Comparison

VRoid Studio vs ZBrush

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

Head to head
About

VRoid Studio

Create unique 3D humanoid avatars with an intuitive and adaptable application. Easily customize body shapes, outfits, and fine details using preset items or the pen tool. Express your originality and share your creations with a supportive community.

Highlights
  • Intuitive 3D avatar creation
  • Extensive body and outfit customization
  • Pen tool for detailed texture design
  • Real-time 3D preview
  • Customizable hair physics
  • Freely set usage terms for creations
  • Upload to VRoid Hub for community sharing
Features
Read full description

3D Modeling, for Everyone! VRoid Studio is an application to create 3D models of humanoid avatars (characters).Create original characters on this intuitive and highly adaptable application. Easy to use for everyone! ■Easy for Beginners too You can start creating right after download; with many ready-to-use preset items, you won’t need to create anything from scratch. You just need to pick items you like and adjust their parameters! ■Customize Your Model’s Body However You Like Face features, body shape, outfits — everything is customizable in infinite ways. Even first-time users can fully enjoy the application by picking preset items and playing around with the parameters’ sliders. ■Express Yourself this application also gives you total freedom to express your originality, customizing minor features down to the finest detail. ■Design Textures with the Pen Tool The texture editor supports stylus pens such as Apple pencils and is pressure-sensitive. You can also divide your design into more layers! Draw directly on the 3D model, or on the UV texture to see your creation display in real-time on the 3D preview. ■As easy as drawing on paper Create new chunks of hair with a single stroke, and later edit them to your liking through the parameters. Hair is customizable in infinite ways, and you can set hair bounce individually for each hair chunk. ■Your models are yours to use freely You can set your own terms of use for the data of every model, texture, item, etc you create on VRoid Studio, specifying if you give permission for commercial use, credits, etc. ■Create, Connect, Expand You can upload models you created to VRoid Hub, letting the community view them and send their appreciation. Characters uploaded to VRoid Hub can also be called up in various integrated games and platforms! - When using the data for models created by pixiv or third parties, please be sure to follow the terms of use and licensing conditions. - Supported environments and devices may change in future updates. - This information is current as of Aug 31, 2023. - Operation is not guaranteed on all devices.

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 rating: ZBrush at 4.1 against VRoid Studio's 3.5. ZBrush also leads on ads (none vs shown) and review sentiment (85% vs 51%). On price, ratings volume, update cadence 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. VRoid Studio sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 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

ZBrush holds the better App Store score, 4.1 against 3.5. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 231 and 255 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 51% of VRoid Studio'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 20, 2026 and October 21, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
VRoid Studio versus ZBrush: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterVRoid StudioZBrush
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.5 (231 ratings)4.1 (255 ratings) — better
Positive reviews50.6% of reviews85.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings231255 — better
Update frequencyMonthlyMonthly
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFreemium
DevicesiPadiPad
Requires iOS17.017.0
Further details — not scored
Size1.1 GB1.1 GB
Age rating12+4+
Developerpixiv Inc.MAXON Computer GmbH

Customer experience

VRoid Studio

All ratings219 ratings
Positive56.2%
Neutral17.8%
Negative26.0%
Written reviews162 reviews
Positive50.6%
Neutral19.1%
Negative30.2%

ZBrush

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

Bugs and requests

VRoid Studio

Reported bugs

5 issues
  • Crashes when editing clothing textures
  • Crashes when trying to export models
  • Laggy performance, especially on older iPads
  • Loses progress when the app crashes
  • Unreliable, unstable app

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add more clothing options and accessories
  • Improve texture editing capabilities
  • Add face tracking and motion tracking features
  • Allow posing multiple characters together
  • Improve auto-save functionality to prevent data loss

ZBrush

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

3 purchases

VRoid Studio

Subscriptions3
  • VRoid Plus$4.991 Month
  • VRoid Plus$13.493 Months
  • VRoid Plus$24.996 Months
2 purchases

ZBrush

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

Questions

Is VRoid Studio free?
VRoid Studio 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, VRoid Studio or ZBrush?
ZBrush is rated higher. VRoid Studio averages 3.5 out of 5 from 231 ratings, while ZBrush averages 4.1 from 255 ratings.
Do VRoid Studio or ZBrush have ads?
VRoid Studio shows ads; ZBrush does not.
Which is updated more often, VRoid Studio or ZBrush?
VRoid Studio ships an update monthly, and ZBrush monthly. Most recently, VRoid Studio was updated on October 20, 2026 and ZBrush on October 21, 2026.

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