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Blender

Blender

Overview

What is Blender?

Blender is a free and open source 3D creation suite available in under the GNU General Public License. It supports the entirety of the 3D pipeline—modeling, rigging, animation, simulation, rendering, compositing and motion tracking, video editing and 2D animation pipeline. Blender…

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Recent Reviews

TrustRadius Insights

Blender has proven to be a versatile and valuable tool for a wide range of use cases. Users, including professionals in the fields of 3D …
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Blender For Free.

10 out of 10
January 20, 2023
Incentivized
For our Livestream service, modeling was used for fill-in effects. Blender, being free, was used to model graphics for this production. We …
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Free, fast and fun!

10 out of 10
January 20, 2023
When creating educational content, powerpoint slides are fine, but having animation is much better. I became aware of Blender from a …
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Awards

Products that are considered exceptional by their customers based on a variety of criteria win TrustRadius awards. Learn more about the types of TrustRadius awards to make the best purchase decision. More about TrustRadius Awards

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Pricing

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Blender Cloud Membership

$11.50

Cloud
per month

Entry-level set up fee?

  • No setup fee

Offerings

  • Free Trial
  • Free/Freemium Version
  • Premium Consulting/Integration Services
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Product Details

What is Blender?

Blender Technical Details

Deployment TypesOn-premise, Software as a Service (SaaS), Cloud, or Web-Based
Operating SystemsWindows, Linux, Mac, SteamOS
Mobile ApplicationNo
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Comparisons

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Reviews and Ratings

(87)

Community Insights

TrustRadius Insights are summaries of user sentiment data from TrustRadius reviews and, when necessary, 3rd-party data sources. Have feedback on this content? Let us know!

Blender has proven to be a versatile and valuable tool for a wide range of use cases. Users, including professionals in the fields of 3D modeling and sculpting, have found Blender to be an essential tool for their work. It allows them to create precise and detailed 3D models for various purposes, such as virtual environments, product visualization, and interior design projects. Additionally, Blender's animation capabilities have been highly valued by users in educational content creation, as it provides a more engaging experience compared to static slides.

Blender's features extend beyond 3D modeling and animation. Many marketing agencies have found it indispensable for creating eye-catching visuals for product launches, videos, and client logos. The software's rendering capabilities have been particularly appreciated, surpassing those offered by CAD-integrated renderers. Moreover, Blender's integration with three.js has allowed users to generate interactive experiences for websites, further enhancing their marketing efforts.

Blender's lightweight and cost-effective nature have made it accessible to students and those on a budget, serving as an alternative to pricier software like Autodesk 3ds Max. However, the initial learning curve may be steep for beginners without prior knowledge of 3D modeling tools and terminology. Nevertheless, motivated users who take advantage of tutorials and resources have managed to become familiar with Blender's features over time. Its free and open-source nature, along with its support for multiple operating systems, has also attracted a loyal user base.

  1. Free and open-source platform: Users appreciate that Blender is accessible to beginner animators as it doesn't require any charges, making it an ideal choice for those starting out in animation.

  2. Powerful features and tools: Users find the wide array of features in Blender essential for their creative process, allowing them to tackle various tasks efficiently. The availability of precise 3D object placement and manipulation tools, as well as intuitive free-form sculpting tools, are particularly valued by users.

  3. Supportive community and resources: The Blender community's size and online resources are highly regarded by users, making it easy for them to find tutorials and solutions to their queries. This accessibility to resources enhances the overall Blender experience.

Cons:

  1. Performance Issues: Some users have experienced performance issues with Blender, such as slow rendering times and crashes during complex projects.
  2. Steep Learning Curve: Several reviewers have mentioned that Blender has a steep learning curve, making it difficult for beginners to grasp all of its features and functionalities.
  3. Lack of Intuitive Interface: A number of users have expressed frustration with the interface of Blender, finding it less intuitive compared to other 3D software programs.

Users commonly recommend starting with tutorials on YouTube and blender.org to learn the basics of Blender. These resources are found to be valuable for gaining knowledge and skills in using the software.

Users advise not being afraid of the interface and taking time to learn and practice. They suggest that investing time and effort into learning Blender is worth it for 3D modeling and rendering.

Users also recommend exploring the various functionalities of Blender, such as its rendering tool, for different purposes like financing project management, animation, digital content molding, and more. Blender is also suggested for both 3D and 2D work, making it versatile for users with low configuration systems.

