Frequently asked questions

If you can’t find the model you want, you can commission us for a bespoke 3D model at [email protected]. Simply fill in the form on our Contact Us page with details about your project and our team will be in touch as soon as possible.

If you have any questions regarding files, formats, price, details or any other model-related issue, fill in the form here. Our team will respond within 24–48 hours.

Yes, you can find free 3D models on XO3D. Just use the Free filter on the catalogue.

If you are ready to make a purchase you can choose between four payment methods: credit card (all major cards), bank payment, Google Pay and PayPal. Payments are processed through Stripe.

VAT, commonly known as sales tax, is a tax imposed on the final customer at the moment of sale and paid to the buyer’s country’s government. If the tax laws of your nation apply to XO3D, we are required by law to charge you according to your country of residence (the tax rate might differ by country). At the checkout page, the tax will be added to your cart. Please notify our support team at [email protected] or via the contact form if you suspect there was an error while applying the tax for you. We will do our best to investigate and advise.

After making a purchase, the buyer receives immediate access to all available file formats. Every product page displays the available file formats.

Low Poly models. A polygon mesh in 3D computer graphics with a small amount of polygons (as determined by an object’s wireframe and polygon density). This usually entails designing the model in such a way that it can be used efficiently. Low poly meshes are employed in real-time applications (such as gaming), whereas high poly meshes are used in animated films and 3D visualisation. It also depends on how the model is used; AAA games can manage millions of polygons, whilst mobile devices may struggle with just a few hundred.

A character dressed in AAA game clothing may be worth 100,000 polygons. A VR avatar could have up to 70k polygons. Simple props can have tens of thousands of polygons. Large low-poly cities can have millions of polygons. Because technology is always evolving, the boundaries may shift over time.

Some pointers for making low-poly / game-ready models: if the character has hair, it should be created as a polygonal mesh (for example, hair cards) rather than a particle hair system — obviously there are exceptions (e.g. Unreal strand-based hair in .abc format). Textures should be PBR and not exceed 4K. Because some engines lack native support for two-sided shaders, single-sided planes should have thickness.

Rigged. A model is considered rigged if it meets these criteria: a logical hierarchy (FK/IK) is followed by skeleton bones and joints; object parenting and precise pivots/control nulls are used in hard-surface rigs; skinning and weighting are done correctly (simple model deformations work as expected); morphs (blend shapes) are properly set up; controls are supplied and limitations properly set; a bind frame is incorporated; transforms are reset or frozen.

PBR (Physically Based Rendering). This is more precise and consistent under all lighting circumstances since it is based on real-world values. It’s the engine that drives AAA video games and high-end renderers. The most common workflows are Specular/Glossiness and Metallic/Roughness. All core spec/gloss or metal/rough workflow textures must be provided for the model to be approved as PBR in our marketplace.

UV mapping. This is the process of projecting a 2D picture onto the surface of a 3D model for texture mapping. If your model only has basic UV mapping, you can simply pick UV mapping and leave the Unwrapped UVs option blank. You must indicate a more complex mapping if one was used. You can choose between overlapping, non-overlapping and mixed patterns. This means that the model may have basic UVs as well as unwrapped UVs, or no UVs at all.

Animated. A model is considered animated if there are keyframes and animation curves, playback has no glitches, hiccups or unexpected spikes, and any looping animation transitions smoothly.

A model made up of polygon faces is called a polygonal mesh. Most common mesh formats: .obj, .fbx, .3ds, .dae, .stl, .max, .ma, .mb, .c4d, .blend, .lws, .lwo, .lw, .abc, .hrc, .xsi, .lxo, .lxl, .ztl, .pp2, .3b, .spp, .duf, .mud, .tb.

3ds Max, Maya, Cinema 4D, Blender, Modo, Lightwave, Zbrush, Unity, UE4, SketchUp, Softimage, DAZ Studio and Poser are some of the most common tools that support mesh type.

We do not advocate converting or importing solid NURBS formats into any of the software listed above. Imported solid models will have a large polycount, will be triangulated and may have flaws like geometry cracks or inverted normals.

Splines are used to create solid (CAD/NURBS/Spline) models. A spline is a mathematical expression that describes a curve. Most common NURBS/solid formats: .stp, .iges, .ige, .igs, .cat, .sat, .3dm, .rfa, .rvt, .dxf, .dwg, .sldprt, .sldasm, .slddrw, .catproduct, .catpart, .ipt, .asm, .cad, .jcd, .iam.

Rhino, Solidworks, Inventor, AutoCAD, Revit, TinkerCAD, Infraworks, ArchiCAD, CATIA, Fusion 360 and 3D Builder are some of the most common software packages that support this geometry type. We do not advocate or perform conversions of mesh formats into CAD software — polygonal mesh formats may import as a single object and be difficult to edit.

To prepare a model for 3D printing it should include the following: printer-friendly formats (STL, OBJ, X3D or DAE); real-life physics (reasonable size, weight distribution); sufficient wall thickness; a watertight mesh with no holes; enough clearance between tight areas; and separate or interconnected pieces arranged correctly.

Please contact our support team (via the contact form or by emailing [email protected]) and provide the following details: product name and order/invoice ID, the issue experienced (including screenshots), the software used and its version, and the file format used. XO3D promises to process refund requests within three business days of receiving them. You are legally obligated to destroy any copies of purchased product files without the right to keep or use them in the future if you receive a refund.

Read our returns and refund policy.

Because our refund policy is intended to protect both the vendor and the customer, it must be fair to all parties. We always issue a refund if the buyer made a mistake (and did not download the files) or if the model is defective (technical issues, missing or corrupted files, incorrect or confusing description) — but we cannot issue refunds if the model is functional, matches the description, and the file has already been downloaded.