What are the best programs for making height maps, normal maps, and/or other maps?

Question

14

Options
Considered

458

User
Recs.

Sep 23, 2023

Last
Updated

Here’s the Deal

The Best 1 of 13 OptionsWhy?

Best programs for making height maps, normal maps, and/or other maps	Price	Platforms	Last Updated
94 Awesome Bump	FREE	-	Sep 23, 2023
77 Crazy Bump	-	-	Aug 17, 2023
-- Njob	-	-	May 21, 2023
-- Substance Bitmap2Material	-	-	Jan 24, 2023
-- Insane Bump	-	-	Jan 4, 2022

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12 Other Options Considered

Njob

Top Pro

Simple

Relatively clutter free, simple, one purpose oriented interface. See More

Top Con

No image scalling

This may not seem like much, but if your screen resolution is smaller than your picture, then you will only see a small part of the picture. And although you can move around the picture, it is impossible to zoom in and out. See More

Top Pro

Free

Njob is a free application. See More

Top Con

Slugish single core CPU performance

No multi core, and only single core cpu usage, means that the software does not perform tasks at smooth speeds when textures get anywhere over 512x512 (depending on the cpu in use). See More

Top Con

Abandoned

This software has not been updated in years. See More

See All

Materialize

Top Pro

Presets

A few simple presets available, that generally do a good job if you want a quick and dirty generation. See More

Top Con

Maps are derivative of one another

... Meaning you will always lose some quality. You can test this for yourself in real time by generating a height map from a normal, then clearing the normal and generating a new one based on height, then clearing the previous height map and generating a new one based on the new normal. Obviously, no one would do that, but it effectively demonstrates that Materialize, by its nature, sacrifices the accuracy that other programs can guarantee you. See More

Sojan Janso's Experience

Simple, intuitive interface, gets the job done well, powerful. See More

Top Pro

Integrated mask feature

You can create up to two masks to define metalness or any area you want the software to look at a little differently. See More

Top Con

Slow image preview in file browser

Although the texture generation and preview is butter smooth, other GUI things, like image previews in the file browser cause huge slowdowns and jittering. See More

CaringBobbiBobbi's Experience

If all you have is a normal or diffuse to go on, Materialize can help you guesstimate what those other maps should be. However, virtually all other map generators are going to give you more accurate, more intuitive results. See More

Top Pro

Clear interface

A nice clean and clear interface, where it is much easier to know what you are doing. See More

Top Con

Not Standalone

You need Unity. See More

Top Con

While the filters are nice, you are limited to two colors

This is easily Materialize's biggest limitation. Even the most basic diffuse maps have more than two tones, so for the third tone and beyond, the height map generator just takes over the wheel and drives over a cliff. This drawback means the program is only really helpful for basic, one- or two-tone materials like stone impressions, brick walls, simple fabric patterns, etc. It also means the gloss/roughness generator is operating in completely the wrong frame of mind. If you have a material like tire rubber with sections that are muddy, wet, snow-crusted, blood splattered, etc. Materialize is only going to let you select two tones to make glossy or rough, and the other twelve are anybody's guess as to how reflective or absorbent they'll be. See More

See All

MindTex 2

Top Pro

Many tweak controls

You can fine tune the result to achieve the desired look that you need. See More

Top Con

Buy Upfront No Trial

As soon as I downloaded this for the first time and opened the file (which by the way was the free trial version) it said my trial was expired. So expect to pay upfront when downloading this app. See More

Top Pro

Generates more then just a normal map

While this tool can generate normal maps, you can also create maps such as Height, Ambient Occlusion, Specular, and more. You can also input your own maps instead for preview. See More

Top Con

Expensire

Costs around $20. See More

Top Pro

3d View

You can preview your normal map using the built-in 3d viewer and get an idea what you're getting. See More

See All

ShaderMap 4

Top Pro

Node-driven map generation

Shadermap specializes in generating multiple maps using nodes. Changes to one node can then be propagated to other nodes. See More

Top Con

Expensive compared to similar software

While the software is great at what it does, it comes at a higher cost than most software that does similar things when it comes to generating normal maps. See More

PhilosophicalManungal's Experience

$29 for the personal license. This is perfect for generating normal maps (and others) for use in game development and I love the 3d viewport that allows seeing the affects of changes made in real time. See More

Top Pro

Bake texture maps from 3d models

This program can bake texture maps from 3d models from a high poly to low poly. Not many similar software has this feature. See More

See All

Mapotic

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score 200 · Accepted Answer

Awesome Bump

Top Pro

Feature complete

Supports great features, such as the addition of grunge maps, supports tessellation, and has a beautiful 3d view port. See More

Top Con

Confusing

The first few times using the software, you may have a hard time getting what you want. That is mostly due to the slew of features, and slightly confusing interface. See More

ConscientiousCliodhna's Experience

não tem lugar para fazer o download, nenhum site funciona, ta difícil de achar o programa See More

Top Pro

Free and open-source

Being open source, along with the price of nothing makes this software very compelling to use. See More

Top Con

Doesn't run on MacOS

ProfessionalAshnan's Experience

Its not as easy as CrazyBump and Everything isnt labeled See More

Top Pro

Cross platform

This software is cross platform, so you can integrate it into your work flow without worrying to much about your operating system (Linux, Mac, and Windows). See More

Top Con

Requires open GL 3.30 or higher

Although the pbr view port looks great, it does come with the drawback that you will have to have support for open GL 3.30 or higher, and set it up before hand (if its not already set up on your computer). See More

See All

The Best 1 of 13 OptionsWhy?

My Recommendation for Awesome Bump

My Recommendation for Awesome Bump

Feature complete

Confusing

Free and open-source

Doesn't run on MacOS

Cross platform

Requires open GL 3.30 or higher

12 Other Options Considered

My Recommendation for Crazy Bump

My Recommendation for Crazy Bump

Intuitive interface

Pricey

It is not any better than free software on the market

My Recommendation for Njob

My Recommendation for Njob

Simple

No image scalling

Free

Slugish single core CPU performance

Abandoned

My Recommendation for Substance Bitmap2Material

My Recommendation for Substance Bitmap2Material

Comes at a price

Many options for map generation

Pricey

Robust texture export features

PBR ready

My Recommendation for Insane Bump

My Recommendation for Insane Bump

You get what you pay for

My Recommendation for Normal Map Generator

My Recommendation for Normal Map Generator

For the starving 3D artists

My Recommendation for Quixel Mixer

My Recommendation for Quixel Mixer

Free

Seems to still be in beta

Free version is technically non-commercial only

My Recommendation for Materialize

My Recommendation for Materialize

Presets

Maps are derivative of one another

Integrated mask feature

Slow image preview in file browser

Clear interface

Not Standalone

While the filters are nice, you are limited to two colors

My Recommendation for laigter

My Recommendation for laigter

Activates Windows Blocker

My Recommendation for MindTex 2

My Recommendation for MindTex 2

Many tweak controls

Buy Upfront No Trial

Generates more then just a normal map

Expensire

3d View

My Recommendation for ShaderMap 4

My Recommendation for ShaderMap 4

Node-driven map generation

Expensive compared to similar software

Bake texture maps from 3d models

My Recommendation for MapSVG

My Recommendation for MapSVG

Extremely customizable

My Recommendation for SSbump Generator

My Recommendation for SSbump Generator

Free

Abandon

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My Recommendation for Mapotic

My Recommendation for Mapotic

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