What Spline is
Spline is a 3D design tool that runs entirely in the browser, aimed at building interactive 3D for the web. Where most 3D software is built for film or games and assumes you already know your way around a viewport, Spline takes the opposite approach: it feels closer to a design app, with a low learning curve that designers can pick up quickly. You model, animate, add interactivity, and then publish the result straight to a website. The output is meant to live on a real page, react to clicks and scrolls, and run in real time.
How it works
You build a scene from primitives and Spline's modeling tools, apply materials, then layer on motion and behavior. The interactivity system is the heart of it: you attach events, such as mouse hover, click, scroll, or drag, and connect them to states so an object animates or changes when a visitor interacts with it. Everything renders live, so there is no separate bake or export-and-pray loop while you design. When the scene is ready, you embed it on a site or export it as code.
Standout features
Interactivity and events
Spline scenes are not static renders. The events system plus states let you create things like a 3D button that reacts on hover, a product that spins on scroll, or simple game-style controls, all without writing custom shader or animation code.
Real-time collaboration
Multiple people can work in the same scene at once, leave comments, and invite teammates, which is closer to how Figma works than to traditional 3D software. That makes it practical for design teams rather than a single specialist.
Physics, particles, and materials
You get physics simulation, particle effects, and a layer-based material system with a prebuilt library, so you can add realistic motion and surfaces without a heavy setup. Variables, webhooks, and API hooks let scenes respond to real data, not just preset animations.
Code export and integrations
This is where Spline pays off for the web. You can export to HTML and JavaScript, React, and Next.js, generate native code for Swift and Kotlin, or drop scenes into Webflow, Framer, and Wix Studio. It targets web, iOS, and Android, so the same scene can ship across platforms.
Hana design tools
Spline also includes a 2D design surface with an infinite canvas, frames, auto layout, vector networks, and visual effects like shadows, blurs, glass, and 3D projections, which helps bridge flat UI design and 3D in one place.
Who it is for
Spline is a strong fit for product designers, web designers, and front-end developers who want eye-catching 3D on landing pages, hero sections, app onboarding, and interactive marketing. The collaboration and code export make it a good team tool. It is less aimed at film-grade rendering or complex game asset pipelines; if you need offline ray-traced cinematics or AAA game meshes, a dedicated DCC package fits better. For interactive web 3D, though, few tools make it this approachable.
Common use cases
In practice, Spline shows up in a handful of recurring places. Landing-page hero sections use a slowly rotating 3D object that reacts to the cursor to make a site feel alive. App onboarding screens use animated 3D illustrations that respond as the user scrolls. Marketing teams build interactive product showcases where a visitor can spin or explore an item rather than stare at a flat photo. Design portfolios lean on it to stand out, and educators use it to teach 3D concepts without the steep ramp of traditional software. Because scenes connect to variables, webhooks, and APIs, you can also wire a scene to live data, so a 3D element changes based on real numbers instead of a fixed animation. That data link is what pushes Spline past decoration into genuinely functional interface work.
Pricing and plans
Spline uses a freemium model. There is a free tier that lets you start designing and publishing without paying, and paid tiers add more capacity and features for professionals and enterprises. Because plan limits and prices are updated over time, check the Spline site for the current tiers before choosing one.
Verdict
Spline hits a sweet spot that few tools reach: real, interactive 3D that a designer can actually build and a developer can actually ship to production. The events-and-states model makes interactivity intuitive, real-time collaboration removes the usual single-seat bottleneck, and the code export options mean the work does not get stranded in a proprietary viewer. If your goal is engaging 3D on the web rather than offline renders or game pipelines, Spline is one of the easiest and most capable ways to get there.
