Modeling, Sculpting & TexturingEdit
Per-DCC learning plus texturing and material-authoring toolchain. Per-renderer learning lives in §4.
Blender: Plugins & Addons
Notable addons extending Blender.
- AMD Radeon ProRender. AMD's physically based GPU/CPU render engine for Blender.
- AnimAide. Free animation helper tools for Blender.
- Array Tools. Create translation, scale and rotation arrays with offset or global parameters in any direction.
- Arsenal. Blender-integrated game engine written in Rust.
- Auto Terrainer Paid. Turns any low-poly mesh into customizable terrain like mountains, valleys and islands in Blender.
- AutoMask. Machine-learning automatic rotoscoping addon for Blender.
- Bangingcuts. Cuts audio and video clips on audio peaks, removing silences. On recent Blender, install the install.py file instead of the zip.
- Blender Addons. Helper addons by Antonio Vazquez.
- Blender Colab. Python script to render Blender scenes on Google Colab. Cycles only.
- Blender Data Visualisation. Loads data into Blender and builds visualisations.
- Blender Debugger For Vscode. Addon for remote-debugging Blender from VS Code or Visual Studio.
- Blender For Unreal Engine. Exports Blender content to Unreal Engine.
- Blender Kitti. Renders large point clouds and voxel grids in Blender.
- Blender Metaverse Addon. Toolset for creating content for metaverse platforms like High Fidelity.
- Blender NLA Midi Copier. Creates MIDI-driven animations from Blender's Nonlinear Animation view.
- Blender Pyblish. Pyblish publishing-pipeline integration for Blender.
- Blender Sculpt Tools. Base-mesh sculpting tools for Blender, ZSphere-style.
- Blender to Unity FBX. Unity export addon.
- Blender Vscode. VS Code extension for Blender addon development.
- Blender XR. VR and mixed-reality interface for editing Blender scenes with a headset and controllers.
- Blender2Godot. Exports a Blender scene to a Godot Engine project.
- BlenderCAM. Open source CAM toolpath generation for CNC inside Blender.
- BlenderSynth. Blender scripting for generating synthetic datasets at scale.
- BlendyPose. Webcam motion capture inside Blender.
- Blign. Align and distribute objects in Blender with many options.
- Bone Widget. Helps make custom bone shapes for Blender rigs.
- Bonsai. OpenBIM/IFC architectural authoring add-on for Blender. Formerly BlenderBIM.
- BookGen. Generates rows of books on shelves in Blender.
- Building Tools. Building-generation addon for Blender.
- Bystedts Blender Baker Paid. Streamlines texture baking in Blender.
- CAD Sketcher. CAD-style precision sketching with constraints for Blender.
- Camera Shakify. Adds realistic camera shake to Blender cameras.
- Capsule. Export manager for sharing assets between Blender and Unreal/Unity.
- CharMorph. Open source character creation tool for Blender, a rewrite of the now-unmaintained MB-Lab.
- COA Tools. 2D cutout animation suite for Blender, similar to Spine or Spriter.
- Crowdrender Freemium. Distributed rendering across machines.
- Curtis Holt Store Paid. Curtis Holt's storefront for Blender addons and learning products.
- Data FX. Loads and visualizes CSV data within Blender.
- Daz to Blender Bridge. Transfers Genesis 8 and 3 characters from Daz Studio into Blender.
- DreamUV. Manipulate UVs directly in the 3D viewport.
- Drop It. Drops objects quickly onto the ground or a surface in Blender.
- Easy HDRI. HDRI management addon.
- Easy Proxy. Creates VSE proxy files easily via FFmpeg.
- EasyBake. One-click texture baking UI in the Blender 3D viewport.
- EdgeFlow. Adds two edge-loop operators for cleaner topology in Blender.
- Embark Blender Tools. Game-dev workflow tools for Blender, with standardized import/export and new object types.
- Engraver Paid. Carves decals into 3D models in Blender.
- Export Paper Model from Blender. Add-on for unfolding meshes into printable paper models.
- EZ Baker. Simpler alternative to Blender's default texture-bake system.
- F Spy Blender. Official fSpy Blender importer.
- FaceBuilder Paid. Builds photorealistic 3D face and head models from a few neutral-expression photos in Blender.
- FLIP Fluids Paid. High-quality liquid simulation plugin for Blender.
- FontSelector. Font management inside Blender.
- Gaffer (Blender addon). Light-management panels for fast lighting setup and tweaking in Blender.
