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Fulcrum vs Houdini

Fulcrum logo

Fulcrum

Software

Field operations management for installing, inspecting and maintaining physical work

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Houdini logo

Houdini

Software

Procedural 3D animation and VFX

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Houdini has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Fulcrum requires a minimum of five user licenses per organization; Houdini houdini Indie at $299 per year requires annual gross revenue under $100K USD

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Fulcrum and Houdini actually diverge.

Attributes where Fulcrum and Houdini differ
AttributeFulcrumHoudini
Starting priceOn requestFree
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWebWindows, MacOS, Linux
FoundedUnknown1987

Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

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 Fulcrum

Nothing recorded that Houdini does not also cover.

Only in Houdini

  • Procedural modeling
  • VFX
  • Simulations
  • Particle systems
  • Pyro FX
  • Ocean tools
  • Rigging
  • Rendering

What people use each for

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

Fulcrum

No use cases recorded yet. See the Fulcrum review.

Houdini

  • Procedural 3D modelling and environment generationnot Fulcrum
  • Visual effects simulation for pyro, fluids, cloth and rigid bodiesnot Fulcrum
  • Building reusable procedural assets for a studio pipelinenot Fulcrum

Where each one falls short

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

Fulcrum

  • Requires a minimum of five user licenses per organization
  • Monthly billing is only available during a customer's first 12 months, after which annual billing applies

Houdini

  • Houdini Indie at $299 per year requires annual gross revenue under $100K USD
  • Houdini Indie cannot be used in the same pipeline as commercial versions of Houdini
  • Houdini Indie and Apprentice save to their own .hipnc file format, which commercial Houdini pipelines do not share
  • The free Apprentice edition is non commercial, caps render resolution at 1920x1080 and watermarks output images
  • Houdini Indie ships with only 2 render tokens
  • Full DOP level simulation node access requires Houdini FX at $4,495 per workstation; Core at $1,995 exposes only SOP level pre built simulation assets
  • Extra render tokens cost $195

Pricing, plan by plan

Fulcrum

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the Fulcrum review.

Houdini

Free
  • ApprenticeFree
    • Learning version
    • Non-commercial
  • Indie$269/month
    • Revenue limit $100K
  • Core$1995/month
    • Full commercial
  • FX$4495/month
    • Full + simulations

Which should you pick?

Choose Fulcrum if

Nothing in the data separates Fulcrum from Houdini on the points above - pick on price and on how each one feels to use.

Fulcrum review

Choose Houdini if

  • You need procedural modeling.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows, MacOS, Linux.
  • You also want vfx.
Houdini review

Questions people ask

Is Fulcrum or Houdini better?
Neither clearly leads. Fulcrum starts at On request and Houdini at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Fulcrum or Houdini?
Houdini has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Fulcrum and Free for Houdini.
Does Fulcrum or Houdini run on more platforms?
Fulcrum runs on Web. Houdini runs on Windows, MacOS, Linux.
Can I use Houdini for free?
Yes. Houdini has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Fulcrum starts at On request.
What can Fulcrum do that Houdini cannot?
Houdini covers Procedural modeling, VFX, Simulations, Particle systems.
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