Abstract Taking the AU5-50 propeller as an example, the detailed process of propeller modeling with atlas method and PropCad is compared. By comparing the auxiliary profiles used for modeling, it is pointed out that the blade model established by PropCad has more complete features and is not restricted by the propeller type. Besides, to verify the credibility of the PropCad modeling method, simulation analysis is carried out. First, the hybrid mesh and boundary layer mesh are divide for the flow field by integrated computer engineering and manufacturing (ICEM). Second, grid independence is verified utilizing a multiple reference frame (MRF) model. In the verifying process, three widely used turbulence models are analyzed and compared under advance ratio 0.7, and the results show that the hydrodynamic coefficient error calculated by the shear stress transport (SST) k-ω model is the smallest. Third, the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) calculation model is determined. The hydrodynamic performance of the propeller at different advance ratios is analyzed, and the CFD calculation results are in good agreement with the open water test data. Finally, the fluid-solid coupling analysis of the propeller is performed, and it is verified that the stress field of the propeller meets the material strength requirement. Therefore, it is proved to be feasible to conduct propeller modeling with PropCad.