- Geometry Nodes Pipes Paid. Geometry Nodes addon for generating complex pipe layouts in Blender.
- Geometry Script. Python scripting API for Blender Geometry Nodes, making node trees easier to build and share.
- Glsl Texture. Create textures from GLSL fragment shaders in Blender.
- GoB. GoZ-style bridge for ZBrush-Blender mesh interchange.
- Graswald Paid. Grass and plants library.
- GreaseWriter. Auto-animates grease pencil strokes to emulate hand-drawn text.
- HDRI Sun Aligner. Automatically rotates a sun to match the brightest point in an HDRI environment texture.
- Hi Phy Engine Paid. High-fidelity physics engine addon with a unified solver for rigid body, cloth, hair, soft body and MPM snow/sand, with intersection-free continuous collision detection.
- INOX. Rust game engine integrated in Blender.
- IOR Reference. Blender addon listing IOR values for materials.
- JARCH Vis. Generates common architectural-visualization objects in Blender.
- Jet Fluids. Jet fluid-engine simulator integration for Blender.
- JewelCraft. Jewelry design toolkit add-on for Blender.
- Kaleidoscope. Adds Spectrum and Intensity nodes to speed up material creation in Blender.
- KeKit. Production modeling toolset for Blender.
- Laser Slicer. Slices a Blender object and exports SVG sections for laser cutting.
- LeoMoon LightStudio Paid. Studio lighting system for Blender.
- Lib SM64 Blender. Integrates libsm64 into Blender, with Fast64 integrations.
- Lodify. Level-of-detail and proxy system for Blender.
- Loom. Simplifies rendering image sequences and frame ranges, with batch rendering utilities.
- Lumiere. Interactive lighting addon for Blender.
- Magic UV. UV manipulation toolset that fills gaps in Blender's UV tools.
- Maps Models Importer. Imports 3D models from Google Maps into Blender.
- MB Lab. Character creation (archived, succeeded by CharMorph).
- MDSANIMA RenderTime. Estimates total animation render time from a single frame's render time.
- Mesh Align Plus. Precisely align, move, and measure objects and mesh parts.
- Mesh Heal. Extra Blender operators for healing and repairing surface meshes.
- Mesh Maze. Generates a maze on any mesh in Blender.
- MeshSync. Live-link plugin syncing Blender and other DCCs into Unity.
- MifthTools. Mesh-exchange tools for 3DCoat, Houdini and Modo.
- Mixamo Converter. Blender Plugin that Converts Mixamo animations to work in Unreal Engine 4 with root motion.
- Mixer by Ubisoft. Real-time collaboration addon for Blender from Ubisoft Animation Studio.
- Modeling Cloth. Real-time cloth-like behavior on meshes in Blender.
- Modifier List. Enhanced modifier UI for Blender, with a sidebar tab and popup.
- MPFB. Open source human generator for Blender, a full rewrite of MakeHuman as an addon.
- Mr Mannequins Tools. Exports animations and weighted meshes compatible with the Unreal third-person mannequin without retargeting.
- Multi User. Real-time collaborative editing inside Blender.
- Needle Engine Freemium. Builds interactive web apps from Blender scenes.
- OctaneRender Prime for Blender Freemium. Octane GPU render engine for Blender, free tier.
- Parallel Render. Renders Sequencer output multithreaded from the Render sidebar.
- PBR Texture Mapper. One-click PBR node setup in Blender.
- Phobos. Creates URDF, SDF and SMURF robot models in Blender.
- Point Cloud Visualizer. Display, edit, filter, render and export colored point-cloud PLY files.
- Poliigon Blender Addon. Browse, download and import Poliigon textures, models and HDRs from inside Blender, with material generation from texture sets.
- Power Sequencer. Faster editing tools for Blender's Video Sequence Editor.
- PresetterProfessional. View, visibility, 3D cursor and snap presets for Blender.
- Principled Baker. Bake PBR textures from the Principled BSDF in a few clicks.
- Projectors. Create and modify projector lights in Blender.
- ProSidebar. Adds extra properties and operators to the 3D View Sidebar.
- PSOFT Pencil+ 4 Paid. NPR line rendering.
- QBlocker. Interactive blockout and object creation tool for Blender.
- QuickSwitch. Quickly switch workspaces and view the render menu in the viewport.
- RandoMesh. Adds randomized geometry to any mesh in Blender.
- reflow. Blender addon to change scene fps.
