Shapelab Max 2026 is the direct successor to Shapelab 2025. Rebranded with "Max" to signify the ultimate, full-featured creative suite for PCVR, it delivers all the well-known tools plus major new additions. Whether you are a professional or a beginner, Shapelab Max 2026 offers the cutting-edge toolset you need for a smoother, more enjoyable 3D modeling experience.
Shapelab is a highly efficient 3D sculpting application optimized for virtual reality devices. Shapelab takes advantage of VR technology to provide an immersive and intuitive interface that allows you to sculpt in 3D space, giving you a new level of control and creative freedom over your designs. With Shapelab, you can easily create organic shapes, from simple forms to complex designs. Visualize your creative ideas and print them in 3D or sculpt high-quality props, characters, and concepts for applications, games, and virtual worlds, as well as digital concept art and storyboards.
Using virtual reality for 3D modeling offers numerous advantages. It allows you to work with your creations in a more natural way as if they were physical objects right in front of you. This provides a level of immersion and depth that is simply not possible with traditional 2D modeling tools. Additionally, virtual reality modeling can increase productivity, as it allows you to work faster and more efficiently, even with greater precision in certain cases.
Shapelab’s usage of polygons instead of voxels makes it stand out in the creative VR tools market. Polygonal mesh modeling gives you the ability to sculpt stunning, well-detailed, and realistic 3D assets and allows users to import and edit large and complex 3D scans. With Shapelab's dynamic topology mode and support for industry-standard features, you can create detailed models with ease.
Join our community of artists and unleash your creativity with Shapelab today!
WHAT’S NEW IN SHAPELAB MAX 2026?
Redesigned, Rebuilt, and More Powerful Gizmo to deliver a more professional, flexible, and immersive interaction experience. It now offers greater accessibility, precision, and customization across both VR and Desktop workflows.
Transform System & Non-Uniform Scaling to scale objects along individual axes using the Gizmo or Transform Tab. It offers better control over object proportions, blockouting, and is essential for hard-surface like modeling as well.
Elastic move tool that brings Pixar’s real-time elastic deformation methodology to Shapelab, giving artists an intuitive, physically responsive way to reshape models. Especially useful for organic forms and posing.
Brush Rotation Upgrade
Voxel Remesh Upgrade that includes new "Fix Pole" and “Reproject” settings for more accurate geometry, alongside other significant improvements
A single, consistent Symmetry Reference Space used across the entire toolset, that ensures all symmetrical operations behave predictably across different contexts
Quick Access Wheel Expansions (VR) with more useful controls
Adjustable Viewport Momentum (VR Only) to customize the momentum of scene root (viewport) rotation in VR. This affects how quickly or smoothly the scene continues moving after you rotate it using controllers.
VR controller haptics for UI interactions such as hovering, button presses, slider movements, and gizmo grabs
These are the initial new features for Shapelab Max 2026; expect more features and major improvements to be released throughout the 2026 calendar year. Stay tuned for future updates!
OTHER CORE FEATURES IN SHAPELAB MAX 2026:
Dual Engine Modeling
Combine the power of polygon sculpting with the speed of voxel-based sketching. Shapelab’s hybrid engine lets you block out ideas in voxels, then refine them with production-ready polygon tools—all in one workflow.
Dual VR and Desktop Modes
Run Shapelab on your PC in desktop mode or use a VR headset tethered to your PC for an immersive VR experience. Switch seamlessly between modes while working on your projects.
Digital Pen and Tablet Support
Leverage the power of your digital pen and tablet with tilt, twist, and pressure sensitivity. Compatible with both Wintab and Windows Ink for precision sculpting.
Advanced Sculpting Tools
Access industry-standard sculpting tools with extensive configuration options. Brushes include Clay, Standard, Mask, Crease, Smooth, Pinch, Inflate, Snakehook, Flatten, Trim, Regularize, and 3D Stamp.
Dynamic Topology Sculpting (Optional)
Enable real-time tessellation to dynamically adjust mesh detail based on your needs. Alternatively, lock your brush resolution to a specific value by sampling directly from your model for precise sculpting control.
Customizable Work Environments
Personalize your workspace:
Import custom HDRI skyboxes or use solid colors and gradients.
Configure ambient lighting, reflections, and directional light settings.
Toggle the workspace floor on or off as needed.
Kitbashing with Custom Shapes and Primitives
Precision Tools: Snapping and Constraints
Multiresolution and Subdivision Levels
PBR Vertex Painting and Texture Export
Paint Color, Roughness, Metalness, and Emission properties directly onto your models.
Export texture maps, including normals, PBR properties, and vertex colors, during the export process.
Remeshing and Mesh Transformations
Voxel remesh, subdivide, decimate, and regularize meshes.
Perform operations like mirroring, welding, flipping, and filling holes.
Merge vertices and quad remesh for cleaner topology.
Detail Transfer (Projection): Transfer intricate details from high-resolution, unorganized meshes to cleaner, quad-based models.
Scene Management
Object hierarchy organization through parenting.
Clone, mirror, merge, subtract, intersect, and join objects.
Multiselect and group objects for batch operations.
Gizmo and freehand transformations for objects and scenes.
Materials and Shading
Use PBR materials, MatCaps, and procedural textures.
Import custom MatCaps or utilize built-in ones.
Flat shading support for stylistic effects.
File Support and Import/Export
Easily import and export models in FBX, OBJ, STL, and GLB formats.
Please note that Passthrough Mode is not natively available in Shapelab Max 2026.
Please note that although you can register a Shapelab account after downloading Shapelab, an account is not needed to access the application. To create an account you only need to provide an email address and a password, or you can choose to sign in with your existing Google or Facebook account. Tick the 'Remember me' checkbox to stay logged in. You can provide additional information and manage your email preferences in your account settings.
