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PrePoMax vs SALOME: catalog facts
PrePoMax	SALOME
Best for: Engineers and students running structural FEM simulations with CalculiX	Best for: Engineers preparing meshes and post-processing numerical simulations
Free Free and open source.	Free Free and open source.
Windows	Windows, Linux
Graphical front end for the CalculiX solver Imports CAD exchange formats and STL files All 4 strengths for PrePoMax Graphical front end for the CalculiX solver Imports CAD exchange formats and STL files Netgen and Gmsh meshing, including hexahedral elements Animated 3D result fields and 2D history plots	Parametric geometry, meshing and visualization in one platform Interpolates fields between different meshes All 4 strengths for SALOME Parametric geometry, meshing and visualization in one platform Interpolates fields between different meshes Regular public releases from CEA, EDF and OPEN CASCADE Base for domain-specific simulation applications
Limited to the CalculiX solver Requires knowledge of finite element analysis	Specialised for simulation work rather than general design Steep learning curve for newcomers to meshing and simulation
Downloadable app	Downloadable app
Open source	Open source
License not stated	License not stated
Not stated if an account is needed	No account needed
Not stated if it works offline	Offline features available
Official website Full listing and sources Sources for PrePoMax prepomax.fs.um.si Catalog checked October 1, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Sources for SALOME salome-platform.org Catalog checked September 23, 2026

“Not stated” means we have not confirmed it. Features can vary by device and plan.