From what I see :

- "Broadcast" is now 990 euros more expensive (+20%) at feature parity.

- "Studio" is now becoming the former (retired) "Professional" Edition (with NDI/SDI added) but doesn't seem to be available as perpetual (we'll see about that) for around 2988€/year.

- "Studio limited" is effectively the retired Studio SE since there is no more Unreal Engine included. But is mostly useless.

- There doesn't seem to be any more entry level solution with Unreal Engine included.

- There is no more option for "a la carte" configurations like it used to be (watermark, NDI, SDI...)

I understand that it's (at least partly) due to Epic's change of policy, but it's a terrible news all around.

Hi LiveGuyUSA,

You have different options depending on whether you would like to edit your Unreal scene or not: 

• Option 1: If you need to edit your Unreal scene, you have to opt for Aximmetry Studio with AX Scene Editor.  In this case, your costs are $299/month. 
• Option 2: If you do not need to edit your Unreal scene, then you can use Aximmetry Studio with AX Scene Render Node, and your costs are $199/month. 

Perhaps you can even alternate these subscriptions according to your needs to save on the monthly fees. You can also lower your expenses by paying for only those months when you have actual productions. 

Warmest regards,

Hi Eifert,

Thank you for the clarification.

Based on this information,  I go from paying $199 USD a year currently to paying $2388 USD a year and lose the ability to edit any of my sets I currently use.  If I want to keep my ability to edit my sets (which I need),  this goes from $199 USD a year to $3588 USD a year.  

This calculates to about a 1800% increase in cost year over year with basically the same features (with the addition of SDI/NDI at no additional cost). Or an absolute minimum of 1200% increase in cost year over year if I never edit any of my sets.  

I appreciate the idea to alternate subscriptions to save money, but there would be no savings with my current production schedule.  

Sadly, I will be looking at alternatives to Aximmetry.

Thank you.

Hi,

We understand that a price increase is never welcome. If you are considering alternatives, we appreciate your honesty. However, we encourage you to consider the long-term value of Aximmetry, a robust and industry-tested software you rely on daily in your work. Our team has been continuously developing and refining Aximmetry since 2014, dedicating thousands of hours each year to enhancing its features and stability.
This is the first time in many years that we have adjusted some of our prices upward. Until now, we have kept our basic edition prices as low as possible to support the virtual production community. Unfortunately, given current circumstances, this is no longer sustainable for us.

If you decide to move on, we will genuinely be sorry to see you go.

If you are not tied to using the Unreal Engine, note that using only Aximmetry’s native render engine and features, the free Studio Limited edition remains an excellent option, offering even more than before.

Warmest regards,

I would like to inquire: We only have one Broadcast available. Usually, in teaching, we let students use the studio version and UE to practice the virtual production process. After version 2026.1.0, the studio will no longer be able to use UE (excluding the monthly rental plan). So, if it is for student use, what is the educational discount price? Please inform me. Thank you! The price increase is indeed too significant, which forces me to think about future adjustments to the use of virtual production teaching software.

I'd like to know if there will still be at least a watermarked version that can open/edit unreal scenes.

Warmest regards,

Hello @ericmarodon,

There is a free Student license with a watermark. Please see the description of this in the previous answer. There is no other Aximmetry license with an AX Scene Editor or AX Render Node component that users can access for free. 

Warmest regards,

Hello @JohanF,

Thank you for your concern and suggestions. We share your concern and are currently evaluating all options, which takes some time. At the same time, please keep in mind that NVIDIA is currently the most valuable company in the world, and its resources cannot be compared to those of Aximmetry. One of our core principles is to do the best we can for the community, and we will continue to do so.

Warmest regards,

@Mate: To clarify, I only mentioned Nvidia as an example of a commercial entity that makes a custom UE5 build available for everyone without having to pay any licensing fees to Epic. I could make my own build of UE5 and offer it for free to anyone, as long as they are registered with the Epic Unreal GitHub repo. Aximmetry could do the same The value of Aximmetry doesn’t have anything to do with the custom UE5 build. In fact, it’s an inconvenience having to deal with a separate UE5 installation. So, best alternative would be to package the Aximmetry integration as a plug-in instead. Second best option would be to make the custom UE5 build available for download through your own GitHub repository, effectively letting the UE5 licensing agreement be between Epic and the user. Since the custom UE5 build (or plug-in) would be useless without Aximmetry, you would only benefit from this arrangement. For users not wanting to have a licensing agreement with Epic, you could still sell the pre-packaged UE5 build. This would be a win for everyone. 

