Polycam vs Autodesk Flow Studio
A detailed comparison to help you choose between Polycam and Autodesk Flow Studio.
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Verdict: Polycam wins
Polycam scores 4.0/5, edging out Autodesk Flow Studio at 3.8/5. Architects, contractors and facility teams with LiDAR iPhones who need phone-scanned floor plans, measurements and CAD-ready exports without a scanning crew.
Polycam AI 3D scanning from your phone | Autodesk Flow Studio Automated VFX character replacement for film | |
|---|---|---|
| Rating | 4.0 (1 review) | 3.8 (1 review) |
| Pricing Model | freemium | paid |
| Starting Price | Free tier available | From $50/mo |
| Best For | Architects, contractors and facility teams with LiDAR iPhones who need phone-scanned floor plans, measurements and CAD-ready exports without a scanning crew. | Independent filmmakers and small VFX teams who want to automate character replacement, motion capture and compositing on live-action shots and finish in Maya, Blender or Unreal. |
| Free Tier | ||
| API Access | ||
| Team Features | ||
| Open Source | ||
| Tags | free tiermobile app | — |
| Visit Polycam → | Visit Autodesk Flow Studio → |
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)
Autodesk Flow Studio
Pros
- + Automates actor-to-CG replacement end to end — tracking, mocap, alpha masks, clean plates and compositing in one pass, with exports to Maya, Blender, Unreal and USD
- + Free tier genuinely teaches the product: 300 credits/month plus mocap, clean-plate and camera-track export and Maya/Blender scene exports at $0
- + Credit pricing is published per action (mocap 10 credits/second, live action 20/second), so the cost of a render is knowable before I ran it
- + My side-profile mocap test produced plausible motion needing only routine hip and hand cleanup — comparable to other markerless mocap I have run
- + Since the August 2025 repricing, Lite costs $10/month and Pro $95/month — roughly half the pre-Autodesk pricing, and Pro is bundled in the Autodesk M&E Collection
Cons
- - Feature gating runs across credits: character-pass and PNG export refused on Standard with credits remaining — Pro-only, in my testing
- - The 300-credit free tier covered about 15 seconds of Live Action and watermarked output at 720p — a demo, not a working plan
- - One shared, non-rolling credit pool funds renders and the new Wonder 3D generations together, with no cap or warning when experiments eat production budget
- - Degrades on fast, occluded performances with props; multi-actor scenes are limited (1 tracked actor on Free, 4 on Pro)
- - Cloud-only rendering of unreleased footage — AI data opt-out is default only on Enterprise
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is better, Polycam or Autodesk Flow Studio?▼
Polycam scores higher at 4.0/5 vs 3.8/5 for Autodesk Flow Studio, making it the better-rated option in our comparison.
What is the difference between Polycam and Autodesk Flow Studio?▼
Polycam: Polycam captures 3D scans, floor plans and measurements using a phone camera or LiDAR, and exports them to CAD and BIM formats. Autodesk Flow Studio: Autodesk Flow Studio, formerly Wonder Studio, replaces actors in live-action footage with animated CG characters, handling tracking, lighting and compositing.
Is Polycam or Autodesk Flow Studio more affordable?▼
Polycam starts at €0/mo, Autodesk Flow Studio starts at €50/mo. Check the comparison table above for current pricing.
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