Meshcapade vs Polycam
A detailed comparison to help you choose between Meshcapade and Polycam.
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Verdict: Polycam wins
Polycam scores 4.0/5, edging out Meshcapade at 1.5/5. Architects, contractors and facility teams with LiDAR iPhones who need phone-scanned floor plans, measurements and CAD-ready exports without a scanning crew.
Meshcapade Revolutionary digital human creation and animation platform | Polycam AI 3D scanning from your phone | |
|---|---|---|
| Rating | 1.5 (1 review) | 4.0 (1 review) |
| Pricing Model | paid | freemium |
| Starting Price | From $99/mo | Free tier available |
| Best For | Nobody shopping for a tool today — this entry is historical record of a discontinued product, useful only for tracking where SMPL-based capture technology lands inside Epic's ecosystem. | 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 | api access | free tiermobile app |
| Visit Meshcapade → | Visit Polycam → |
Meshcapade
Pros
- + Markerless single-camera capture of body, hands, and camera motion from ordinary phone or webcam video — tested working with no suit or markers
- + SMPL-based output meant accurate parametric body meshes in FBX/GLB that standard 3D tools ingest directly
- + Enterprise deployment options (cloud, on-prem, hybrid) with EU/GDPR compliance and claimed AAA-game and robotics use
- + Low friction while it lasted: a free tier let you upload video and get 3D results without a sales call
- + The shutdown is stated plainly and prominently on the vendor site instead of quietly disappearing
Cons
- - Discontinued: online platforms shut down as of April 18th after the Epic Games acquisition — no signup, no API, no access
- - No migration path or standalone successor announced; future access depends on Unreal Engine/MetaHuman integration of undisclosed timing
- - Hair capture was advertised as coming soon and never shipped
- - Pricing was never publicly clear (aggregators disagree between free tier, €99/mo, and contact-sales), and is now moot
- - Non-Unreal pipelines are left out entirely; competitors like Move.ai and Rokoko are the practical alternatives
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, Meshcapade or Polycam?▼
Polycam scores higher at 4.0/5 vs 1.5/5 for Meshcapade, making it the better-rated option in our comparison.
What is the difference between Meshcapade and Polycam?▼
Meshcapade: Meshcapade builds digital human models and markerless motion capture from ordinary video; the company is now part of Epic Games. Polycam: Polycam captures 3D scans, floor plans and measurements using a phone camera or LiDAR, and exports them to CAD and BIM formats.
Is Meshcapade or Polycam more affordable?▼
Meshcapade starts at €99/mo, Polycam starts at €0/mo. Check the comparison table above for current pricing.
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