- Render Useful. Command-line tools for Blender renders.
- Rig on the Fly. Dynamic rigging tool that speeds up Blender animation workflow.
- Rigid Body Bones. Adds rigid-body and spring physics to bones in Blender.
- Scene Strip Tools. Preview VSE scene strips directly in the 3D View.
- Screencast Keys. On-screen keystroke display for Blender screen recordings.
- Screenwriter. Write screenplays in the Blender Text Editor using Fountain markup, with correct formatting on export.
- Sculpt Alphas Manager. Quickly switch alpha textures for sculpt brushes in Blender.
- Search Online References. Search selected text across Blender API/Python docs, Stack Exchange, source code and GitHub.
- Shot Manager by Ubisoft. Adds a true shot entity to Blender scenes for previs and layout.
- Sketchfab Blender Addon. Import and export models between Blender and Sketchfab.
- SliceMesh. Automates mesh slicing in Blender.
- Spaceship Generator. Procedurally generates 3D spaceships.
- Spring Bones. Adds springy dynamic motion to bones in Blender.
- Subsimport. Create and edit subtitles for movies or music in Blender.
- SuperPoke. Iterative poking tool for Blender meshes.
- Sverchok. Node-based parametric modeling for Blender, aimed at architects.
- TextCounter. Text-animation addon for counters and GUI simulations in Blender.
- TexTools. Free UV and texturing toolset for Blender.
- The Grove 3D Paid. Grows natural 3D trees for visualisation and film, with seasonal simulation.
- Theme Switcher. Switch the active Blender theme without leaving the 3D View.
- Tilecam. Renders tileable images in Blender.
- Tissue. Computational and parametric design addon for Blender.
- Transform Tools. Transform, crop and fade video strips in Blender's VSE.
- Tree Gen. Procedural tree-model generation in Blender.
- Typewriter. Typewriter text animation for font objects in Blender.
- UcuPaint. Manage texture layers for EEVEE and Cycles in Blender.
- USDZ. Blender addon to export USDZ files.
- UV Packer. Free automatic UV-packing addon for Blender.
- V HACD. Decomposes a 3D surface into near-convex parts for accurate collision meshes.
- Verge3D Paid. Toolkit for building interactive 3D web experiences from Blender.
- VSEQF. Overhauls Blender's VSE for quick keyboard-and-mouse editing with real-time feedback.
- Welder. Generates weld seams between meshes in Blender.
- Wiggle Bones. Jiggle-bone physics for Blender rigs.
- WoT Tank Viewer. Blender plugins to view 3D models from World of Tanks.
- WritingAnimation. Generates writing animation for selected Bezier curves in Blender.
Blender: Tutorials
Blender learning resources, beginner to advanced.
- User Manual. Official Blender user manual.
- Animation & Rigging Manual. Animation & Rigging Manual.
- Blender 3D Architect by Allan Brito Paid. Blender books and tutorials for architectural visualization by Allan Brito.
- Blender Python API Documentation. Official Blender Python API Documentation.
- blenderscripting. Blog of Blender Python snippets to get started with scripting.
- Compositing Nodes List. Compositing Nodes List.
- Motion Tracking Manual. Motion Tracking Manual.
- Programming Add-ons for Blender 2.8. Free ebook on setting up a Python IDE to write Blender add-ons, worked through a sample plugin.
- Realistic Hair in Blender Paid. Hair creation course.
- Texture Paint Manual. Official Blender manual for the texture paint mode.
Houdini: Getting Started
Beginner-friendly Houdini intros.
| Software | Description | License | Tags | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houdini Apprentice | Free learning version of Houdini. See also: Software Reference → 3D Software: Free Tier |
Free NC | Free NC · Learning Version | Learning Houdini for free |
Related:
- Houdini Crash Course (ikrima). Fast Houdini fundamentals primer.
- Houdini Donut in Any Shape. Procedural donut by Lewis Orton.
- Houdini in Five Minutes. Quick intro by Entagma.
- SideFX Getting Started. Official Houdini getting-started learning path.
- SideFX Learn. Official curated learning hub.
- SideFX Learning Library. Searchable content browser for all official Houdini tutorials.
Houdini: Essential Learning Resources
Long-form Houdini learning hubs.
- Applied Houdini Paid. Stephen Knipping's FX-focused course series (ILM).
- Assorted Houdini Demos (jakericedesigns). Assorted Houdini demo scenes and setups.
