Mathcad is computer software for the verification, validation, documentation and re-use of mathematical calculations in engineering and science, notably mechanical, chemical, electrical, and civil engineering. Released in 1986 for MS-DOS, it introduced live editing (WYSIWYG) of typeset mathematical notation in an interactive notebook, combined with automatic computations. It was originally developed by Mathsoft, and since 2006 has been a product of Parametric Technology Corporation.

History Mathcad was conceived and developed by Allen Razdow and Josh Bernoff at Mathsoft founded by David Blohm and Razdow. It was released in 1986. It was the first system to support WYSIWYG editing and recalculation of mathematical calculations mixed with text."Now you can calculate on your PC with the same freedom you have on paper" (ad), PC Magazine, September 15, 1987, p. 42 It was also the first to check the consistency of engineering units through the full calculation. Other equation solving systems existed at the time, but did not provide a notebook interface: Software Arts' TK Solver was released in 1982, and Borland's Eureka: The Solver was released in 1987.Ronald Shone, "Software for Solving Equations: Eureka: The Solver, TK Solver Plus and Mathcad", Journal of Economic Surveys 3:1:83–95 (March 1989)

Mathcad was acquired by Parametric Technology Corporation (PTC) in April 2006.PTC buys Mathsoft for $63m : April 2006

Overview

Mathcad's central interface is an interactive notebook in which equations and expressions are created and manipulated in the same graphical format in which they are presented (WYSIWYG). This approach was adopted by systems such as Mathematica, Maple, Macsyma, MATLAB, and Jupyter.

Mathcad today includes some of the capabilities of a computer algebra system, but remains oriented towards ease of use and documentation of numerical engineering applications.

Mathcad is part of a broader product development system developed by PTC, addressing analytical steps in systems engineering. It integrates with PTC's Creo Elements/Pro, Windchill, and Creo Elements/View. Its live feature-level integration with Creo Elements/Pro enables Mathcad analytical models to be directly used in driving CAD geometry, and its structural awareness within Windchill allows live calculations to be re-used and re-applied toward multiple design models.

Summary of capabilities The Mathcad interface allows users to combine a variety of different elements (mathematics, descriptive text, and supporting imagery) into a worksheet, in which dependent calculations are dynamically recalculated as inputs change. This allows for simple manipulation of input variables, assumptions, and expressions. Mathcad's functionality includes:

Numerous numeric functions for statistics, data analysis, image processing, and signal processing; Ubiquitous dimensionality checking and simplification; Solution of systems of equations, such as ODEs and PDEs using several methods; Root finding for polynomials and other functions; Symbolic manipulation of mathematical expressions; Parametric 2D and 3D plotting and discrete data plotting; Leverage standard, readable mathematical expressions within embedded program constructs; Vector and matrix operations, including eigenvalues and eigenvectors; Curve fitting and regression analysis; Statistical and design of experiments functions and plot types, and evaluation of probability distributions; Import from and export to other applications and file types, such as Microsoft Excel and MathML; Cross references to other Mathcad worksheets; Integration with other engineering applications, such as CAD, FEM, BIM, and Simulation tools, to aid in product design, like Autocad, Ansys, Revit.

Although Mathcad is mostly oriented to non-programmers, it is also used in more complex projects to visualize results of mathematical modeling by using distributed computing and coupling with programs written using more traditional languages such as C++.

Current releases

As of 2026, the latest release from PTC is Mathcad Prime 12.0.0.0. This release is a freemium variant: if the software is not activated after a Mathcad Prime 30-day trial, it is possible to continue using PTC Mathcad Express for an unlimited time as "PTC Mathcad Express Free-for-Life Engineering Calculations Software". This freemium pilot is a new marketing approach for PTC. Review and markup of engineering notes can now be done directly by team members without them all requiring a full Mathcad Prime license.

The last release of the traditional (non-Prime) product line, Mathcad 15.0, came out in June 2010 and shares the same worksheet file structure as Mathcad 14.0. The last service release, Mathcad 15.0 M050, which added support for Windows 10, was released in 2017. Mathcad 15.0 and earlier releases are no longer actively developed, sold or supported anymore. PTC recommends users to migrate their Mathcad 15.0 or prior worksheets to the latest supported Prime releases using the XMCD to MCD converter bundled as part of the Prime subscription.

Computer operating system platforms Mathcad only runs on Microsoft Windows. Mathcad Prime 12.0 requires Windows 11 version 23H2 or later. Until 1998, Mathcad also supported Mac OS. Mathcad 15 M045 and Mathcad Prime 3.1 are the last versions to officially support Windows XP and Windows Vista. Mathcad Prime 6 is the last version to officially support Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1. Mathcad Prime 11 is the last version to officially support Windows 10 64-bit.

Support

Starting in 2011 (Mathcad 15.0) the first year of maintenance and support has been included in the purchase or upgrade price.

Release history Name Version Release date Notes Mathcad 0.3 0.3 Beta on 5.25-inch floppy diskette Mathcad 2.5.2 2.5.2 1989Last version for MS-DOS Mathcad 3.1 3.1 1992First version for Windows (with notebook interface) Mathcad 4.0 4.0 Mathcad 5.0 5.0 Added Maple based CAS features Mathcad 5.5 5.5 Mathcad 6.0 6.0 1995 Last version for Windows 3.1x. Mathcad 7 7.0 1997First version for Windows 95. Mathcad 8 Mathcad 2000 Mathcad 2001i Mathcad 11Last version to use MCD file format when saving Mathcad documents. Mathcad 12First version to use XMCD or XMCDZ file format when saving Mathcad documents. Mathcad 13.0 13.0 Mathcad 13.1 13.1Last version developed by Mathsoft. Last version to officially support Windows 95, 98, ME, NT 4.0, and 2000. Mathcad 14.0 14.0 First version developed by PTC. Mathcad 15.0 15.0 F000 Mathcad 15.0 M010 15.0 M010 Mathcad 15.0 M040 15.0 M040 Mathcad 15.0 M04515.0 M045 Last version to officially support Windows XP and Vista for non-Prime versionMathcad 15.0 M05015.0 M050 Last traditional (non-Prime) release. Last version to use XMCD or XMCDZ file format when saving Mathcad documents. Mathcad Prime 1.01.0.0.0 First version to use MCDX file format when saving Mathcad documents. Mathcad Prime 2.02.0.0.0 First version to have native 64-bit version, aside from its native 32-bit version. Mathcad Prime 3.03.0.0.0 Mathcad Prime 3.13.1.0.0 Last version to officially support Windows XP and Vista Mathcad Prime 44.0.0.0 Mathcad Prime 5 5.0.0.0 Last version to have native 32-bit version, aside from its native 64-bit version. Mathcad Prime 6 6.0.0.0 Last version to officially support Windows 7, 8, and 8.1. First version to have native 64-bit version only. Mathcad Prime 7 7.0.0.0 Mathcad Prime 8 8.0.0.0 Mathcad Prime 99.0.0.0Mathcad Prime 1010.0.0Mathcad Prime 1111.0.0Last version to officially support Windows 10 64-bit.Mathcad Prime 1212.0.0April 8, 2026First version that requires Windows 11 (23H2 or later).

Screenshots of various Mathcad releases

See also Comparison of computer algebra systems TK Solver PTC:Creo PTC:Windchill SMath Studio, a free for personal use program similar to Mathcad

References

External links

Mathcad blogs Free trial of Mathcad Prime – Mathcad Express