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Houdini vs Substance 3D Painter

Houdini logo

Houdini

Software

Procedural 3D animation and VFX

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Substance 3D Painter logo

Substance 3D Painter

Software

3D texture painting software

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Houdini has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Houdini houdini Indie at $299 per year requires annual gross revenue under $100K USD; Substance 3D Painter the Internet Archive's capture of Adobe's Substance 3D Painter page on 23 June 2021 priced the Substance 3D Collection plan (which bundles Painter, Stager, Sampler, Designer and Modeler) at US$39.99/month for the first year.
  • They diverge on capability: Houdini covers Procedural modeling, Substance 3D Painter covers 3D painting.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Houdini and Substance 3D Painter actually diverge.

Attributes where Houdini and Substance 3D Painter differ
AttributeHoudiniSubstance 3D Painter
Starting priceFree$29/month
Free tierYesNo
Founded19871982

Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), platforms (Windows, MacOS, Linux), 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 Houdini

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

Only in Substance 3D Painter

  • 3D painting
  • Smart materials
  • Generators
  • PBR workflow
  • Baking
  • Export presets
  • Scripting
  • 3ds Max

Both cover

  • Maya
  • Unity
  • Windows support
  • MacOS support
  • Linux support

What people use each for

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

Houdini

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

Substance 3D Painter

  • Game texturingnot Houdini
  • Film assetsnot Houdini
  • Product visualizationnot Houdini

Where each one falls short

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

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

Substance 3D Painter

  • The Internet Archive's capture of Adobe's Substance 3D Painter page on 23 June 2021 priced the Substance 3D Collection plan (which bundles Painter, Stager, Sampler, Designer and Modeler) at US$39.99/month for the first year.

Pricing, plan by plan

Houdini

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

Substance 3D Painter

$29/month
  • Substance 3D Texturing$19.99/month
    • Painter + Sampler
  • Substance 3D Collection$49.99/month
    • All Substance apps

Which should you pick?

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

Choose Substance 3D Painter if

  • You need 3d painting.
  • You work on Windows, MacOS, Linux.
  • You also want smart materials.
Substance 3D Painter review

Questions people ask

Is Houdini or Substance 3D Painter better?
Neither clearly leads. Houdini starts at Free and Substance 3D Painter at $29/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Houdini or Substance 3D Painter?
Houdini has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Houdini and $29/month for Substance 3D Painter.
Does Houdini or Substance 3D Painter run on more platforms?
Both run on Windows, MacOS, Linux, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Houdini for free?
Yes. Houdini has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Substance 3D Painter starts at $29/month.
What is Houdini best used for?
Houdini is most often used for procedural 3d modelling and environment generation, visual effects simulation for pyro, fluids, cloth and rigid bodies, building reusable procedural assets for a studio pipeline. Of those, procedural 3d modelling and environment generation and visual effects simulation for pyro, fluids, cloth and rigid bodies are not what Substance 3D Painter is typically brought in for.
What can Houdini do that Substance 3D Painter cannot?
Houdini covers Procedural modeling, VFX, Simulations, Particle systems. Substance 3D Painter covers 3D painting, Smart materials, Generators, PBR workflow. Both handle Maya, Unity, Windows support, MacOS support.
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