Ncored
Finally, a PDF tool that doesn’t freeze on heavy construction drawings.

Yes — Ncored is built natively for Apple Silicon (M-series) and runs on every modern Mac without Rosetta translation, taking full advantage of the chip. This matters most when opening heavy construction PDFs — native execution is several times faster than emulation.

Yes. Ncored has a full Windows build that runs on Windows 10 (64-bit) and Windows 11. It installs with a standard .exe installer — no dependencies or extra components required.

Mobile versions for iOS and Android are in the works. Today Ncored runs on desktop only (macOS and Windows), because our speed architecture depends on the full graphics power of a computer.

Yes. Ncored processes every drawing locally on your computer. An internet connection is only needed for activation and updates — not for daily work on site, on the job, or while travelling.

Almost always this is your office firewall, proxy or VPN blocking the one-time first activation, not your internet and not the app itself. It is common in architecture and engineering offices. There are two ways to solve it. (1) No IT department, the simplest: run the first activation once on a different network, for example your phone's mobile hotspot. Ncored only needs that single first check, and after it the app works offline on any network, including the office one. (2) With IT: ask them to allow-list our activation domains so it works on the office network directly: clerk.ncored.com, accounts.ncored.com and ncored.com (email [email protected] and we will send your IT the full list). Either way it is a one-time setup. If you are still stuck, email [email protected] and we will get you running.

Ncored is built for heavy AEC drawings. 50-200 MB+ construction PDFs with dozens of layers and thousands of vector objects open fast and stay smooth on scroll, zoom and pan, where general PDF tools stall. The reproducible benchmark, with the exact downloadable test drawing and unedited recordings, is at ncored.com/pdf-benchmark-cad-drawings.html. Actual speed depends on your hardware and file complexity.

Yes. Ncored includes a full markup toolkit — freehand drawing, highlights, text notes, shapes, arrows, colours. Every annotation is saved in standard PDF format, so other tools (Acrobat, Bluebeam, Preview) can see them too.

Yes. You can compress a PDF at three levels (from light to maximum) and convert it to a JPEG-based PDF with a chosen resolution from 100 to 600 DPI. Useful when shrinking a 50-200 MB+ file for email, or when sending a client a neutral-format version.

Yes. Ctrl+F (Cmd+F on Mac) opens search that highlights every title, note and dimension in the document in real time — even in multi-hundred page project sets. Search runs locally, with no internet needed.

Yes. Ncored is specifically optimised for PDFs exported from ArchiCAD, Revit, AutoCAD, Vectorworks and similar CAD tools. It supports layers, OCG grouping, and vector elements at full rendering quality.

Yes. Ncored has a built-in print dialog with automatic page size fitting (A4, A3, A2, A1, A0, Letter, Legal, and custom). It supports duplex printing, page ranges, and scale.

Adobe Acrobat® is excellent for documents and signatures. Bluebeam Revu® is a well-known AEC collaboration tool (Studio Sessions, RFIs, punch lists). Ncored is built for one specific moment: the second after you double-click a heavy drawing, so it opens fast and stays smooth. It’s not a universal PDF suite; it’s the daily fast PDF editor for architects, engineers and construction managers.

No. The 14-day trial starts with just your email — payment details are only requested if you choose to continue. If the trial doesn’t fit, no subscription auto-starts.

Yes. Every price shown on this site — €8.99/month, €79.99/year — already includes EU VAT. No hidden fees at checkout.

Payments are handled by Paddle — all major credit cards (Visa, Mastercard, Amex), Apple Pay, Google Pay and PayPal are accepted. VAT invoices are downloadable from your Ncored account.

Your access stays active until the end of your paid period — after that, the subscription simply stops renewing. No surprise charges or hidden fees. Refunds for the unused portion are governed by Paddle’s buyer terms; new purchases are also covered by our 14-day money-back guarantee.

Yes. At checkout, enter your company name and VAT number — Paddle automatically generates a VAT invoice and emails it to you. All past invoices are downloadable from your Ncored account.

An individual licence is for one user and covers up to 2 devices (for example, your office desktop and your laptop on site). A team licence covers multiple users in one organisation with a single invoice.

A team admin invites members by email from a single management panel. Seats can scale up or down at any time — billing is prorated to what you actually use. One invoice for the whole studio.

Yes. In your Ncored account, click ‘Upgrade to team’ to convert your individual licence into a team one — new members just accept an email invite.

The admin removes the member from the management panel — the seat immediately becomes free and can be reassigned. If you want to drop the seat entirely, the next billing cycle is prorated automatically.

No. Ncored processes every file locally on your machine. Your drawings never leave your device, are not sent to Ncored servers, and are not stored in the cloud. This works for confidential projects, NDA drawings and government contracts.

Yes. Ncored complies with the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). We only collect account data (email, licence status) and anonymous usage analytics if you consent. No drawing content, no personal tracking.

After you uninstall Ncored, your PDF files stay untouched and readable in any other PDF tool — Acrobat, Preview, Foxit. Annotations and markups are saved directly into the PDF file, so they persist wherever the file is opened.

Ncored is built by Noir architects together with engineering teams in Vilnius — architects and engineers working on complex projects every day. We started building Ncored for ourselves because no fast PDF tool existed for our drawings. The company is registered in Lithuania.

Yes. Ncored is made by Noir architects, MB — a registered company in Vilnius, Lithuania, founded by practising architect David Samveljan. Your drawings are processed entirely on your own computer and are never uploaded. Payments are handled by Paddle as the official reseller (Merchant of Record), and you can always reach a real person at [email protected]. Ncored is a desktop software product for architecture and engineering — it is not affiliated with any similarly named financial, trading or investment service.