Matterport vs. Zillow 3D Home
A Real Estate Photographer’s Honest Take
When it comes to 3D tours for real estate listings, both Matterport and Zillow 3D Home have their pros and cons. But if you're asking for my honest opinion — based on years of experience and hundreds of homes photographed — I firmly recommend Matterport.
I know some photographers prefer Zillow 3D Home over Matterport. But in my experience, it’s often because they haven’t worked with both systems at a professional level — or they simply don’t have access to the kind of high-end gear needed to capture true Matterport quality. Having spent over 30 years working directly with real estate agents and seeing what truly impacts buyers, I can confidently say: there’s a world of difference.
Let’s break it down:
Matterport 3D Tours
Advantages:
- Unmatched image quality and dynamic range — shows the property exactly as it looks.
- Ability to include outdoor spaces like gardens, yards, and pools.
- Smooth, intuitive navigation on both mobile and desktop — no awkward floor arrows.
- High measurement accuracy with LiDAR technology — enabling floor plans, CAD files, BIM models, and more.
- Ability to measure anything inside the tour — like stud spacing or countertop length.
- Possibility to present properties using the Dollhouse View — a unique 3D model that offers full spatial context.
- Option to switch to a traditional Floor Plan View for easier understanding of the layout.
- The overall presentation feels much more premium — and in some cases, lower quality or awkward navigation (like with Zillow) could actually hurt the perception of the property.
Disadvantages:
- Slightly higher starting price — mainly because of the advanced, professional-grade equipment required for Matterport capture, and because we cover ongoing monthly hosting fees for each tour.
- Matterport tours require ongoing hosting, but it's already included in our service for the first six months. Most homes sell well before that time, so additional hosting fees rarely become an issue.
- Getting a 3D Tour badge on Zillow requires a manual request to Zillow support.
Zillow 3D Home Tours
Advantages:
- Faster scanning with affordable 360° cameras, resulting in a lower service cost.
- Automatic generation of interactive floor plans with still photos embedded.
- No hosting fees.
Disadvantages:
- Lower image quality due to Zillow's heavy compression — not the photographer’s fault.
- Clunky navigation — users must click arrows on the floor instead of moving naturally.
- Measurements are just rough estimates generated from photos — no true scanning data.
- Even with beautiful listing photos, the poor 3D experience can make the home feel lower-quality or cheap — hurting the buyer's overall perception of the property.
See the Difference Yourself
The best way to understand the difference is to experience it. Here are two tours we recently created — one with Matterport, one with Zillow 3D Home. You'll instantly notice the difference!
The Bottom Line
We understand that sometimes Zillow 3D Home may be the right fit, while in other cases, Matterport delivers exactly the premium experience you need. That’s why we proudly offer both options — always delivered with maximum quality, professionalism, and care.