Side by side
Carbon vs Cascadia PLM
Both stand on bill of materials software. Which one you can start free with, which one lets you read the code, and what each costs once you pay.
Free plan APILinuxSelf-hosted+1
Carbon covers planning, shop-floor execution, and quality management, with several deployment options. Starter is listed at $40 a month per user, billed monthly; note that self-hosted API and MCP access require a commercial license.
Visit Carbon
Free plan Open source APILinuxMac+3
Cascadia PLM brings engineering records and change workflows together, with both self-hosted and managed-cloud paths. The free core includes APIs, while managed-cloud API access is an optional paid add-on.
Visit Cascadia PLMThe facts
| Carbon | Cascadia PLM | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Open source | Not published | Yes |
| Runs on | API, Linux, Self-hosted, Web | API, Linux, Mac, Self-hosted, Web, Windows |
| Lowest paid plan | Starter: $40 per user a month | See the plans |
| Plans published | 3 | 10 |
| Maker | Not published | Not published |
| Website | carbon.ms | cascadiaplm.com |
| On bill of materials software | #4 of 48 | #1 of 48 |
Carbon: what it does well
- Generates BOMs, routings, and quoted prices from rules.
- Includes revision control and effectivity dates.
- Shop-floor tools include QR and barcode tracking.
- Quality records can link to production records and genealogy.
- Community edition includes core functions under AGPL-3.0.
What to know first
- Starter has a five-user minimum only for Business?
- Air-gapped deployment is an Enterprise feature.
- Self-hosted API keys and MCP require a commercial license.
- Enterprise pricing is not listed.
Cascadia PLM: what it does well
- Free core includes unlimited editors and viewers.
- Includes REST and SysML v2 APIs.
- Supports multi-level BOMs and revision schemes.
- Self-hosting and Kubernetes deployment are documented.
What to know first
- Managed-cloud API access costs extra.
- Managed Cloud up to 20 editors costs $850 a month.
- Configuration uses TypeScript files.
Alternatives to Carbon Alternatives to Cascadia PLM The whole list