Scanaria vs FARO Sphere XG
Construction progress documentation teams, especially FARO scanner users
What you gain
Four things a scanner owner gets from Scanaria that FARO Sphere XG does not offer in the same way.
- 01
Upload the E57 from the scanner you own, with its panoramas, on any plan. FARO Sphere XG accepts it only partly or only for some customers.
- 02
Keep the finished tour as a folder that opens from index.html on any desktop, with no server and nothing calling home. FARO Sphere XG keeps the tour inside its platform.
- 03
One flat $60 a month for unlimited processing, and hosting only if you want it, in the two larger plans. FARO Sphere XG: not published.
- 04
A phone-first viewer: the whole building under 15 MB, first view in seconds on 4G, Save for offline.
Where FARO Sphere XG is stronger
- Progress photo documentation workflow inherited from HoloBuilder
- Native handling of FARO scanner projects
Sphere XG accepts E57 but only as a point cloud; panoramas are not read from the file, so it does not produce a panorama walkthrough from third-party scans on its own. Pricing is not public. It is not a direct E57-to-walkthrough converter and is listed here for completeness.
Facts checked on 2026-10-29 at faro.com. If something has changed, write to us and we will correct it.
| Scanaria | FARO Sphere XG | |
|---|---|---|
| Hardware required | None to buy. Any scanner that writes an E57: Leica, Trimble, Faro, NavVis, Z+F, Topcon, XGRIDS Lixel. Matterport exports accepted. | FARO devices recommended (CPE format); E57 and LAZ also accepted [source: help.holobuilder.com] |
| Accepts your own E57 | Yes. E57 with its panoramas (Cyclone spherical or Matterport cube faces), plus an optional PDF plan. | Partial. E57 imports the point cloud only; panorama images are not imported; 20 GB upload limit; Point Cloud Management add-on is a separate license and supports unified clouds only [source: help.holobuilder.com] |
| Pricing shape | First project free. Then a flat $60 a month for unlimited processing, downloads included. With hosting: Gold at $140 a month with 15 GB, or Platinum at $2,500 a month with up to 500 GB. | Not published [source: capterra.com] |
| Ownership and offline download | Yes. Download the whole tour as a folder with index.html on top; opens on a desktop with no server. Nothing calls home. | Point clouds can be downloaded from the project tree; no offline tour package documented [source: help.holobuilder.com] |
| Dollhouse view | Yes. Point cloud dollhouse with roof-off view and full-cloud toggle; true color and intensity modes. | Not published [source: help.holobuilder.com] |
| Section box | Yes. Six-sided section box with snapping and presets, identical in every view. | Not published [source: help.holobuilder.com] |
| Measurement | Yes. In the panorama, the dollhouse and the top-down view. | Not published [source: help.holobuilder.com] |
| Phone performance | Phone-first hosted viewer: coarse whole-building cloud under 15 MB, first view under 5 s on 4G, Save for offline. | Not published [source: help.holobuilder.com] |
| If you stop paying | The hosted link stops; the downloaded folder keeps working forever. You can download at any time while hosted. | Not published [source: help.holobuilder.com] |
Common questions
Does FARO Sphere XG accept E57 files from my own scanner?
Partial. E57 imports the point cloud only; panorama images are not imported; 20 GB upload limit; Point Cloud Management add-on is a separate license and supports unified clouds only. Source: help.holobuilder.com. Scanaria accepts E57 with panoramas from any terrestrial scanner.
Can I download a FARO Sphere XG tour and open it offline?
Point clouds can be downloaded from the project tree; no offline tour package documented. Scanaria tours download as a folder that opens from index.html with no server.
How does FARO Sphere XG charge?
Not published. Scanaria: first project free, then a flat $60 a month for unlimited processing, with hosting optional in the two larger plans.
What happens to FARO Sphere XG tours if I stop paying?
Not published. With Scanaria, the hosted link stops but the folder you downloaded keeps working.