- CGWiki (tokeru.com). Matt Estela's CGWiki, the deepest Houdini reference (Joy of VEX, LOPS, particles).
- educational-hips (pedohorse). Educational Houdini .hip files explaining techniques.
- Entagma (site) Freemium. Advanced design and mograph tutorials. Also Unreal and Blender.
- example_hips (dchow1992). Collection of example Houdini .hip files.
- Farmfield (Vimeo). Setups and hip files from Johnny Farmfield.
- hip-files (lightReachers). Shared collection of Houdini .hip files.
- Houdini Escapades (3Dmattias). Example .hip files from the 3Dmattias tutorial series.
- Houdini Gubbins. Blog of Houdini tips and workflow notes.
- Houdini Hive. SideFX presentation recordings from artists and studios.
- Houdini Kitchen. Tutorials and articles, including L-systems and procedural setups.
- houdini-sandbox (K240). Sandbox collection of Houdini scene files.
- HoudiniHowtos (jhorikawa). Example .hip files and how-to setups.
- John Kunz (site). Weekly streams. FX, coding, Redshift (Twitch | YouTube).
- OdForce Tutorial .hip Library. Community thread collecting tutorial .hip files.
- SideFX Tutorials. Official tutorials.
- SOP Quick Reference. Quick-reference index of Houdini SOP nodes.
Houdini: VEX & Coding
VEX, Python, OpenCL, and scripting in Houdini.
- 1 Minute VEX. Bite-sized VEX lessons.
- Houdini OpenCL (MysteryPancake). Guide to writing OpenCL kernels in Houdini.
- HouPy Wiki. Houdini Python wiki. Packages, shelf scripts, menu customization, node graph hooks.
See also: Learning, Community & Industry → 3D Communities & Forums - Learning VEX via Bees and Bombs. OdForce thread recreating Bees and Bombs animations in VEX.
- Mantra LPE Cookbook (alexwheezy). Light Path Expression recipes for Mantra rendering.
- OpenCL in Houdini. OpenCL notes for Houdini.
- Python Snippets for Houdini. Python snippets wiki.
- Python Startup Scripts. Python startup scripts guide.
- VEX Manager Paid. VEX snippet/code manager HDA by Shir Manor.
See also: Modeling, Sculpting & Texturing → Houdini: Plugins & Tools - VEX Wrangle Cheat Sheet. Quick VEX reference by Mr Kunz.
- vex_tutorial (jtomori). Practical introduction to VEX in Houdini with examples.
- VFXBrain VEX. VEX tutorials blog.
Houdini: FX & Simulations
Vellum, FLIP, Pyro, and other simulation workflows.
- Custom Smoke Solver. Custom smoke solver walkthrough.
- Smart Crown Splash FLIP. FLIP splash technique.
Houdini: Rigging & Animation (KineFX)
KineFX rigging, animation, and crowds.
- Secondary Motion in H19. Paul Esteves. Secondary motion workflows.
- Space Girl Rigging. Legacy rigging series.
Houdini: Grooming
Hair and fur grooming workflows.
Houdini: Miscellaneous Tutorials
Additional Houdini tutorials across topics.
- AI For Artists. AI techniques applied to Houdini.
- Art Directing Paint Splashes. Art-directed paint splashes.
- Building Growth Animation. Building growth animation technique.
- Cloner Object. MoGraph Cloner tutorial.
- Extracting Transform Matrices. How to extract transform matrices.
- For Loops Tutorial. For loops and animated subdivisions.
- Houdini for Astronomy. Astronomy and scientific viz in Houdini.
- Houdini Quick Tips. Short Houdini tips and quick technique walkthroughs.
- Muscles Masterclass. Advanced muscles masterclass.
- MysteryPancake Houdini Fun. Fun experimental Houdini repo.
- Node Studies. Node study slide deck.
- Point Cloud to Mesh (Microsoft). Point cloud to mesh guide.
- Procedural Modeling with VEX Paid. Tighe Rzankowski procedural modeling course.
- Procegen by Konstantin Magnus. Konstantin Magnus tutorials on procedural modeling, texturing, and tool building in Houdini.
- USD Basics with Solaris. Official tutorial on USD basics in Solaris.
- Writing Your Own Polywire. Jake Rice on custom polywire.
Houdini: Plugins & Tools
Toolkits, pipeline tools, and HDAs.
- .hips. Various Houdini tools.
- AElib. Free tools by Nick Taylor (ManVsMachine).
