In modern CNC machining systems, end-to-end component design is highly automated using CAD/CAM programs. The programs produce a computer file that is interpreted to extract the commands needed to operate a particular machine, and then loaded into the CNC machining tool for production. Since any particular component might require the use of a number of different tools, drills, saws, etc, modern machines often combine multiple tools into a single "cell". In other cases, a number of different machines are used with an external controller and human or robotic operators that move the component from machine to machine. In either case, the complex series of steps needed to produce any part is highly automated and produces a part that closely matches the original CAD design. Although modern data storage techniques have moved on from punch tape in almost every other role, tapes are still relatively common in CNC machining systems. This is because it was often easier to add a punch tape reader to a microprocessor controller than it was to re-write large libraries of tapes into a new format.

One change that was implemented fairly widely with CNC machining was the switch from paper to mylar tapes, which are much more mechanically robust. Floppy disks, USB flash drives and local area networking have replaced the tapes to some degree, especially in larger environments that are highly integrated. The proliferation of CNC machining led to the need for new CNC machining standards that were not encumbered by licensing or particular design concepts, like APT. A number of different "standards" proliferated for a time, often based around vector graphics markup languages supported by plotters. One such standard has since become very common, the "G-code" that was originally used on Gerber Scientific plotters and then adapted for CNC use. The file format became so widely used that it has been embodied in an EIA standard. In turn, while G-code is the predominant language used by CNC machines today, there is a push to supplant it with STEP-NC, a system that was deliberately designed for CNC machining, rather than grown from an existing plotter standard. While G-code is the most common method of programming, some machine-tool/control manufacturers also have invented their own proprietary "conversational" methods of programming, trying to make CNC machining easier to program simple parts and make set-up and modifications at the machine easier such as Mazak's Mazatrol and Hurco.

A more recent advancement in CNC machining interpreters is support of logical commands, known as parametric programming, also known as macro programming. Parametric programs include both device commands as well as a control language similar to BASIC. The programmer can make if/then/else statements, loops, subprogram calls, perform various arithmetic, and manipulate variables to create a large degree of freedom within one CNC machining program. An entire product line of different sizes can be programmed using logic and simple math to create and scale an entire range of parts, or create a stock part that can be scaled to any size a customer demands.