What is the best 3D modeling software?

Question

29

Options
Considered

577

User
Recs.

Apr 18, 2022

Last
Updated

Here’s the Deal

The Best 1 of 29 OptionsWhy?

Best 3D modeling software	Price	Platforms	3D
93 Blender	Free	Windows, Linux, Mac, FreeBSD	Yes
-- Wings 3D	FREE	-	Yes
62 Modo	$599	-	-
62 ZBrush	$895	-	-
-- Sculptris	-	-	-

See Full List

28 Other Options Considered

Modo

Top Con

Crashing non stop!

If you like deleting CFG files regularly, and sending bug reports then give modo a go! See More

Top Pro

Unparalleled modeling pipeline

Even long-standing Maya users envy Modo's modeling toolset and pipeline for its power, flexibility, and speed. See More

CalmDeaTacita's Experience

Horrible piece of shit software, better to go straight to Autodesk. Even Blender is a better option sad to say. See More

Top Con

The most unstable 3D software

Modo takes UNSTABLE to a whole another level! Use Maya, Max, or Blender instead! See More

Top Pro

User-friendly

It's very easy to get the grasp of the modeling work flow. See More

B U's Experience

Worst piece of garbage I've ever come across! DO NOT RECOMMEND! See More

Top Con

Very unstable with too many bugs that were never fixed

Top Pro

Decent user interface

LearnedGleti's Experience

Great value for the price See More

Top Con

Poor value

Top Pro

Organized layout and UX

Allow the users to take control of different aspects of the modeling pipeline with ease: UV maps, Weight maps, shader tree, selections methods included selections by statistics, falloff, workplane management. See More

Top Con

Not good for animation

Top Pro

Great value

The new subscription-based licensing option brings entry costs down to $599 / year for floating licenses and promises even faster feature development. See More

Top Con

Very slow viewport performance

Top Pro

MeshFusion

MeshFusion is a procedural boolean-based workflow that helps you to create complex meshes effortlessly. See More

Top Pro

A lot of learning resources exist for this program

There are great support resources for newcomers and pros alike. See More

See All

ZBrush

Top Pro

Powerful brush system allows for lots of creativity

ZBrush lets the user sculpt an object in fine detail with customizable 3D brushes. See More

Top Con

UI is far from user friendly

Though, it's fully customizable. Like for any software, there is a learning curve. See More

Robert McVey's Experience

Have been creating with ZBrush since 1998-99 on various projects and will continue to use ZBrush on my digital projects. See More

Top Pro

Best for hi-poly modeling

Due to the nature of the program and how it uses high poly mesh sculpting it is best to consider this app when wanting high poly models, as that is what it aims to do best. See More

Top Con

Expensive

A single-user license for ZBrush costs $795. But, Pixologic has not charged a penny for upgrades to licensed users since inception. Anyone who has purchased Zbrush has not been left behind. See More

CalmDeaTacita's Experience

Many years down the road today I ask myself why I ever bothered with this piece of shit. I'm sorry but ZBrush is atrocious in that it has a horrible UI, terrible export management, no real 3d video support, dumb online software dongle system. Crappy support with snide replies to otherwise reasonable questions. They really don't care about their users just their money and perfect stars about their awful software. See More

Top Pro

Has low poly modelling tools with 4r7 version

Top Con

An odd perspective view

Does not lend itself to cinematic or artistic renderings due to a strange perspective system found nowhere else in 3D which warps according to the relationships between models and rendering viewpoint - there is no real 'camera'. It is sufficient for rendering your work on a sculptural piece or industrial design, but KeyShot Pro or any other PBR rendering program that uses a camera are recommended for scene rendering, at least in 4R7. See More

Top Pro

Can easily simplify mesh topology

Meshes sculpted with ZBrush can contain billions of polygons, but tools are provided to cleanly reduce the poly count. See More

Top Con

Open, Save, Export, Import not conventional standard UI

Authors refuse to use standard layout and the New, Open, Save, Export, Import are in unexpected positions. There will be no UI improvements. See More

Top Pro

Always evolving and innovating

Every iteration of Zbrush has evolved beyond the last and has kept all other 3D package devs on their toes consistently. See More

