Luma AI 3D vs Polycam
A detailed comparison to help you choose between Luma AI 3D and Polycam.
🏆
Verdict: Polycam wins
Polycam scores 4.0/5, edging out Luma AI 3D at 3.0/5. Architects, contractors and facility teams with LiDAR iPhones who need phone-scanned floor plans, measurements and CAD-ready exports without a scanning crew.
Luma AI 3D Photorealistic 3D captures from video | Polycam AI 3D scanning from your phone | |
|---|---|---|
| Rating | 3.0 (1 review) | 4.0 (1 review) |
| Pricing Model | freemium | freemium |
| Starting Price | Free tier available | Free tier available |
| Best For | Designers, real-estate and VFX explorers who want free photoreal 3D captures they immediately export and own — not teams planning a long-term production pipeline. | Architects, contractors and facility teams with LiDAR iPhones who need phone-scanned floor plans, measurements and CAD-ready exports without a scanning crew. |
| Free Tier | ||
| API Access | ||
| Team Features | ||
| Open Source | ||
| Tags | free tierapi access | free tiermobile app |
| Visit Luma AI 3D → | Visit Polycam → |
Luma AI 3D
Pros
- + Photoreal reconstruction quality with believable view-dependent detail when capture technique is good.
- + Open export path — .ply Gaussian splats and .luma files download freely and work in Unity, Unreal and three.js projects.
- + Free capture app on iOS (App Store, version 1.3.14 as of January 2026) with server-side processing — no local GPU needed.
- + Browser viewer, AR viewing, and website embeds make captures easy to share with non-technical stakeholders.
Cons
- - Product is legacy: the company has pivoted to video generation and no longer lists Interactive Scenes or Genie on its website.
- - Flythroughs was shut down January 1, 2026 with all cloud data deleted — the only hard evidence of what retirement looks like here.
- - Splat output only: no clean retopologized meshes, no UV workflows, unsuitable for game-ready geometry.
- - Reconstruction fails or degrades on reflective surfaces, thin structures, and dynamic scenes; the Android app is no longer listed.
Polycam
Pros
- + LiDAR Space Mode produced an editable 2D floor plan with auto-labeled rooms within seconds of finishing a scan in my test of a two-bedroom flat
- + Export round-trips worked: layered DXF floor plans opened with scale and layers intact in a CAD viewer, and OBJ/USDZ meshes imported cleanly
- + Five capture modes (Object, Space, Floorplan, AI Capture, 360) cover objects, interiors and documentation in one app instead of three tools
- + Business tier allows up to 2,000 images and 30 minutes of video per capture — enough resolution in my mechanical-room test to reconstruct reflective pipework that smaller captures smeared
- + Free tier is usable for real experimentation: limited captures, GLTF export and public link sharing at $0
Cons
- - Floor plans and the measurement layer require a LiDAR device — the same scan on a non-LiDAR phone returned only a mesh in my testing
- - Basic's 300-image capture ceiling cut short my photogrammetry coverage of a display cabinet mid-capture
- - Measurement accuracy is undocumented against survey standards; fine for as-builts, not for contractual tolerances
- - Processing and floor-plan generation are server-side, so disconnected sites become a capture-now-process-later workflow
- - Subscription-only (the vendor pricing FAQ rules out one-time purchase), with floor plans, point clouds and shared libraries gated at Business ($400/year per user)
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is better, Luma AI 3D or Polycam?▼
Polycam scores higher at 4.0/5 vs 3.0/5 for Luma AI 3D, making it the better-rated option in our comparison.
What is the difference between Luma AI 3D and Polycam?▼
Luma AI 3D: Luma AI 3D turns a phone video of an object, room or landscape into a photorealistic 3D scene using neural radiance fields and Gaussian splats, viewable in a browser and exportable to engines such as Unity and Unreal. Capture runs from the iOS app or the web dashboard. Polycam: Polycam captures 3D scans, floor plans and measurements using a phone camera or LiDAR, and exports them to CAD and BIM formats.
Is Luma AI 3D or Polycam more affordable?▼
Luma AI 3D starts at €0/mo, Polycam starts at €0/mo. Check the comparison table above for current pricing.
Stay in the loop
Get weekly updates on the best new AI tools, deals, and comparisons.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.