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Coming from OpenSCAD

PythonSCAD shares most function names and concepts with OpenSCAD. If you already know OpenSCAD, you can be productive quickly — with a few important differences.

Quick comparison

Topic OpenSCAD PythonSCAD
File type .scad .py (Python)
Displaying geometry Shapes at top level appear automatically Call show(object)
Imports Built-in modules and use / include from pythonscad import * (or openscad)
Language OpenSCAD DSL Python

Imports and modules

As with any Python library, bring symbols into scope with an import:

from pythonscad import *

PythonSCAD ships two equivalent top-level modules:

  • pythonscad — recommended for new PythonSCAD designs.
  • openscad — for designs that should also run under upstream OpenSCAD's Python integration.

pythonscad is a strict superset of openscad, so switching between from pythonscad import * and from openscad import * requires no other code change.

Showing shapes

In OpenSCAD, a primitive at the top level is rendered automatically. In PythonSCAD, store the solid in a variable and pass it to show():

from pythonscad import *

c = cube([5, 5, 5])
show(c)

cube([5, 5, 5]);
// displayed automatically

Side-by-side syntax

Many tutorials use tabbed examples. Throughout the docs, Python tabs show PythonSCAD; OpenSCAD tabs show the equivalent classic syntax for reference.

Mixing OpenSCAD and Python

You can keep using .scad libraries and combine them with Python scripts. See Python together with OpenSCAD.

New to code CAD entirely?

If OpenSCAD is also new to you, start with the Getting Started tutorial instead — it assumes no prior OpenSCAD knowledge.