The Best ZBrush AlternativesTop 3D Modelers and other similar apps like ZBrush

ZBrush is described as 'Advanced digital sculpting and painting tool with customizable brushes, real-time capabilities, and powerful rendering. Perfect for diverse creative fields' and is a popular 3D Modeler in the photos & graphics category. There are more than 50 alternatives to ZBrush for a variety of platforms, including Windows, Mac, Linux, iPad and iPhone apps. The best ZBrush alternative is Blender, which is both free and Open Source. Other great apps like ZBrush are 3D-Coat, Cinema 4D, Autodesk Mudbox and Bforartists.

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ZBrush alternatives are mainly 3D Modelers, but if you're looking for 3D Painting Apps or Digital Painting Tools you can filter on that. These are just examples - use the filter bar below to find more specific alternatives to ZBrush.
ZBrush iconZBrush
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Advanced digital sculpting and painting tool with customizable brushes, real-time capabilities, and powerful rendering. Perfect for diverse creative fields.

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ZBrush alternatives page was last updated Nov 18, 2024
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  1. Blender icon
     1692 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.

    139 Blender alternatives

    License model

    • FreeOpen Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • NL flagNetherlands
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    • Flathub
    • PortableApps.com
    • Haiku
    • Steam
    • Flatpak
    • Snapcraft

    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 ZBrush

     
    Comments about Blender as an Alternative to ZBrush
    Most Recent Comment
    Guest
    Positive May 14, 2017
    14

    it's free , more simple and has many other uses but it may not be as powerful as ZBrush in terms of performance or sculpting

    sdanat
    Positive Oct 1, 2024
    0

    One of the most incredible open-source projects of all time.

    Guest
    Positive Aug 18, 2020
    0

    has been doing things Zbrush 2021 just implemented; also open source with community add-ons

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    3 of 4 comments
    ZBrush Icon
    Blender icon
    • Most users think Blender is a great ZBrush alternative.

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

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

    • Blender is Free and Open SourceZBrush is Paid and Proprietary
  2. 3D-Coat icon
     44 likes
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    3D-Coat is the one application that has all the tools you need to take your 3D idea from a block of digital clay all the way to a production ready, fully textured organic or hard surface model.

    69 3D-Coat alternatives

    License model

    Country of Origin

    • UA flagUkraine

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux

    3D-Coat Features

    1.  3D Sculpting
    2.  Support for scripting
    3.  Voxel-editor
    4.  Texturing
    5.  UV Unfolding
    6.  Procedural Texturing

    3D-Coat VS ZBrush

     
    Comments about 3D-Coat as an Alternative to ZBrush
    Guest
    Positive Feb 4, 2017
    1

    3-D coat is like zbrush+substance painter (though you might consider getting SP too). Unlike zbrush it runs on Linux which is great for #indiedev! And yes, there are some graphics tablets that have Linux drivers written for them.

    Guest
    Positive Apr 19, 2020
    0

    3D Coat, along with Mudbox are the best alternatives because they are dedicated sculpting software much so than all the others which are basically 3D design software with a sculpting feature.

    ZBrush Icon
    3D-Coat icon
    • Most users think 3D-Coat is a great ZBrush alternative.

    • 3D-Coat is the most popular commercial alternative to ZBrush.

    • 3D-Coat is Paid and ProprietaryZBrush is also Paid and Proprietary
  3. Cinema 4D icon
     83 likes
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    CINEMA 4D is a commercial, cross-platform, high-end 3-D graphics application, produced by MAXON Computer GmbH of Friedrichsdorf, Germany. Noted for its flexible interface and ease of use, it is capable of procedural and polygonal/subd modelling, animating, lighting, texturing...

    46 Cinema 4D alternatives

    License model

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows

    Cinema 4D Features

    1.  Rendering
    2.  Keyframe Animation
    3.  Support for scripting
    4.  Procedural Modeling

    Cinema 4D VS ZBrush

     
    Comments about Cinema 4D as an Alternative to ZBrush
    Guest
    Negative Jul 14, 2015
    0

    Cinema 4D is not a digital sculpting program.

    ZBrush Icon
    Cinema 4D icon
    • Some users think Cinema 4D is a great ZBrush alternative, some don't.

    • Cinema 4D is Paid and ProprietaryZBrush is also Paid and Proprietary
  4. Autodesk Mudbox icon
     20 likes
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    Autodesk Mudbox offers tools for creating detailed organic and inorganic 3D assets. It features an efficient layer workflow that allows blending, masking, and more, and has a familiar interface for sculpting and texture painting. Ideal for professional 3D modeling tasks.

