Wax vs MapBake
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Wax
Create 3D models, characters, and scenes on your mobile device. Sculpt, paint, and animate your creations with intuitive tools and modifiers. Save and share your projects in editable formats.
- 3D modeling with vertex, edge, and face editing
- Sculpting and painting tools with symmetry
- Keyframe animation with timeline and curve editor
- Editable project files for cross-device work
- Import OBJ and GLB/glTF models
- Export to OBJ, STL, PNG, MP4, GLB, and USDZ
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Make 3D props, characters and scenes on iPhone and iPad. Start with a shape, import a model, or open one of five editable examples. MODEL Edit vertices, edges and faces. Extrude faces, inset details, bevel edges and add loop cuts. Mirror, Subdivision Surface, Array and Smooth modifiers stay editable. SCULPT AND PAINT Push, pull and smooth a mesh with brushes, symmetry and masks. Paint colors onto the mesh, add image textures, and place reference images in your scene. Apple Pencil pressure can control brush size and strength. ANIMATE Keyframe position, rotation and scale. Adjust timing on the timeline and motion in the curve editor. Add cameras to frame your scene. KEEP YOUR PROJECT EDITABLE Save and share .waxproject files with the full scene, including materials, textures, modifiers and animation. Open them on another device to keep working. Older .wax projects still open, and importing a project creates a separate copy. Import OBJ and self-contained GLB or glTF models. GLB/glTF files must contain their own mesh data and textures; separate buffer and image files are not supported. Model import does not bring in animation. Use Wax project files to transfer an editable Wax scene. FREE TO USE Modeling, sculpting, painting, animation, modifiers, model import and unlimited projects are free. Export editable Wax projects, OBJ, STL, SDS and PNG images without buying Pro. WAX PRO • Combine shapes, cut holes and find intersections with booleans. • Rebuild a mesh for sculpting with voxel remesh. • Export animations and turntables as MP4 videos. • Export GLB files with materials and animation for use in other 3D apps, games and the web. • Export USDZ files to view your models in AR. Wax Pro is a one-time purchase with Family Sharing. No subscription. LEARN BY EDITING Open a robot, spacecraft, painted creature, speaker or animated example and change it yourself. A guided tour, gesture help, keyboard shortcuts and a left-handed layout are included. No account is required. Projects are stored on your device and are available in Files.
MapBake
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Turn images into practical, game-ready PBR material starting points directly on iPhone and iPad. MapBake prepares a source image, makes it tileable, estimates a complete material set, previews the result in 3D, and exports the conventions your target engine expects. IMPORT AND PREPARE • Import from Photos, Files, Camera, Clipboard, or drag and drop on iPad • Crop, rotate, flip, correct perspective, and normalize uneven lighting • Keep the original source intact while you experiment MAKE IT SEAMLESS • Create a horizontally and vertically tileable texture offline • The tile is rebuilt from patches of your photo, joined along cuts that follow real detail, so joins stay invisible and nothing is mirrored • One control trades keeping your source's structure against mixing it more freely • Inspect any map at 1×1, 2×2, 3×3, or 4×4 with zoom and pan GENERATE A COMPLETE PBR SET • Base Color, Height, tangent-space Normal, Roughness, Metallic, and Ambient Occlusion • Useful deterministic estimates designed to be adjusted—not false claims of recovering perfect physical properties from one photo • Fast working previews with full-resolution recomputation when you export PREVIEW THE MATERIAL • Physically based RealityKit preview on a plane, sphere, cube, or rounded cube • Neutral, soft, outdoor, overcast, warm, high-contrast, and dark studio lighting • A directional key light you can sweep and lower to rake across the surface, so relief in the height and normal maps actually reads • Inspect scale, tiling, reflections, normal response, roughness, and metallic behavior EXPORT FOR YOUR TOOLS • Unity Built-in, URP, HDRP, Unreal Engine, Godot, Blender, OpenGL, and DirectX profiles • Automatic normal Y conversion, roughness/smoothness conversion, and standard packed maps • PNG output at 256, 512, and 1024 in the free app • MapBake Pro is a one-time purchase that removes ads and adds 2K/4K export, custom RGBA packing, and saved custom presets No account is required. Source images and generated materials are processed on-device and stay local unless you explicitly export or share them.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: MapBake at none against Wax's 1. Wax's advantage is ads (none vs shown). On price, device support and iOS requirement 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. Wax sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. MapBake asks for nothing beyond the download.
| Parameter | Wax | MapBake |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better | — |
| Number of ratings | 1 — better | — |
| Ads | No — better | Yes |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 | 18.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 5 MB | 8 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | John Haas | White Bread Games |
In-app purchases
Wax
- Wax Pro$14.99
MapBake
No in-app purchases