Top Con

Hi-poly only

Not, the case as there is now the Zmodeller Brush system which has a full suite of polygon Modelling options. See More

Top Pro

Plays well with others

Can transfer work between other packages via AppLink and/or Bridge seamlessly. See More

Top Pro

Best support

No other 3D package has had continued support from their parent company or community like ZBrush has had since inception. See More

See All

Sculptris

Top Pro

Free

Sculptris is provided free of charge from Pixologic. See More

Top Con

Small scope

Doesn't do much besides sculpting. See More

Tanmay Khelkar's Experience

It's pretty good for a free software but its nothing to compared to the industry standard ones. It lacks base mesh creation tools and sculpting tools for additional detailing and model manipulation. See More

Top Pro

Sculpting allows for easier creative expression

Sculptris has great editing tools that allow designers to concentrate on sculpting and completely immerse themselves into making models, forgetting about all the complex methods modelers usually have to use in their daily business. See More

Top Con

No Linux version

Only for Windows and Mac. See More

CalmDeaTacita's Experience

When a company is divided on what their actually trying to sell. See More

Top Pro

Works on Lower-End Devices

Sculptris is essentially a lesser version of ZBrush that works on low-end PCs. See More

Top Con

Limited sculpting toolset

See All

Cinema 4D

Top Pro

Easy to learn

Cinema 4D is heralded for its approachability. New users are not hindered by lack of familiarity with similar tools. See More

Top Con

Expensive

Starts at $995.00 with the complete version costing $3,695.00. See More

EmpatheticNeptune's Experience

It's a great modeling and animation Software and easy to learn. People are always trying to make it less better than Blender, especially Blender fanboys. Blender is really good. But so is C4D, 3DS Max, Maya, Lightwave, etc. The best thing about Blender is, that it's open source, and it's always being updated and has some really great 3rd party plugins. And I don't know why it doesn't say "YES" under the 3D section. Also runs on: Microsoft Windows, mac OS, and Linux. See More

Top Pro

Clean UI

Customizable floating palettes and configurable view panels let screen space be dedicated to the artwork, not the interface. See More

Top Con

Doesn't make true Booleans like most other 3D Softwares.

It works in a parent and child structure, so when you subtract one object, from another, it remains there invisible, and can be moved around. See More

CalmDeaTacita's Experience

Better than Modo and Lightwave even Maya, also better for its texturing and painting over stuff like ZBrush. Too expensive if your just in it for the painting tools. See More

Top Pro

Great modeling and animation Software.

It's super easy to learn, and there are lots of tutorials online. What really ticks me off, is that it's always rated below Blender, by Blender fanboys. Sure Blender's UI is way better now, after it's 2.8 release but not better than C4D's. Blender is open source, and has really good 3rd party plugins, and is always being updated which is great.. But it's not better than C4D. Just because Blender is "FREE" doesn't make it a better Software, while again I repeat it is a good Software. C4D is also capable of the same things, and possibly even more. C4d is really underrated. And I don't understand why there wasn't a "YES" under the (3D) section on the list for C4D. See More

B U's Experience

Modo can't even compare to the level of stability this software has to offer See More

Top Pro

Rendering

Is simple for making good rendering See More

Top Pro

Includes great tools for animation and motion graphics

Mograph is a set of tools in C4d that speeds up the process of making animations and motion graphics. See More

Top Pro

Useful content browser

Cinema 4D comes fully-loaded with an extensive library of preset objects, materials and scenes that make it easy to get started with your 3D project. Use this outstanding resource to quickly develop concepts without spending time modeling (or wasting money buying models), or dissect complete scenes created by top C4D artists to develop your own skills. These highly curated libraries are custom-tailored to specific markets, with a wide variety of assets including models, materials and customizable presets. See More

Top Pro

Sketch & toon

Very flexible toon rendering solution helps you to create amazing 2D cartoon style renders. See More

See All

3D-Coat

Top Pro

A fast and fun way to UV

3D coat has made UVing my work go super fast and it's actually quite fun because you're finished in a breeze. See More

Top Con

7 layer restriction in the affordable version

The cheapest version available only lets you paint on 7 layers, which is very unfortunate. See More

CalmDeaTacita's Experience

Remember to share you demons and cocks with its creator for a full refund! See More

