Alternatives to LightWave 3D
Commercial 3D modelling, animation, visual effects and rendering suite for Windows and Mac. The listings below can replace it for an important use case. Each note says what changes if you switch.
The original
LightWave 3D
Commercial 3D modelling, animation, visual effects and rendering suite for Windows and Mac.
Replacements
Listings that take over the same core job as LightWave 3D.
Blender
The free 3D creation suite: modelling, sculpting, rigging, animation, simulation, rendering, compositing and video editing.
Blender is free and open source on Windows, macOS and Linux, covering modelling, animation, simulation and rendering with Cycles and Eevee plus a large add-on ecosystem.
Maya
Industry-standard 3D modeling and animation suite for film, TV and games.
Maya adds Linux support and broad studio adoption for modeling, animation and effects, but with expensive subscription pricing and a steep learning curve.
Autodesk 3ds Max
Professional 3D modelling, animation and rendering software for Windows from Autodesk.
Autodesk 3ds Max offers modelling, animation and rendering long established in games and visualisation, but it runs only on Windows and is expensive for individuals.
Cinema 4D
Motion-graphics-friendly 3D animation and modeling application.
Cinema 4D is a subscription-based Windows and Mac application for modeling and animation, particularly strong for motion graphics and integrated with Adobe creative tools.
Houdini Apprentice
Free non-commercial version of Houdini for procedural VFX and simulation.
Houdini Apprentice is free on Windows, macOS and Linux with nearly the full Houdini FX feature set, but it is non-commercial only and files are typically watermarked.
Bforartists
A fork of Blender with a reworked, more discoverable graphical interface.
Bforartists is a free, open-source fork of Blender with a reworked, more discoverable interface, compatible with Blender files and add-ons.
Similar software
Related functionality, not a direct replacement.
ZBrush
Sculpt detailed digital models using brush-based tools.
V-Ray
A photorealistic rendering plugin for 3ds Max, SketchUp, Rhino, Revit, Blender and others.
LuxCoreRender
An open-source physically based renderer for producing realistic images of 3D scenes.
Adobe Substance 3D Painter
A commercial 3D painting application for applying textures, materials and masks to 3D models in real time.
Marmoset Toolbag
All-in-one 3D application for texture baking, texturing, painting and real-time rendering.
Wings 3D
Subdivision surface modeller with a context-sensitive interface.
