Blender vs ZBrush - (HONEST Comparison)

[@TheRoyalSkies]

We pumped out 158 videos in just under 3 months - I did my best to grind through it as fast as I could, but thank you to everyone for being patient and joining me through the journey - Now that we're done with with this series, I've got some real fun things I'd like to share with you guys next, but we'll talk more about that in the next few videos. In the meanwhile, thanks again for all the support and I'll see ya in the next vid :) Also, If you like any of those Anime-Shaded Monsters demonstrated in the video, you can check them out on my ArtStation store here - www.artstation.com/royalskies/store

[@GreenBlueWalkthrough]

As a person with over 7K videos in 10 years: Congrats! It's not for everyone you should be proud of your hard work helping people!

[@blenderblender6401]

👑

[@Ikxi]

Much appreciated

[@siman211]

I have a question, I bought myself a course to learn zbrush and because I wanted to learn how to make my self some vrchat modules.I did not take blender because the courses for blender look really cartoony and not at all awesome like the beginners course with sci fi characters that i buy. So my question is can I rig zbrush characters with blender or another program?

[@ed2fun]

Waiting for UE5👿👿👿👿 also, you made a great job in terms of NPR character models I am waiting to see the NPR environments saga 😼😸

[@TimDownsAnimation]

It’s so impressive how much you’ve done nonstop for so long with this series! And I can tell it has dealt a huge blow to your viewership, but still you persist because no one else makes this kind of content the way you make it, and it’s all to help people learn on their own while you also learn for your own craft. Thanks, man. You rock!

[@sway71]

Totally agree. I'll admit that I tuned out the notifications at first since I don't have ZBrush, but I think people shouldn't be so obsessive about their loyalty to a technology. It shouldn't surprise people that the specialized software is better at its specialty than the well rounded free one. I do feel like sculpting is my specialty, and one day I'd like to learn ZBrush, but I will always use Blender in some capacity because of its amazing features and versatility. I think it's safe to say that both are phenomenal products, but any professional worth their salt should know when to use what tools.

[@christopherking541]

Good comparison. Better than mine. I've told others. I compared the two as Blender being an all terrain jeep, and ZBrush being a Formula 1 car. You can do a lot more with a jeep. But if all you are expecting to do is win a race on a flat track, you want the Formula 1 car. For that's what it's made to do. So if you want to make an indie 3D short film, you want Blender. If you are making models for a toy company, or making models for a pro made movie, you want ZBrush.

[@Poi-ul4lr]

Just use both. Most professionals use Maya/Zbrush, but I think Blender/Zbrush workflow is just as powerful. Blender is more of a replacement for Maya than Zbrush imho. But sculpting in Zbrush is simply unmatched and you will never want to go back to Blender sculpting after using it.

[@gauravmail1990]

I left Maya for blender ❤️

[@lune5289]

Thx

[@lune5289]

Thx

[@gcharb2d]

@@gauravmail1990 I left Blender for Houdini, too many limitations with Blender!

[@NightVisionOfficial]

@@gcharb2d Getting better every day tho. What was your main use case you found Blender lacks with?

[@yajastudio8241]

Excellent video! My workflow is Zbrush for animating, Blender for audio design, Maya for editing, then MS Paint for compositing 😎

[@aseemshort9256]

Nailed it💀

[@jeremymurray-wakefield8011]

I love a brief no-nonsense summary that tells you everything you need to know and nothing more - thank-you!

[@tlilmiztli]

I guess this is the only REALLY HONEST video about the subject. And for that I salute you :) Great series too - as ZBrush user I picked up some cool tricks because I got to use the same stuff all over again and I sort of stopped exploring. So this was very cool to watch!

[@sergie2822]

Your channel has been a lifesaver for me. I appreciate the effort you've gone to put these tutorials up. This is certainly a refresher for someone who's returning back into Zbrush after a long period of time.

[@ikcinbeatz4365]

best comparison I have ever heard in my 11 years of using Blender.

[@earlivhanmonte2976]

this is the type of video im looking for when i search zbrush vs blender. thanks!

