Autodesk Mudbox vs ZBrush
Autodesk Mudbox
autodesk.com
ZBrush
maxon.netSide by side
| Figure | Autodesk Mudbox | ZBrush |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | Yes |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | — |
| iOS | — | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 9 | 7 |
| Spec score · Game Texture Software | 9.2 (#1) | 8.5 (#7) |
| Spec score · Game 3D Modeling Software | 9.2 (#1) | 8.5 (#13) |
| Spec score · Game Character Creation Software | 9.3 (#1) | 8.5 (#10) |
| Spec score · 3D modeling software | 9.2 (#7) | 9.3 (#2) |
| Spec score · 3D Sculpting Software | 9.3 (#1) | 8.5 (#7) |
| Company headquarters | Autodesk lists its headquarters at One Market Street, San Francisco, California. | Maxon Computer GmbH is listed at Basler Str. 5, 61352 Bad Homburg vor der Höhe, Germany. |
| Company legal name | The maker is Autodesk, Inc., a public company traded on Nasdaq under ADSK. | The legal imprint identifies the maker as Maxon Computer GmbH. |
| Free plan | No | Yes |
| Platform access | desktop | desktop |
| 3D print export | Yes | Yes |
| Rating on G2 | 4.1 out of 5 from 50 reviews | 4.7 out of 5 from 104 reviews. |
| Sculpting tools | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosting | Mudbox is installed as desktop software on a local host or network server rather than delivered as a hosted web application. | Maxon distributes ZBrush through the Maxon App or website and requires a MyMaxon login for access, with no self-hosted deployment described. |
| Support | Autodesk advertises 24x7 online support resources and access to three previous versions for subscribers. | Maxon provides a support center with knowledge-base articles, ticket support, installers, requirements, release notes, training and community forums. |
| What it does | Mudbox is Autodesk software for digital 3D sculpting and painting of detailed characters and environments. | ZBrush is a digital sculpting, modeling and painting application built around virtual-clay workflows. |
Plans
Autodesk Mudbox
- SubscriptionPriced on request
- SubscriptionPrice not published
- SubscriptionPriced on request
- Autodesk Education accessFree
- Mudbox free trialFree
- Mudbox 2-year$160 a year
- Mudbox 3-year$240 a year
- Annual subscriptionPrice not published
- Monthly subscriptionPrice not published
ZBrush
- ZBrush for iPad Free PlanFree
- ZBrush for iPad SubscriptionPrice not published
- ZBrush for iPad SubscriptionPriced on request
- ZBrush DesktopPrice not published
- ZBrush DesktopPriced on request
- ZBrush for iPad$33.25 a month
- ZBrush$399 a year
In their own words
Autodesk Mudbox
Autodesk Mudbox is desktop software for 3D sculpting and painting, used to create detailed characters and environments with textures. Artists can build production-quality meshes from scanned, imported, or sculpted data, paint across multiple channels on 3D models, and add mesh resolution where needed. Retopology tools help create clean production meshes, and the layer-based workflow supports work on high-resolution models and textures. Mudbox also supports 3D print export. Autodesk identifies professional VFX and game studios among its users. It runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux. The 2026 requirements specify Windows 10 version 1809 or later and Windows 11, macOS 13.x through 15.x, Red Hat Enterprise Linux Workstation 8.10, 9.3, and 9.5, and Rocky Linux 8.10, 9.3, and 9.5. Hardware requirements include a 64-bit Intel or AMD multi-core processor, 4 GB RAM, 2 GB free disk space, and a three-button mouse; 8 GB or more RAM is recommended. There is no free plan, but a 30-day trial is available.
ZBrush
ZBrush is a 3D sculpting and modeling application with desktop and iPad offerings. Its listed tools include sculpting, parametric modeling, animation, rendering and 3D print export. Desktop is listed for Windows and macOS, while a separate supported-platform list also includes Linux. The desktop plan includes ZBrush for iPad and advanced sculpting, modeling, rendering and export tools. Rendering is described as hybrid, with GPU and animation rendering and denoising. Listed workload areas include CPU and GPU rendering, ray tracing, shader execution and geometry processing. Other listed capabilities include rotoscoping, 3D camera tracking, custom test profiles and CLI or automation support. The listed result export formats are none documented, and results are not saved as a file. Headquarters are listed as both Bad Homburg vor der Höhe and Friedrichsdorf, Germany; the maker is listed as founded in 1986.