- Axiom Paid. Sparse fluid solver by Matthew Puchala.
- CamRig Pro Paid. Camera rigging tool HDA by Shir Manor.
- cb-houdini-tools (conlen-b). Collection of Houdini utility tools and HDAs.
- EarthMesh Houdini. Real-world meshes via Google API.
- Ffmpeg. Flipbook to MP4 conversion tool (setup guide).
- Houdini Attributes Cheatsheet. Quick reference of common Houdini geometry attributes.
- Houdini Engine for Unreal (AdrianPan optimized fork). Rebuilt Houdini Engine for UE, 2x-15x faster.
- Houdini Tech Art Challenge Winners 2021. Winning tech-art tools: HPaint, Polyline Creator, Poly Slice Tool.
- Houdini-scripts (JoseZalez). Python scripts and utilities for Houdini.
- JDB Houdini Toolkit. JDB Houdini Toolkit.
- Microbot VDB Painter Paid. Interactive painting and manipulation of OpenVDB SDF volumes in Houdini.
- MOPS. Motion graphics toolkit by Toadstorm.
See also: Learning, Community & Industry → 3D Communities & Forums - ODTools Paid. Pipeline tools by Oliver Hotz.
- qLib. Open-source HDA library.
- Rich Lord's Tools. Tools from ex-Valve animator.
- SideFX Labs. Extended official toolset.
- Tighe Rzankowski's Tools Paid. Feather grooming.
- TrembleFX Paid. Procedural noise generator HDA by Shir Manor.
- VEX Manager Paid. VEX snippet/code manager HDA by Shir Manor.
See also: Modeling, Sculpting & Texturing → Houdini: VEX & Coding - VFX Fractal Toolkit. Set of tools for generating fractal and generative art.
- Wormhole Content Browser Paid. Custom Houdini UI for browsing, previewing, and importing content.
- ZENO. Node-based 3D system for cinematic physics effects. Standalone open-source Houdini alternative.
Houdini: Courses & Free Content
Structured courses for Houdini.
- Rebelway Freemium. FX, procedural modeling, VEX, pyro, destruction, fluid, fur, muscle, lighting, ML courses. Many free tutorials.
Houdini: Communities
Forums, Discords, and tip archives.
- Awesome Houdini (wyhinton). Curated list of Houdini resources, tools, and learning.
- Daily Hip. Houdini tips archive by Eetu Martola.
- Houdini Nerd Discord. Christopher Rutledge's Houdini community.
- Houdini Tricks. Quick tips archive.
- John Kunz Discord. Community Discord for Houdini FX and coding.
- OdForce. Most active Houdini forum.
- r/Houdini. Houdini subreddit.
- SideFX Houdini on Bilibili. Chinese Houdini tutorials.
- Think Procedural Discord. Procedural-focused Houdini Discord.
- VFX Arabia Houdini Tools. Houdini tools blog.
Cinema 4D: Learning
C4D tutorials and learning hubs.
- Cineversity. Official Maxon tutorials.
- School of Motion (site) Paid. C4D, motion graphics, animation, After Effects, design courses.
Cinema 4D: Plugins
C4D addons and bridges.
- AEC4D Paid. After Effects Cinema 4D bridge.
- Video Copilot Freemium. VFX tutorials, Element 3D, Optical Flares.
Cinema 4D: Tips & Workflows
Productivity blogs and shader workflow tricks.
- Rolando Barry (Gumroad) Freemium. C4D assets and presets.
- Rolando Barry Blog. C4D tips, shader switch workflows, productivity tricks.
3ds Max: Plugins
3ds Max plugins.
- TyFlow Freemium. Advanced particle/dynamics system. Destruction, cloth, fluids.
Fusion 360: Learning
Fusion 360 courses.
Material Creation Tools
Texture authoring, procedural materials, and baking tools.