[@lastbaiken1177]

Been debating for a long while if I should do the jump to Zbrush or not. I started learning character sculpting and like you said, I can do some cool stuff in Blender but sometimes it takes so long to do basic things. Guess this video is what I needed to push me.

[@zigfaust]

I use both and it really does save time. I can bust a character out in a single afternoon, then take it to blender for rigging and everything else. I can't imagine only using one prog now.

[@Polygonlin]

The only thing i worry about on the zbrush front is them selling out to fuckin Maxon. But honestly, i priated Zbrush for 2 years before i boight it. If i gotta pirate again, i will.

[@zigfaust]

@@Polygonlin I just got the perpetual liscence for V2022 and have like zero reason to ever upgrade again untill I see what Maxon is up to. Fuck subscription only, it's nice that buying an older perpertual liscence means I don't (legaly) have to submit to their new pay model.

[@wehibebelachew3527]

Exactly the same here, debating should I get Zbrush or stay...This Video said it all, and helped to decide to go with Zbrush and better to learn industries standard software...

[@TheTyroofToriyama]

All I needed was to realize that Zbrush users don’t have the same problems and have to feel dumb for trynna sculpt properly in blender Imagine demanding that we learn really tricky geometry and don’t even get the same possibilities anyway When sculpting, it’s flat-out inferior, not an alternative. I’m kinda mad that I wasted all this time cos I promised people some good results a while ago but I went straight for hyper realism cos that’s what I was aiming for in drawing at the time. All I did was I work myself into a corner for daring to use traditional and obvious methods. If I can import my blender model and see the same things done easily then I’ll see a direct comparison while saving my model. If this works like I expect then such a massive weight will be lifted off my shoulders. Will legit change my life if I can finally get around the roadblocks of 3d sculpting and move forwards towards good portfolio. So mad that they got me jumping through hoops just to transfer skills I already had

[@johnsonnguyen1374]

I love your honest quick and straight to the point video

[@johnsonnguyen1374]

omg that might be enough to convince me to get zbrush. i always though it was hard in blender but now i see that zbrush makes it so much easier.

[@ronentai5950]

as an automotive technician and game design enthusiast the comparisons is rather accurate, when you're doing it as a hobby to start you really don't have the luxury of time. so learning the standard is what I wanted to know. and this really narrowed down what and where I want/needed to focus my time on character model creation. much appreciated!

[@PolskiJaszczomb]

Guess I'll sink into Zbrush for 3D printing once I end my current Blender projects. I'm sooooo glad your channel got randomly recommended to me by KZbin a year ago.

[@mahdibenane]

I'm 100% with you on this. I started sculpting in Zbrush moved to blender because I needed to do a lot more than just sculpting... I don't like to spend weeks on a project because time is important to me. Blender helped with that... I could sculpt model texture rig and animate in a single software. Fast jobs and fast results. but If I only want to sculpt Zbrush was really fun and intuitive for when I started. So yeah Zbrush is a sculpting software easy to pick up, hard to master. Blender is a everything 2D/3D software easy to pick up hard to master with a more ease in-ease out learning curve. At the end of the day it doesn't matter what tools you use. What matters is, are you using the right tool for the job? Today I use Substance for texturing and blender for everything else since blender has got cool tools for sculpting since the days of 2.6 but till today I think blender is still lacking in texturing tools.

[@tubehanky]

i use both apps... and bro.. bloody fliiping hell.... thats a brilliant comparison

[@pauliusmscichauskas558]

I jumped to sculpting from Zbrush to Blender like 10'ish years ago. Back then, Zbrush couldn't do all that it can do now, obviously. But after all those years, now Blender can definitely do all that Zbrush could do 10 years ago and more. That lack of features back then, in Zbrush, never stopped people from creating amazing stuff for games and movies. If all you do is sculpt, then you are right, Zbrush is a better choice, Blender is behind. But the benefit of not jumping programs for a task, if you are doing more than just sculpting, is HUGE. It saves so much time.

