Export a PNG from SketchUp, drop it into Volexi, and receive a photoreal render in under a minute. No V-Ray licence. No render farm.
Volexi turns a SketchUp PNG export into a photorealistic render in 30–60 seconds. You export from SketchUp, upload the image, pick a lighting and materials preset, and receive a 4K render with preserved geometry.
What the numbers say
Inside VolexiAcross 4,812 SketchUp uploads processed during the Volexi closed beta, median time from PNG export to delivered 4K render was 42 seconds — compared to 18 minutes for an equivalent V-Ray for SketchUp scene on a laptop RTX 4070.
How it works
Three steps to go from an open SketchUp scene to a photorealistic AI render delivered in your browser.
File → Export → 2D Graphic → PNG. Use a transparent background if you plan to composite, otherwise any camera angle works as input.
Drag the PNG into the Volexi editor. Volexi detects the architectural linework and prepares the scene for AI rendering.
Pick a time of day, lighting preset, and flooring material. Click Render. A 4K photorealistic image is ready in under a minute.
Why SketchUp teams choose Volexi
Yes. Volexi locks to the SketchUp linework using a Canny-edge conditioning pass so walls, windows, and openings stay where you drew them.
When Architecture Lock is on, Volexi sends guidance=70 to the flux-canny-pro model. The result is a render where doorways, mullions, and ceiling lines match the original SketchUp model — no re-modelling, no parallax drift between the linework and the AI output.
Any SketchUp version that can export PNG or JPG — 2017 through 2026, plus SketchUp Web and SketchUp Free.
Volexi reads pixels, not SKP files. That means SketchUp Pro, SketchUp Studio, SketchUp for Schools, and SketchUp Free all work identically. You never install a plugin and never send a proprietary file outside your machine.
Use PNG at 2048 pixels wide or larger. Transparent backgrounds work; so do solid white walls from a clay-shaded scene.
A 2048-wide PNG gives the AI enough detail to recover material boundaries. Anything narrower causes resolution bottlenecks on the final 4K render. JPG works but adds compression artefacts around window edges.
Yes. SketchUp Free can export a PNG from the web app, and Volexi runs in a browser too.
The entire pipeline — SketchUp Free → PNG → Volexi upload → rendered output — runs without installing either tool. Useful for students and early-stage concept work without a Pro licence.
SketchUp exports rendered in Volexi
Eight dimensions that matter when you're choosing an AI or traditional renderer for architectural visualisation.
| Dimension | Volexi | SketchUp's native renderer |
|---|---|---|
| Setup time | Import export, render in 30 seconds | Material, lighting, and camera setup per scene |
| Export formats accepted | PNG, JPG, SKP export PNG | Native scene file only |
| Pricing model | Pay-as-you-go credit packs from $9 | Bundled with base license |
SketchUp's native renderer is a trademark of the owners of SketchUp. Volexi is not affiliated with or endorsed by the owners of SketchUp. Feature comparisons are based on publicly available documentation at time of writing.
Volexi works across every major architectural CAD format. Explore the full cluster.
No install, no plugin, no GPU. Upload a SketchUp PNG and see what photoreal AI rendering feels like on your own model.