Cascadeur vs Houdini
Cascadeur
cascadeur.com
Houdini
sidefx.comSide by side
| Figure | Cascadeur | Houdini |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $8/mo | $7.92/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | — |
| Android | Yes | — |
| API | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 8 | 21 |
| Spec score · Animation Software | 9.4 (#2) | 9.2 (#4) |
| Spec score · 3D Animation Software | 9.2 (#1) | 8.7 (#4) |
| Spec score · 3D Character Animation Software | 9.2 (#2) | 8.8 (#6) |
| Animation tools | The Free plan includes animation, rigging, physics-based, inbetweening, and animation unbaking tools. | Yes |
| Company | Cascadeur's about page says Eugene Dyabin started it in 2006 as an internal animation tool for Nekki. | Houdini is developed by SideFX. |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
Plans
Cascadeur
- FreeFree
- Indie$19 a month
- Pro$49 a month
- Teams$49 a month
- Educational$49, paid once
- Indie$96 a year
- Pro$396 a year
- Teams$396 a year
Houdini
- Houdini Core — Workstation perpetual$1,995 a month
- Houdini Core — Annual Upgrade Plan, workstation$1,095 a year
- Houdini Core — Local Access perpetual$2,995 a month
- Houdini Core — Annual Upgrade Plan, local access$1,639 a year
- Houdini Core — Annual rental, workstation$1,475 a year
- Houdini Core — Annual rental, local access$2,195 a year
- Houdini Core — Monthly rental, local access$370 a month
- Houdini FX — Workstation perpetual$4,495 a month
- Houdini FX — Annual Upgrade Plan, workstation$2,740 a year
- Houdini FX — Local Access perpetual$6,995 a month
In their own words
Cascadeur
Cascadeur is physics-based 3D animation software for creating character animation without motion capture. Its Free plan includes animation, rigging, physics-based tools, inbetweening, and animation unbaking, but exports only to CASC. Paid plan comparisons list FBX, DAE, USD, and GLTF/GLB exports. The software is available for Windows, macOS, Linux, and iOS, and its documentation covers workflows with Blender, Unity, Unreal Engine, and Daz Studio. Unreal Engine Live Link streams animation from Cascadeur in real time; its plugin requires a separate manual download and installation. Cascadeur 2026.1 introduced an AI-powered Root Motion Tool that transfers motion style using signatures from reference animation. Minimum requirements include 4 GB memory and OpenGL 4.1, plus a 64-bit multi-core Intel or AMD processor on Windows or Linux, or an M-series processor on macOS. Users must sign in after installation with Google or a Cascadeur account. Plans include a free option and paid tiers, with the listed annual starting rate at $8 per month; Pro and Teams include a 14-day trial.
Houdini
Houdini is SideFX’s procedural 3D creation system for film, television, games, motion graphics, virtual reality and synthetic-data work. Its workflow stores actions in nodes connected as networks, and supports sharing workflows and custom digital assets with colleagues. Tools cover modeling, sculpting, animation, parametric modeling, character rigging, rendering and 3D-print export. Houdini FX adds simulation tools for fluids, destruction, pyro effects, grains and cloth. KineFX supports character rigging and animation, alongside tools for hair, fur, feathers, muscles and cloth. Karma renders images in the Solaris look-development workflow, while PDG distributes tasks, handles dependencies and creates datasets for machine-learning and AI applications. Houdini runs on Windows, macOS and Linux. The free Apprentice version is for non-commercial learning and personal projects; its renders are capped at 1920x1080 and carry a watermark. SideFX lists perpetual licenses, annual upgrades, rentals, subscriptions and education licenses. Listed paid pricing starts at $299/yr, though individual options have different terms and prices.