How to View a SolidWorks File on a Mac
The fastest route is a link. The engineer checks the file in directly in SolidWorks, shares the link, and the model opens in the browser on your Mac — rotate it, zoom in, measure it, read the drawing. The same link opens on an iPhone, an iPad or an Android tablet.
That link comes from Sibe, a collaboration-first CAD Document Management platform with a native SolidWorks add-in. The engineer keeps working in SolidWorks. Everyone else opens the current version in a browser.
- Opens in Safari, Chrome, Edge or Firefox on macOS — nothing to install
- Same link on phone and tablet
- Rotate, zoom and measure parts, assemblies and drawings
- Also opens STEP, DWG and DXF
- No SolidWorks license, no Sibe account, no VPN
That is how SolidWorks design reviews run — one link, any device, and the comments stay attached to the version everyone looked at.
No link yet? Then it depends on whether you need to look at the file or work on it. Here are six routes, with what each one costs you.
First, decide what you actually need
SolidWorks runs on Windows. That is the constraint, and every option below is a way around it.
If you need to edit, you need Windows somewhere — on your Mac, or on a machine you connect to. If you only need to view, measure or comment, you do not need SolidWorks at all, and the lighter options are better.
1. eDrawings Viewer
A free viewer for CAD files, with a macOS version. It opens .sldprt, .sldasm and .slddrw, and handles printing and basic review.
- Download it from the official site and install
- File > Open, and load the file
Good for a single file on your own machine. Everyone you send the file to needs it installed too.
2. Parallels Desktop
Virtualization: Windows runs alongside macOS, and SolidWorks runs inside Windows. You get the full application, editing included.
- Buy and install Parallels Desktop — from about €99.99 a year
- Set up a Windows virtual machine and install Windows
- Install SolidWorks inside it
You are running two operating systems at once, so this wants a Mac with real processing power and memory behind it, plus a Windows license and a SolidWorks license.
3. Boot Camp
On Intel Macs, Boot Camp partitions the drive and boots directly into Windows. Performance is better than virtualization because nothing is shared.
- Open Boot Camp Assistant and create a Windows partition
- Install Windows from an ISO or disk
- Hold Option at startup to choose Windows, then install SolidWorks
Note the hardware limit: Boot Camp is Intel-only. On Apple Silicon it is not available — see Apple's Boot Camp Assistant guide. The trade-off is a reboot every time you switch.
4. Convert the file
If you only need to look at geometry, convert to something macOS opens natively — PDF, STL or STEP.
- Zamzar converts .sldprt, .sldasm and .slddrw to PDF, STL and more
- AnyConv does the same with a simpler interface
Two warnings. Conversion loses detail on complex assemblies, and uploading a client's design to a public converter is a decision worth checking before you make it.
5. Remote desktop
If a Windows machine with SolidWorks already exists somewhere, connect to it.
- Allow remote connections on the Windows PC
- Install Microsoft Remote Desktop from the Mac App Store
- Connect by IP address or hostname and work on the remote machine
Full SolidWorks, no local install. You are dependent on that machine being on, and on the connection between you.
6. Open it in a browser with Sibe
Nothing to install on the Mac. Files live in a cloud workspace, and you open them in the browser — SolidWorks parts, assemblies and drawings, along with STEP, DWG and DXF.
- Rotate, zoom and measure the model
- Pin comments to the geometry for the engineer to answer
- Send a share link to a client or advisor, who needs no account — the same link a design review runs on
- See which version you are looking at, and open an earlier one
On the Windows side, engineers check files in and out directly in SolidWorks, so the file you open on the Mac is the current one rather than a copy someone exported last week.
Start with the 14-day free trial — no credit card.
Which one to pick
- Editing on the Mac itself — Parallels, or Boot Camp on an Intel machine
- Editing on a machine you already own — remote desktop
- Viewing one file, on your own — eDrawings
- Viewing the current version, and commenting on it with a team — a browser workspace
- Sending geometry to someone outside — a share link, or a converted STEP if they need the file itself
No servers, no VPNs, no admin hassles.
Book a free Demo with Ken to see Sibe in action
Ken Maren
Chief Solutions Architect
SolidWorks Expert with 30+ Years Experience
Redirecting...
Demo bookings need a company email address. To use a personal one, choose Try Sibe for free below.
