For the sole practitioner designing a single retaining wall per month, a limited or pay-per-module license might suffice. However, for , the Geo5 Full suite is non-negotiable.
| Feature | Geo5 Full | Plaxis 2D | Slide (Rocscience) | | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | | | Yes (Built-in) | Yes (Core) | No (LE only) | | Limit Equilibrium | Yes (Multiple methods) | No | Yes | | Retaining Wall Designer | Yes (Parametric) | No | No | | Price (approx.) | €2,500 – €4,500 | €6,000+ | €3,000 | | Learning Curve | Moderate | Steep | Moderate | Geo5 Full
A contractor faced a 12m deep excavation in saturated clay adjacent to a historic building. Using the module, engineers modeled consolidation and timed the strut installation to limit wall deflection to <20mm. The full version's ability to model time-dependent soil behavior saved the client from a €500k lawsuit for building damage. For the sole practitioner designing a single retaining