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Maps · head to head

Agisoft Metashape vs Potree

Agisoft Metashape logo

Agisoft Metashape

Maps

Desktop photogrammetry that turns photographs into point clouds, meshes, orthomosaics and DEMs

From
$179/one-time
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Potree logo

Potree

Maps

Open source WebGL viewer for publishing very large point clouds in a browser

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Potree has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Agisoft Metashape processing is entirely local, so throughput is a function of your workstation, and a large project on modest hardware can take days where a cloud service would return results overnight.; Potree there is no vendor, no support contract and no service level, so anything you build on Potree is your organisation’s responsibility to maintain when a browser update breaks rendering.
  • They diverge on capability: Agisoft Metashape covers Structure-from-motion alignment, Potree covers Octree streaming.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Agisoft Metashape and Potree actually diverge.

Attributes where Agisoft Metashape and Potree differ
AttributeAgisoft MetashapePotree
Starting price$179/one-timeFree
Pricing modelOne-time purchaseOpen source, no licence fee
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWindows, macOS, LinuxWeb, Windows, macOS, Linux

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Maps).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Agisoft Metashape

  • Structure-from-motion alignment
  • Dense point cloud generation
  • Mesh and texture
  • Orthomosaic and DEM
  • Ground control points
  • Point cloud classification
  • Multispectral processing
  • Python and Java scripting

Only in Potree

  • Octree streaming
  • Large dataset rendering
  • Measurement tools
  • Clipping and profiles
  • Annotations
  • Attribute colouring
  • PotreeDesktop
  • Self-hosting

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Agisoft Metashape

  • A survey or engineering firm processing high volumes of drone imagery that wants unlimited local processing instead of per-hectare cloud creditsnot Potree
  • A quarry or mine measuring stockpile volumes monthly, where the same flight is reprocessed repeatedly and cloud pricing by area is punitivenot Potree
  • An archaeology or heritage team documenting sites on a capital grant with no recurring software budget to renew a subscriptionnot Potree
  • A VFX or games studio scanning props and environments, where Standard at $179 covers the whole requirement because georeferencing is irrelevantnot Potree

Potree

  • A drone survey firm delivering a point cloud to a client who has no desktop software, by publishing a browser viewer link instead of a 40 GB LAZ filenot Agisoft Metashape
  • A heritage or archaeology project publishing a scanned site for public access without paying per-gigabyte hosting to a commercial platformnot Agisoft Metashape
  • An engineering consultancy embedding a point cloud viewer inside its own client portal without licensing a commercial web viewernot Agisoft Metashape
  • A university or research group that needs measurement and profiling in a shareable viewer for a dataset too large to emailnot Agisoft Metashape

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Agisoft Metashape

  • Processing is entirely local, so throughput is a function of your workstation, and a large project on modest hardware can take days where a cloud service would return results overnight.
  • The vendor is a Russian company, and since 2022 payment is restricted to wire transfer, ACH and SEPA direct debit with no card payment, which some corporate and government procurement departments simply cannot process.
  • There is no collaboration layer: no shared projects, no web viewer, no permissions. Sharing results means sending files, which is a real limitation on multi-office teams.
  • Support is thin compared with commercial drone platforms, and the software assumes photogrammetric competence; users who do not understand overlap, ground control and residuals produce confidently wrong models.
  • A node-locked licence is tied to a machine, and moving it or covering a second workstation means either a reseller-quoted floating licence or buying twice, which erodes the cost advantage for teams rather than individuals.

Potree

  • There is no vendor, no support contract and no service level, so anything you build on Potree is your organisation’s responsibility to maintain when a browser update breaks rendering.
  • Conversion is a separate manual step with PotreeConverter, and building an automated publishing pipeline around it is engineering work the project does not provide.
  • Rendering quality and performance depend on the client machine and WebGL support, so a client on a locked-down corporate laptop with poor graphics may see a viewer that stutters or fails outright.
  • A WebGPU rewrite, Potree-Next, is in progress and is not a drop-in upgrade, so current integrations face an eventual migration with no vendor to manage it.
  • There is no access control, user management or audit layer; anyone with the URL sees the data unless you build authentication around the static files yourself, which is a real problem for confidential sites.