Top Pro

Voxel sculpting

Voxel sculpting is entirely free from the bounds of polygons and topology. See More

Top Con

Not a voxel program

This is a paid texture program. Why is it in this list? See More

Top Pro

A known app for retopology

3D coat is also known in the game industry to be a great app to preform retopology. See More

Top Con

Voxel sculpting hits your system

Voxel is quite heavy on your computer, if you intent to use this as your main model and sculpt app do enough research to see if your computer can handle it and if you have the right graphic card for it. If you really have doubts , just go ask in the forums. See More

Top Pro

Great value

Affordable real alternative to Zbrush. See More

Top Pro

Professionals recommend 3D Coat for Handpainted textures

You can texture in many styles with this app, but when it comes to Handpainting, as seen in World of Warcraft and Torchlight, 3D Coat is the one that many professionals will advice you to as their top choice. See More

Top Pro

PBR materials

3D Coat supports the creation of your own PBR materials that are ready to be used in the PBR workflow. See More

Top Pro

Link to Photoshop, or any app that can open PSD files

You can save and open your texture work in apps like Photoshop, work on them and send them directly back to 3D coat. It will remember your layers and update. See More

See All

VECTARY

Top Con

You have to be online

Top Pro

Free

Specs

Supported platforms:Windows, Mac, Unix, Chrome OS

Service integrations:Figma, Sketch

Exports:More than 60 file formats, including USDZ, GLTF, FBX

Import:3D and 2D formats

See All Specs

Top Con

Subject to frequent change

As this tool is rather new, it tends to change often, it may confuse sometimes, but generally the change makes it better See More

Top Pro

Simple UI

Top Pro

Visually stunning

The feel of this app is really good and the beautiful design helps the overall experience. See More

Top Pro

Fast-evolving

This tool is progressing very nicely and often brings out new cool features. See More

Top Pro

Any operating system

Top Pro

Browser based - no install required

Top Pro

Easy-to-learn

Top Pro

3D printing ready

Top Pro

Free online support

Top Pro

Great for educational use

Since there's no need to install any application, VECTARY can be a great tool for teaching 3D modelling in schools as well. Students only need to make an account and they can use the same software both in their school labs and their own PCs. See More

See All

Lightwave 3D

Top Pro

Support for Python scripting

In addition to Lscript, Lightwave supports Python. See More

Top Con

Two applications: one for modelling and another for layout

SpontaneousWuGang's Experience

The only all-in-one tool; do full professional products with nothing else. Gorgeous rendering See More

Top Pro

Powerful animation tools

Top Con

Not beginner-friendly

Lightwave has mediocre tutorials and a complex multi-application workflow. See More

ArticulateVoipel's Experience

Production proven, this says it all! See More

Top Pro

Powerful nodes shaders

TolerantHeimarmene's Experience

Easy and very powerful as modeling to model all type kind of 3D. Animation is very great too. See More

Top Pro

Plays well with other software

EmpatheticNeptune's Experience

This was my 3D modeling Software, when it was in version 7. And the 3DS MAX version 5 days. So Lightwave will always hold a special place for me. It was ahead of the game back in the day, with it's renderer. And was widely used for films, among other things. Though it hasn't advanced much in the modeling section, and UI over the years. You can still make some really nice things in it, and get some highly realistic results. See More

Top Pro

Been around for years, and is still capable of good animations, and great renders.

The 3DS MAX version 5 days. So Lightwave will always hold a special place for me. It was ahead of the game back in the day, with its renderer. And was widely used for films, among other things. Though it hasn't advanced much in the modeling section, and UI over the years. You can still make some really nice things in it, and get some highly realistic results. See More

IntelligentTezcatlipoca's Experience

Flexsible. See More

Top Pro

Beginner friendly with a very smooth learning curve

Top Pro

Very stable

Top Pro

Great value for the price

Top Pro

Great community support

Top Pro

A perfect tool for freelancers

Top Pro

Production proven

Used heavily in famous Hollywood movies, TV shows, commercials and video games. See More

Top Pro

Designed for individual artists

See All

Autodesk Maya

Top Pro

Myriad of features

Has an extensive list of tools for modelling, look development, rigging, animation, rendering and exporting. See More