So if someone is buying the current broadcast lifetime license for 5000 €, you can still use it unlimited for a  lifetime with unreal engine editor (edit scene etc.)?

This shift makes me feel rather concerned for the future of Aximmetry as it's a drastic, and hardly comprehensible decision, mostly aimed at small studios, a segment where Aximmetry has excelled before.
As I was wholeheartedly and enthusiastically advising earlier the use to all sorts of people, now I cannot do it anymore, since it instantaneously became a massive investment + as I said, I am legit worried that with the drastic drop of newcomers the long term outlook for the software might not be too bright.

It pains me to write this since it is (honestly) probably my favorite software in the world..

Johan brings up some excellent points, I would like it addressed in detail by the Axim team, as a fellow professional user of Aximmetry I feel the same way.

Hi Johan,

Thank you for your suggestion. We are aware of these possibilities.

However, the process you describe is much more complex in practice than it might appear at first glance. It is not simply a matter of changing how things are delivered; there are multiple technical, legal, and long-term maintenance considerations that must be addressed. Additionally, it is essential to ensure that the end result remains reliable and predictable for production use.

Warmest regards,

Hi LiveGuyUSA,

Please contact our Sales Team at sales@aximmetry.com so they can give you advice specific to your needs. Please include your registered email address in your message.

Warmest regards,

Hi LostAiming,

Clients purchasing a lifetime license can use the purchased version of the software without any limit in time.  Broadcast & Film licenses come with AX Scene Render Node lifetime licenses unless upgraded to AX Scene Editor license. Please check our feature and price list: https://aximmetry.com/products 
Clients in possession of a valid Maintenance+ plan are eligible for software updates, accessing the Aximmetry support ticketing system, and purchasing additional support services. 

Warmest regards,

Hi AximMaxim,

Thank you for writing this. It means a lot,
The goal has always been to keep Aximmetry open and usable not only for bigger studios, but also for newcomers, students, and smaller teams who are just getting started and still want to create something real.
 
That is exactly why the free Studio LIMITED license exists, and why it now gives more than it did before. If you do not specifically need Unreal Engine in your workflow, Studio LIMITED is a solid, production-friendly starting point. It is free for unlimited use, has no watermark, includes 1 NDI I/O port, and includes basic tracking.
 
On top of that, with Aximmetry Eye, you can even begin with camera tracking without having to spend money on dedicated tracking hardware, and in many cases without needing an expensive camera tracking setup either. For many entry-level and learning scenarios, this removes one of the biggest cost barriers and makes it much easier to begin building real virtual production.

Warmest regards,

I noticed that the new version was just released (2026.1.0).   Even though my current license is good until July 1st, 2026 I can't update to this version now without being charged?  Is there anything actually different in this new version?

Hi LiveGuyUSA,

If you have purchased an Aximmetry Lifetime License (not a rental license) and are currently within your maintenance period, you can use version 2026.1.0 without any additional charges.
Aside from the changes in Unreal naming and licensing, there are no other differences between versions 2025.3.0 and 2026.1.0.

Warmest regards,

I appreciate the work the Aximmetry team has done over the years, but I’m honestly not comfortable with the new pricing structure.

For many small studios, freelancers, and independent creators, the previous Studio Limited license made Aximmetry accessible and sustainable. Moving from an affordable yearly license to a much higher monthly subscription is a very large increase and difficult to justify.

Over the past few years, the industry has changed significantly — AI tools have reduced budgets, many companies faced layoffs, and clients are pushing for lower prices. Professionals are already earning less while tools are becoming more expensive. This creates a mismatch between market reality and software pricing.

I believe pricing should better reflect today’s economic conditions and the needs of small creators, not only larger studios. Otherwise, many loyal users may be forced to leave the platform.

I hope you reconsider a more affordable tier for Unreal users or independent professionals.

Thank you.

What about the 3d artists who only create virtual sets but do not need a watermark-free edition for production ?

Before that, you could create your scenes, cook and test them in the free Editor and only send it to the paid broadcast version for production when ready.

Now, it appears the cheapest option to create an Aximmetry scene is 2988€ per year, even if you don't plan to use it in production yourself.

Compared to the vanilla Unreal Editor which is still free, it's a lot of money for "Add Aximmetry Camera" and "Cook for Aximmetry" functions.

There's a gap in the offering, since there is no way to only buy/rent the Aximmetry Unreal Editor + Composer with watermark.

