What it does
Rhino is a Windows and Mac modeller for curves, surfaces, solids and meshes, with analysis and drafting tools for physical design. Grasshopper provides a visual programming route. Paid licences are perpetual, and a 90-day evaluation is available.
Rhino handles several kinds of geometry in the same design environment: NURBS curves and surfaces, solids, subdivision forms, polygon meshes and point clouds. PushPull changes volumes from selected faces, Gumball provides move/scale/rotate controls, and Grasshopper adds visual programming for generated forms.
For printing or fabrication, ShrinkWrap creates a watertight mesh around existing geometry. QuadRemesh creates quad meshes from surfaces, solids, meshes or SubD forms. Analysis tools inspect dimensions, curvature and naked edges, while drafting tools add sections and annotations. Native projects use 3DM; Rhino 8 also supports USD export and glTF import/export.
A North American commercial Rhino 8 licence costs USD 995 as a one-time purchase; an upgrade from an older paid version costs USD 595. Taxes are extra and regional prices can differ. The licence is permanent, support and service releases for that version are included, and major upgrades are optional. The 90-day evaluation needs no credit card and permits commercial work during the trial. Evaluation copies do not qualify for upgrade pricing.
Strengths
- Surface, subdivision and mesh geometry can share a design workflow.
- ShrinkWrap and QuadRemesh prepare different mesh outputs.
- A purchased licence is permanent and includes current-version service releases.
Watch out for
- Evaluation copies are not eligible for paid-version upgrade pricing.
- Some tools, including worksessions and 3D digitizing hardware support, are Windows-only.
Best for
- Industrial product forms
- Free-form design geometry
Sources
- Rhino | Rhinoceros3D (Oct 27, 2026)
- Rhino Features (Oct 27, 2026)
- Rhino North American Pricing (Oct 27, 2026)