Forma3D vs PuppetPad
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Forma3D
Create and edit 3D models directly on your iPhone or iPad. Prepare designs for 3D printing with precise tools and export to common formats. Ideal for beginners and experienced users alike.
- Create primitive 3D shapes
- Precise transformation controls
- Boolean operations (union, subtract)
- Mesh editing (vertices, edges, faces)
- STL and 3MF import/export
- Beginner-friendly interface
- X-Ray mode for transparency
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Forma3D is a professional 3D mesh editor for iPad and iPhone — built for makers, 3D printing enthusiasts, and anyone who needs to fix or modify 3D models on the go. No laptop. No cloud. Everything runs locally on your device, offline, with desktop-grade mesh editing capabilities. ▸ FACE PAINT & MULTI-FILAMENT 3MF EXPORT Paint individual faces with different colors directly in the editor, then export a 3MF file with per-face color data ready for multi-filament 3D printing. Bambu Studio and Creality Print automatically assign filaments based on the embedded paint codes — no manual slicer setup needed. This is a desktop-only feature in slicer software, now available on mobile exclusively in Forma3D. ▸ MESH EDITING AT YOUR FINGERTIPS Switch between Object Mode and Edit Mode. Select and edit individual vertices, edges, and faces with precision. Use Single, Rectangle, Oval, or Brush selection tools with Multi-select support. Move, rotate, and scale with an interactive transform gizmo or numeric input. ▸ PROFESSIONAL MODELING TOOLS • Extrude — push faces in or out with live preview and direction toggle • Inset — shrink or grow faces inward with adjustable depth • Bevel — round edges with custom segments and profile control (desktop-grade bevel algorithm) • Boolean Operations — Union and Subtract using Manifold CSG library • Manifold Cut — slice meshes with Line, Circle, Ellipse, Rectangle, Polygon, or Freehand shapes • Mirror — symmetrically duplicate geometry across X, Y, or Z axis • Revolve — create lathe geometry by rotating a profile • Subdivide — add resolution where you need it • Simplify — reduce polygon count for lighter exports • Remesh — retopologize with uniform quad-dominant mesh • Vertex Sculpting — push and pull vertices with gesture-based brush • 3D Text — add extruded text to your scene • Color — paint all faces of a mesh with a single tap ▸ PRIMITIVES & IMPORT Start from built-in primitives: Cube, Soft Cube, Sphere, Soft Sphere, Cylinder, Torus, Pyramid, Plane, Tube, Bolt, Nut. Import STL and 3MF files. Export to STL, 3MF, or USDZ formats. ▸ 3D SCANNING (LiDAR) Capture real-world objects with your iPhone or iPad LiDAR scanner and edit the resulting mesh directly in the app — scan, fix, and print without switching apps. ▸ PRECISION & MEASUREMENT Ruler tool for measuring distances in millimeters. World grid with 20 mm squares for build-plate reference. Snap-to-grid for accurate positioning. Keyboard hotkeys for fast numeric input (move, rotate, scale by exact values). ▸ VISUALIZATION Orthographic view cube for standard projections (Top, Bottom, Front, Back, Left, Right). X-Ray mode to see through meshes and inspect internal geometry. Wireframe display with Triangles or Quads mode. Custom viewport colors, lighting controls, and world axes toggle. ▸ UNDO / REDO & PROJECTS Full undo/redo history. Save and load projects in native .forma3d format. Duplicate, delete, and organize objects in the scene with an objects list panel. ▸ APPLE PENCIL SUPPORT Hover tooltips with Apple Pencil. Precise vertex dragging and component selection optimized for Pencil input. ▸ MULTILINGUAL Now available in 16 languages: English, Deutsch, Français, 日本語, 简体中文, Español, Italiano, 한국어, Português, Русский, Nederlands, Polski, Türkçe, 繁體中文, Svenska, العربية. Forma3D is built on a custom mesh kernel with Manifold CSG boolean operations and a desktop-grade bevel algorithm — bringing professional 3D editing to your pocket. Whether you're preparing models for 3D printing, fixing scanned meshes, painting faces for multi-filament prints, or creating from scratch, Forma3D gives you the tools to get the job done — anywhere. EULA: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
PuppetPad
Easily animate any image by adding pins to create movement and keyframes. Turn doodles, photos, or drawings into animated GIFs without needing professional animation skills. Ideal for creating unique memes, bringing kids' art to life, or making profile pictures move.
