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CAD · head to head

Mari vs Plasticity

Mari logo

Mari

CAD

3D painting for film and games

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Plasticity logo

Plasticity

CAD

CAD for artists

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Mari has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Mari the full annual licence is $1,289 paid annually, and a short term quarterly rental is $949 per quarter; Plasticity limited plugin ecosystem compared to Rhino; fewer third-party extensions available
  • They diverge on capability: Mari covers High-resolution painting, Plasticity covers Smooth surface modeling.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Mari and Plasticity actually diverge.

Attributes where Mari and Plasticity differ
AttributeMariPlasticity
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelsubscriptionUnknown
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWindows, MacOS, LinuxWindows, macOS, Linux, Ubuntu
Founded19962023

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

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 Mari

  • High-resolution painting
  • UDIM support
  • Procedural layers
  • Baking
  • Node graph
  • Color management
  • Maya
  • Nuke

Only in Plasticity

  • Smooth surface modeling
  • Fillet operations
  • Boolean operations
  • Mesh export
  • Fast workflow
  • Artist-friendly
  • Blender
  • Game engines

Both cover

  • Windows support
  • MacOS support
  • Linux support

What people use each for

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

Mari

  • Painting textures directly onto high complexity 3D assets for film and gamesnot Plasticity
  • Handling very large multi-UDIM texture sets in a look development pipelinenot Plasticity

Plasticity

  • Concept designnot Mari
  • Hard surface modelingnot Mari

Where each one falls short

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

Mari

  • The full annual licence is $1,289 paid annually, and a short term quarterly rental is $949 per quarter
  • The cheap $299 per year or $35 per month subscription is restricted to a single licence for people working alone or in small companies
  • Node-locked and floating are separate licence types you must choose between
  • All listed prices are before applicable taxes
  • A separate non-commercial licence exists, so commercial use requires a paid tier

Plasticity

  • Limited plugin ecosystem compared to Rhino; fewer third-party extensions available
  • Young product with shorter track record; fewer industry case studies and community resources
  • No parametric history tree; may require different workflow for some users accustomed to feature-based modeling
  • Premium pricing for Indie users despite being positioned as affordable alternative

Pricing, plan by plan

Mari

Free
  • Individual Subscription$86/month
    • Solo artists or small companies
    • $689 per year alternative billing
  • Team Subscription$null/year
    • Node-locked or floating licenses
    • Annual payment
  • Team Rental$949/quarter
    • Short-term access
    • Node-locked or floating licenses

Plasticity

On request
  • Indie$149/one-time

Which should you pick?

Choose Mari if

  • You need high-resolution painting.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows, MacOS, Linux.
  • You also want udim support.
Mari review

Choose Plasticity if

  • You need smooth surface modeling.
  • You work on Windows, macOS, Linux, Ubuntu.
  • You also want fillet operations.
Plasticity review

Questions people ask

Is Mari or Plasticity better?
Neither clearly leads. Mari starts at Free and Plasticity at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Mari or Plasticity?
Mari has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Mari and On request for Plasticity.
Does Mari or Plasticity run on more platforms?
Mari runs on Windows, MacOS, Linux. Plasticity runs on Windows, macOS, Linux, Ubuntu.
Can I use Mari for free?
Yes. Mari has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Plasticity starts at On request.
What is Mari best used for?
Mari is most often used for painting textures directly onto high complexity 3d assets for film and games, handling very large multi-udim texture sets in a look development pipeline. Of those, painting textures directly onto high complexity 3d assets for film and games and handling very large multi-udim texture sets in a look development pipeline are not what Plasticity is typically brought in for.
What can Mari do that Plasticity cannot?
Mari covers High-resolution painting, UDIM support, Procedural layers, Baking. Plasticity covers Smooth surface modeling, Fillet operations, Boolean operations, Mesh export. Both handle Windows support, MacOS support, Linux support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Mari: What is Mari's pricing?

Individual Subscription costs $689 per year or $86 per month. Team Subscription costs $1,289 per year. Team Rental costs $949 per quarter for short-term access. Both subscriptions support node-locked or floating licenses.

Source
Plasticity: What is Plasticity designed for?

Plasticity is a NURBS-based 3D modeler designed for concept and product design, prioritizing an artist-friendly workflow over parametric history-based modeling.

Source
Mari: Does Mari offer a free trial?

Mari offers a free 30-day trial with unrestricted access to help users evaluate the software before purchasing.

Source
Plasticity: What platforms does Plasticity support?

Plasticity runs on Windows, macOS (Intel and M-Series), Linux, and Ubuntu using Parasolid's geometric modeling kernel.

Source
Mari: Does Mari offer student pricing?

Yes, Mari offers free or discounted access to all Foundry products for students, as well as free non-commercial licenses for learning and exploration.

Source
Plasticity: What is the pricing model for Plasticity?

Plasticity is a one-time purchase: Indie tier costs $149 and Studio tier is available at a higher price point. A 30-day free trial is available.

Source
Plasticity: Does Plasticity integrate with Blender?

Yes. Plasticity includes a Blender Bridge add-on that enables live-linking between Plasticity and Blender, allowing you to preview Plasticity models inside Blender with proper materials and lighting.

Source
Plasticity: What key features distinguish Plasticity from other CAD tools?

Plasticity features streamlined UI with context-sensitive widgets, chordal fillets, key bindings familiar to Blender users, radial menus, Dimension and Measure commands for absolute constraints, and handles complex Boolean operations on dense geometry.

Source
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