| Software | Description | Pricing | License | Tags | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agama Materials | Software for creating PBR materials and painting 3d models. You can create materials and use them for painting models, or you can use pre-made textures. See also: Software Reference → Material & Texture Creation Software |
Paid | |||
| ArmorPaint | Open-source texture painting. See also: Software Reference → Material & Texture Creation Software |
Open Source | Open Source · Painter-alt | OSS texture painting | |
| AwesomeBump | Generate normal, height, specular or ambient occlusion textures from a single image. See also: Software Reference → Material & Texture Creation Software |
Open Source | |||
| Filter Forge | Node-based filter editor with library of thousands of textures and photo effects; standalone or Photoshop/Affinity plugin. See also: Software Reference → Material & Texture Creation Software |
Paid | Procedural · PS Plugin | Procedural textures and photo filters | |
| Game Texture Viewer | Fast, reliable, and simple tool for viewing PBR texture sets. See also: Software Reference → Material & Texture Creation Software |
Free | |||
| Live Normal | An Android and iOS app for generating materials on the go. You take a photo, and Live Normal creates a tile-able texture and generates texture maps ready for a PBR engine of your choice. See also: Software Reference → Material & Texture Creation Software |
Freemium | |||
| Mari | Foundry's high-resolution 3D texture painting app, film-VFX standard for hero assets. See also: Software Reference → Material & Texture Creation Software |
Indie perpetual $149; Individual $299/yr; Studio $1,289/yr | Paid | Industry Standard · Hero Texturing | Film-VFX texture painting at hero resolution |
| Material Maker | Open-source procedural texture generator (Substance Designer alternative). See also: Software Reference → Material & Texture Creation Software |
Open Source | Open Source · SD Alternative | Procedural PBR materials, free | |
| Materialize | Free texture map generation from a single image. See also: Software Reference → Material & Texture Creation Software |
Free | Free · Map Generation | Generating normal/height/AO maps | |
| Mixos | Browser-based 3D texture painting and PBR material authoring with AI auto-texturing and a pre-made material library. See also: Software Reference → Material & Texture Creation Software |
Free tier (watermarked beta); Pro $9/mo; Studio $19/mo | Freemium | Browser PBR · AI Texturing | Browser-based PBR texture painting |
| Quixel Mixer | Create photorealistic, tileable, materials in seconds with mixing and painting. See also: Software Reference → Material & Texture Creation Software |
Free | |||
| Substance Designer | Node-based procedural texturing. See also: Software Reference → Material & Texture Creation Software |
Paid | Procedural · Industry Standard | Procedural PBR materials | |
| Substance Painter | Industry-standard 3D texture painting with smart materials. See also: Software Reference → Material & Texture Creation Software |
Paid | Industry Standard · PBR Painter | 3D texture painting | |
| Texelpaint3D | Paint directly on 3D model faces without UV unwrapping. 1-pixel-per-triangle workflow. See also: Software Reference → Material & Texture Creation Software |
Free | No-UV · Early Access | UV-free 3D painting | |
| TextureLab | Tool designed to make procedural texture generation. See also: Software Reference → Material & Texture Creation Software |
Free | |||
| xNormal | Free high-poly to low-poly baking (normals, AO, cavity). See also: Software Reference → Material & Texture Creation Software |
Free | Baking · Free | Texture baking |
Related:
- Agisoft De-Lighter. Standalone tool to remove baked shadows from model textures.
- Architextures - Create Freemium. Web app for creating textures, bump maps, and CAD hatches.
- Imogen. GPU Texture generator using dear imgui for UI.
- NVIDIA Texture Tools Exporter. Creates compressed texture files from image sources via CUDA-accelerated compression.
- ShaderExpo. Browser shader editor with inline error logs, autocompletion, and model/texture loading.
- SmartNormal 2.0. Normal map generation from images.
- TexGraph. Procedural texture creation by connecting nodes in a graph.