    52 Autodesk Mudbox alternatives

    License model

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux

    Autodesk Mudbox Features

    1.  3D Sculpting
    2.  Drawing Tablet Support
    3.  Texturing

    Autodesk Mudbox VS ZBrush

     
    Comments about Autodesk Mudbox as an Alternative to ZBrush
    Guest
    Positive Nov 5, 2019
    0

    Of all the programs i´ve tried, this one has the most similar way of sculpting to Zbrush. So it´s also perfect if you are looking for the closest thing to sculpture with real mud, clay.. It´s a bit inferior to zbrush in sculpting options but painting is way better because it is not mesh dependant, you don´t need a million polygon to paint smallest details.

    ZBrush Icon
    Autodesk Mudbox icon
    • Almost everyone thinks Autodesk Mudbox is a great ZBrush alternative.

    • Autodesk Mudbox is Paid and ProprietaryZBrush is also Paid and Proprietary
  5. Bforartists icon
     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

    • FreeOpen Source

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Haiku
    • AmigaOS
    • MorphOS

    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 ZBrush

     
  6. Armory 3D icon
     32 likes
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    Armory is an open-source 3D game engine with full Blender integration, turning it into a complete game development tool. The result is a unified workflow from start to finish, making you work faster. No more jumping between different applications.

    License model

    • FreeOpen Source

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Blender

    Properties

    1.  Configurable

    Features

    1. Blender icon  Blender Integration
    2.  Logic Nodes
    3.  Multiplatform Export
    4.  Real-time Global Illumination

    Armory 3D VS ZBrush

     
    Comments about Armory 3D as an Alternative to ZBrush
    tvgoing1
    Negative May 11, 2022
    0

    Armory is a game engine not a sculpting software like Zbrush

    Guest
    Negative Apr 29, 2020
    9

    Zbrush is for sculpting primarily on the other hand armory is a game engine.

    ZBrush Icon
    Armory 3D icon
    • Some users think Armory 3D is a great ZBrush alternative, some don't.

    • Armory 3D is Free and Open SourceZBrush is Paid and Proprietary
  7. Nomad Sculpt icon
     8 likes
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    Nomad is a sculpting & painting mobile app, available on Android and iOS.

    10 Nomad Sculpt alternatives

    License model

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • FR flagFrance
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Android
    • iPhone
    • iPad

    Nomad Sculpt Features

    1.  3D Sculpting

    Nomad Sculpt VS ZBrush

     
    • Nomad Sculpt is the most popular Android, iPhone & iPad alternative to ZBrush.

    • Nomad Sculpt is Paid and ProprietaryZBrush is also Paid and Proprietary
  8. SculptGL icon
     19 likes
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    SculptGL is a browser-based 3d-modeling application.

    License model

    • FreeOpen Source

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • FR flagFrance
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Online
    Discontinued

    From GitHub: "DEVELOPMENT STOPPED I'm now working on Nomad Sculpt instead."

    SculptGL Features

    1.  PBR Shaders
    2.  Browser-based

    SculptGL VS ZBrush

     
    • Almost everyone thinks SculptGL is a great ZBrush alternative.

    • SculptGL is the most popular Web-based alternative to ZBrush.

    • SculptGL is Free and Open SourceZBrush is Paid and Proprietary
  9. forger icon
     1 like
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    forger is a digital sculpting application for the artist who wants to be able to sculpt anywhere. forger lets you sculpt while you are on the train, sitting on the couch, or waiting in a queue.

    License model

    • FreemiumProprietary

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • iPad

    forger Features

    1.  Support for Layers
    2.  3D Sculpting
    3.  Support for Multiple Resolution
    4.  Texture painting

    forger VS ZBrush

     
  10. Sculpt+ icon
     3 likes
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    Sculpt+ is a digital sculpting and painting app, designed to bring the sculpting experience to your smartphone or tablet.

    7 Sculpt+ alternatives

    License model

    • FreemiumProprietary

    Country of Origin

    • RU flagRussia

    Platforms

    • Android
    • HUAWEI AppGallery

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  3D Sculpting
    2.  Pressure Sensitivity
    3.  Procedural Modeling
    4.  Dark Mode
    5.  Support for Layers
    6.  Physically-Based Rendering
    7.  Custom Brushes

    Sculpt+ VS ZBrush

     
10 of 55 ZBrush alternatives