API

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Manufacturing).

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 LabVIEW

  • Graphical dataflow programming
  • Front panels
  • Instrument driver library
  • Hardware integration
  • Real-time and FPGA targets
  • Analysis and signal processing
  • Application builder
  • Nigel AI assistant

Only in Oqton

  • Manufacturing OS
  • Build preparation
  • Machine connectivity
  • Traceability
  • Automated nesting
  • Quality data

What people use each for

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

LabVIEW

  • An automotive supplier building an end-of-line test rig that must drive a power supply, read a scope and log pass/fail against a serial numbernot Oqton
  • A semiconductor lab characterising devices across a PXI chassis where deterministic timing between instruments mattersnot Oqton
  • A medical device manufacturer needing a validated, documented test system with an operator front panel a technician can run unsupervisednot Oqton
  • A research group prototyping a control loop on CompactRIO where part of the logic must compile down to an FPGAnot Oqton

Oqton

  • A metal additive production site scheduling builds across several machines rather than per operatornot LabVIEW
  • A dental manufacturer needing batch to part traceability for regulated devicesnot LabVIEW
  • A 3D Systems printer customer moving from prototyping to serial productionnot LabVIEW
  • A factory automating build nesting to raise platform utilisationnot LabVIEW

Where each one falls short

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

LabVIEW

  • NI is now part of Emerson, completing in 2023, so LabVIEW sits inside an industrial automation conglomerate rather than being the flagship of a dedicated test company; roadmap priorities and support pricing follow the parent, not the user base.
  • No prices appear anywhere on the NI site for commercial editions; Base, Full, Professional and the LabVIEW+ suite are all quoted through NI or a reseller, so a buyer cannot compare cost against a Python-plus-PyVISA alternative without opening a sales conversation.
  • Graphical source code diffs badly. Merging two engineers’ changes to the same virtual instrument in git is impractical without NI’s own comparison tools, so team development on LabVIEW is slower and more serialised than on text-based languages.
  • The pool of engineers who write LabVIEW is small and ageing relative to the pool who write Python, so hiring a replacement for the person who built your test rig is materially harder and more expensive than replacing a general software engineer.
  • The environment pulls you toward NI hardware and NI add-on toolkits, and licences for real-time, FPGA and vision modules are sold separately on top of the base edition, so the quoted LabVIEW price is rarely the delivered cost of a working test system.

Oqton

  • 3D Systems sold the Geomagic portfolio to Hexagon in April 2025, so buyers who chose Oqton for an end-to-end scanning-to-production suite now deal with two separate vendors and two roadmaps.
  • No pricing is published, and licensing is split between the manufacturing OS and separately licensed build preparation modules, so the quoted figure is rarely the full cost.
  • Support is deepest on 3D Systems hardware despite multi-vendor claims, so a mixed fleet gets uneven data capture and control.
  • The parent company has been under financial pressure and has already divested a major software line, which is a genuine continuity risk for a system running a production floor.
  • It is additive-only, so a manufacturer with mixed processes needs a conventional MES alongside it and an integration between the two.

Pricing, plan by plan

LabVIEW

On request
  • LabVIEW Community EditionFree
    • Free for personal, non-commercial use only
    • Full LabVIEW feature set for hobbyists
    • No commercial deployment rights
  • LabVIEW Base$undefined/year
    • Core acquisition, control and user interface capability
    • Suited to simple test and measurement applications
    • Available as subscription or perpetual licence
  • LabVIEW Full$undefined/year
    • Adds advanced analysis and signal processing
    • Recommended where mathematics and filtering are required
    • Available as subscription or perpetual licence
  • LabVIEW Professional$undefined/year
    • Adds application builder, source control and deployment tooling
    • Includes the Nigel AI assistant
    • Available as subscription or perpetual licence

Oqton

On request
  • Oqton Industrial Manufacturing OS$undefined/year
    • Annual subscription quoted by 3D Systems
    • Priced on connected machines and sites
    • Build preparation modules licensed separately

Which should you pick?

Choose LabVIEW if

  • You need graphical dataflow programming.
  • You work on Windows, Linux, macOS.
  • You also want front panels.
LabVIEW review

Choose Oqton if

  • You need manufacturing os.
  • You work on Web, Windows, API.
  • You also want build preparation.
Oqton review

Questions people ask

Is LabVIEW or Oqton better?
Neither clearly leads. LabVIEW starts at On request and Oqton at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, LabVIEW or Oqton?
LabVIEW starts at On request and Oqton at On request.
Does LabVIEW or Oqton run on more platforms?
LabVIEW runs on Windows, Linux, macOS. Oqton runs on Web, Windows, API.
What is LabVIEW best used for?
LabVIEW is most often used for an automotive supplier building an end-of-line test rig that must drive a power supply, read a scope and log pass/fail against a serial number, a semiconductor lab characterising devices across a pxi chassis where deterministic timing between instruments matters, a medical device manufacturer needing a validated, documented test system with an operator front panel a technician can run unsupervised, a research group prototyping a control loop on compactrio where part of the logic must compile down to an fpga. Of those, an automotive supplier building an end-of-line test rig that must drive a power supply, read a scope and log pass/fail against a serial number and a semiconductor lab characterising devices across a pxi chassis where deterministic timing between instruments matters are not what Oqton is typically brought in for.
What can LabVIEW do that Oqton cannot?
LabVIEW covers Graphical dataflow programming, Front panels, Instrument driver library, Hardware integration. Oqton covers Manufacturing OS, Build preparation, Machine connectivity, Traceability.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

LabVIEW: Who owns LabVIEW now?

NI, formerly National Instruments, was acquired by Emerson in an acquisition that completed in 2023. LabVIEW is now an Emerson product.

Oqton: Who owns Oqton?

3D Systems, which acquired it in 2021 and made it the central software brand.

LabVIEW: Can I still buy a perpetual licence?

Yes. NI offers both subscription and perpetual licences and states there are no functional or feature-level differences between them.

Oqton: Did Oqton include Geomagic?

It did. 3D Systems completed the sale of the Geomagic portfolio, including Design X, Control X, Freeform and Wrap, to Hexagon for $123 million in April 2025. Oqton retained 3D Sprint, 3DXpert and the Manufacturing OS.

LabVIEW: Is there a free version?

LabVIEW Community Edition is free for personal, non-commercial use. It carries no commercial deployment rights.

Oqton: Does Oqton work with printers from other manufacturers?

It connects to multi-vendor equipment, but the deepest integration and support is on 3D Systems machines.

LabVIEW: How much does it cost?

NI does not publish commercial edition prices. Base, Full, Professional and LabVIEW+ are all quoted through NI or a reseller.

Oqton: How much does it cost?

Not published. It is quoted annually, typically on connected machines and sites, with build preparation modules licensed separately.

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