[@user-4hgfhjjiyt0gk]

You're talking a lot of nonsense. I worked with Blender for 5 years, blender sculpting still sucks, blender can't compete with the version of zbrush from 10 years ago. Zbrush is a sculpting program on its own, while blender does many things. That's why it's always missing

[@pauliusmscichauskas558]

@@user-4hgfhjjiyt0gk I have been using blender since blender 2.4, Blender 4.1 does many things, and that is why it is better than Zbrush 10 years ago. Zbrush couldn't pose models, edit the polygons, do dynamic topology, re-mesh models, do real-time shaders, or anything remotely like that, back then. The only downside of blender, compared to that old Zbrush version that I used last, that i can think of, is high polycount performance. Maybe the default brushes felt better, but that's subjective... Otherwise, Blender now is better than Zbrush was back then. Oh, and btw, Blender default brushes will get an update soon.

[@pyton9553]

High polycount performance can be fixed in blender easily with some optimisation tricks and modifiers. For most cases 10-15m poly is enough for a high-detailed model which Blender can handle without optimisation. I know that ZBrush users often go over, but it's unnecessary.

[@filnisius2153]

@@pyton9553 Complete nonsense. You can't apply micro details such as skin wrinkles and skin pores on a full naked character with only 10-15m polys. It's impossible, regardless of the software. The 10-15m poly mark you are referring to do only applies to head busts, and even then, not all of them. Try sculpting, a professional AAA standard dragon for film or even videogames with only 10m polys and see how far you go. All of the micro detailing will either be blurred or just not there at all. Blender sculpting is good for stylized sculpting or if you rely exclusively on texturing xyz workflow, which only really works for humans or very human looking humanoids.

[@digitalmagic101]

Thank you so much for those words, It has been a battle trying to decide which one should I study with more detail, lets see what the future holds.

[@vangistar7936]

I started with z brush but quickly learnt it's not a beginner friendly problem,but after using blender for a while I went back to zbush and now it feels so much easier to to understand ....well maybe the hard modeling side of things is still a learning curve.

[@-Rook-]

Sounds like a fair conclusion. I must admit this is not a series I have followed because I have no intention of picking up Z-Brush. I am a hobbyist artist that does a bit of everything in blender and its nice having a single tool with a lot of common methods, mechanisms and interfaces across it many features. I don't have to buy a stack of tools and plug-ins, don't have to keep up with the intricacies of each package and their revisions for me with my low volume of varied work I feel it saves time and lots of money (especially as these companies move to monthly subscriptions and mandatory online logins).

[@jamesjason8471]

"I am a hobbyist" This video wasn't for you then.

[@CRogers]

Like to point out that everything attributed to Z-Brush is now possible as of Blender 3.6, with the additions of VDM (Vector Displacement Map) brushes. So now you can have "wing Brushes" that work in the same way as in this video. But it's even better, because in Blender you have much greater control over the topology.

[@Soul-gf9vv]

I agree. Came here to try to understand what's the fuss with zbrush. Complicated interface, and controls. Tried to find things in zbrush that surpass blender. Literally zero. You can do things in blender way more efficiently than zbrush since you have more control over the topology, and 100 times better key controls and modifiers than can do the job for you.

[@CRogers]

@@Soul-gf9vv ZBrush does voxel sculpting, so it's impossible to create bad geometry with it. However, since blender now has a voxel remesher, you can get similar results on topology sculpting (Blender style).

[@hectorruiz5270]

@@CRogers hey do you know some course or tutorials to learn how to sculpt in blender 3.6?

[@joshswanson0]

This is where you misunderstand the power of Zbrush. Its not just having the option, its the speed and integration of all the tools in Zbrush. The ability to quickly mask something, extract, remesh, polish and turn it into a new piece of hard surface geometry - all within a few seconds. Quickly frame a mesh with a curve, add a custom mesh to it..These things just are not fast or simple in blender.

[@zantium13]

I wasn't really interested in the Z Brush series as I'm not planning on just sculpting, but still watched a number of them because I did want to see how the industry standard worked and I was quite blown away with the features. This is a great summary though on when you should choose one over the other. So I'll admire the Z brush features from afar but at least I know what's possible now.

