3D Tools

Format guide

3D file formats explained for everyday model workflows.

Different 3D file formats preserve different information. A conversion can change more than the file extension: it may remove materials, textures, animation, hierarchy, scale or print metadata.

GLB and glTF

GLB and glTF are common choices for web 3D. They can represent meshes, materials, textures, cameras, animations and scene hierarchy. GLB is a single binary file. glTF is usually a JSON file with external buffers and textures.

Use GLB when sharing or publishing a self-contained model. Use glTF when you need an editable package that can be inspected or processed by tools before final delivery.

STL

STL is widely used for 3D printing because it stores triangle geometry in a simple way. It does not preserve modern material definitions, texture maps, rigging or animation. That makes it dependable for slicers but poor as a general interchange format.

If you convert a textured model to STL, expect to lose visual appearance. Keep the source file if you may need to return to materials or colors later.

OBJ

OBJ is a long-standing interchange format for mesh geometry. It can reference material data through an MTL file and textures through external paths, but those sidecar files are easy to lose when moving a model.

OBJ is useful for simple mesh exchange. It is less suitable when you need animation, modern PBR materials or a reliable single-file web upload.

PLY

PLY is often used for scans and point-cloud-style workflows. It can store geometry and vertex colors, but support varies between tools. It is not usually the best final format for web delivery or ecommerce previews.

Convert PLY to GLB when you need broader browser viewer support, then inspect the result for color and scale.

3MF

3MF is designed for modern 3D printing workflows and can carry richer print information than STL. It may include colors, materials and manufacturing metadata depending on the authoring tool.

It is a good format for print preparation, but not every web viewer or game pipeline supports it directly.

FBX

FBX is common in animation and game pipelines. It can carry hierarchy, animation, materials and rigging, but compatibility can vary because many tools interpret FBX data differently.

When converting FBX to GLB, test the animation, material appearance and scale before assuming the result is production-ready.

Which format should you choose?

  • Choose GLB for self-contained web previews and product pages.
  • Choose glTF for editable web 3D pipeline packages.
  • Choose STL for basic geometry-only 3D printing.
  • Choose 3MF for richer print workflows when your slicer supports it.
  • Choose OBJ for simple mesh exchange when sidecar files are acceptable.
  • Choose FBX when animation pipeline compatibility matters, then test carefully after conversion.