This guide is for teams that have decided to buy ZWCAD license seats and want to know how the purchase actually works: quote, contract and VAT invoice, license delivery, activation and installation, then maintenance and upgrades. It also covers choosing between standalone and network licenses, telling a genuine license from a pirated key, and the documents your company receives. If you only need edition prices, go straight to ZWCAD pricing (standalone, network, VAT and maintenance, kept in line with ZWSOFT’s list).
Price summary: ZWCAD Standard 20,520,000₫ (≈ US$777), Professional 33,250,000₫ (≈ US$1,259), MFG 40,375,000₫ (≈ US$1,529), perpetual, ZWCAD Vietnam prices excluding VAT (contact us for a better price) (USD at an assumed 26,400₫/USD). Network prices and details: ZWCAD pricing. Multi-year cost against AutoCAD: ZWCAD vs AutoCAD.
Everything below reflects the process we use when selling and deploying ZWCAD for companies in Vietnam, checked against ZWSOFT’s official pricing page and documentation (links at the end). Checked on 10 October 2026.
How to buy ZWCAD license seats in 6 steps
Step 1: Advice and trial
Download the 30-day full trial from ZWSOFT’s official installer and open your own project files: drawings with custom SHX fonts, Xrefs, title blocks, plot styles and the LISP routines you rely on. During the trial we help you answer the three questions that define the order:
- Which edition? 2D drafting with LISP: Standard. 3D, RVT/IFC/STEP import or VBA/.NET/ZRX tools: Professional. Mechanical design: MFG. See the ZWCAD edition comparison.
- How many seats, which license type? See standalone vs network below.
- Maintenance or not? It is optional; it depends on whether you want every new release.
Step 2: Formal quote
The quote lists edition, quantity, license type (standalone or network), optional maintenance, any applicable taxes and how long the quote is valid. Your purchasing team uses it to approve the budget. Volume pricing is available, so send us your actual seat count.
Step 3: Contract and VAT invoice
We sign a software sales contract (or a purchase order, depending on order size and your internal rules), you pay by bank transfer, and we issue an electronic invoice in your company’s name. Any applicable tax appears on the quote and invoice under current regulations.
Step 4: License delivery
The license is issued by ZWSOFT’s system and delivered as an activation code or license file, depending on license type. It is tied to your company’s order, not a shared key.
Step 5: Activation and installation
You activate the copy you already installed for the trial, so there is no reinstall. Our engineers help remotely or on site:
- Standalone: activate on each workstation.
- Network: install the license server on a machine on your LAN, then point the workstations to it.
After activation we help move fonts, .pgp aliases, CUI, templates and plot styles from AutoCAD; our ZWCAD AutoCAD compatibility guide lists what to check.
Step 6: Maintenance and upgrades (optional)
A perpetual license lets you use the version you bought with no time limit. After that, two optional plans exist:
- Yearly Maintenance Plan: while active, you move to new releases (for example 2027) at no extra license cost.
- Upgrade Plan: for customers without maintenance who want to jump to the latest release at some point.
ZWSOFT does not publish prices for either plan on its pricing page; we quote them per edition and quantity. The key difference from a subscription: without maintenance, the software keeps working forever; you simply do not get new releases.
Standalone or network: what to buy
A standalone license is activated on one specific computer. Simple, no server, ideal for engineers who use CAD all day on their own workstation.
A network license lives on a license server on your LAN. Any workstation that opens ZWCAD borrows a seat and returns it on close, so you buy for concurrent users, not total users. For Standard and MFG, ZWSOFT’s list puts a network seat about 10% above a standalone one.
Three questions settle it:
- How many people use CAD all day? Give them standalone licenses.
- How many open drawings only a few times a day (estimating, site supervision, QA/QC)? Put them on shared network seats.
- Do you have an always-on machine on the LAN for the license server? If not, standalone is simpler.
Worked example: planning an order for a 15-person office
Take an office with eight drafters producing 2D drawings all day, three engineers who model in 3D and maintain VBA tools, and four estimators and site staff who open drawings occasionally, rarely more than two at once.
| User group | Purchase | Amount (excl. VAT) |
|---|---|---|
| 8 × 2D drafters | 8 × Standard standalone | 164,160,000₫ (≈ US$6,218) |
| 3 × 3D/VBA engineers | 3 × Professional standalone | 99,750,000₫ (≈ US$3,778) |
| 4 × occasional users | 2 × Standard network | 45,144,000₫ (≈ US$1,710) |
| Total | 309,054,000₫ (≈ US$11,707) |
Buying a standalone seat for each of the four occasional users would cost 82,080,000₫ instead of 45,144,000₫, so the right license type saves 36,936,000₫ (≈ US$1,399) on that group alone. Rule of thumb: buy Professional only for people who actually use 3D, BIM imports or the APIs, and put occasional users on shared network seats. Unit prices for every edition and license type are on ZWCAD pricing.
