Side by side

Arcadium 3D vs Picogen

Both stand on 3d landscape design software. Which one you can start free with, which one lets you read the code, and what each costs once you pay.

Arcadium 3D

Free plan AndroidiPhoneWeb

Arcadium 3D combines landscape planning with 3D design, walkthroughs, renders, and shareable projects. The free plan has defined project and generation limits, while Pro and Power are listed with yearly billing.

Visit Arcadium 3D

Picogen

Free plan Open source LinuxWindows

Choose Picogen if you want a free, GPL-licensed terrain synthesizer and renderer with scripting, path tracing, and Linux or Windows support. Look elsewhere if you need a graphical user interface, L-system plants, ambient occlusion, or soft shadows, which the roadmap marks unimplemented.

Visit Picogen

The facts

	Arcadium 3D	Picogen
Free plan	Yes	Yes
Open source	Not published	Yes
Runs on	Android, iPhone, Web	Linux, Windows
Lowest paid plan	Pro: $18 a month	Free or on request
Plans published	3	2
Maker	Not published	Not published
Website	arcadium3d.com	picogen.org
On 3d landscape design software	#2 of 30	#1 of 30

Arcadium 3D: what it does well

Landscape tools include terrain, planting, paths, and patios.
Library includes hundreds of plants and outdoor items.
AI can generate photorealistic landscape renders.
Shared designs can be viewed in a browser without an account.

What to know first

Free allows only two projects.
Free limits projects to 30 objects each.
Free includes one floor plan generation.
Pro and Power are billed yearly.

Picogen: what it does well

Free plan costs nothing.
GPL version 3 or later license.
Includes path tracing and Whitted-style rendering.
Supports Linux and Windows downloads.
Forum posting does not require signup.

What to know first

L-system plants are marked unimplemented.
Ambient occlusion and soft shadows are unimplemented.
A graphical user interface is marked unimplemented.

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