Open your drawing in AutoCAD. Type GEOGRAPHICLOCATION (or GEO ). A map window will appear. Search for your project address or manually pick a point on the map. This assigns real-world latitude/longitude (usually UTM or Lat/Long) to your drawing.
But here’s the catch: You need a conversion bridge. This guide will walk you through the three most reliable methods to get your CAD data onto the globe. Method 1: The Native AutoCAD Route (Best for Precision) If you have access to AutoCAD (Full Version, not LT) with the Geolocation feature, this is the most accurate method.
Once you master this workflow, you will never design in a vacuum again. Seeing your parking lot overlaid on actual satellite trees, or your building shadow cast across a real street, changes how you think about site design entirely. Go explore.
Still in the Geolocation tab, use "Mark Position" to place a pin. This helps you verify alignment later.
Your CAD likely has no coordinate system. Right-click the layer > Export > Save Features As . Format = "Keyhole Markable Language [KML]". Crucially , click the globe icon next to CRS (Coordinate Reference System) and select WGS 84 (EPSG:4326)—this is what Google Earth uses.
While QGIS can read some DWG files, it prefers DXF. Open your DWG in a free viewer like DWG TrueView (Autodesk) and save it as a DXF.
Open QGIS. Go to Layer > Add Layer > Add Vector Layer . Source type = "File". Select your DXF file. You will see a list of entities (Point, Line, Polygon, etc.). Select all that apply.
Both are completely free. Download QGIS from qgis.org.