Reviews

(1-20 of 20)
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Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Well, in fact, I haven't used any of that software, but there is one thing I know: Blender is free. That's huge for small business owners like me; it is the difference between having the tool and not having it. I have heard other people saying that the Autodesk offerings have some other tools Blender doesn't have and are better for animation, especially Maya, but no small-engineering business owner cares for that. Now, from the animation and artistic point of view, even if my business was making animated movies indie, I'd used Blender simply by its cost.
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
It fulfills my expectation to make 3D animation and cartoons to show my concept of research results to the audiance ranging from low-level to excellent in the field. It saves a lot of time to explain and makes attraction to the audiance. It exceptionally helps my class room teaching efficiency.
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Again, Blender wins over its competition in the number of users and its large community because it is free software. Whether you like it or not, that's a kickstart that makes a noticeable difference.
But, indeed, its competition is usually much more powerful and professional, easier to learn, and with a better interface.
In short, if you are starting to become the best 3D animator in the industry, we suggest you opt for Blender and make the most of everything it offers.
Eventually, and if you need it, you can take the big step towards Cinema 4D, a platform that will allow you to consolidate your knowledge and be at the level of great experts.
Jitendra Choubisa | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Blender is first of all free and open source software. It has very easy to use tools which can help one in navigating and modifying easily and efficiently. It is also very less in size, on my system it is of 355 MB. The rendering engine Cycle works simultaneously in the background without effecting much of the system performance. On the other hand the other software's costs very high and require annual renewal of subscriptions.
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
We've only used the consumer (non-pro) version of SketchUp, which we love, but is very limited in features and output capabilities compared to Blender. While Blender's learning curve is MUCH steeper than SketchUp, it feels like truly complete, professional design software.
January 20, 2023

Blender is the best

Zeel Pandya | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
As already mention , a Wide range of features and complete set of tools without paying anything .
Suitable with any operating system.
Getting started with Blender is also easy.
3D Modeling , Animation, Video Editing , Simulation , Sculpting All-in-one.
It is having dedicated video editing features which you can use for your high quality projects
January 20, 2023

Blender For Free.

Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
I have to start off but stating the obvious. Blender is full-featured and free. Yes, I repeat, "free." Adobe makes outstanding products but at a high initial cost. Blender does a similarly fantastic job, but for free. Adobe Substance is able to perform all the tasks I need to complete and more. However, Blender performed my functions for free.
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Ease of use and free, ZBrush has a very steep learning curve and Blender seems to be better at realistic image rendering. Plus free upgrades and amazing support made it a no-brainer. Lots of online tutorials and add-ons Blender comes out on top.

Plus there are many add-ons / plug-ins that come bundled free and are excellent
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Blender is a more user-friendly version of these programs; not only that, but the community behind blender is great; posting everything you need on youtube or offering courses has made it so much easier to learn new ways to make renders or assets, also there are plenty of free materials that can get you started if you want to jump in and play around.
November 29, 2021

Open source Tool

Mahmoud obaid | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Again, Blender has a great advantage compared to other software which is being “ open source “ & free which can let anybody uses it without any worries. Compared to Ansys, Blender is ok since it doesn’t have all the features that Ansys got which is fine since Ansys is quite an expensive software compared to Blender.
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
The biggest advantage of Blender over these alternatives was how easy it was to learn, even for team members with no previous experience in 3D modeling, design, or any artistic field. The fact that it allows you to import or export files in most of the existing 3D model extensions was also a huge plus.
Salomi Rai | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Every software has its own use. Despite being similar software, we use every software for different purposes. Personally, I use Blender for modeling and sculpting, Maya for animation, substance painter for texturing, and so on. So, my advice for you is that you should explore every software for different features and use which makes you comfortable.
Aniket Kumar Chaudhary | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized

To date, Maya has been and is the undisputed leader in the sector. Despite being at such a high price, there is really no substitute for Maya's quality. Therefore, the use of Maya is prevalent. If you wanted to enter the animation market, there is no other option but to learn how to use Maya professionally.

Blender is open-source (totally free), while Maya costs around $ 1500 per year (yes, per year). Although it is also true that Maya has a free license for students. But if you want to do professional work (charging for it), or have it installed in a company or studio, then the license has to be paid.

Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
  • Adobe Animate (formerly Flash)
Adobe Animate doesn't do half of the things that Blender can. Blender is an all-around better program in the fact that it can 3D model, sculpt, and animate in real-time. Blender is also completely free and has tons of free resources available to everyone. I highly recommend blender or Adobe 3D products.
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