Saved in SolidWorks 2022–2026? SolidWorks 2021 opens a STEP of it as a solid body, usually on the part's own surfaces. No release of SolidWorks can save a part back to 2021: Save As previous version arrived in 2024 and stops at 2022.
2 solid-geometry conversions a day with no account. Parts only, no SolidWorks needed.
No account needed
Drop a SolidWorks 2022–2026 part.sldprt · parts only · up to 200 MB
On our servers. No account: deleted within 24 hours. Signed in: kept until you delete them. Never shared or used for training.
ResultSTEP (usually exact)
A STEP of the part — usually its own surfaces, planes, cylinders, cones and splines as modelled — that SolidWorks 2021 opens directly as a solid body. Native SolidWorks 2021 files are coming.
No feature tree: the finished shape, not the steps. Exact whenever the part's solid can be read; otherwise its surfaces are rebuilt from the part's display mesh.
ComparedFrom 5 newer releases
What a SolidWorks 2021 user can do, by the release that saved the part.
Saved in
SolidWorks' own way
Here
SolidWorks 2022
Opens read-only in 2021 SP5
STEP (usually exact)
SolidWorks 2023
Only a STEP exported from 2023
STEP (usually exact)
SolidWorks 2024
Only a STEP exported from 2024
STEP (usually exact)
SolidWorks 2025
Only a STEP exported from 2025
STEP (usually exact)
SolidWorks 2026
Only a STEP exported from 2026
STEP (usually exact)
Future Version — from 2021 SP5, a 2022 part opens read-only: measure it, not edit it.
Save As previous version — no release reaches 2021.
Here — no SolidWorks and nobody else: a STEP today, a native 2021 part when it is ready.
Your fileWhich release saved it
In Windows File Explorer, right-click the part, then Properties and Details: SW Last saved with names the release.
For a folder of parts, add SW Last saved with as a column in the Details view.
Or drop it above. The converter reads it and says Saved in SolidWorks 2026, or that it already opens in 2021.
Some tools show an internal number instead: SolidWorks 2021 is 14000.
Questions7 answered
Can SolidWorks 2021 open a file from a newer version?
Only a 2022 part, read-only, from 2021 SP5 on. A part saved in 2023–2026 is refused.
How do I convert a SolidWorks 2026 part to 2021?
Native 2021 files are not available yet. Convert it to STEP above, then open the STEP in SolidWorks 2021: it arrives as a solid body, usually on the part's own surfaces.
Can't SolidWorks' own Save As do it?
No. Save As previous version arrived in SolidWorks 2024 and reaches two releases back, so no release can save a part for 2021.
Is the feature tree kept?
No. You get the finished shape as an imported solid — planes, cylinders, cones and splines exact — not the features that built it.
What is SolidWorks version 14000?
SolidWorks 2021. Some tools show a release as an internal number that rises by 1000 a year, so 2026 is 19000.
Does it work for assemblies?
Not yet — parts only. An assembly holds no part geometry: each part is its own file, and each can be converted here.
Is it free?
Yes to start: 2 solid-geometry conversions a day with no account, and 4 a day with a free one; past that each costs 4 credits, and Maker includes them. Checking which release saved a part is free.
SOLIDWORKS® is a registered trademark of Dassault Systèmes SolidWorks Corp. MeshWeave is an independent tool and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Dassault Systèmes.