CAD Software
Also in Software Reference → CAD Software
| Software | Description | Pricing | License | Tags | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AutoCAD | Industry-standard 2D/3D CAD. | $210/mo | Paid | Industry Standard · 2D/3D Drafting | Architecture, engineering, drafting |
| Bitbybit | Browser parametric CAD via visual nodes (Rete, Blockly) or Monaco code editor. OCCT, JSCAD, Manifold backends. | Freemium | Browser · Parametric | Parametric web CAD, generative geometry, 3D printing | |
| BricsCAD | AutoCAD-compatible DWG CAD; offers both perpetual and subscription licensing. | Lite from €314; Pro $1,752 perpetual; Ultimate from €1,176/yr | Paid | DWG-Compatible · Cross-Platform | DWG-compatible CAD on Mac/Linux |
| CATIA | Dassault Systèmes CAD for aerospace and automotive. | Paid | Aerospace · Automotive | Aerospace, automotive | |
| FreeCAD | Free open-source parametric CAD. | Open Source | Parametric · Open Source | Parametric CAD, engineering | |
| LibreCAD | Free open-source 2D CAD. | Open Source | 2D CAD · Drafting | 2D drafting | |
| Onshape Free | Cloud-based CAD with free hobbyist tier (public projects). | Freemium | Cloud CAD · Collaborative | Collaborative CAD, hobbyists | |
| OpenSCAD | Code-based CAD for parametric design. | Open Source | Script-Based · Parametric | Script-based CAD | |
| PackCAD | Browser 3D CAD for packaging. Models folded/origami structures with folding simulation. | Freemium | Browser · Packaging | Packaging and dieline design | |
| PTC Creo | Parametric mechanical CAD with simulation, generative design, and additive workflows. | Quote-based; perpetual ~$2,200–$16,000; subs $200–$1,500/mo | Paid | Parametric CAD · Industry Standard | High-end mechanical engineering |
| Rhino | NURBS-focused 3D modeling for architecture and product design. | $995 perpetual | Paid | NURBS · Grasshopper | NURBS modeling, architecture |
| Shapr3D | Touch-first parametric/direct CAD on iPad, Vision Pro, Mac, and Windows. | Pro $299/yr | Paid | Touch-first · Cross-Platform | Tablet-first concept and product CAD |
| Siemens NX | High-end product engineering CAD/CAM/CAE; NX X is the cloud SaaS variant. | Quote-based (perpetual, subscription, or token) | Paid | PLM · Industry Standard | Enterprise PLM and engineering |
| SolidWorks | Mechanical CAD for engineers. | $2,820/yr | Paid | Mechanical CAD · Simulation | Mechanical engineering |
| Solvespace | Parametric 3D CAD modeling tool. | Open Source | Parametric · Lightweight | Lightweight parametric CAD |
Material & Texture Creation Software
Also in Software Reference → Material & Texture Creation Software
| Software | Description | Pricing | License | Tags | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agama Materials | Software for creating PBR materials and painting 3d models. You can create materials and use them for painting models, or you can use pre-made textures. | Paid | |||
| ArmorPaint | Open-source texture painting. | Open Source | Open Source · Painter-alt | OSS texture painting | |
| AwesomeBump | Generate normal, height, specular or ambient occlusion textures from a single image. | Open Source | |||
| Filter Forge | Node-based filter editor with library of thousands of textures and photo effects; standalone or Photoshop/Affinity plugin. | Paid | Procedural · PS Plugin | Procedural textures and photo filters | |
| Game Texture Viewer | Fast, reliable, and simple tool for viewing PBR texture sets. | Free | |||
| Live Normal | An Android and iOS app for generating materials on the go. You take a photo, and Live Normal creates a tile-able texture and generates texture maps ready for a PBR engine of your choice. | Freemium | |||
| Mari | Foundry's high-resolution 3D texture painting app, film-VFX standard for hero assets. | Indie perpetual $149; Individual $299/yr; Studio $1,289/yr | Paid | Industry Standard · Hero Texturing | Film-VFX texture painting at hero resolution |
| Material Maker | Open-source procedural texture generator (Substance Designer alternative). | Open Source | Open Source · SD Alternative | Procedural PBR materials, free | |
| Materialize | Free texture map generation from a single image. | Free | Free · Map Generation | Generating normal/height/AO maps | |
| Mixos | Browser-based 3D texture painting and PBR material authoring with AI auto-texturing and a pre-made material library. | Free tier (watermarked beta); Pro $9/mo; Studio $19/mo | Freemium | Browser PBR · AI Texturing | Browser-based PBR texture painting |
| Quixel Mixer | Create photorealistic, tileable, materials in seconds with mixing and painting. | Free | |||
| Substance Designer | Node-based procedural texturing. | Paid | Procedural · Industry Standard | Procedural PBR materials | |