Top Con

Pricey

Don't expect to get Maya cheap. It is considerably more expensive than lesser 3D programs. See More

B U's Experience

Recommend over modo anytime! See More

Specs

Pricing:Free trial version for 30 days or $1,620 /year for the Commercial version

Top Pro

Industry standard

Maya has been the industry standard for 3d modelling and animation for years. See More

Top Con

Difficult to learn

Expect to look at tons of tutorials. See More

VivaciousStribog's Experience

Very expensive See More

Top Pro

Combining powerful, realistic rendering with ease of use

Arnold is now the default interactive renderer, which can be found in the render settings. Solid Angle's global illumination ray tracer is used by many Hollywood studios. See More

Top Con

Poorly organized interface

The menu organization doesn't make sense, and leaves you searching all over the place for functions that should fall under one category. For example, the option to bake your animation isn't under the Animation menu. See More

CalmDeaTacita's Experience

Get Maya LT then complain even more :) See More

Top Pro

Expensive

Top Con

Unstable

The system can just crash unexpectedly. See More

EnterprisingEiresione's Experience

Maya is not significantly better than other 3D modeling packages in any way, despite the common retort, "It's the industry standard". It has no actual advantage over other 3D software at all, and is way over-priced. See More

Top Pro

Extensible

The MEL language allows one to either write custom scripts or to download them. See More

Top Con

Expensive

Real expensive in the long run. See More

LearnedGleti's Experience

Way to expensive See More

Top Pro

Support

Extensive support from Autodesk and users around the world. See More

Top Con

Boolean bugs

A lot of polygon issues making boolean operations. See More

See All

SolidWorks

Top Con

Expensive for individuals and freelancers

Solidworks typical clients are big organizations, so buying licenses can be quite expensive for individuals. Usually they only sell them in packs and will only give quotations when requested directly. See More

Top Pro

Easy CAD model exchange

Because Solidworks is so used, most companies/universities/research institutes have at least some licenses for it, even if it's not their main CAD program. This facilitates exchanging CAD models in native formats between institutions. See More

CalmDeaTacita's Experience

An impressive overly expensive piece of shit software, only morons trained from a different century in it can help you solve real world problems that no longer exist example the bubonic plague. See More

Specs

Platforms:Windows

License:EULA

Top Con

Weak analysis modules

Solidworks has analysis modules ( structural, thermal, flow, ... ), but they are quite simplistic and their solving abilities aren't the best, so analysis results should be looked at with a critical eye. These modules should only be used for preliminary analysis. See More

Top Pro

Advanced modelling

Solidworks is one of the most advanced, commercial CAD applications on the market today. For solid modeling, it uses a parametric and feature-based philosophy. Its operations library is enough to build the products/objects that most designers/engineers will ever need to model. See More

See All

3D Studio Max

Top Pro

Huge community

As a top-end industry standard tool, 3DS Max users benefit from a rich ecosystem of third-party tools and community knowledge. See More

Top Con

Expensive

A 3DS Max license can be purchased outright for $3675. Subscription plans are available from $122.50/mo (for a full year commitment). See More

Top Pro

Excellent viewport performance

3DS Max is extremely responsive. See More

Top Con

Can no longer purchase perpetual license

It is now $185/month, $1,470.00/year, or $4410/4years - subscription only. See More

Top Pro

Great polygon modeling

Great for poly-modeling for both high and low polygon counts. See More

Top Con

Unstable and outdated

Bugs carry on from version to version. Lots of old code that still runs on one thread, even if modern systems offer 16+ threads. See More

Top Con

Only for Windows

See All

Rhino3D

Top Pro

Powerful, precise and affordable

I think a lot of people are confused as to what you use this software for, it is an industrial design tool. Using it to try to model game assets etc, is like using a set of fine chisels to build a back yard fence. See More

Top Con

Bad control over polysurface network

If you what to make a modification over a surface that is part of a model like a car, is difficult and you need to rebuild manually almost all intersections. See More

CalmDeaTacita's Experience

Fuck you Apple everything!! See More

Top Pro

Surface control

If you want to make a nice surface, Rhino has a lot of control over it. See More

Top Con

Was not made to handle meshes

It does not handle properlly meshes. is difficult to select edges, points, or triangles of a complex mesh. You can work in Ngons but not the mesh. See More

VivaciousStribog's Experience

I think there is no better solution for NURBS. But is full of bugs that will never be fixed. See More

Top Pro

Is very light to render in real time lots of complex NURBs surface.

