Maya vs. Maya LT - Comparison

Explore the differences between Maya and Maya LT software.

Maya – Realize your vision in modeling, animation, lighting, and VFX with comprehensive 3D software.
Maya LT – A professional 3D tool with a price that fits an indie game maker’s budget.

Are you an animator in the market for new and cutting-edge software? Maybe you’ve finally narrowed down your choice to Autodesk’s Maya software. But, do you need the full version of Maya or Maya LT?
The answer to that depends on many things. This includes how you plan on using the program. The frequency and scope of your use. And, how deep your pockets are.
Could you get away with using the LT version? Or, do you need to go all out for the full version? Take a look at these comparisons before you make your final decision.

Maya (full version): Quick Overview

As you might expect, the full version of Maya gives you access to all the features of this 3D software. They include features in animation, modeling, lighting, and VFX.

And, while the list of features is comprehensive, if you have a specific activity in mind all the extras may be overkill for your needs.

Maya LT: Quick Overview

As previously mentioned, Maya LT may be the right 3D software for you. But, it depends on what you plan on doing with it. While you may have more versatility with the full version of Maya, LT users need to plan for specific activities.
This is because Maya LT contains a large variety of features, but not all of them. That does not mean that LT is inferior. Simply that you need to prioritize what and why you plan on using the software. This is because Maya LT may not have the toolset you need for a specific task.
For a more in-depth look at the difference between features for the full version of Maya and the LT version, take a look below.

Full versus LT Comparison

First, it would be remiss to not mention the price difference between the full and LT versions of Maya. In general, you can subscribe to either one depending on how much your budget allows. You can choose monthly, annual, multi-year (2 years), or multi-year (3 years) subscription.

The pricing ranges from relatively affordable to very pricey. As you may expect, the LT version is cost-effective. However, you will receive less features and support for the price.

Think the cost savings is worth it? Only you can decide that. But, here is what is left out of the LT version of Maya.

3D Modeling

If you will use Maya LT primarily for 3D modeling, don’t worry. You have access to nearly all of the features in this category. That is 10 out of 11 features. The only one you would be missing out on is Maya Paint Effects.
Maya Paint Effects is a feature that allows you to paint objects directly within 2D canvases. You would use this feature to create 2D textures or images. You may also use it to create paint effects within a 3D space. While this is a useful feature, it is not necessarily a priority if you do not need 2D textured images often.

UV & Texturing Workflows

Next, UV and texturing features may make your work easier. But, if that is not part of your primary workload you may not need all the bells and whistles. The LT version has 8 of the full version’s 10 features.
The ones you would be missing out on are PSD file support and transfer maps. If you or your creative partners use Adobe Photoshop, the loss of PSD file support may be a deal-breaker. However, if you don’t use it at all you won’t even know it’s gone.
In addition, transfer maps are a fast and convenient way to bake high resolution meshes into other objects. However, if you don’t do this that often, you can always use other Maya LT tools to do similar things.

3D Animation & Rigging

If you are looking at Maya software, you will probably be doing the bulk of your work in 3D animation. The full version has an impressive 19 features for this section of the software. The LT version, however, has most of the same features with a few limitations.
The first is that you cannot do unlimited animation layers in the LT version. Unlike the full version, LT offers only 2 animation layers.
Additionally, you also cannot use the ATOM animation file save and load option. But, if you are not going to transfer animations from one character to another, you probably don’t need this anyway.
Lastly, you are a bit more limited with the constraints you can use in the LT version of Maya. For the full version, you have 9 different constraints to choose from. And, they range from point to pole vector, and tangent to normal.
However, Maya LT only allows you to use 5 constraints. They are point, aim, orient, parent, and pole vector. Scale, geometry, normal, and tangent constraints are all missing from the LT version.

Motion Graphics

Next, Maya LT does not offer the use of motion graphics features. The 3 features available in the full version do not come in the light version. That includes the motion graphics toolset.

Animation Deformation

Additionally, you have a limited set of animation deformation features and tools for Maya LT. They are also called space warps or modifiers in other similar software packages.
For example, the following deformers are missing from the LT version: Delta Mush, Maya Muscle, wrinkle, sculpt, soft modification, jiggle, and wire.

Camera Sequencer

In the Maya LT version of the software, you do not get any camera sequencer features. Anyway, you may already use a different software for these types of edits. The 3 missing features are:

Multicamera layout and management tools
Sequencer playlist clip editing
Grease pencil

Rendering & Imaging

Additionally, you receive virtually no rendering capabilities for Maya LT. But, you do have access to these imaging and shading features:

Hypershade and visor tools
Shader FX
Color management
Microsoft DirectX 11 support
DX11 real-time shader effects
HLSL and CgFX support

Dynamics & Effects

Next, if you were planning on using Maya LT for dynamics and effects work you may need to find a different option. Unlike the full version that has 9 features dedicated to realistic effects and dynamics, the LT version has none.

Pipeline Integration & Tools

Additionally, Maya LT has the barebones for pipeline integration and the tools you may need for workflow. While you can use MEL scripting in the LT version, other script writing and support is not available.
However, you do have the ability to export to Unity, Unreal, and Mudbox. And, one feature that the full version does not have: access to the Stingray game engine.
Along with that, you can also use the “export game tool” option. As well as cloud integration for greater sharing capabilities.

Additional Feature Comparisons

The only data & scene management tools you get with Maya LT is the File Path Editor UI. Otherwise, features such as Node editor and Scene Assembly tools are only available in the full version.
Lastly, you need OS support. And, the full version offers support for different platforms such as Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux. But, unfortunately Linux users are out of luck with Maya LT.

Final Thoughts

Picking the right version of Maya for you depends on many things. But, most important is cost and workload priorities. Because first, you need to be able to afford your copy of the software.
However, equally important to cost is getting your money’s worth from your version of Maya. Don’t make the mistake of thinking “bigger is better.” Take a look at what the full version has over the LT version.

Prioritize what you really need to get your creative juices flowing. And, trim off the extras you won’t use anyway. The right solution for you depends on your creative needs to implement your vision.

Maya vs. Maya LT Comparison