BIMx
Free BIM model viewer and presentation app from Graphisoft, now tightly integrated with BIMcloud for browser-based viewing and secure, self-hosted hypermodel sharing — it does not create or edit BIM models itself; hypermodels must be exported from Archicad, which requires a paid subscription.
BIMx is Graphisoft's free model-viewing and presentation app, built to let anyone -- clients, contractors, consultants, planning officials -- open and explore an Archicad model without owning an Archicad license. Rather than a static export, BIMx packages a project into a 'hyper-model': layouts, 3D geometry and BIM data linked together, so tapping an element on a 2D sheet jumps straight to it in 3D and pulls up its specifications, and vice versa.
What's pushed BIMx well past a simple viewer is its integration with BIMcloud, Graphisoft's cloud collaboration platform. BIMcloud now has a BIMx web viewer built directly into it, so a stakeholder can open and navigate a live model in a browser with no app install at all, and firms can host their own hypermodels on their own BIMcloud instance instead of relying on third-party file transfer sites -- a real consideration for security-sensitive or confidential projects. The desktop and mobile apps (including Apple Vision Pro) run a streaming 3D engine that handles models of effectively unlimited size, plus BCF-compliant issue markup, layer-based visibility control, a customizable cut plane, and built-in Presenter and Gallery modes for guided or self-service client walkthroughs.
BIMx doesn't create or edit BIM models -- it's strictly a viewing, markup and presentation layer, and every hyper-model it opens still has to be exported from a paid Archicad license. Its value is entirely in how it extends Archicad's reach to everyone downstream of the modeling work, at no cost to them.
The pricing structure reflects that positioning precisely: BIMx the app is free to download and use for viewing on iOS, Android, Mac, Windows and Apple Vision Pro, but generating a hyper-model to view requires an Archicad Collaborate subscription, priced around $237+tax/month ($2,840+tax upfront for a one-year term per seat) as tracked in this catalog. That structure is a deliberate Graphisoft strategy -- give away the viewer freely to maximize how widely an Archicad-based project's model gets seen and used by clients and consultants, while the actual revenue comes from the Archicad license that produces the content.
Unlimited-size model streaming is a genuinely distinctive technical feature: rather than loading an entire model into device memory at once (which caps how large a project a mobile device or browser can realistically handle), BIMx streams only the geometry and data currently needed for the visible view, letting even large, complex projects open smoothly on a phone or tablet -- a real practical advantage for site visits and client meetings where a heavyweight desktop viewer isn't an option.
BIMx's role in Archicad's broader competitive positioning is also worth noting: because Revit has no equivalent free, universally accessible model-viewing app with this level of markup and presentation polish built in, BIMx functions as a meaningful client-experience differentiator for firms choosing between Archicad and Revit -- a client evaluating two firms, one presenting via BIMx's guided walkthrough and one via a static PDF or screen-share, is getting a genuinely different level of engagement with the design.
Editor’s takeBIM•STACK editor's take: BIMx is one of the more underappreciated tools in the Archicad ecosystem specifically because it's free and easy to overlook as "just a viewer" -- but the BCF issue markup, Presenter/Gallery modes, and BIMcloud web-viewer integration make it a genuine client-communication and field-coordination tool, not merely a way to look at a 3D model. The one thing to keep in mind is that BIMx's entire value depends on a firm already paying for Archicad Collaborate to produce hyper-models in the first place -- it's not a standalone product decision so much as a natural extension of an existing Archicad investment.
Minimal for viewers -- BIMx is built so a client or contractor with no BIM background can open a hyper-model and start navigating it immediately. The only real learning curve is on the Archicad side, in setting up models and layouts so the exported hyper-model actually links data the way it should.
That near-zero end-user learning curve is precisely the point of the product: BIMx succeeds only if a non-technical stakeholder -- a client, a planning official, a contractor's site superintendent -- can pick it up with no training and immediately get value from it, which is a fundamentally different design goal than an authoring tool aimed at trained professionals. The Presenter and Gallery modes push this further by giving the model's author (the architect) control over a guided, structured walkthrough experience, reducing how much navigation skill a viewer needs at all.
- Archicad firms sharing designs with non-technical stakeholdersClients and planning reviewers can explore a full 3D model and its data without needing any BIM software of their own.
- Site coordination with contractorsBCF-compliant markup lets field teams flag issues directly against the model from a phone or tablet.
- Firms wanting to keep model sharing in-houseHosting hypermodels on a firm's own BIMcloud instance avoids routing confidential models through third-party services.
- Your firm isn't on ArchicadBIMx only opens Archicad-exported hypermodels -- teams on other BIM platforms need a format-agnostic IFC viewer like BIM Vision or Solibri instead.
- You need multi-discipline model coordination, not just viewingFor clash detection and coordination across BIM tools rather than presenting a single Archicad model, Navisworks or Solibri are built for that job.
Is BIMx free?
Yes, the BIMx viewer app itself is free on all platforms. Creating the hypermodels it opens requires a paid Archicad subscription, and some extra mobile collaboration features sit behind an optional BIMx Pro subscription.
Can BIMx edit or create BIM models?
No -- it's a viewing, markup and presentation tool only. All modeling happens in Archicad; BIMx opens the exported result.
What is a BIMx hyper-model?
A hyper-model is an exported Archicad project that links 2D layouts, 3D geometry and BIM element data together, so navigating any one of them updates the others.
Does BIMx work in a web browser?
Yes -- BIMcloud now includes a built-in BIMx web viewer, so a hyper-model hosted on BIMcloud can be opened and navigated directly in a browser with no app install.
What's the difference between BIMx and BIMcloud?
BIMcloud is Graphisoft's real-time collaboration platform for teams actively editing a shared Archicad project. BIMx is the presentation and viewing layer on top of that -- for sharing a finished or in-progress model with people who aren't editing it.