| Substance Painter | Industry-standard 3D texture painting with smart materials. | Paid | Industry Standard · PBR Painter | 3D texture painting | |
| Texelpaint3D | Paint directly on 3D model faces without UV unwrapping. 1-pixel-per-triangle workflow. | Free | No-UV · Early Access | UV-free 3D painting | |
| TextureLab | Tool designed to make procedural texture generation. | Free | |||
| xNormal | Free high-poly to low-poly baking (normals, AO, cavity). | Free | Baking · Free | Texture baking |
Photogrammetry & Scanning Software
Also in Software Reference → Photogrammetry & Scanning Software
| Software | Description | License | Tags | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3DF Zephyr | Free lite version (up to 50 photos). | Freemium | Free Lite · 50 Photos | Lite photogrammetry |
| 3DF Zephyr Free | Free version of 3DF Zephyr photogrammetry software for personal use. It comes with some limitations. | Free | Free · Personal Use | Free photogrammetry |
| Agisoft Metashape | Professional photogrammetry with GIS features. | Paid | GIS Features · Pro | Pro photogrammetry + GIS |
| CloudCompare | A 3D point cloud (and triangular mesh) processing software. Open-source and designed for visualizing and editing LiDAR and photogrammetry data. Good for alignment, meshing, cleanup, segmentation, a | Open Source | Open Source · Point Cloud | Point cloud and mesh processing |
| COLMAP | A general-purpose Structure-from-Motion (SfM) and Multi-View Stereo (MVS) pipeline with a graphical and command-line interface. | Open Source | Photogrammetry · Open Source | Photogrammetry SfM/MVS reconstruction |
| KIRI Engine | Cross-platform mobile photogrammetry. | Freemium | Cross-platform · Mobile | Cross-platform mobile photogrammetry |
| Meshroom (AliceVision) | Free, open-source photogrammetry. Node-based, GPU-accelerated. | Open Source | Open Source · Node-based | Open-source photogrammetry |
| MicMac | Free open-source photogrammetric suite that can be used in a variety of 3D reconstruction scenarios. | Open Source | ||
| Open Scan Tools | A collection of open-source tools for photogrammetry, depth-sensing, and 3D reconstruction workflows. Nice rendering options for xray style. | Open Source | Open Source · Toolkit | Open-source scan toolkit |
| PCL (Point Cloud Library) | Large-scale open project for 2D/3D image and point cloud processing. | Open Source | Point Clouds · Open Source | Point cloud processing |
| Polycam | Mobile photogrammetry (iOS LiDAR + photo, Android photo). Cloud processing. | Freemium | Mobile · LiDAR | Mobile photogrammetry |
| Postshot | Desktop Gaussian Splatting tool. Train, clean, edit, export. | Freemium | Desktop · Splat Editor | Desktop Gaussian splat |
| Quixel Megascans | World’s largest photogrammetry 2D and 3D asset library. Now it is free for the Epic Games accounts (only UE projects). | Free | Asset Library · Epic Games | Photogrammetry asset library |
| RealityCapture | Fast, high-quality photogrammetry (now Epic Games). PPI pricing. | Freemium | Epic Games · High-Quality | Production photogrammetry |
| Scaniverse (Niantic) | Free mobile scanning, Gaussian splat support. | Free | Free Mobile · Gaussian Splat | Mobile scan, Gaussian splat |
Retopology & UV Software
Also in Software Reference → Retopology & UV Software
| Software | Description | Pricing | License | Tags | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3D Coat | Sculpt, retopo, UV, and PBR paint suite from Pilgway. Voxel and surface sculpt, AUTOPO auto-retopo, manual quad retopo, UV unwrap, bake. | ~$379 perpetual (Educational $99) | Paid | Sculpt + Retopo · PBR Paint | Sculpt + retopo + UV + PBR paint in one app |
| AutoRemesher | Open-source auto-retopology tool intended to convert source meshes into clean, animation-friendly all-quad geometry. | Open Source | Free · Auto Retopo | Auto-retopology | |
| Cozy Blanket | iPad sculpt-to-retopo app. Clay sculpt plus auto-quad retopology for game/film topology, from Naam. | ~$80 perpetual | Paid | iPad Sculpt · Auto Retopo | iPad sculpt + auto-retopo |
| Headus UVLayout | Standalone UV editor, flatten-based. | Paid | Flatten-based · Classic | Flatten-based UV editor | |
| Instant Meshes | Free, open-source auto-retopology. | Open Source | Free · Auto Retopo | Auto-retopology | |
| RizomUV | Fast UV unwrapping, auto-seam, auto-pack. Standalone or bridge. | Paid | Industry Standard · Standalone | Fast pro UV unwrapping | |
| Topogun | Standalone retopology and baking. | Paid | Retopo + Bake · Classic | Retopo + baking | |
| UVPackmaster | Advanced UV packing, UDIM support. Blender addon + standalone. | Paid | UDIM · Packing | UV packing + UDIM | |
| Valence 3D | iPad UV unwrap and texture paint app from Naam. Pairs with Cozy Blanket for full iPad asset workflow. | ~$30 perpetual | Paid | iPad UV · iPad Paint | iPad UV + texture paint |