@ericmarodon: Aximmetry is truly the best software with the worst, most confusing licensing terms. The contrast between how great the application is and how bad their licensing is truly staggering. This has been true since the dawn of time, but this takes it to a whole new level. At this rate it’s becoming harder to grasp the licensing options than to learn to use the application and Aximmetry is not exactly the most intuitive software out there. 

@Eifert: When every change you make to your licensing terms triggers this amount of questions, it should really tell you something isn’t optimal. Everyone understands the need to change pricing and that this recent change is at least partially are caused by circumstances beyond your control. Still, with the confusion and worry this (and your other recent licensing term changes) is causing your user base, it looks like you’re making these changes without an holistic analysis of the cascading implications. 

If a freelance 3D artist can’t build virtual sets with Aximmetry integration without paying €3000/year, it will effectively kill the entire ecosystem of talented Aximmetry content developers and quickly drain the accumulated competence that has made Aximmetry into what it is today . Please don’t underestimate the importance of the upstream flow of independent freelancers bringing Aximmetry into the major big league client space. I’ve seen countless examples of this over the years, and it’s truly concerning that this won’t be the case anymore. 

 Hi y.redaboucetta,

Thank you, and I genuinely understand where you’re coming from.

We understand that a price increase is never welcome, and we also understand that many freelancers and small studios are under serious pressure right now (budgets shrinking, clients pushing prices down, and general uncertainty). We did keep our basic edition prices as low as possible for many years, specifically to support newcomers and smaller teams, but unfortunately, given current circumstances, this is no longer sustainable for us.

Just to restate the practical options as clearly as possible:

• If you need to edit Unreal scenes, the current path is Aximmetry Studio + AX Scene Editor (currently $299/month).
• If you don’t need to edit, but only need the Unreal-based runtime side, Aximmetry Studio + AX Scene Render Node is $199/month.

Some users can reduce overall cost by subscribing only in the months when they have actual productions (or heavy scene-editing periods), and pausing in “quiet” months — I realize this doesn’t help everyone, but it can help some.

And if Unreal is not required, the free Studio LIMITED license remains a solid, production-friendly starting point (no watermark, 1 NDI I/O port, basic tracking), and Aximmetry Eye can further reduce the cost barrier for getting started with tracking.

Warmest regards,

Hi Ericmarodon,

Thank you, and I agree that the “creator / set-builder” use case is a key part of the ecosystem.

I also want to clarify one point: while it can look from the outside like it’s “just” Add Aximmetry Camera and Cook for Aximmetry, the Unreal-side integration is something we must keep reliable, production-ready, and predictable, and that includes ongoing development and long-term maintenance work (across Unreal changes, OS/driver updates, and real-world production edge cases). That’s one reason why we cannot simply offer the full Unreal editing/cooking pipeline for free in commercial use.

Right now:

• The only free license with AX Scene Editor is the Student license (watermarked).   
• For non-student professional use, Unreal editing/cooking requires Aximmetry Studio + AX Scene Editor.

While we don’t currently have a separate “watermarked creator-only” commercial tier that includes AX Scene Editor, one practical way some teams handle this is to split the workflow:

1. Do most of the environment work in vanilla Unreal (model import, materials, lighting, look-dev, performance tests, etc.).
2. When you actually need Aximmetry-specific steps (Aximmetry camera setup, Aximmetry-specific cooking/testing, verifying integration), start Aximmetry Studio + AX Scene Editor for that month.
3. Deliver the cooked result to the production team/client.
4. If the production is run on a separate machine/setup, the production side may only need AX Scene Render Node (depending on whether they need editing).
   
   

This is not the same convenience as the old “free editor until final production” workflow (I understand that), but it can reduce the number of paid months needed for some artists.

Warmest regards,

 Hi Johan,

Thank you, and I understand the frustration.

We are aware of the approaches you and others have described (plugin-based integration, “bring your own Unreal,” different distribution models, etc.). However, as I mentioned earlier, the process is much more complex in practice than it might appear at first glance. It isn’t simply a delivery change: there are technical, legal, and long-term maintenance considerations, and we also have to ensure the end result remains reliable and predictable for production use.

On the “confusing licensing” point: I agree that we need to do a better job in explaining the options. Aximmetry covers very different workflows (native engine vs Unreal, editing vs render-only, production vs development-only use), and we need to present those paths in a way that’s easier to grasp. We will be working on this in the upcoming months based on user feedback. 

And on the ecosystem point, we absolutely recognize the importance of independent creators and freelancers in building and maintaining a healthy Aximmetry content pipeline. That is exactly why the free Studio LIMITED license exists (and why it now gives more than it did before) for non-Unreal workflows. 

Warmest regards,