What Is a 3D Product Configurator? A Plain Guide for Makers and E-shops
By Ugnius Motiejūnas
Most custom products are still sold with photos, a PDF price list and a "contact us" button. A 3D configurator answers the buyer's questions before they ever write to you.
Most custom products are still sold the same way: a few photos, a PDF price list and a "contact us" button. Then the questions start. What would it look like with a black frame? Will two benches fit? How much with the bigger heater? Every answer takes an email, and every email is a chance for the buyer to go quiet.
A 3D configurator answers those questions on the product page, before the buyer ever writes to you.
What is a 3D configurator?
A 3D product configurator is an interactive tool on your website where a buyer changes a product's size, materials, colours and extras, and the 3D model and price update instantly. When they are done, they order or send you a request that already contains the exact configuration.
It is not the same as a 360° viewer or a photo gallery. A viewer shows one finished product from every angle. A configurator lets the buyer build their own version, within the rules you set.
How it works: a sauna example
Take a barrel sauna sold in three lengths with several options. In a configurator, the buyer:
- Picks the length, for example 2.4 m, and the sauna resizes on screen.
- Chooses the wood and the colour of the outer finish.
- Selects an electric or wood-burning heater. Only heaters that suit the chosen size are offered.
- Adds extras such as a glass front, a canopy or lighting, and sees each one in place.
- Watches the price change with every choice.
- Places the sauna in their own garden with AR on their phone.
- Orders or sends a request. You receive the full spec, a picture of the configuration and the price they saw.
The same logic works for hot tubs, garden houses, sofas, kitchens, doors, windows and machinery.
Configurator vs photos vs 360° view vs renders
| Photos | 360° view with AR | Renders | 3D configurator | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buyer can change options | No | No | No | Yes |
| Shows the buyer's exact version | No | No | Only if you make one | Yes |
| Live price | No | No | No | Yes |
| Real size in the buyer's space (AR) | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Request arrives with the full spec | No | No | No | Yes |
| Best for | Simple stock items | Products with few options | Catalogues and ads | Products with many options |
One 3D model, many uses
A configurator is built on a 3D model of your product. Once that model exists, it can also produce:
- catalogue images on white or in a garden scene, even before the first unit is built;
- short videos for social media and ads;
- a 360° view with AR for products that have no options;
- an assembly guide on the phone, opened with a QR code in the box;
- the same configurator on your dealers' websites, with their prices.
That is the idea behind our work: model the product once, then sell with it everywhere.
Who needs a configurator, and who does not
A configurator pays off when:
- the product comes in many combinations of size, wood, colour and extras;
- the price is high enough that buyers hesitate, usually from a few thousand euros up;
- your sales team spends hours answering the same "what would it look like" and "how much with" questions;
- most buyers will never visit your showroom or yard.
You probably do not need one if you sell a single model with no options. A 360° view with AR is cheaper and does that job.
What a good configurator should do
Use this as a checklist when you compare offers:
- Works well on a phone, where many of your visitors arrive.
- Loads the 3D only when the buyer opens it, so your page stays fast.
- Blocks combinations you cannot build, instead of letting buyers request them.
- Shows the price live, or a price range if you quote every order individually.
- Sends the configuration, an image and the buyer's contacts straight to your inbox or CRM.
- Lets the buyer save or share their design.
- Offers AR, so the buyer can check the size at home.
- Lets you change prices and options without a developer.
How it gets on your website
A modern configurator runs in the browser, so the buyer installs nothing. It is usually added with one script tag or embed code, which means it works on Shopify, WooCommerce, WordPress or a custom site. You keep your existing product pages; the configurator opens from a button or sits inside the page.
How much does a 3D configurator cost?
Prices vary a lot. In the Lithuanian Innovation Agency's 2023 call for SME digitisation, product configuration and visualisation projects averaged about €42,000 (Inovacijų agentūra, 2023).
The price depends on four things:
- How many product families go into the configurator. The second family costs less, because the tool itself already exists.
- How many extras need to be shown in 3D. Colours and materials are cheap; unique objects cost more. Not every extra needs 3D: a thermometer or a bucket can simply be a checkbox with a photo.
- How complex the rules are: which options cannot be combined, and how the price is calculated.
- Whether it needs connections to your e-shop, CRM or stock system.
A Trimata configurator, including 3D models of the whole product and its extras, starts from €999 (excluding VAT).
