Comparison

Cadmio vs ZBrush

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Cadmio

Easily create interactive 3D presentations of your product designs. Import common CAD file formats and utilize a library of materials and environments. Share your visualizations with clients who don't need specialized software to review them.

Highlights
  • Import .STEP, .STL, .OBJ files
  • Customizable material and environment presets
  • Interactive 3D presentation editing
  • AR view
  • Shareable proprietary file format
  • Automatic turntable animation
Features
Read full description

CAD visualization has never been easier! Create interactive 3D presentations of your designs, and get your clients round. Use Cadmio’s curated material and environment presets, our presentation editing tools, and improve the ideation process even without prior computer graphics experience. Download Cadmio and get access to all FEATURES including: - .STEP, .STL, or .OBJ import from any CAD app. - Constantly growing Catalog of customizable material and environment presets. - Compact proprietary file format which is easy to share and store locally. - Various editing tools to customize the transform parameters of your CAD file. - Object hierarchy panel. - Multiple selection modes to speed up the preparation process. - Different render modes, units, and dimensions overlay for model evaluation. - Stored camera views and automatic turntable animation. - Projected decal rendering. - AR view. - Share functions. We offer a FREE TRIAL with unrestricted access to all materials, environments, and presentation editing tools. Prepare interactive 3D presentations on your iPad, and review them on your iPad or iPhone. Send iterations of the design to your client or supervisor, so they don’t need any modelling software to inspect the 3D model. Reviewing .cadmio files doesn’t require a subscription, and the Cadmio Viewer for the iPhone is also available for free. You can find more information about how to GET STARTED with Cadmio on our website: https://www.cadmio.io/getting-started SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS We recommend using iPad Pro with 4+ GB RAM (4th and 5th generation). On devices with less than 4 GB memory (for example the 8th generation iPad) certain environments are disabled. Cadmio supports the .STEP, .STL, and .OBJ file formats for importing CAD models. GET IN TOUCH Feel free to contact us with any questions or feedback at hello@cadmio.io. Follow us on Instagram (@cadmioapp) for more CAD visualization content and updates. SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION Opening and viewing existing presentations are FREE. Creating and editing presentations requires a subscription. You can choose a monthly or yearly option, each comes with a free trial. After confirmation, payment will be charged to your iTunes Account at the end of the trial. The subscription will automatically renew unless you turn off auto-renew in the iTunes Account Settings at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. You can cancel at any time and enjoy all subscription benefits during the remaining period. PRIVACY AND TERMS OF USE https://www.cadmio.io/privacy https://www.cadmio.io/terms

About

ZBrush

Create professional 3D models and digital sculptures on your iPad. This app offers advanced sculpting, painting, and modeling tools with desktop-quality performance, ideal for artists on the go. Seamlessly integrate with desktop workflows for a complete creative experience.

Highlights
  • Pressure-sensitive sculpting with Apple Pencil
  • 200+ digital sculpting brushes
  • Advanced 3D modeling tools
  • Seamless desktop-iPad workflow
  • High-resolution polygon support
  • 3D painting without UV setup
Read full description

