Trimble has released SketchUp 2026.0, its latest update to the 3D modeling software used for design, visualization, and documentation. The new version focuses on real-time collaboration, improved visualization controls, higher performance, and improved interoperability with CAD and BIM formats.
SketchUp for Desktop introduces a new collaboration system allowing users to share models privately or through public links. Invited collaborators can view, measure, and comment on a model in real time, with activity such as camera movements and edits visible to others. The new Collaboration Bar manages access levels and feedback, while a 3D comment tool enables location-based discussions inside a model.
Visualization features have been improved with distance and color controls for Ambient Occlusion, an option to invert a material’s roughness map, and the ability to select custom material thumbnails. Trimble reports performance improvements in memory management and graphics handling, particularly for large models. Scene transitions, zooming, and selection operations now run faster under internal testing benchmarks.
The update refines workflows for Live Components, allowing these parametric objects to be scaled with grips using inference and painted with custom materials beyond their preset options. Other modeling refinements include more accessible scale grips, transparent placement when moving objects from profile edges, undo and redo support for scenes, and greater control over the Purge Unused function.
SketchUp 2026.0 improves file exchange with DWG and IFC formats. DWG imports now include hatch support, grouped layer structures, and a flattening option to align 2D linework to the origin plane. Exported 3D DWG files can retain section planes, and IFC export has been consolidated into a single dialog supporting both IFC 2×3 and IFC 4 schemas.
The bundled Scan Essentials extension gains Texture Projection and Mesh Generation tools for creating geometry from point-cloud data. A new Scene Manager manages visibility for scan data, and exports can reset to original georeferenced coordinates.
LayOut, SketchUp’s documentation tool, features a redesigned Windows interface that aligns visually and functionally with SketchUp. It includes new drafting tools—Trim, Extend, Fillet, and Chamfer—alongside updated Scrapbook libraries containing architectural symbols and furniture elements. DWG interoperability is expanded with page-by-page export, preserved tags, improved text and hatch handling, and stacked viewport support.
Across both SketchUp and LayOut, Trimble reports improved stability, bug fixes, and refined user interface behavior. Common issues affecting Live Components, DWG imports, scene updates, and cross-platform UI consistency have been addressed.
For more information, visit Trimble’s SketchUp website.