Pricing, plan by plan

Agisoft Metashape

$179/one-time
  • Standard$179/one-time
    • Photogrammetric alignment, dense cloud, mesh and texture
    • No georeferencing or coordinate systems
    • No ground control points
  • Professional$3499/one-time
    • Everything in Standard
    • Georeferencing, coordinate systems and ground control points
    • Orthomosaic, DEM and point cloud classification
  • Floating licence$undefined/one-time
    • Shared across machines rather than node-locked
    • Sold through authorised resellers only
    • Quoted rather than listed

Potree

Free
  • PotreeFree
    • BSD-style open source licence
    • Unlimited datasets and viewers
    • Self-hosted on any static web server

Which should you pick?

Choose Agisoft Metashape if

  • You need structure-from-motion alignment.
  • You work on Windows, macOS, Linux.
  • You also want dense point cloud generation.
Agisoft Metashape review

Choose Potree if

  • You need octree streaming.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Windows, macOS, Linux.
  • You also want large dataset rendering.
Potree review

Questions people ask

Is Agisoft Metashape or Potree better?
Neither clearly leads. Agisoft Metashape starts at $179/one-time and Potree at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Agisoft Metashape or Potree?
Potree has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $179/one-time for Agisoft Metashape and Free for Potree.
Does Agisoft Metashape or Potree run on more platforms?
Agisoft Metashape runs on Windows, macOS, Linux. Potree runs on Web, Windows, macOS, Linux.
Can I use Potree for free?
Yes. Potree has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Agisoft Metashape starts at $179/one-time.
What is Agisoft Metashape best used for?
Agisoft Metashape is most often used for a survey or engineering firm processing high volumes of drone imagery that wants unlimited local processing instead of per-hectare cloud credits, a quarry or mine measuring stockpile volumes monthly, where the same flight is reprocessed repeatedly and cloud pricing by area is punitive, an archaeology or heritage team documenting sites on a capital grant with no recurring software budget to renew a subscription, a vfx or games studio scanning props and environments, where standard at $179 covers the whole requirement because georeferencing is irrelevant. Of those, a survey or engineering firm processing high volumes of drone imagery that wants unlimited local processing instead of per-hectare cloud credits and a quarry or mine measuring stockpile volumes monthly, where the same flight is reprocessed repeatedly and cloud pricing by area is punitive are not what Potree is typically brought in for.
What can Agisoft Metashape do that Potree cannot?
Agisoft Metashape covers Structure-from-motion alignment, Dense point cloud generation, Mesh and texture, Orthomosaic and DEM. Potree covers Octree streaming, Large dataset rendering, Measurement tools, Clipping and profiles.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Agisoft Metashape: How much does Metashape cost?

Professional is $3,499 and Standard is $179, both node-locked. Floating licences are quoted through resellers.

Potree: Does Potree cost anything?

No. It is open source and free. You supply the hosting, which for a static viewer is inexpensive.

Agisoft Metashape: Is it a subscription?

No. These are perpetual node-locked licences. Major version upgrades are charged separately.

Potree: Is there commercial support?

No. There is no vendor and no support contract. Support is GitHub issues and the community.

Agisoft Metashape: What is the difference between Standard and Professional?

Standard has no georeferencing, coordinate systems, ground control points, orthomosaic export or scripting. Anything survey or mapping related requires Professional.

Potree: Who maintains it?

It originated at TU Wien and is maintained principally by Markus Schütz, with community contributions.

Agisoft Metashape: Does it process in the cloud?

No. All processing is local on your own hardware, which is the main reason it is cheap at volume and slow on weak machines.

Potree: Can it handle very large clouds?

Yes, hundreds of millions of points, because PotreeConverter builds a multi-resolution octree that streams only what is visible.

Agisoft Metashape: Are there educational licences?

Yes, Agisoft offers reduced academic pricing on a separate page.

Potree: Is my data private?

Only if you make it so. Potree serves static files with no built-in authentication, so access control is entirely your responsibility.

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