The Best Free Autodesk Maya AlternativesTop 3D Modelers and other similar apps like Autodesk Maya

The best free alternative to Autodesk Maya is Blender, which is also Open Source. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 50 alternatives to Autodesk Maya and many of them is free so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting free alternatives to Autodesk Maya are Spline, Bforartists, Vue and TouchDesigner.

Autodesk Maya iconAutodesk Maya
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Comprehensive software for 3D modeling, animation, and rendering, trusted by top artists for films and games, with tools to...

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Autodesk Maya alternatives page was last updated Dec 15, 2024
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  1. Blender icon

    Blender

     1693 likes
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    A comprehensive open-source 3D software suite for modeling, UV unwrapping, texturing, rigging, and animating. It supports renderings, simulations including fluid and cloth dynamics, complex compositing, video editing, and Python scripting, running across all major operating systems.

    140 Blender alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • NL flagNetherlands
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    • Flathub
    • PortableApps.com
    • Haiku
    • Steam
    • Flatpak
    • Snapcraft
    Splash Artwork for Blender 4.3

    Properties

    1.  Customizable

    Features

    1.  3D Animation
    2.  3D Sculpting
    3.  Real time rendering
    4.  Community-based
    5.  Compositor
    6.  Keyframe Animation
    7.  Texturing
    8.  Animation Rigging
    9.  Extensible by Plugins/Extensions
    10.  3D Renderer
    11.  Texture painting
    12.  Ad-free

    Blender VS Autodesk Maya

     
    Comments about Blender as an Alternative to Autodesk Maya
    Comment summary: Blender is frequently praised for being a free, open-source, and powerful alternative to Autodesk Maya. Users appreciate its active development, a large online community, and significant updates since the 2.8 version, which greatly improved its usability and feature set. While Blender offers functionalities similar to Maya, some users note differences in UI and rendering quality. However, its constant updates make it increasingly robust for 3D modeling and animation.
    Top Positive Comment
    Guest
    Jul 24, 2018
    12

    The team is continually adding updates, and the features are excellent. Unfortunately, the UI is hard to navigate.

    Most Recent Comment
    Edward Stewart
    Positive May 22, 2024
    0

    Blender is being actively developed. Besides, you can't beat free.

    smess
    Positive May 16, 2022
    1

    Blender has advanced to become a powerful tool. Just look at the improvements that have been made in the UI, viewport quality, performance improvements, and new feature releases. Just one simple download of about ~200Mb will give you a valuable 3D editor for your graphics career.

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    3 of 12 comments
    Autodesk Maya Icon
    Blender icon

    • Almost everyone thinks Blender is a great Autodesk Maya alternative.

    • Blender is the most popular Windows, Mac & Linux alternative to Autodesk Maya.

    • Blender is the most popular Open Source & free alternative to Autodesk Maya.

    • Blender is Free and Open SourceAutodesk Maya is Paid and Proprietary
  2. Spline icon

    Spline

     24 likes
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    Create 3D objects, edit materials, add interactivity, and export. Control the outcome of your 3d design work.

    19 Spline alternatives

    License model

    • Freemium • Proprietary

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Software as a Service (SaaS)
    Spline screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Dark Mode
    2.  No Coding Required
    3.  Ad-free
    4.  Create UI Components
    5.  3D Sculpting
    6.  Parametric Modeling
    7.  Non Destructive Editing
    8.  Real time collaboration
    9.  Live Preview
    10.  Design handoff
    11.  3D design
    12.  Web-Based

    Spline VS Autodesk Maya

     

    • Spline is the most popular Web-based & SaaS alternative to Autodesk Maya.

    • Spline is Freemium and ProprietaryAutodesk Maya is Paid and Proprietary
    • Spline is LightweightAutodesk Maya is not according to our users
  4. Bforartists icon

    Bforartists

     33 likes
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    Bforartists is a complete 3D suite to create 3D content. It offers you the full 3D art pipeline to create game graphics, prerendered movies and stills.

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Haiku
    • AmigaOS
    • MorphOS
    Splash

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight
    2.  Customizable

    Features

    1.  Rendering
    2.  3D Sculpting
    3.  Texturing
    4.  Dark Mode
    5.  Ad-free
    6.  Keyframe Animation
    7.  Motion Capture
    8.  Live Preview
    9.  Parametric Modeling
    10.  Works Offline
    11.  No registration required
    12.  Support for Layers

    Bforartists VS Autodesk Maya

     
  5. Vue icon

    Vue

     29 likes
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    Create vast expanses of terrains, add trees, select the best point of view and render hyper-realistic images of your landscapes in moody atmospheres... in a few mouse clicks.

    62 Vue alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Proprietary

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    vue final
    Discontinued

    No longer under active development, but you can still download it and use it for free.

    Vue Features

    1.  Ad-free
    2.  Works Offline
    3.  Dark Mode
    4.  Keyframe Animation
    5.  Procedurally generated

    Vue VS Autodesk Maya

     
  6. TouchDesigner icon

    TouchDesigner

     9 likes
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    TouchDesigner is a complete authoring tool for building interactive 3D art, visualizations, prototypes and UIs. Derivative makes and supports TouchDesigner and offers their services to do custom production using TouchDesigner.

    33 TouchDesigner alternatives

    License model

    • Free Personal • Proprietary

    Platforms

    • Windows
    Sample project screen

    TouchDesigner Features

    1.  Node Based
    2.  Interactive Visualization

    TouchDesigner VS Autodesk Maya

     
  7. Rumba icon

    Rumba

     Like
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    Because 3d animators are crucial in today’s animation and VFX productions, they deserve a productive and modern software dedicated to their art.

    License model

    • Free Personal • Proprietary

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • FR flagFrance
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Linux
    Rumba screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Support for Layers
    2.  Keyframe Animation
    3.  Onion skinning
    4.  Ad-free
    5.  Live Preview
    6.  Animation Rigging

    Rumba VS Autodesk Maya

     
  9. K-3D icon

    K-3D

     31 likes
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    K-3D is free-as-in-freedom 3D modeling and animation software. It features a plugin-oriented procedural engine for all of its content, making K-3D a very versatile and powerful package.

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • PortableApps.com
    K-3D screenshot 1
    Discontinued

    According to the official website k-3d.org :The latest "source code" release is from November 2015. And the latest binary executable release is even older. According to its Sourceforge page ( https://sourceforge.net/projects/k3d/files/K-3D Win32 Binaries/ ), latest release is from june 2010.

    K-3D Features

    1.  Portable

    K-3D VS Autodesk Maya

     
  10. Vectary icon

    Vectary

     12 likes
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    Vectary is the most accessible 3D and Augmented Reality design platform. Create an account for free online. No app download needed. Build immersive experiences for the real world. Publish 3D and Augmented Reality content to any website.

    38 Vectary alternatives

    License model

    • Freemium • Proprietary

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Online
    • Chrome OS
    • Figma
    • madewitharkit
    • WebGL
    • Sketch
    • Software as a Service (SaaS)
    Create 3D UI in Vectary

    Vectary Features

    1.  Augmented Reality
    2.  Real time collaboration
    3.  Web-Based
    4.  Rendering
    5.  3D Renderer
    6.  Figma plugin
    7.  HD-Rendering
    8.  3d sketching
    9.  Sketch

    Vectary VS Autodesk Maya

     
8 of 24 Autodesk Maya alternatives