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CAD · head to head

Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler vs Correlator3D

Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler logo

Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler

CAD

Photogrammetry engine formerly sold as ContextCapture, now inside Bentley's iTwin line

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Correlator3D logo

Correlator3D

Maps

SimActive photogrammetry with a published price list and a perpetual licence still on sale

From
$295/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler the rename from ContextCapture is more than cosmetic: licensing moved into Bentley's subscription and consumption model, and existing perpetual users should confirm what a renewal converts to before assuming continuity of cost.; Correlator3D the standard licence caps at 61 megapixel sensors, so an operator moving to a medium or large format camera has to buy a different and separately quoted licence rather than paying an upgrade fee.
  • They diverge on capability: Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler covers Dense mesh reconstruction, Correlator3D covers DSM and DTM generation.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler and Correlator3D actually diverge.

Attributes where Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler and Correlator3D differ
AttributeBentley iTwin Capture ModelerCorrelator3D
Starting priceOn request$295/month
Pricing modelquoteOne-time purchase
PlatformsWindows, CloudWindows
CategoryCADMaps

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler

  • Dense mesh reconstruction
  • Point cloud fusion
  • Orthophoto and DSM output
  • 3D Tiles and 3MX export
  • Distributed processing
  • Retouching and editing
  • Georeferencing and control

Only in Correlator3D

  • DSM and DTM generation
  • Orthomosaic production
  • Point cloud and 3D mesh output
  • Feature extraction
  • GPU acceleration
  • Satellite imagery support
  • Batch and unattended processing

Both cover

  • Aerial triangulation

What people use each for

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

Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler

  • A highway authority reconstructing a corridor from drone imagery for design work in OpenRoadsnot Correlator3D
  • A survey firm delivering city-scale textured meshes to a municipal client for planning and visualisationnot Correlator3D
  • An engineering consultancy fusing terrestrial laser scans with drone photography of a bridge for condition assessmentnot Correlator3D
  • A team publishing streamable 3D Tiles of a construction site so stakeholders can view it in a browsernot Correlator3D

Correlator3D

  • An aerial survey company processing large photographic blocks where per-project cloud credits would be more expensive than owning a licencenot Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler
  • A national or regional mapping agency that needs software it can run offline on classified or restricted imagerynot Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler
  • A drone service provider producing bare-earth terrain models for volumetrics and corridor mapping at high throughputnot Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler
  • An organisation that wants a perpetual licence because a multi-year subscription cannot be justified against its capital budgeting rulesnot Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler

Where each one falls short

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

Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler

  • The rename from ContextCapture is more than cosmetic: licensing moved into Bentley's subscription and consumption model, and existing perpetual users should confirm what a renewal converts to before assuming continuity of cost.
  • Consumption-based entitlements make the cost of a large reconstruction hard to predict in advance, which is awkward when you are quoting a fixed-price deliverable to a client.
  • The desktop engine is Windows only and reconstruction is compute-hungry, so meaningful throughput needs either serious workstation hardware or paid cloud processing.
  • Bentley does not publish a plain rate card and pricing varies by region, reseller and existing agreement, so two firms buying the same thing can pay very different amounts.
  • Value compounds inside the Bentley ecosystem, and a firm whose design work happens in Autodesk or Esri tools pays for a positioning it will not use while getting the same mesh a cheaper standalone photogrammetry package would produce.

Correlator3D

  • The standard licence caps at 61 megapixel sensors, so an operator moving to a medium or large format camera has to buy a different and separately quoted licence rather than paying an upgrade fee.
  • It is Windows desktop only with no cloud processing option, so throughput is bounded by the workstation and GPU you buy, and there is no way to burst capacity for one large job.
  • There is no collaboration layer, client portal or field application, so deliverable sharing, review and version control all have to be handled by other software.
  • The interface and workflow are built for photogrammetry specialists; an occasional drone operator will find the learning curve steeper than a consumer-oriented mapping package.
  • The perpetual licence includes only one year of support and updates, and staying current afterwards means paying maintenance, so the headline $5,900 is not the whole long-term cost.

Pricing, plan by plan

Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler

On request
  • iTwin Capture Modeler$undefined/year
    • Subscription entitlement through Bentley licensing
    • Consumption charged against Bentley Keys on some agreements
    • Reality Modeling WorkSuite bundles Modeler with reality data management

Correlator3D

$295/month
  • Monthly subscription$295/month
    • Unlimited images
    • Sensors up to 61 megapixels
    • All modules and tools
  • Yearly subscription$2950/year
    • Unlimited images
    • Sensors up to 61 megapixels
    • All modules and tools
  • Permanent licence$5900/one-time
    • Perpetual licence
    • Unlimited images up to 61 megapixels
    • All modules and tools
  • Permanent floating licence$6400/one-time
    • Perpetual floating licence shared across machines
    • Unlimited images up to 61 megapixels
    • One year of support and updates included

Which should you pick?

Choose Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler if

  • You need dense mesh reconstruction.
  • You work on Windows, Cloud.
  • You also want point cloud fusion.
Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler review

Choose Correlator3D if

  • You need dsm and dtm generation.
  • You work on Windows.
  • You also want orthomosaic production.
Correlator3D review

Questions people ask

Is Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler or Correlator3D better?
Neither clearly leads. Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler starts at On request and Correlator3D at $295/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler or Correlator3D?
Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler starts at On request and Correlator3D at $295/month.
Does Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler or Correlator3D run on more platforms?
Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler runs on Windows, Cloud. Correlator3D runs on Windows.
What is Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler best used for?
Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler is most often used for a highway authority reconstructing a corridor from drone imagery for design work in openroads, a survey firm delivering city-scale textured meshes to a municipal client for planning and visualisation, an engineering consultancy fusing terrestrial laser scans with drone photography of a bridge for condition assessment, a team publishing streamable 3d tiles of a construction site so stakeholders can view it in a browser. Of those, a highway authority reconstructing a corridor from drone imagery for design work in openroads and a survey firm delivering city-scale textured meshes to a municipal client for planning and visualisation are not what Correlator3D is typically brought in for.
What can Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler do that Correlator3D cannot?
Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler covers Dense mesh reconstruction, Point cloud fusion, Orthophoto and DSM output, 3D Tiles and 3MX export. Correlator3D covers DSM and DTM generation, Orthomosaic production, Point cloud and 3D mesh output, Feature extraction. Both handle Aerial triangulation.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler: Is ContextCapture discontinued?

The name is. The product continues as iTwin Capture Modeler within Bentley's iTwin family.

Correlator3D: Can I still buy a perpetual licence?

Yes. $5,900 for a permanent licence and $6,400 for a permanent floating licence, each including a year of support and updates.

Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler: Does it still support a perpetual licence?

New buyers should expect subscription or consumption-based entitlements. Confirm the exact conversion path if you hold an older perpetual licence.

Correlator3D: What limits the standard licence?

Sensor resolution, up to 61 megapixels. Medium format, large format and satellite imagery need separately priced licences.

Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler: Can it process laser scan data as well as photographs?

Yes. It fuses point clouds with imagery in a single reconstruction.

Correlator3D: Is there a cloud version?

No. Processing runs on your own Windows workstation. SimActive offers a data processing service as an alternative to buying the software.

Bentley iTwin Capture Modeler: Do I need other Bentley software to use it?

No, output formats are usable elsewhere, but the commercial and workflow case is strongest if you already run MicroStation or OpenRoads.

Correlator3D: Does it handle satellite imagery?

Yes, under a separate satellite licence class quoted on request.

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