Since Version 6 is good for render (simple textures) lots of objects polysurface or complex scene. See More

Top Con

Import and export does not work as expected

OBJ and FBX Import and export do not work properly. And are not fixed. See More

Top Pro

Good relation beteen NURBs features and prize.

Top Con

Rhino6 not tree

Until Rh6 there is no tree to inspect the hierarchy of the model. See More

Top Pro

Best prize compare to other NURBs software in relation to capability.

There is no other NURBs software out there that has this relation of good tools and relatively low price. See More

Top Con

UI is old and not at the level

The UI is gray only. Not black dark or white. You can make a custom UI but it does not preserve between upgrades. You loose easily your tools and configuration. See More

Top Pro

Grasshopper procedural 3D node

Is simple to make complex architecture shapes and industrial design recursive modeling via nod graph editor. See More

Top Con

No animation

Not possible to animate See More

Top Pro

NURBs tool set

A good set of tools for NURBs modeling. See More

Top Con

UV mapping bad for rendering

The UV mapping set-tool is buggy and not at the level for making rendering. See More

Top Con

Not good for game development

Until Rhino 6 version, does not convert well UV mapping to polygons. See More

Top Con

New features with bugs instead of fixing old features that do not work.

UVmapping, Mesh, Mesh2, Ui, new Ui, booleans, etc... a lot of features are introduced in each cycle that makes excitement. but actually are so full of bugs that are useless if used properlly. The developers have a fear to fix them. As a workaround, they propose a new "better" version that introduces new issues and more confusion. See More

Top Con

Tones of bugs

Is a nightmare trying to work around bugs. Developers are under a pile of bugs that will be never be fixed. See More

Top Con

Old interface with bugs

The interface is old and not always working perfectly. The UI does not stay in position after Upgrading into a new version. Tools can be lost. See More

See All

bforartists

Top Pro

Based on Blender, but more user-friendly

Top Con

Unstable

CalmDeaTacita's Experience

Meh just use Blender, not worth learning a new headache stick with the migraine you know and trust. Blender has come a long way, give it a try before trying this. See More

Top Pro

Very stable, based on the Blender master

They pull their code from the Blender master. See More

Top Pro

Not so stressfull to the eyes

Even 10 minutes in Blender can cause a headache. Alone the colored icons are worth the migration. Everything is dull and grey in grey. The monochrome icons in Blender was one of the worst design decisions ever. It's like you tell a programmer that in the future you have monochrome syntax highlighting in the code because it looks newer and fresher. That's a usability disaster. See More

See All

SketchUp

Top Pro

It is easy to learn

Top Con

Doesn't have a built-in renderer

Áron Kovax's Experience

Sketchup has a free version, and a pro version, made for architects too. The basic modeling is very easy, the interface is customizable. I love it. See More

Top Pro

Runs everywhere

Windows, macOS and right in a web browser; SketchUp runs on almost any desktop computer. Models are also viewable on iOS, Android and a wide range of VR/AR devices including Microsoft Hololens, Windows Mixed Reality, HTC Vive and Oculus Rift. See More

Top Con

Complex modeling is hard

CalmDeaTacita's Experience

Do you enjoy buildings and origami and google up your rear end? Congrats that's Sketchup! See More

Top Pro

Customizable interface

Top Pro

Tons of extensions

Top Pro

Easy to use

The basic modelling is very easy for beginners too. See More

See All

Makers Empire 3D

Top Con

Limited exporting formats

You can only export files as STL. See More

EagerWollunqua's Experience

Many bugs, even in sketch mode. Complicated and fuzzy links between part mode and body mode.... A rectangle is more than four separated lines. I mean that was already obbious in AutoCAD 14. But dispite all of this... I respect and even admire the FreeCAD team. While I Was using AutoCAD Before my retirement, I even did not expect such software for free. My main reson of irritation is the use of the unstable.Python programming language. A more solid programming language can prevent tons of disappointment. See More