- Import any image (PNG)
- Automatic mesh generation
- Pin-based animation system
- Keyframe creation
- GIF export
- Offline functionality
- Apple Pencil support
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Behind a toy, a powerful animation tool. You stare at one of your drawings and think "I wish this thing would actually move." PuppetPad makes that happen. Plus a few uses you haven't thought of yet. Grab an image. A doodle from Procreate, a photo of your dog, your boss mid yawn, a regrettable selfie. The app opens it, builds an invisible mesh around the figure, and hands you pins. Drag a pin and the figure moves with it. Drag again and it becomes animation. That is the entire workflow. YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE AN ANIMATOR PuppetPad was made for: . People who want memes more elaborate than Photoshop copy and paste . Parents who want their kid's drawing to actually walk . Graphic designers blocked on what to do with their right hand . Anyone who wants to animate someone's profile picture without their consent . Anyone who wants to animate someone's profile picture WITH their consent . Beginning animators who find Live2D and Spine intimidating (rightfully so) . Pro animators who just want a quick iPad rough . You, who opened the App Store out of boredom HOW IT WORKS 1. Import a PNG. The contour mesh is generated automatically. You won't see it. It just works. 2. Tap anywhere to place a pin. Pins are joints. 3. Drag pins to animate. Every move becomes a keyframe by itself. 4. Hit play. 5. Export as GIF. Send to the family group chat. THINGS PEOPLE END UP MAKING . Characters waving arms like they actually exist . Cat photos performing snake dances . Company logos pulsing like an anxious heart . Kid drawings waving goodbye to grandma over FaceTime . Caricatures of questionable taste . Story vignettes . That one meme that needed that one detail to move . Loading animations for your own app project . Character rough drafts before doing the polished work elsewhere WHAT'S INSIDE THE TOY Underneath the playful surface, PuppetPad runs a real animation engine. Alpha aware mesh generation, an ARAP solver for natural deformation, keyframed timeline, multi pin selection, bone rigs with inverse kinematics, mesh density control, undo and redo via multi finger taps. You don't need to know what any of that means to use the app. But the engineer in you might appreciate that it's there. FEATURES . Apple Pencil supported (works with fingers too, if that's how you live) . iPad landscape, full screen, zero clutter . Works offline . No login, no signup, no newsletter . No ads. Ever. . GIF export . Undo and redo (you will need them) PRICE One time purchase. Pay once, it's yours. No monthly subscription, no "pro version" upsell, no paywall popping up when you try to do something useful. Forever yours, the way software used to be. WORK IN PROGRESS PuppetPad is built by one person in the hours that life leaves over. Every bug report and every suggestion turns into a real improvement in a future version. If you want to request a feature, complain about something, send fan art of the app, or just say you liked it: leonardoamoraleite@gmail.com Human reply, in whatever language you write to me in, from the same person who wrote this text. XD Thanks for considering the app. Now go animate something absurd.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Forma3D at every 3 days against PuppetPad's every 2 weeks. Forma3D also leads on monetization model (free with in-app purchases vs paid). On price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume 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. Forma3D sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $6.99 per month and PuppetPad sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Forma3D against 5.0 for PuppetPad. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 5 and 2 respectively. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.
Forma3D ships an update every 3 days, PuppetPad every 2 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 11, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Forma3D | PuppetPad |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (5 ratings) | 5.0 (2 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 5 — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Every 3 days — better | Every 2 weeks |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases — better | Paid |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad — better | iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 17.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 22 MB | 15 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Denis Vazyulya | Leonardo Amora |
Customer experience
Forma3D
PuppetPad
In-app purchases
Forma3D
- Forma3D subscription3 Days trial$6.991 Month
PuppetPad
- 3 Export Tokens$0.99
- 10 Export Tokens$1.99
- 25 Export Tokens$2.99
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- unlimited Exports$9.99








