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Gravity Sketch vs Niantic Lightship

Gravity Sketch logo

Gravity Sketch

Software

VR 3D design tool

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Niantic Lightship logo

Niantic Lightship

Software

Build real-world AR experiences at scale

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Gravity Sketch free plan limited to 150MB cloud storage and 3 simultaneous users per room; Niantic Lightship platform migration in 2026 requires developers to move projects to new infrastructure
  • They diverge on capability: Gravity Sketch covers VR design, Niantic Lightship covers Visual Positioning System.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Gravity Sketch and Niantic Lightship actually diverge.

Attributes where Gravity Sketch and Niantic Lightship differ
AttributeGravity SketchNiantic Lightship
PlatformsVR (Meta Quest, Steam, Web)iOS, Android, Unity
Founded20142010

Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (freemium), free tier (Yes), 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 Gravity Sketch

  • VR design
  • Desktop app
  • Surface modeling
  • Collaboration
  • Import/export
  • Presentation mode
  • Rhino
  • Alias

Only in Niantic Lightship

  • Visual Positioning System
  • Semantic segmentation
  • Meshing
  • Multiplayer
  • 8th Wall
  • Niantic games
  • Ar support
  • Ios support

Both cover

  • Unity

What people use each for

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

Gravity Sketch

  • Spatial 3D design and conceptualisation in VRnot Niantic Lightship
  • Collaborative product design sessionsnot Niantic Lightship
  • Conceptual model generationnot Niantic Lightship
  • Engineering and design team collaboration in immersive environmentnot Niantic Lightship

Niantic Lightship

  • VR Gamingnot Gravity Sketch
  • AR Marketingnot Gravity Sketch
  • Virtual Trainingnot Gravity Sketch
  • 3D Visualizationnot Gravity Sketch
  • Immersive Experiencesnot Gravity Sketch

Where each one falls short

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

Gravity Sketch

  • Free plan limited to 150MB cloud storage and 3 simultaneous users per room
  • File format support limited to OBJ and STL on free plan; other formats require paid plan
  • Evaluation tools (surface contours, viewpoints, section tool) not available on free tier
  • VR access requires Meta Quest, Steam, or web app; limited to specific platforms
  • Data localisation only available on Enterprise plan

Niantic Lightship

  • Platform migration in 2026 requires developers to move projects to new infrastructure
  • VPS (Visual Positioning) requires online connectivity unlike ARKit/ARCore
  • Smaller developer community compared to Apple ARKit and Google ARCore
  • Location-based features limit use cases compared to device-only AR systems
  • Less mature ecosystem of third-party tools and assets compared to Unity AR Foundation

Pricing, plan by plan

Gravity Sketch

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Gravity Sketch review.

Niantic Lightship

Free
  • FreeFree
    • ARDK access
    • VPS
    • Semantic segmentation

Which should you pick?

Choose Gravity Sketch if

  • You need vr design.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on VR (Meta Quest, Steam, Web).
  • You also want desktop app.
Gravity Sketch review

Choose Niantic Lightship if

  • You need visual positioning system.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on iOS, Android, Unity.
  • You also want semantic segmentation.
Niantic Lightship review

Questions people ask

Is Gravity Sketch or Niantic Lightship better?
Neither clearly leads. Gravity Sketch starts at Free and Niantic Lightship at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Gravity Sketch or Niantic Lightship?
Gravity Sketch starts at Free and Niantic Lightship at Free.
Does Gravity Sketch or Niantic Lightship run on more platforms?
Gravity Sketch runs on VR (Meta Quest, Steam, Web). Niantic Lightship runs on iOS, Android, Unity.
Can I use Gravity Sketch for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Gravity Sketch best used for?
Gravity Sketch is most often used for spatial 3d design and conceptualisation in vr, collaborative product design sessions, conceptual model generation, engineering and design team collaboration in immersive environment. Of those, spatial 3d design and conceptualisation in vr and collaborative product design sessions are not what Niantic Lightship is typically brought in for.
What can Gravity Sketch do that Niantic Lightship cannot?
Gravity Sketch covers VR design, Desktop app, Surface modeling, Collaboration. Niantic Lightship covers Visual Positioning System, Semantic segmentation, Meshing, Multiplayer. Both handle Unity.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Niantic Lightship: What does Niantic Lightship provide for AR developers?

Niantic Lightship includes tools for visual positioning (VPS) for real-world location-based AR, depth sensing, occlusion, mesh generation, semantic segmentation, and shared multiplayer AR experiences across Unity, Swift, and Kotlin.

Source
Niantic Lightship: What is the Niantic Spatial Platform transition in 2026?

Lightship.dev is being decommissioned as of February 27, 2026. Projects must migrate to scaniverse.nianticspatial.com starting February 20, 2026.

Source
Niantic Lightship: Does Niantic provide maps for developers?

Yes. Lightship Maps for Unity allows developers to utilize the same base maps that Niantic uses for its own games like Pokemon Go, enabling real-world mapping integration.

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