3D modeling, animation, and rendering software

Produce professional-quality 3D animations, renders, and models with 3ds Max® software. An efficient toolset helps you create better 3D and virtual reality (VR) content in less time.

Why 3ds Max

• Easy, robust modeling
  Create, shape, and define a range of environments and detailed characters.
• High-end rendering
  3ds Max works with most major renderers – including Arnold, V-Ray, and Iray – to help create striking scenes and visuals.
• Efficient 3D animation
  Build imaginative characters and realistic scenes for games, architecture, and product design.
• Flexible interoperability
  Revit, Inventor, and Fusion 360, as well as SketchUp, Unity, and Unreal, all work with 3ds Max.

Subscription benefits

With monthly and annual options, subscribing to 3ds Max is flexible and cost-effective. You can:

• Get instant access to the latest releases and enhancements.
• Use your software at home or when traveling.
• Process computing-intensive tasks in the cloud, such as rendering, simulations, or caching.
• Get access to technical support via phone, chat, email and online resources.

Basic Features

3D animation and dynamics

• 3ds Max Fluids
  Create realistic liquid behaviors directly in 3ds Max.
• Motion Paths
  Manipulate animations directly in the viewport and get direct feedback when making adjustments in your scene.
• Character animation and rigging tools
  Create procedural animation and character rigging with CAT, biped, and crowd animation tools.

3D rendering

• 3ds Max Interactive
  Access integrated tools for creating VR visualizations without leaving your 3ds Max workspace.
• Arnold for 3ds Max
  The MAXtoA plug-in is integrated into 3ds Max, giving you access to Arnold’s latest features.
• Physical Camera
  Simulate real-life camera settings such as shutter speed, aperture, depth of field, exposure, and other options.
• Improved ActiveShade rendering
  Iterate quickly with interactive rendering.

UI, workflow, and pipeline

• Asset Library
  Access 3D content on your local computer and network in a single view, making content instantly searchable.
• Improved pipeline tools integration
  Gain tighter integration with several pipeline tools with an extended and improved Python/.NET toolset.
• Smart asset packaging
  Create, share, and update portable assets that are flexible, connected, and react to changes in design data.
• Modern UI and workspaces
  Create your own custom workspaces with a more modern, responsive, high-DPI-ready user interface.

New Features in 3ds Max 2021

Modernization

• Bake to Texture
  Streamlined, intuitive and fully scriptable texture baking experience, with support for PBR (Physically Based Rendering), Overrides and OSL workflows.
• Installer
  The online and offline installation process has been overhauled for a simpler and faster experience.
• Scripting with Python 3
  Autodesk is investing in improving 3ds Max’s Python support to offer developers and technical artists a modern and robust experience for extending and integrating 3ds Max into production pipelines.
• Arnold as the Default Renderer
  Presenting users with a modern and high-end rendering experience right out of the box.

Performance

• Physically Based Rendering (PBR)
  3ds Max 2021 adds several features to simplify the use of PBR workflows in the viewport when rendering, and when working with real time engines.
• Improved Viewport Quality & Settings
  Simpler viewport configuration workflows allow you to produce high quality and high-fidelity viewports which were previously cumbersome to achieve.
• OSL Shaders
  Enhanced UI and new shaders improve the overall user experience with OSL.
• File I/O
  Saving scene files with a very large number of assets has been significantly sped up.
• Modeling
  New Chamfering improvements and Weighted Normals modifier.

Fit & Finish

• SketchUp Import
  Autodesk continues to enhance the ATF-based SketchUp importer in an effort to make it the only SketchUp importer necessary in 3ds Max.
• Substance
  New Substance2 map type, performance improvements, and many new capabilities.
• ProSound
  Improved audio support.
• FBX Improvements
  Export animation only when exporting to FBX, added support in FBX exporter for Shell material, and more
• 3rd Party Developer Tools
  Plugin compatibility with 3ds Max 2020, and improvements to Plugin Packaging