Export STEP from Python using FreeCAD 1.0 (Python API)

FreeCAD can be used as a reliable STEP exporter because it sits directly on OpenCascade and provides a practical Python API.

This approach is not pip-only (it requires a FreeCAD installation), but if you can install FreeCAD it can be simpler than managing OCCT wheels in Python.

When FreeCAD is a good choice

Difficulty: ★★☆ (Intermediate)
Frequency: ★★☆ (Common)
Impact: 🔴 High (Robust STEP export without Python wheel juggling)

You can install desktop software (FreeCAD) on the machine
You want a stable STEP exporter for batch jobs
You want to avoid cadquery-ocp / OCCT wheel compatibility issues

Recommended execution model: `FreeCADCmd`

Use FreeCAD’s headless command:

Windows: FreeCADCmd.exe
Linux/macOS: FreeCADCmd

In this repo, we provide a generator script:

tests/python_step_export/generate_freecad_step.py

Run it directly

bash

FreeCADCmd tests/python_step_export/generate_freecad_step.py tests/python_step_export/output/box_freecad.step

Or run via the repo’s generator (multi-export)

The repo generator will also try FreeCAD if it can find FreeCADCmd:

bash

python tests/python_step_export/generate_step_examples.py

Configure the command explicitly (recommended on Windows):

bash

FREECAD_CMD="C:\Program Files\FreeCAD 1.0\bin\FreeCADCmd.exe" python tests/python_step_export/generate_step_examples.py

Smoke test (optional)

This repo includes an opt-in pytest integration test:

bash

STEP_EXPORT_INTEGRATION=1 FREECAD_CMD=/path/to/FreeCADCmd python -m pytest -q tests/python_step_export -k freecad

Artifacts are copied to:

tests/python_step_export/output/box_freecad.step

Notes / pitfalls

Environment: FreeCAD’s Python modules are normally available only inside FreeCAD’s bundled runtime, so prefer FreeCADCmd over trying to import FreeCAD from a normal venv.
CI: Installing FreeCAD in CI is heavier than pip-only solutions; keep this path optional.

Export STEP from Python using FreeCAD 1.0 (Python API) ​

When FreeCAD is a good choice ​

Recommended execution model: FreeCADCmd ​

Run it directly ​

Or run via the repo’s generator (multi-export) ​

Smoke test (optional) ​

Notes / pitfalls ​

See also ​

Export STEP from Python using FreeCAD 1.0 (Python API)

When FreeCAD is a good choice

Recommended execution model: `FreeCADCmd`

Run it directly

Or run via the repo’s generator (multi-export)

Smoke test (optional)

Notes / pitfalls

See also