viewshape vs 3D Viewer by Chief Architect
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
viewshape
A free 3D model viewer for iPhone and iPod touch, allowing you to access, download, and share 3D models. Supports various file formats and offers intuitive navigation with different rendering modes.
- 3D model viewing
- Download models from web
- Share models via email/Facebook
- Support for OBJ, STL, VRML, PLY
- Texture support
- Multiple rendering modes
- Intuitive navigation
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Enjoy our stylish and free 3D viewer designed for iPhone and iPod touch. It lets you have all your 3D models on your mobile device available with a single click as well as download 3D models available on the Internet. You can surf a gallery of real scanned objects as well. You can save models you like in the gallery and share models with your friends, customers and colleagues via email or facebook. You may download models directly from the Web, upload them onto viewshape with iTunes or open them from other applications (such as Mail or Safari). A wide range of 3D file formats are supported. Key Features ========= - Easy and intuitive view navigation - OBJ, STL, VRML and PLY formats support - Support for textures - Many different modes of rendering including solid, wireframe and points - Download models from the web or open them from other applications (i.e. Mail.app) - Built-in gyroscope and accelerometer support - Full screen mode - Share links to models with friends In the Gallery you'll find several models that we have preinstalled for you. Please visit our website www.viewshape.com to get more. We are continuously updating our gallery for you! Enjoy your 3D, Viewshape Team
3D Viewer by Chief Architect
Explore 3D architectural models in virtual reality. Navigate through home designs with intuitive controls, experiencing them before construction. Ideal for professionals to share immersive project previews with clients.
- Virtual reality navigation
- Walk and fly through designs
- Exterior, room, and floor plan views
- Sojourn 3D navigation tools
- Gyro camera for free form viewing
- Background camera control
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3D Viewer – A virtual reality viewer for 3D models exported from Chief Architect software. Visualize and navigate home projects before they are built using the Sojourn 3D virtual reality navigation tools. Walk or Fly through designs and experience exterior, room, cross section, and floor plan views. To view models with 3D Viewer, export the original model with saved cameras from Chief Architect software to the cloud (provided by Chief Architect) and open the model using 3D Viewer. A great service if you are a professional builder/designer and want to share a virtual model with your clients. Sojourn 3D virtual reality navigation: -thumbsticks to move (fly) and rotate -gyro camera for free form viewing -background camera on / off -walk thru allowing you to physically walk -dynamic camera height while in fly mode -manual camera height adjustment
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is review sentiment: viewshape at 83% against 3D Viewer by Chief Architect's 31%. viewshape also leads on iOS requirement (8.1 vs 16.0). 3D Viewer by Chief Architect's advantage is rating (3.7 vs 2.7) and ratings volume (490 vs 3). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
3D Viewer by Chief Architect holds the better App Store score, 3.7 against 2.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: 3D Viewer by Chief Architect has 490 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 83% of viewshape's written reviews are positive against 31% of 3D Viewer by Chief Architect's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.
Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly every 4 months. The most recent releases landed on September 9, 2026 and September 11, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | viewshape | 3D Viewer by Chief Architect |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 2.7 (3 ratings) | 3.7 (490 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 83.3% of reviews — better | 31.1% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 3 | 490 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 4 months | Every 4 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 8.1 — better | 16.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 85 MB | 152 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Artec Group | Chief Architect |
Customer experience
viewshape
3D Viewer by Chief Architect
Bugs and requests
viewshape
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
3D Viewer by Chief Architect
Reported bugs
3 issues- Cannot open zipped files
- Difficult to import models from Dropbox/OneDrive
- VR mode spins around uncontrollably
Requested features
8 requests- Support for OneDrive
- AR in full scale
- Ability to make handwritten/design notes on the model
- Markup and add text comments
- Floor plan view that mimics desktop, control layers, see notes
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- Saved walkthroughs
- 2D plans and 3D model viewing
- Ability to isolate and view single floors
In-app purchases
viewshape
No in-app purchases
3D Viewer by Chief Architect
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is viewshape free?
Is 3D Viewer by Chief Architect free?
Which has better reviews, viewshape or 3D Viewer by Chief Architect?
Do viewshape or 3D Viewer by Chief Architect have ads?
Which is updated more often, viewshape or 3D Viewer by Chief Architect?
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