SketchUp Version History (2017 → 2026)
Every SketchUp release since 2017, with the file-format implications. Each new version bumps the internal .skp format — files saved in a newer version cannot be opened in an older one, unless converted first.
| Version | Released | Highlights |
|---|---|---|
| SketchUp 2026 | 2025 | Latest desktop release. Files not openable in 2025 or earlier without conversion. |
| SketchUp 2025 | 2024 | New Trimble AI features; file format bumped again. |
| SketchUp 2024 | 2024 | New environments and materials engine. |
| SketchUp 2023 | 2023 | Overlays, revamped Search. |
| SketchUp 2022 | 2022 | Lasso select, freehand improvements. |
| SketchUp 2021 | 2021 | Live Components (beta), tag folders. |
| SketchUp 2020 | 2020 | Redesigned inference, hidden geometry. |
| SketchUp 2019 | 2019 | Dashed lines, layer visibility per scene. |
| SketchUp 2018 | 2018 | Outer Shell, editable dashes. |
| SketchUp 2017 | 2016 | Last free desktop version (SketchUp Make 2017). Widely used as a compatibility baseline. |
The compatibility rule
SketchUp is only forward compatible. A newer SketchUp can open older .skp files, but an older SketchUp cannot open newer ones. The official fix is to open the file in the newer version and use File → Save As → older SketchUp version — which requires owning the newer SketchUp Pro (~$399/year).
If you don't have the newer version, a converter like DownConvert is the fastest workaround: it re-saves the .skp in the older format in seconds, straight from the browser.
Convert any SketchUp version
Downgrade 2026 → 2017, 2025 → 2020, or any pair in between. First conversion free.
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