Specs

Makers Empire 3D software:FREE for individuals

Makes Empire 3D Solutions for Schools:Request quote

Custom Solutions for education departments and districts: Request quote

See All

K-3D

VivaciousStribog's Experience

This is a copy of Koan3D and contain virus See More

CalmDeaTacita's Experience

An effective modeller if your coming from Wings and Blender land. See More

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score 184 · Accepted Answer

Blender

Top Pro

Free and open source

Blender is licensed under the GPL. Some Blender modules such as the Cycles rendering engine are licensed under the Apache 2.0 license. See More

Top Con

Too many possibilities, no unified workflow

The operations are not optimized enough for specific tasks. See More

Zool's Experience

Straight garbage. See More

Specs

Platforms:Windows, Linux, Mac, FreeBSD

Top Pro

Has a powerful rendering engine

Blender runs the Cycles path tracing engine under the hood. Cycles is a very powerful rendering engine capable of full path tracing (light fall off, caustics, volumetrics). It is mostly compatible with OpenCL and CUDA rendering, and is implementing mycropolygon displacement features. The upcoming release has a viewport engine called EEVEE whereby you can see and interact with your work in render mode in real time! See More

Top Con

Difficult learning curve

Blender has a history of being unintuitive, but the 2.8 overhaul made the program far easier for beginners to pick up, and changes continue to be made to further improve the experience. However, there is still a learning curve. See More

Pi-Qui Baltink's Experience

I am a Maya certified animator who now works with blender. I use Maya for particle systems, the rest is done in blender. If you have a Radeon card you can use Radeon Prorender, works fast and really good results. See More

Top Pro

Python extensibility

Blender embeds Python 3, which can be used to write add-ons, tools, extend the interface, rig characters and automate tasks. See More

Top Con

The physics engine is a bit lagging behind, especially the destruction physics

DecisiveSirtir's Experience

Great, amazing tool! I use it all the time with Unreal Engine. See More

Top Pro

Powerful animation suite

Blender provides a full rigging system, and automates animation by interpolating between keyframe positions. See More

Top Con

Not good for Industrial Design because it uses average vertex normals

You can not create a hard surface with a radius continuity degree along a surface using a specific radius value. See More

RobustTungAk's Experience

It's an extremely powerful piece of FOSS software, made even more powerful by its wide array of plugins and full Python scripting support. With extremely high poly counts, it begins to feel slower than other professional software, but the program is updated frequently and there are things in the works to speed it up. See More

Top Pro

Wide import and export format support

Support lots of modern 3D formats including DAE and FBX - ideal for game developers. See More

Top Con

Vertex normal issues on edges after boolean operations.

After creating a simple boolean operation the vertex normals are broken. A lot of work to fix the issue and you loos surface continuity. See More

TruthfulTaraxippus's Experience

BEST See More

Top Pro

Supports both low-poly and hi-poly modeling

Top Con

Bad vertex normal after boolean operations

Does not handle well polygon intersections. And need tweaking by hand points or adding average vertex normals via modifiers. See More

HumbleKingu's Experience

Awesome See More

Top Pro

Regular release schedule

Releases are made every ~3 months. See More

Top Con

Does not handle NURBs

Is not capable of real hard surface for industrial design because is not able to reproduce surface continuity degree as a NURBs does and average vertex normal destroy surface radius. See More

ArticulateVoipel's Experience

Terrible! See More

Top Pro

Sculpting and 3D painting features

Although Blender's 3d painting and sculpting tools (mostly painting) are not at par with specialized software like Substance Painter, ZBrush, or Mari, it is more than capable of getting most jobs done if the user takes the time to learn and understand it. See More

Top Con

Poor particle system

The Blender particle system can at times be a little limiting and finicky (and buggy) to get working. Even if it can get most straight forward jobs done, it is far from the most advanced system, and could benefit largely from advancements. See More

CompassionateMacGreine's Experience

Im using it professionally See More

Top Pro

Includes video editing & compositing tools

Blender's node-based compositor has comprehensive video sequencing and post-processing features. See More