[@CHEEZEyCHEEZE]

I have to thank you for everything. You taught me so much with Blender. And now I know the difference with Z-Brush and when I would need it.

[@basiccomponents]

Thanks a lot. Every time I type a question on youtube, one of your videos pops up, and I always know the answer I'm looking for is right there!

[@solidreactor]

Haven't watch many zbrush vs blender videos but this one really hits the nail on focusing (honestly) on the difference between them and their own use-cases

[@ralphmodynlosugarteeth3188]

That's how this videos must be, quick to the point and actually setting the differencies between each program. Really good vid.

[@Atabey7]

It's been 2 months with waking up and going to sleep with ZBrush already? Damn, time sure flies. It's been a short, clean and easily understandable tutorial series sir, thanks for all your effort. I don't think I'll make a living out of sculpting, but it was fun to stick by. When I have the courage to start modeling (and game developing), I'll go back to your older series at some point too. But until then, I hope you'll have a faaaantastic day, and I'll see you around!

[@PhillipTimothy]

thank you for making all of this, the community really needed this 🙏💯

[@suynsiuy8093]

Finally soone who speaks in a calm way and getting to the point asap

[@risingghost2809]

Thank you for this. Blender has one advantage for me personally. And that is cost. If I ever get into a good financial situation, I will be giving zbrush a try. And now I have a perfect set of tuts to help.

[@carlinhosjm88]

best thing for me in blender is the ability to split screen and have each one in a diferent view, seeing the resolts in real time without haveing to move around like in zbrush. its a lot more efective in seeing your model.

[@KobanWanko]

Thanks for this comparison video, it really highlights the differences between the two software. I still think Zbrush is still way too expensive for anyone who is still learning and/or not making money off of their models. Something I would love to see is a 3DCoat vs Zbrush comparison video, as they are both sculpting specialized software. 3DCoat also has extensive 3D texture painting, texture map baking, and a 1-time purchase price model; it seems like a great package.

[@jamellee504]

The analogies were beautiful in this one!

[@eshankgupta6763]

We're always with you mate

[@matbrady123456]

I agree with the conclusion of the video, but I'll say that it's true today and may not necessarily be true at some point in the future. Blender has an unparalleled rate of change. I believe it has something like 18 full-time coders at the Blender Foundation. Things improve rapidly, far more than any other program I know. But today, in 2022, I agree with this video.

[@KokohNicky]

Been thinking to make the jump to ZBrush. This video has helped immensely. Many, many thanks. May you live long and prosper.

[@christuusgnosis]

The best comparison ever. Zbrush is quirky, strange, and blistering fast There is so much power and customizability. As a zbrush hobbyist I do find blender essential because zbrush doesn't rig, and checking and adjusting uv's made in zbrush is easier in blender. That super screwdriver paired with the swiss army knife is a great combination You can build the whole thing game ready with 2 tools and it is so much better than if you only use one. I wish more blender users would try zbrush mini and consider adding zbrush core to their workflow. They can do so much more when used together. Even if you have things like maya/max, oddly enough blender comes in handy all the time, and there is no other sculpt tool like ZB Its nice that both will run on kind of lame hardware too. Great vid.

[@Gredran]

Thanks for the comparison! I’m not sure if I’d ever buy it, but I tried Core Mini and the trial and… sculpting in Zbrush is not compared. When you start pulling and pushing around it was surprised how smooth it feels. Disappointing that the free versions don’t allow subtools so you can only go so far, but I guess that’s how they reel you in. I love Blender because it’s free and plenty HAVE made wonderful sculpts of varying styles, but sometimes I wish I could afford and justify paying for Zbrush. Like you say some of the clunky setup and settings and remeshing isn’t as smooth as Zbrush. Thanks for your videos!

[@darrennew8211]

I love how you do all this!

[@Nkanyiso_K]

I've been waiting for this video for awhile 🙏🏽 thanks for sharing your opinions

[@3D-Designsrule]

Thank u so much for making these videos in some ways z brush is king for sculpting things easier but blender is king for modeling complex items like my swords and bases for my charactersI love using them both.