How to tell a genuine ZWCAD license from a fake key
A genuine license has three marks:
- Bought from ZWSOFT or an authorized reseller: issued by ZWSOFT’s system and activated on the installer downloaded from zwsoft.com.
- A contract and valid invoice in your company’s name: you need them for audits, tax settlement and software license inspections.
- A price in line with the official price list: volume pricing varies a little, but it cannot be a small fraction of the list price.
Warning signs of a pirated key or crack, for any CAD product:
- “Keys” or “accounts” for a few dollars on social media or marketplaces, with no invoice.
- Instructions to disable antivirus, run a “patch” or “keygen”, or replace files in the install folder.
- An installer from anywhere other than the vendor’s official site.
- A seller who cannot provide a contract, invoice or license details in your company’s name.
The risk is not just being locked out mid-project: unlicensed software infringes copyright, tampered installers can carry malware, and your company has no documents to show if inspected.
What documents does your company receive?
| Document | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Formal quote | Budget approval, supplier comparison |
| Software sales contract (or purchase order) | Legal basis of the purchase: edition, quantity, license type |
| Electronic invoice in your company’s name | Accounting and tax settlement |
| License details (activation code or license file) | Activation, proof of the right to use |
| Handover record (on request) | Confirms delivery and completed installation |
| Maintenance details (if purchased) | Period during which new releases are included |
Keep this file with your company’s asset records. In a software license inspection, the contract, invoice and license details are what you will be asked for. How the purchase is booked (expense or asset) is up to your accountant, based on order value and company policy.
Common mistakes when you buy ZWCAD
- Buying Standard, then discovering you need VBA or 3D. Inventory your programming tools first: Standard runs LISP only.
- Buying standalone seats for everyone. Occasional users are usually cheaper on network seats.
- Skipping the trial on real files. Thirty days is enough to test fonts, plot styles, Xrefs and LISP on your own drawings.
- Not asking about tax. Our listed prices exclude VAT; ask for a quote that shows all taxes.
- Uninstalling AutoCAD too early. You need it to export CUI and tool palettes during migration.
FAQ: buying a ZWCAD license
How long does it take from quote to a working seat? Mostly it depends on your contract approval and payment. Once the license is delivered, activating an already-installed copy takes minutes per workstation; network licenses need extra time to set up the license server.
Do listed prices include VAT? No. Listed prices exclude VAT and maintenance. The formal quote shows any applicable tax. See ZWCAD pricing.
Is there an annual rental option? In Vietnam, ZWCAD is sold mainly as perpetual licenses. Contact us for any other options available at the time of purchase.
Can I move a standalone license to a new computer? Contact us and we will walk you through the transfer under ZWSOFT’s current license policy.
Can I start with Standard and move to Professional later? Contact us for upgrade options under ZWSOFT’s current policy. If you already know you need 3D or the APIs, buying Professional up front is usually more economical.
Does ZWCAD stop working if I skip maintenance? No. A perpetual license keeps working with the version you bought; you just do not get new releases for free.
Get a quote and buy ZWCAD license seats
Check unit prices on ZWCAD pricing, compare multi-year cost on ZWCAD vs AutoCAD, then call or message +84 977 893 681 (Zalo), email contact@zwcadvietnam.org, or use our contact page. We send a formal quote with edition and license-type advice, and installation and activation are included for every license bought through ZWCAD Vietnam.
Checked on 10 October 2026. ZWCAD prices are ZWCAD Vietnam prices (updated 27 October 2026), excluding VAT and maintenance; USD figures use an assumed 26,400₫/USD; license policies may change at ZWSOFT’s discretion.
References:
- ZWSOFT — ZWCAD pricing (Vietnam): zwsoft.com/vn/product/zwcad/pricing
- ZWSOFT — Official ZWCAD download: zwsoft.com/download?product=ZWCAD
- ZWSOFT — ZWCAD 2026 Migration Guide (PDF): zwcad.hr/…/Migration-Guide_ZWCAD-2026_Official_reading.pdf