Gamer's Experience

Free and actually does the job. See More

Top Pro

Very useful for a freelancer

It offers a round solution (it covers many areas and professional fields) for a freelancer, for free, constantly updated, very polished, and allowing high quality results that clients do require. After some learning, it becomes very useful for professional work. See More

B U's Experience

Everyone should start with this software! See More

Top Pro

Keyboard shortcuts

Good keyboard shortcuts for everything. Keep your left hand on the keyboard and your right hand on the mouse. See More

studioMagicalFox's Experience

Blender is full featured and free. Initial learning curve is steep but once you get used to it everything makes sense. Automate workflows or refactor the UI with Python. Lots of support from developers and user community. Consider the price of any other comparable tool and using Blender becomes a no-brainer. See More

Top Pro

Node based modeling support

Nathan R's Experience

Blender is an awesome and free program that covers every single aspect of 3D design. Blender significantly reduced the learning curve by improving the user interface in the new 2.8 update. The program has a very active community and many plugins are available. Blender also has a very extensive Python3 scripting language. The program has many online tutorials and is one of the most powerful programs installed on my computer. See More

Top Pro

Coherent and streamlined workflow / internal use logic

The trick with Blender is to get used to its usage philosophy, as it keeps consistent through all the application. Once you get it, every feature or addition is learnt naturally, almost effortlessly. See More

IndustriousViracocha's Experience

Love the software See More

Top Pro

Has a large community

There's a huge community to help you get started immediately. See More

Gerhard Eichhorn's Experience

Difficult but powerful. See More

Top Pro

Very versatile

You don't have to switch between software when you want to do different things. Because modeling, sculpting, composting, video editing etc can all be done in blender. See More

CalmDeaTacita's Experience

MASTER RACE!! Even Autodesk fears it. See More

Top Pro

Generative geometry using nodes

EnterprisingEiresione's Experience

Because Blender is hotkey-oriented, you can (with practice) execute commands about as fast as you could play a musical instrument. It may be the modeling tool on earth. You can create an entire advanced model in full-screen without ever seeing the UI at all. See More

See All

The Best 1 of 29 OptionsWhy?

My Recommendation for Blender

My Recommendation for Blender

Free and open source

Too many possibilities, no unified workflow

Has a powerful rendering engine

Difficult learning curve

Python extensibility

The physics engine is a bit lagging behind, especially the destruction physics

Powerful animation suite

Not good for Industrial Design because it uses average vertex normals

Wide import and export format support

Vertex normal issues on edges after boolean operations.

Supports both low-poly and hi-poly modeling

Bad vertex normal after boolean operations

Regular release schedule

Does not handle NURBs

Sculpting and 3D painting features

Poor particle system

Includes video editing & compositing tools

Very useful for a freelancer

Keyboard shortcuts

Node based modeling support

Coherent and streamlined workflow / internal use logic

Has a large community

Very versatile

Generative geometry using nodes

28 Other Options Considered

My Recommendation for Wings 3D

My Recommendation for Wings 3D

Fast and easy

Doesn't work with a graphics tablet like Wacom.

Free, open source & cross-platform

My Recommendation for Modo

My Recommendation for Modo

Crashing non stop!

Unparalleled modeling pipeline

The most unstable 3D software

User-friendly

Very unstable with too many bugs that were never fixed

Decent user interface

Poor value

Organized layout and UX

Not good for animation

Great value

Very slow viewport performance

MeshFusion

A lot of learning resources exist for this program

My Recommendation for ZBrush

My Recommendation for ZBrush

Powerful brush system allows for lots of creativity

UI is far from user friendly

Best for hi-poly modeling

Expensive

Has low poly modelling tools with 4r7 version

An odd perspective view

Can easily simplify mesh topology

Open, Save, Export, Import not conventional standard UI

Always evolving and innovating

Hi-poly only

Plays well with others

Best support

My Recommendation for Sculptris

My Recommendation for Sculptris

Free

Small scope

Sculpting allows for easier creative expression

No Linux version

Works on Lower-End Devices

Limited sculpting toolset

My Recommendation for Cinema 4D

My Recommendation for Cinema 4D

Easy to learn

Expensive

Clean UI

Doesn't make true Booleans like most other 3D Softwares.

Great modeling and animation Software.

Rendering

Includes great tools for animation and motion graphics

Useful content browser