3DCoat vs AC3D

3DCoat is a desktop application for sculpting, retopology, UV editing, PBR texture painting, and rendering, available for Linux, macOS, and Windows. Its painting workflows include microvertex, per-pixel, and Ptex, alongside Smart Materials and textures up to 16K. Sculpting tools include voxel work without topological constraints, Boolean operations, and adaptive dynamic tessellation. Retopology can be automatic with user-defined edge loops or manual. AppLinks support model exchange with other 3D applications, and the product describes Photoshop layer exchange through keyboard shortcuts. A 30-day trial is followed by Free Learning mode, which has export restrictions and bars commercial use of exported work. That mode limits.3b projects to 20 sculpt objects and 10 layers, caps OBJ exports by workspace triangle counts, and watermarks textures above 512×512. The listed 3DCoat 2026 Individual Node-locked plan is €379 a month and includes 12 months of free updates. A license can be installed on two machines, but only one copy can run at a time.

AC3D is desktop 3D design software for creating models, prototypes, virtual reality simulations, and data visualisations. It runs on Linux, macOS, and Windows, with animation tools, rendering, and 3D print export. Modeling features include subdivision surfaces, UV mapping, 2D and 3D text, boolean operations, polygon reduction, and object hierarchy. It imports and exports formats including 3D Studio, Collada, DirectX, DXF, OBJ, STL, VRML, and X3D. A software development kit and plugin interface allow additions such as file formats and other functionality. An optional plugin adds animation capability for X-Plane models on Windows, Mac, and Linux. AC3D also lists support for 3Dconnexion mice on Windows. A 14-day trial is available. The maker lists one-time prices of $99.00 USD for Home / Student and $99.00 USD for Commercial / Group (5 users/seats); other listed seats have different prices. Purchases are non-refundable, and the software is delivered by download with the license emailed after purchase.