The desk layout, in landscape
At 1024px and up an iPad keeps the real rails, with the outliner and inspector on screen beside the model. Turn it upright and the panels fold into sheets from a dock built for fingers.
3D modeling on iPad
A 3D modeling app for iPad that edits the mesh itself.
Work directly on points, edges and polygons: extrude, inset and bevel with touch or an Apple Pencil, then arrange, light and render the scene on the iPad's own GPU. Use the free App Store app or open a tab in Safari.
Tools that work on the geometry
Extrude faces, inset detail and bevel edges, from a simple blockout to a detailed prop. A pen makes picking one edge out of a dense area far easier than a fingertip.
A whole scene, not one object
Keep parts in a hierarchy, adjust materials and lights in the same workspace, keyframe the result on a timeline and path-trace a render on the tablet.
Starts here, finishes anywhere
Scenes save to your account rather than the tablet, so the same file opens on a Mac, PC or Chromebook. It also imports GLB, glTF, FBX, OBJ and STL.
Why Mixos
Choosing a 3D app for iPad
The iPad apps people find first do different jobs, and picking the wrong kind is the usual mistake. Shapr3D is CAD: precise solids for parts that have to be manufactured. Nomad Sculpt is digital clay for organic forms. Studio is polygon modeling and scene building, closer to what Blender does on a desktop, and Blender itself does not have an iPad release to compare against.
So if you are dimensioning a bracket for a machine shop, use a CAD app. If you are sculpting a creature, a sculpting app feels better, and Mold, in the same mixos app, does that job. If you are building a prop, a room or a scene that needs materials, light and motion, polygon tools are the right fit.
Studio is the same application on the iPad as on a desktop, rendering through WebGPU, so the tools are not a reduced set redrawn for touch. The App Store app requires iPadOS 26 or later; any iPad whose browser provides WebGPU can also run it in Safari. A faster chip mainly helps heavy scenes and path-traced frames resolve sooner.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a free 3D modeling app for iPad?
Yes. Modeling, assembling, animating and saving scenes are free on every account, with no time limit and no watermark on your work. Taking production files out, such as a model or a clean full-resolution render, requires Pro, Max, Team or a perpetual licence.
Is this CAD, like Shapr3D?
No. Studio is polygon modeling for visual work, not parametric CAD. For toleranced parts that go to manufacturing, use a CAD app.
Does it work with the Apple Pencil?
Yes. The Pencil helps most on precision, like picking a single edge or vertex. Fingers do the coarse work of orbiting, panning and zooming.
Do I need an iPad Pro?
No. A faster chip helps heavy scenes and rendering, but modeling is comfortable on ordinary hardware that supports WebGPU.
Is Blender available on iPad?
There is no iPad release to install today. See the Blender on iPad page for the options, including running it remotely.
Read next
What polygon modeling is
Vertices, edges and faces — the box-modelling fundamentals.
Modeling vs sculpting
Which of the two approaches fits the thing you're making.
GLB, OBJ, FBX and STL compared
Which format keeps materials and which throws them away.
How UVs decide the scale
Why the same texture reads bigger on one model than another.
Keep exploring
3D animation on iPad
A 3D animation app for iPad — free, keys and curves
Blender on iPad
Blender on iPad? What works now and a 3D alternative
Sculpting on iPad
3D sculpting app for iPad — free, Apple Pencil
3D texturing on iPad
3D texturing on iPad — paint PBR in the browser
Online 3D modeling
