Learn JetCad3

The parts of JetCad3 that every workspace shares: themes and display scaling, mouse and keyboard customization, the built-in calculator, project and machine file formats, cloud storage, and how updates reach your shop. Runs fully offline — no account required.

Unlimited for free and hobby use — no account, no sign-in, and no credit card. The Design workspace is a dedicated 2D vector environment for signage, artistic layouts, and machine prep: import artwork, organize shapes on color-driven layers, trace raster references into clean contours, and refine geometry with familiar transforms.

Full parametric 3D solid modeling. Design parts with 2D sketches on construction planes, then build solids with extrude, revolve, sweep, and boolean operations. Your model history stays editable — go back and change any dimension at any time.

Full 2D plasma cutting CAM with a top-down sheet view. Import parts from DXF, SVG, SheetCAM .job files, or directly from your Drafting workspace, nest them manually or with two automatic nesting algorithms, use Common Grid for qualifying rectangular parts to cut a grid with shared separator lines, configure machine profiles and cut recipes, define geometry-based contour rules that adjust feed, THC, leads, and pierce behavior before toolpath generation, generate toolpaths with arc-preserving kerf compensation and lead-in/out, simulate the cut with a live DRO, then post selective parts for production.

2D laser cutting and engraving CAM on a familiar sheet canvas. Import vector art, SheetCAM .job files, or pull flat geometry from Drafting, assign palette colors to drive cut vs engrave operations, use Common Grid for qualifying rectangular parts with common-line separator cuts, tune power and speed per layer, preview fills and toolpaths, then post controller-ready output—including G-code and Ruida-friendly formats for CO₂ workflows.

2.5D CNC router CAM on a nesting-first sheet canvas—built for signs, panels, cabinet parts, and nested production jobs. Import DXF, SVG, or SheetCAM .job files, arrange parts on sheets, assign contour, bore, drill, chamfer, pocket, and engrave operations, preview toolpaths and run cut simulation, then post GRBL- or MASSO-ready G-code. Included on the Drafting + Full CAM subscription tier.

GcodePilot turns JetCad3 into a full g-code sender and machine-control station. Connect a GRBL 1.1 or FluidNC (ESP32) controller over USB serial or WiFi and stream programs from the same app that drew and posted them — live DRO and toolpath view, work offsets, Z probing, tool offsets, jogging, a wireless pendant, run history, and crash-recovery hooks. Any machine using a GcodePilot post shows up automatically as a Motion workspace and stays a CAM post target.

Parametric geometry as portable .jshape files — JavaScript modules that declare parameters in setup() and emit 2D geometry in generate(). Over 225 parametric shapes ship in the box — gears, sprockets, pulleys, splines, flanges, tool profiles, scannable barcodes, and the complete Boxes.py collection — and you can add unlimited custom .jshape files anytime. The Shape Generator dialog lists every installed shape for quick insertion into Drafting Sketch, Design, Laser, and Plasma. Output flows through the same DXF import path as ordinary artwork, so results stay editable in the host workspace.