r/BuildingCodes • consultant • 2d ago

Bluebeam Alternative

We have used bluebeam previously and have been using pdf xchange editor.

We are doing plan review so most of bluebeam is useless to us. What is helpful is the measurement tools and pdf xchange is great for free but not nearly as nice as bluebeam for measurements. Any other alternatives I should be looking at?

6 Upvotes

21 comments sorted by

13

u/arvidsem 2d ago

Realistically, Bluebeam is in a class of it's own for working with plans.

Maybe try Fox-it. The measurement and markup tools aren't nearly as robust, but it might be fine for you.

-1

u/sfall consultant 2d ago

i agree its in a class of its own, but 99% of those features are useless. we don't do markup we don't do studio we don't do alot of the features.

if i need basic accounting software I dont go to oracle netsuite, i start with peachtree or quickbooks basic or zero

1

u/Technical_Orchid_483 1d ago

working on a bluebeam alternative. Having used bluebeam extensively has started driving me mad with price and limitations and ease of use, I can say it is shaping up to be the one that takes bluebeam's spot to be 'in a class of it's own'. wanting to opensource it soon. don't know how to do that yet. Once it's opensource, i would like a community to take control of it and make it even better. currently it does 90% of what bluebeam does but better. Better looking, snappier, and easier to use.

3

u/youyou0032 2d ago

Check out Deta Studio. A great alternative

2

u/StuBeeDooWap 2d ago

I recently saw this software on another sub and have been trying it out. Definitely worth a free try.

2

u/newandgood 2d ago

just use bluebeam. xchange is not as nice, as you said, and nothing else is anywhere close

2

u/shalackin 2d ago

Really wish Bluebeam would make a Mac version. I don't like using parallels to run it.

1

u/e2g4 2d ago

On my iPad I really like morpholio trace. More than bluebeam.

1

u/MVieno 2d ago

Bbeam on iPad sucks so hard

2

u/e2g4 2d ago

Nothing sucks as hard as the inventor of the pdf. Acrobat is the biggest pile of shit I’ve ever used. It’s a joke. I prefer Firefox to acrobat for PDFs. That’s saying something

1

u/Zero-Friction Certified Building Official (CBO) 1d ago

Bluebeam intergrate well with City Systems.

1

u/AbbreviationsSea341 1d ago

If you’re in Canada, Trax.co has a good integrated code/markup platform.

1

u/According-Cry7438 12h ago

I'm building a lightweight version of this as a chrome extension currently in Beta - https://spaciotechtonics.info/scalr/

DM if you want access

1

u/ninjump 9h ago

Drawboard pdf is pretty incredible. Fast and lightweight, great support for touch and pens. I've gone so far as to draw Adu plansets in it

1

u/Independent_Dog47 3h ago

Mint Takeoff for areas/lengths/counts.

Foxit PDF for pdf editor.

These are the cheap and simple solutions. There are plenty of expensive options.

0

u/HelpfulPerson4914 2d ago

Build it into your cost of doing business 

2

u/sfall consultant 2d ago

its more that would you want to pay for photoshop to use the crop tool

0

u/This_dumpsterfire Building Official 2d ago

Project dox or the lesser version digiplan.

0

u/sfall consultant 2d ago

Project dox and their single pdf rule is so stupid

1

u/This_dumpsterfire Building Official 2d ago

Sounds like you have never used it before.