These tool profiles explicitly list LAS in fileFormats[]. Compare who opens,
edits, or exports the format, how much support is documented, and whether the catalog tags the tool as free or paid.
Last updated 2026-10-06.
Need the full import x export matrix? Open the formats hub. Need the same slice inside the category x sector grid? Open the LAS filter on the landscape map.
Need the same slice inside the full catalog grid? Open the LAS filter on the landscape map.
| Tool | Price signal | Direction | Support | Score | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Photogrammetry and LiDAR-fusion software converting photos and laser scans into textured meshes, point clouds, and orthophotos; rebranded from RealityCapture to RealityScan in 2025 under Epic Games. | Freemium | Listed | Unknown | 4.6/5 | worth-it |
| Free, open-source (GPL) desktop application for processing, comparing, registering, and analyzing 3D point clouds and meshes, with mature CLI/headless batch mode and two independent Python scripting layers. | Free viewer | Listed | Unknown | 4.4/5 | worth-it |
| Mobile laser-scanning hardware (VLX/MLX) coupled with IVION cloud platform for continuously-updated spatial twins. Captures millimeter-accurate 3D building data for reality capture, asset management, and construction administration. | Free viewer | Exports | Full | 4.2/5 | worth-it |
| Photogrammetric processing software converting digital images into point clouds, meshes, orthomosaics, and DEMs, with a documented headless-capable Python scripting API. | Paid / perpetual | Listed | Unknown | 4.0/5 | worth-it |
| Registers and cleans laser-scan and photogrammetry data into RCP/RCS point clouds for use inside Revit, AutoCAD, Civil 3D, and Navisworks. | Free viewer | Listed | Unknown | 4.0/5 | worth-it |
| NSF-funded nonprofit portal and REST API for accessing global DEMs (Copernicus, SRTM) and US LiDAR/3DEP topography. Provides RESTful web services (global DEM API + USGS 3DEP raster API) with rate-limited free API keys (200 calls/24h academic, 50/24h non-academic). US 3DEP 1m DEM access is restricted to academic users; commercial or intensive use requires a paid Enterprise API key. | Free viewer | Exports | Full | 4.0/5 | worth-it |
| Photogrammetry suite converting drone and terrestrial imagery into orthomosaics, point clouds, and CAD-ready geospatial data; Pix4Dmatic is the current high-volume large-project engine. | Paid / subscription | Listed | Unknown | 4.0/5 | worth-it |
| Photogrammetry software by 3Dflow (Italy) for 3D reconstruction from aerial and ground imagery; processes drone photos into point clouds, meshes, and orthomosaics. | Free viewer | Exports | Full | 3.6/5 | solid |
| Reality modeling software for photogrammetry and reality capture that democratizes infrastructure documentation. Transforms photography, lidar point clouds, and sensor data into engineering-ready 3D reality meshes, orthophotos, and classified point clouds for digital twins. Cloud-based processing with desktop and mobile capture apps. | Paid / subscription | Opens + exports | Full | 3.6/5 | solid |
| Large-scale aerial imagery program (UltraCam) offering orthomosaic and oblique imagery, DSM/DTM elevation (Elevate product line), 3D mesh/point cloud, and property/structure metadata. Delivered via Vexcel APIs, Image Services for ArcGIS, WMTS, a MapControl SDK, and a first-party MCP server (launched July 2026) with find_imagery, get_3d_model, change_detection, and attribute_query tools. Quote/subscription; the MCP connector starts around $2,500 per ten-power-user seat per year. | Paid / quote/subscription; mcp connector from ~$2,500 per ten-power-user seat/year | Exports | Unknown | 3.6/5 | solid |
| AI + GPR/LiDAR platform for non-destructive structural concrete scanning. Millimeter-accurate, BIM-ready scans of concrete structures without drilling. Bergen, Norway. 40+ structures across 8 countries. Seed: EUR 3.7M (Aug 2026). | Free viewer | Exports | Full | 3.4/5 | solid |
| Survey office CAD and field data collection platform; 100% AutoCAD compatible survey toolset via inCAD add-in. | Paid / quote-only | Opens + exports | Full | 3.4/5 | solid |
| Browser-based digital-twin platform that hosts, visualizes, and publishes reality-capture point clouds and 360-degree panoramas from SLAM/mobile-mapping and laser scans; formerly NavVis IndoorViewer. | Paid / subscription | Listed | Unknown | 3.4/5 | solid |