[@varnium]

Wonderful review! Loved it.

[@davidjohnson4669]

Thankyou... ive just come onto "build my own assets" part of my game and was acking this exact question! conclusion: i will be learning Zbrush, rigging and level designe with blender, animating with cascader and following your tutorials ;)

[@RidinWithJesus]

Lmao thank God that he made men with the ability to speak absolutely straight to the point with not a single word wasted. I'm getting Zbrush today thank you for this video!

[@antler_glow]

That was FANTASTIC! I don’t do any three D stuff anymore, but even I know that was a super great comparison. Great work Royal! You’re a true lifesaver!

[@kingmurder8245]

bro great vid!! we need more people spitting like you

[@Damn-ce5fw]

You truly are the king of kings

[@skyhunteramv9758]

TNice tutorials is the best tutorial. Simply explained to a newbie, great job man.

[@samratix2497]

Thanks for being brave and honest ❤️

[@EvlixManiac]

PERFECTION IN A VIDEO

[@keithjones5712]

Best comparison video that I have seen. Thanks

[@anubismacc8165]

In addition to being clear, I also liked the comparisons

[@VedaWarlock]

thanks! Finally an honest review to push me to use zbrush. types of videos you mentioned at start of video kept me trying in blender and failing for a year.

[@jinchoung]

great wrap up. agreed.

[@nesseihtgnay9419]

that really clear things up for me as im a noobie in sculpting and just 3D design programs in general. Thank you nice quick to the point and short. awesome, not a 13 minute to 25 minute of explaining the difference, i dont have time for that.

[@projectalpha22_va]

Finally, now I can watch all of these at once and absorb Z-Brush like some sort of strange osmosis.

[@ArtyDc600]

What a superb comparison examples.. wow 🔥

[@furkanolmezoglu8599]

By far the best tutorial i found to tNice tutorials in a short ti

[@markartist7014]

Best Blender vs Zbrush comparison... Thank you !!

[@adrianojosesantossilva9108]

So clear, that I, even me (not speak english very well) I understand perfectly your explanation. Thank you so much! i will learn Zbrush (to sculp) and C4D ( to every thing else)

[@SamAsMe]

Thanks for the video. This is exactly what I was confused about wanting to get in back into 3d sculpting after 10 plus years out of it. Blender wasn't really this big back then and I was wandering if it offers the same organic sculpting feel, this video confirmed to mee that it doesn't.

[@ethanreynolds4942]

Thank you so much for this series. It was honestly exactly what i needed and finishing it off with this review was the icing on the cake. Thank you skies. You have to be one of the best channels for this type of content on this platform and dang if i dont appreciate everything you do.

[@comptonking4005]

The most useful comparison video I came across. I am here because I recently started using substance painter, and man it's so so so much better than blender for texturing.

[@PowerfullUs]

algo, and also thank you for the series :D, love you

[@jadenkhentagon3876]

went through when I first started video editing, now it's taking a whole new switch and learning soft will only boost my courage for the

[@FredHeidrich]

Finally. Thank you for the *actual* review of the two.

[@bobslop9136]

Sir, that was brilliantly explained.👍

[@quinndepatten4442]

Amazing. I was curious why I'd use zbrush if I could do it all in blender. My mind is actually blown.

[@IZodiaCZerOI]

Thank you ! You did a great job simplifying such a complex daw....Looking forward to be a great producer

[@YAMaLove11]

Awesome channel.

[@garyasparagus2722]

i think this is so much better than someone just saying well use whatever u like, cus at that point why make a comparison video, saying that one is designed specifically for that one thing is a huge help cus i thought zbrush was kinda like blender but just better for a but and was cofused about that, great video man thank you!

[@cwtjones]

Good one, thanks for the quick, simple, yet very impactful explaination.

[@SolarVergmoid]

I like Royal Skies. Great channel - cuts to the chase. What’s not to like? Subscribed.

