HardCuts RenderAlpha

Standalone 3D painting & texturing

Paint and texture
your 3D models.

Unwrap UVs, bake maps and paint with layered PBR materials. HardCuts Render includes a full UV editor and shows material changes as you paint.

Import high-poly and low-poly models as OBJ, STL or FBX.

Get HardCuts Render Explore the tools

$19.99 USD · One-time purchase. No subscription.

Windows & Linux · macOS (Apple Silicon) v0.3.31

Material masks & brush paintingHardCuts Render
Painting masks to reveal the metal underneath · 51 seconds · no audio. Original on X (opens in a new tab)

OBJ, STL & FBX import

Use models from other applications.

HardCuts Render is an independent painting and texturing application. Import high-poly or low-poly meshes from your modeling tool, then unwrap, bake and texture them in Render. No HardCuts license required.

.obj.stl.fbx

Supported model formats

Now in Render UVs & baking

UV unwrapping
and baking.

Prepare your model in the same application you paint in. Automatic UV unwrapping, a full UV editor and map baking are all part of HardCuts Render.

01 / UNWRAP

Automatic unwrap or manual seams

Unwrap your model automatically, or mark seams yourself to control where the mesh is split into UV islands.

02 / EDIT

A full UV editor

Edit UV islands directly and adjust your layout before painting, with the UVs and 3D model visible side by side.

03 / BAKE

Normal & AO baking

Bake Normal and Ambient Occlusion maps from your high-poly source onto your low-poly model, then use those maps when texturing.

UV unwrapping in actionHardCuts Render
Automatic unwrap and manual seam control · no audio. Original on X (opens in a new tab)
Built in

UV editing and map baking are included in HardCuts Render.

A complete material system

PBR materials
and layer painting.

Combine fill and paint layers with masks and generators. Start with a material preset, adjust its properties, then paint details such as scratches, dirt and chipped edges.

01 / Adaptive materialsHardCuts Render
Layered materials, weathering and exposed edges · no audio. Original on X (opens in a new tab)

Adaptive materials

Apply ready-to-use adaptive materials directly from the Material Library. They combine layers, masks and generators that respond to the shape of your model. Wear appears along exposed edges and dirt collects in recesses, without painting each area by hand. Adjust the layers and effects to control the result.

02 / GPU layer paintingHardCuts Render
Brushwork, masks and generators, composited live · no audio. Original on X (opens in a new tab)

GPU painting with a live preview

Fill layers, generators, masks and brush strokes are composited on the GPU every frame. See the final material respond as you work, with texture painting up to 4K.

Reveal & hide

Paint alpha masks to expose underlying layers. Control exactly where a material appears.

Edge wear & grunge

Combine edge wear generators and grunge maps for chipped paint, dirt and surface variation.

Brushes & stencil jitter

Paint details by hand and use stencil jitter to vary chips and scratches between brush strokes.

Lighting & rendering

Set up lighting and render images.

Check your materials under different lighting, adjust the image and render a PNG directly from the application.

HardCuts Render studio lighting and HDRI environment libraries
LIGHTING

Studios, HDRIs & lights

Start with studio rigs and HDRI environments. Shape highlights and reflections with area, directional, spot and point lights.

HardCuts Render output resolution and transparent background settings
IMAGE OUTPUT

Post-processing & PNG export

Fine-tune exposure, contrast and color with Neutral, AgX or ACES tone mapping. Choose your resolution and render PNGs with a visible or transparent background.

ASSET EXPORT

Export to Blender and game engines

Export your textured model for use in Blender, Unity or Unreal Engine.

Blender Unity Unreal Engine

Standalone or with HardCuts

Import a model
or send it from HardCuts.

Your favorite modeling app Render

Import OBJ, STL or FBX. Unwrap, bake and texture high-poly or low-poly models directly in HardCuts Render.

HardCuts Render

Build voxel models, sculpt or create low-poly assets in HardCuts, then hand them over to Render for the material and painting workflow.

Explore the HardCuts pipeline

Licensing & compatibility

Common questions

Do I need HardCuts to use Render?

No. HardCuts Render is a standalone painting and texturing application with its own license. Import models from other applications, or use the optional handoff from HardCuts. The products are purchased separately.

Can I unwrap and bake imported models?

Yes. Import OBJ, STL or FBX meshes, use automatic unwrapping or manual seams, edit UV islands in the full UV editor, and bake maps before texturing. Both high-poly and low-poly models can be imported.

Is this a subscription?

No. One payment covers the current prerelease and all HardCuts Render 1.x updates. Your license is yours to keep. Future major upgrades are optional.

Which platforms are supported?

HardCuts Render is available for Windows 10/11 and Linux (Ubuntu 24.04). A macOS build for Apple Silicon is also available. See the current downloads.

Can I try it first?

Yes. Try all features for 14 days, including saving and export, with no registration or credit card required. Start the trial online once, then work offline until it ends. Download the free trial.

One-time purchase

Get HardCuts Render.

Includes the UV editor, baking, PBR materials and layer painting.
Available for Windows and Linux, and macOS on Apple Silicon.

HardCuts Render

$19.99 USD / once

Current alpha + all 1.x updates included.

Buy HardCuts Render Try it free for 14 days

One-time payment. Separate HardCuts Render license.