--- title: "3D Tiles Viewer" description: "Free online Cesium 3D Tiles viewer for GIS. Open photogrammetry, BIM, or point cloud tilesets from a local ZIP or a remote tileset.json URL, all in the browser." toolId: "3dtiles-viewer" category: "preview" subgroup: "model-viewer" subgroupName: "3D Model Viewer" url: "https://any3d.cc/en-US/tools/3dtiles-viewer" markdown: "https://any3d.cc/llm/tools/3dtiles-viewer.md" --- # 3D Tiles Viewer Stream and inspect massive 3D Tiles datasets, city models, photogrammetry, and BIM with high-performance HLOD rendering. **Category:** 3D Model Viewer Tools (`preview`) **Subgroup:** 3D Model Viewer (`model-viewer`) **HTML:** https://any3d.cc/en-US/tools/3dtiles-viewer > Runs entirely in the browser. Files are not uploaded to Any3D servers. ## Overview This is a free online 3D Tiles viewer supporting both local file/ZIP uploads and remote URL streaming. Large datasets stream smoothly with high-performance Hierarchical Level of Detail (HLOD) rendering directly in your browser. GIS coordinates are automatically normalized to center the model in your viewport, and all processing runs locally on your device. ## About Configuration Options ### Preview settings - **Auto-rotate** (Default: off): Slowly rotate the tileset around the vertical axis for a complete view. - `on` — on - `off` — off (Recommended) ### Level of Detail (LOD) - **Max Screen Space Error (SSE)** (Default: 6px; Range: 1px – 30px): Adjust the pixel error threshold for tile subdivision. Lower values load finer details sooner, while higher values improve performance. - **Max Tree Depth** (Default: 30; Range: 1 – 40): Limits the maximum hierarchy depth when traversing the spatial tile tree. ### Debug & Visualizations - **Color Mode** (Default: Default (Material)): Switch between default material rendering and various debug shading modes such as Screen Space Error, Geometric Error, Camera Distance, Depth, Leaf nodes, or Random Colors. - `none` — Default (Material) (Recommended): Render standard tile textures and materials - `screenError` — Screen Space Error: Color code tiles by current screen space error - `geometricError` — Geometric Error: Color code tiles by geometric error - `distance` — Camera Distance: Color code tiles by distance from camera - `depth` — Tile Depth: Color code tiles by tree depth level - `relativeDepth` — Relative Depth: Color code tiles relative to parent depth - `isLeaf` — Leaf Nodes: Highlight leaf tiles - `randomColor` — Random Color: Assign distinct random colors to each tile - **Bounding Boxes** (Default: Off): Toggle oriented bounding box (OBB) and axis-aligned bounding box (AABB) wireframe outlines for visible tiles. - `on` — On: Display bounding boxes - `off` — Off (Recommended): Hide bounding boxes - **Sphere Bounds** (Default: Off): Toggle bounding sphere wireframe outlines for visible tiles. - `on` — On: Display bounding spheres - `off` — Off (Recommended): Hide bounding spheres ## Format Information ### Input format - **Extension:** json, zip, b3dm, pnts, i3dm, cmpt - **Full Name:** 3DTiles (OGC 3D Tiles) - **Type:** 3D Model - **Format:** 3DTiles - **Tools:** [3DTilesRendererJS](https://github.com/NASA-AMMOS/3DTilesRendererJS), [Cesium](https://cesium.com), [Three.js](https://threejs.org) - **Open With:** [View in 3D Tiles Viewer](https://any3d.cc/en-US/tools/3dtiles-viewer) - **Description:** 3D Tiles is an open standard specification designed by Cesium and adopted by OGC for streaming and rendering massive heterogeneous 3D geospatial and geometric datasets. It uses hierarchical Level of Detail (HLOD) and spatial bounding volume trees to enable efficient real-time visualization of large-scale photogrammetry, building models, point clouds, and BIM scenes over the web. - **Supported Features:** - Hierarchical Level of Detail (HLOD) streaming - Real-time WebGL rendering with 3DTilesRendererJS - Orbit controls with rotate/pan/zoom - Screen space error and depth LOD controls - Bounding box and debug visualization - **Notes:** - The 3D Tiles format supports hierarchical LOD streaming and massive spatial models ## FAQ ### What is 3D Tiles and how does it stream massive geospatial datasets? 3D Tiles is an open OGC standard designed by [Cesium](https://cesium.com/) for streaming and rendering massive heterogeneous 3D geospatial and geometric datasets over the web. Using Hierarchical Level of Detail (HLOD) and spatial bounding volume trees, it dynamically streams only the tiles visible in the current viewport, enabling smooth real-time rendering for photogrammetry, urban models, BIM, and point clouds. ### How to view 3D Tiles online without installing desktop software? You can compress the entire folder containing tileset.json and its associated tile files into a single .zip archive and upload it, or select all files directly in the file picker. If your dataset is hosted online, paste the public HTTP/HTTPS URL of your tileset.json into the URL field in the upload zone and click load to explore it immediately in your browser. ### What is the difference between 3D Tiles and Cesium? 3D Tiles was originally created by Cesium and is now an open OGC community standard that is independent of any specific engine. [Cesium ion](https://cesium.com/platform/cesium-ion/) is a commercial cloud hosting platform and [CesiumJS](https://cesium.com/platform/cesiumjs/) is a WebGL engine, while this tool is a completely free, standalone browser viewer that requires no software installation or user account. ### Where can I find and download free 3D Tiles sample data? You can load the built-in sample scenes directly below the upload area to stream real [CesiumGS](https://github.com/CesiumGS) tilesets such as LOD buildings, photogrammetry trees, and point clouds. For downloadable datasets, visit the official [CesiumGS](https://github.com/CesiumGS)/3d-tiles-samples repository on GitHub, OpenStreetMap 3D Buildings, or open municipal GIS portals. ### What file formats and tile payloads are used in 3D Tiles? A 3D Tiles dataset uses a JSON index file named tileset.json to define spatial hierarchy and bounding volumes. Actual geometric and attribute data are stored in tile payload formats including Batched 3D Model (.b3dm), Point Cloud (.pnts), Instanced 3D Model (.i3dm), Composite (.cmpt), and native glTF/GLB content in 3D Tiles 1.1. ### How does 3D Tiles differ from traditional single 3D models or photogrammetry meshes? Unlike monolithic 3D model formats that must be fully downloaded and decoded before display, 3D Tiles partitions massive geospatial scenes and drone photogrammetry meshes into a hierarchical LOD spatial tree. The browser requests high-resolution geometry only for areas near the camera, drastically reducing memory usage while delivering smooth streaming across city-scale 3D environments. ### Can I view 3D Tiles on mobile devices and smartphones? Yes, the viewer works on modern mobile browsers with WebGL support. However, because high-resolution photogrammetry and dense point cloud datasets require substantial GPU memory and download bandwidth, desktop computers with dedicated graphics cards are recommended for smooth navigation across multi-gigabyte city-scale datasets. ### Is Any3D completely free? Yes, Any3D's core features are free to use forever. We provide format conversion, model optimization, and online preview at no cost, with no registration required. ### Are my files uploaded to your servers? No. Files you select are processed only in your browser on this device, so they never leave your device and are never sent to our servers. We don't store any user files; after processing, related data in browser memory is released. ### Do I need to install software? No installation required. Any3D is entirely browser-based; just open the webpage to use all features. It works on Windows, Mac, Linux, and other major operating systems. ### Is there a file size limit? The processing capacity depends on your device performance and the model's vertex count and texture complexity, rather than file size alone. We impose no file size limit, but when a model exceeds what your device can handle, the page may lag or even crash.