ZBrush for iPad. Create stunning 3D models, digital sculptures, concept art, and detailed characters with ZBrush for iPad—the award-winning, industry-leading digital sculpting app trusted by professional artists across film, AAA games, collectibles, toy design, jewelry, illustration, and 3D design. ZBrush for iPad brings unrivaled desktop-grade digital sculpting and 3D painting power into an intuitive, touch-first mobile environment optimized for Apple Pencil. Take complete creative freedom on the go with high-poly mesh density, proprietary digital clay brushes, procedural detailing, and seamless cross-platform interoperability. Subscribers to Maxon One or ZBrush desktop can download the iPad app and sign in to activate full access instantly. A comprehensive free tier is also available to start sculpting immediately. NEW FOR IPAD • Spotlight Integration: Seamlessly load reference images directly onto the canvas, apply projection painting and texture mapping across complex mesh surfaces, and extract custom 3D geometry from 2D source imagery. • 3D Layers: Store high-resolution sculpting details, PolyPaint color channels, and masking non-destructively. Effortlessly toggle layer visibility, blend sculpt deformations, and refine feature intensity with precise slider controls. CORE SCULPTING & MODELING FEATURES • 200+ Sculpting Brushes: Pressure-sensitive digital brushes engineered for Apple Pencil and Apple Pencil Pro, supporting squeeze, roll, hover, double-tap gestures, and haptic feedback. • Sculptris Pro & Dynamic Tessellation: Add local mesh detail on the fly without manual topology management. • DynaMesh Digital Clay: Re-topologize mesh density evenly during early concept exploration. • ZRemesher: Industry-standard automatic retopology for clean, optimized edge flow. • Live Boolean: Non-destructive real-time union, subtraction, and intersection modeling. • PolyPaint: High-resolution 3D painting directly on vertex geometry without preliminary UV unwrapping. • Advanced Detailing: VDM Brushes, Surface Noise, Retopo Brush, Subdivision Modeling, NanoMesh, and ArrayMesh. DESKTOP INTEROPERABILITY & EXPORT • One-Click GoZ: Seamless transfer of ZTool and ZProject files between iPad and desktop ZBrush. • 3D Print Hub: Direct export for additive manufacturing and 3D printing workflows. HIGH-PERFORMANCE HARDWARE OPTIMIZATION Handles up to 90+ million polygons per mesh on M4 iPad hardware. Optimized for multi-touch gestures, custom hotkey bars, rapid undo/redo touch shortcuts, and real-world photogrammetry base mesh imports for high-end digital asset creation. TARGET CREATIVE USE CASES 1. Game Developers: Hero character modeling, creature design, and environment asset creation. 2. Collectibles & Toy Designers: High-detail prototyping and precise 3D print preparation. 3. Film & VFX Artists: Production-grade concept sculpting and digital asset creation. 4. Industrial & Jewelry Designers: Precision organic detailing for consumer products, apparel, and hardware. 5. 2D Illustrators & Concept Artists: Fast 3D block-outs and visual design expansion. LANGUAGE SUPPORT English, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, Spanish, German, French, and Portuguese (BR).

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is monetization model: ZBrush at freemium against Cadmio's subscription. ZBrush also leads on review sentiment (85% vs 61%) and ratings volume (255 vs 34). Cadmio's advantage is iOS requirement (15.6 vs 17.0). On price, rating, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Cadmio sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $10.99 per month and ZBrush sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.2 for Cadmio against 4.1 for ZBrush. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ZBrush has 255 ratings behind it against 34, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 61% of Cadmio's written reviews are positive against 85% of ZBrush's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 19, 2026 and October 21, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
Cadmio versus ZBrush: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCadmioZBrush
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.2 (34 ratings) — better4.1 (255 ratings)
Positive reviews60.7% of reviews85.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings34255 — better
Update frequencyMonthlyMonthly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationSubscriptionFreemium — better
DevicesiPadiPad
Requires iOS15.6 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size1.5 GB1.1 GB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperCADMIO Kft.MAXON Computer GmbH

Customer experience

Cadmio

All ratings34 ratings
Positive79.4%
Neutral5.9%
Negative14.7%
Written reviews28 reviews
Positive60.7%
Neutral10.7%
Negative28.6%

ZBrush

All ratings254 ratings
Positive77.6%
Neutral4.3%
Negative18.1%
Written reviews20 reviews
Positive85.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative15.0%

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Cadmio

Subscriptions2
  • Cadmio Monthly Subscription7 Days trial$10.991 Month
  • Cadmio Annual Subscription7 Days trial$99.991 Year
2 purchases

ZBrush

Subscriptions2
  • ZBrush Monthly$9.991 Month
  • ZBrush Annual$89.991 Year

Questions

Is Cadmio free?
Cadmio is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is ZBrush free?
ZBrush is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Cadmio or ZBrush?
Cadmio is rated higher. Cadmio averages 4.2 out of 5 from 34 ratings, while ZBrush averages 4.1 from 255 ratings.
Do Cadmio or ZBrush have ads?
Neither Cadmio nor ZBrush shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Cadmio or ZBrush?
Cadmio ships an update monthly, and ZBrush monthly. Most recently, Cadmio was updated on October 19, 2026 and ZBrush on October 21, 2026.

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