Maxon discontinues ZBrushCore and ZBrushCoreMini
Maxon is discontinuing ZBrushCore and ZBrushCoreMini. the commercial and free cut-down editions of ZBrush, its digital sculpting software.
ZBrushCoreMini downloads will be removed on 30 May 2025, and sales of new ZBrushCore subscriptions will be ended, although existing subs can be renewed until 30 September 2025.
In its online FAQs, Maxon also teases a new “freemium” version of ZBrush to “align the desktop and iPad versions”.
ZBrushCore and ZBrushCoreMini: the old cut-down desktop editions of ZBrush
First released in 2016, ZBrushCore is a cut-down edition of the software aimed at “users who are new to 3D, illustrators, students and 3D printing enthusiasts”.
ZBrushCoreMini, a free non-commercial edition, followed it in 2020.
You can see a feature comparison table for ZBrushCoreMini and ZBrushCore on Maxon’s website, and find more details on the ZBrushCore and ZBrushCoreMini product pages.
Neither has seen many updates since Maxon acquired original ZBrush developer Pixologic in 2022: the most recent version of ZBrushCore is the 2021.6 release.
Updates and downloads to stop on 30 May 2025; subscription renewals on 30 September
Both editions will now enter ‘limited maintenance mode’ on 30 May 2025, so neither will receive any updates or bugfixes, and ZBrushCoreMini will no longer be available for download.
It will also no longer be possible to take out a new ZBrushCore subscription, although existing subscribers will be able to renew monthly subscriptions until 30 September 2025, and will receive active support until that date.
New ‘freemium’ edition of ZBrush coming soon
Maxon doesn’t give a reason for discontinuing ZBrushCore and ZBrushCoreMini in its FAQs, but it does mention the new iPad edition of ZBrush, which fulfils the role of a less expensive, less fully featured alternative to the desktop version of the software, with a free base edition.
In the FAQs, Maxon also notes that as part of its “continued efforts to align the Desktop and iPad versions, a new Freemium version of ZBrush Desktop is on its way”.
Price, system requirements and dates
Maxon doesn’t list system requirements or prices for ZBrushCore on its website, but on release, ZBrushCore 2021 was compatible with Windows 7+ and Mac OS X 10.10+, and cost $9.95/month.
ZBrushCoreMini is available free until 30 May 2025. On the release of ZBrushCoreMini 2021, it was compatible with 64-bit Windows 7+ and Mac OS X 10.11+.
ZBrush for iPad is compatible with iPadOS 17.0+. It requires an iPad with a A12 Bionic chip or later. The base app is free, but is export-disabled. Access to the full feature set requires a paid subscription, which costs $9.99/month or $89.99/year.
The desktop edition of ZBrush is compatible with Windows 10+ and macOS 11.5+. It is rental-only, with subscriptions costing $49/month or $399/year, also including the iPad edition. Maxon hasn’t announced a release date for the new freemium edition.
Read Maxon’s online FAQs about discontinuing ZBrushCore and ZBrushCoreMini
Download ZBrushCoreMini for free until 30 May 2025
(Requires a free Maxon account)
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