[@BobbyJ529]

Proper comparison. Going to piss off the younger blender fans. Been using zbrush for over 10 years. Started using blender for non work sculpting for the last 2-3 years. Blender sculpt is capable but it isn't even on the level of mudbox which is itself almost half as good as zbrush. Very useable though. I've found that i prefer Blender's camera so when I'm doing certain type of character work I'll sometimes start in blender for the first couple hours then bring it over to zbrush when the camera matters less and performance and zbrush wizardry and polish is needed. So basically, blender has replaced mudbox for me for certain task but zbrush brings everything home.

[@Goofy_Toons]

Dude you're an absolute legend love your work 🙏

[@zackrobat]

Thanks for this whole series and for this video in particular! You must be fried after all this. But this is an incredible series of videos, available for free, that give amazing and detailed explanations that anyone can follow. Well done!

[@Vinny_views]

WOW wow wow wow..*insert Ryan George gif here* This is my first video in search for explanation and I am satisfied. Also understood what I need to do. Thanks buddy.

[@kawaii_crossing]

i love your analogies. they were so hilarious as I was watching through this :)! thank you for the many laughter ^-^

[@faizahmohammedaruwa]

"They get caught up and confused by how to combine the curve modifier with the array modifier" It's like you KNEW I spent about 30 minutes last night frustrated to hell and back about not getting a chain rope to work properly and I just had to guess my way to a finished decent results 😭😩😅😂

[@peperochinonazarick]

well said well done good job i dont get why ppl make it so complicated, DAMN FINALLY SOMEONE SAID IT sculpting

[@carlosedubarreto]

great comparison.

[@katroxi4712]

This video was incredibly helpful and easy to understand, I was sorta confused as to the difference between them since I only recently started looking into 3D work programs. For now I'll be sticking to blender just because I'm not a 100% sure if I wanna be sculpting of doing other 3D work.

[@gameversemaster]

the analogies are epic

[@ぷに-p6n]

Now I understand how to make loops and export everytNice tutorialng really god bless you.. your way of explaining simply aweso I loved it

[@WinReckJ]

The Best Video i will ever see on this debate

[@3D.Research]

Well said. As much as I love Blender, it is not so robust solution yet. I encourage anyone to learn Blender though. Last but not least because there is a Damocles sword of possible subscription only model hanging over Zbrush. And that will be the end of ZB in my workflow (and I am using it for more than 15 years).

[@SamoesADIY]

The best comparison video ever

[@neozoid7009]

Super awesome explanation 👍👍👍♥️♥️♥️♥️

[@Inventor_VA]

Zbrush all day baby!!!

[@nolomite3921]

Cool, that answers all my questions lol. I thought I was going to have to sit here and research, but it appears not. Guess I’ll start learning Zbrush.

[@MotoKrzych]

That Guy Thanks, I will look into it later.

[@naglaaabozied5555]

Bet your soft is absolutely amazing! Never give up

[@andreasnoutschmidt9964]

Good points, mate! Outgang (-> super senior ZBrush sculpter) just released a vid detailing that Blender is in fact superior by now (at least for her sculpting needs) which is well worth a watch to balance things out. Those wing brushes etc sure are an awesome treat nevertheless!

[@filmpertutti7237]

TNice tutorials man is so good at explanation ...since I have been watcNice tutorialng soft soft tutorials , tNice tutorials is my first ti to really understand it . I love soft

[@maddwolf]

Cool, thanks for clearing things up. I was wondering what the real difference was like for both....also Love the Armored Core 2 music at the end....😆😆

[@MM-bw1lo]

Love z brush, got it in college and the free updates are awesome

[@colbyr.adamson4427]

Dude you deserve more subs for these vids my dude. Im working on transferring as we speak. Ive got to learn maya quickly as well.

[@sanjarrahimov56]

This has been very useful video for me

[@xd1845]

my workflow - ZBrush - Sculpting Maya - Modelling, UVs, Animation Blender - Shading, Basic Texturing, Rendering Quixel Mixer and Krita - Texturing

[@gamingconnected4859]

Great video! How about Blender Core, still better than Blender I assume?