| Unified reality capture platform combining aerial drones, 360 cameras, ground robots, and AI agents for construction, energy, and agriculture -- automated site documentation with photogrammetry, LiDAR, and visual AI (Progress AI, Safety AI); used on over 3 million sites in 180 countries, with docked drone automation, ground-based 360 walks, and BIM/IFC/DXF alignment at ~inch accuracy; serves data center, infrastructure, and civil construction programs globally. | Paid / subscription | Listed | Unknown | 3.2/5 | solid |
| Point-cloud-to-CAD/BIM conversion software; scan-to-BIM processing for laser scan data with plugins for Revit, AutoCAD, SketchUp, and ARES Commander. | Paid / subscription | Opens | Full | 3.2/5 | solid |
| AI-powered 360-degree video SLAM platform that converts construction documentation video to 4D digital twins; integrates with Autodesk BIM 360, Procore, and Revizto. | Paid / quote-only | Exports | Full | 3.0/5 | solid |
| Registers, cleans, and publishes laser-scan point clouds from Leica and third-party scanners into RCP/E57/LAS deliverables for downstream CAD and BIM. | Free viewer | Listed | Unknown | 3.0/5 | solid |
| Reality data management platform (3DM Cloud, Feature Extraction, Publisher) for point clouds, imagery, and meshes from mobile/aerial/drone mapping; construction, utilities, and infrastructure applications. | Paid / quote-only | Opens | Full | 3.0/5 | solid |
| Survey CAD software for processing field data from GNSS, total stations, laser scanners, drones, and mobile mapping into high-quality deliverables, with specialized modules for mining, monitoring, tunneling, bridge, and GIS workflows. | Paid / subscription | Opens + exports | Full | 3.0/5 | solid |
| MicroStation-based civil design application for detailed road, highway, and rail corridor design -- survey, drainage, subsurface utilities, and construction staking documentation -- Bentley's Civil 3D alternative for DOT and infrastructure-heavy practices. | Paid / subscription | Listed | Unknown | 2.8/5 | situational |
| Registers and processes point clouds from FARO (and third-party) laser scanners -- target-based and cloud-to-cloud registration, filtering, meshing, and export to CAD/BIM formats -- with WebShare cloud publishing. | Paid / quote-only | Listed | Unknown | 2.8/5 | situational |
| AI-powered automated surveying and data management for construction and mining. Machine-mounted laser scanning systems and smartphone scanners capture terrain data during operations. SDX-Cloud integrates scanning data for real-time dashboards and analytics. | Paid / quote-only | Exports | Full | 2.8/5 | situational |
| LiDAR and terrain modeling tool that runs natively inside AutoCAD, Civil 3D, MicroStation, and BricsCAD. Processes survey data, point clouds, and terrain visualization with volume calculations and DTM export for civil engineering projects. | Free tier | Opens | Full | 2.8/5 | situational |
| End-to-end cloud drone-mapping software that produces orthomosaics, DSM, DTM, point clouds, and textured 3D meshes and publishes them natively into the ArcGIS ecosystem via the Site Scan - ArcGIS Connector. Outputs can be exported to GIS/CAD (ArcGIS Pro, QGIS, AutoCAD Civil 3D) or pushed to Autodesk BIM 360. No standalone public REST API; enterprise/quote-based, licensed within ArcGIS/ArcGIS Reality. | Paid / quote-only | Exports | Full | 2.6/5 | situational |
| Corridor design software for rural roads, highways, rail, and pipeline projects. Real-time earthwork calculations, terrain modeling, and AI-powered alignment optimization with LiDAR/DEM/UAV terrain support. | Paid / quote-only | Opens | Full | 2.6/5 | situational |
| Autonomous LiDAR drone platform for mobile data capture and mapping in GPS-denied environments using SLAM technology. Provides hardware (GX1 scanner, Hovermap series) and cloud software (Aura, Commander, Cortex autonomy engine) for survey-grade scanning. | Paid / quote-only | Exports | Full | 2.4/5 | situational |
| Registers, analyzes, and models laser-scan point clouds from any scanner source into CAD/BIM deliverables, including targetless auto-registration; sold only through Trimble distributors. | Free viewer | Listed | Unknown | 2.4/5 | situational |
For broader category context, compare the same format against the rest of the AEC catalog on the landscape map.