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CAD · head to head

Modo vs RealityScan

Modo logo

Modo

CAD

Creative 3D modeling and rendering

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
RealityScan logo

RealityScan

CAD

The photogrammetry engine formerly called RealityCapture, free below a one million dollar revenue line

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only RealityScan has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Modo foundry announced on November 7, 2024 that it is winding down development of Modo after the Modo 17.1 release, with no further feature or maintenance releases anticipated; RealityScan the free tier is bounded by company revenue rather than by usage, so a business crossing one million US dollars of turnover acquires a per-seat cost overnight for software its workflow now depends on
  • They diverge on capability: Modo covers Polygon modeling, RealityScan covers Photogrammetric reconstruction.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Modo and RealityScan actually diverge.

Attributes where Modo and RealityScan differ
AttributeModoRealityScan
Starting price$29/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionFree below a revenue threshold, then per seat per year
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWindows, MacOS, LinuxWindows
Founded1996Unknown

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 Modo

  • Polygon modeling
  • Subdivision surfaces
  • Sculpting
  • UV tools
  • Procedural modeling
  • Rendering
  • Animation
  • MeshFusion

Only in RealityScan

  • Photogrammetric reconstruction
  • Laser scan fusion
  • Ground control points
  • Texturing and unwrapping
  • Command line interface
  • Unreal Engine path
  • Component alignment control

What people use each for

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

Modo

  • Polygon and subdivision surface modelling for media and entertainment assetsnot RealityScan
  • Look development and rendering of product and character modelsnot RealityScan

RealityScan

  • A two-person heritage survey practice under the revenue threshold that can now run professional photogrammetry at no licence costnot Modo
  • A film or games asset team scanning props and environments at very high image counts where processing speed decides the schedulenot Modo
  • A survey firm combining terrestrial laser scans with drone photography and needing both aligned in a single reconstructionnot Modo
  • A construction reality-capture operator producing meshes for Unreal-based client visualisation from the same source imagerynot Modo

Where each one falls short

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

Modo

  • Foundry announced on November 7, 2024 that it is winding down development of Modo after the Modo 17.1 release, with no further feature or maintenance releases anticipated
  • Support continues only until each customer's current contract term expires
  • Foundry does not guarantee that Modo will keep working on future operating system updates because no patches will be issued, and recommends customers migrate to alternative 3D workflows
  • Perpetual licences keep working but receive no further updates, bug fixes or support
  • The Modo forums closed in December 2024 and downloads, docs and the support knowledgebase were committed only until November 2025

RealityScan

  • The free tier is bounded by company revenue rather than by usage, so a business crossing one million US dollars of turnover acquires a per-seat cost overnight for software its workflow now depends on
  • New perpetual licences are no longer sold, so an organisation that deliberately avoided subscription software has no route in; existing perpetual holders keep their version but stop receiving updates unless they accept the current terms
  • It is Windows only and needs an NVIDIA CUDA capable GPU, which excludes macOS studios and makes the real cost of adoption a workstation purchase rather than a licence
  • The rename from RealityCapture to RealityScan in 2025 means tutorials, forum answers and third party pipeline documentation are split across two names and several licensing regimes, and much of it is now wrong about price
  • The interface assumes photogrammetry knowledge; alignment failures, control point placement and reconstruction region setup are not guided, so a team without an experienced operator produces poor models quickly rather than good ones slowly

Pricing, plan by plan

Modo

$29/month
  • Indie$599/month
    • Full Modo
    • Revenue limit $100K
  • Modo$1898/month
    • Full commercial license

RealityScan

Free
  • Free tierFree
    • For individuals and companies with annual revenue under 1,000,000 USD
    • Full application, no metered input charges
    • Epic account required
  • RealityScan seat$1250/year
    • Required once annual revenue exceeds 1,000,000 USD
    • Per seat, per year
    • Commercial use without output restrictions
  • Unreal Engine subscription$1850/year
    • Per seat per year
    • Includes RealityScan and Twinmotion
    • For teams that also need Unreal Engine for non-game commercial use

Which should you pick?

Choose Modo if

  • You need polygon modeling.
  • You work on Windows, MacOS, Linux.
  • You also want subdivision surfaces.
Modo review

Choose RealityScan if

  • You need photogrammetric reconstruction.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows.
  • You also want laser scan fusion.
RealityScan review

Questions people ask

Is Modo or RealityScan better?
Neither clearly leads. Modo starts at $29/month and RealityScan at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Modo or RealityScan?
RealityScan has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $29/month for Modo and Free for RealityScan.
Does Modo or RealityScan run on more platforms?
Modo runs on Windows, MacOS, Linux. RealityScan runs on Windows.
Can I use RealityScan for free?
Yes. RealityScan has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Modo starts at $29/month.
What is Modo best used for?
Modo is most often used for polygon and subdivision surface modelling for media and entertainment assets, look development and rendering of product and character models. Of those, polygon and subdivision surface modelling for media and entertainment assets and look development and rendering of product and character models are not what RealityScan is typically brought in for.
What can Modo do that RealityScan cannot?
Modo covers Polygon modeling, Subdivision surfaces, Sculpting, UV tools. RealityScan covers Photogrammetric reconstruction, Laser scan fusion, Ground control points, Texturing and unwrapping.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

RealityScan: Is RealityCapture still called that?

No. Epic rebranded it to RealityScan with version 2.0 in 2025. It is the same engine and the same team.

RealityScan: Who gets it free?

Individuals and companies with annual revenue under one million US dollars. Above that, a seat is 1,250 US dollars per year.

RealityScan: Can I still buy a perpetual licence?

Not for new purchases. Existing perpetual licences remain valid for the version owned, with updates only under the current terms.

RealityScan: Does the free version restrict output?

No output metering or watermarking; the restriction is on who qualifies, based on company revenue, not on what you export.

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