It seems like it was not very long ago that Microsoft was throwing everything at 3D – in much the same way that the company is now throwing everything at AI. But the 3D ship has sailed, and Microsoft has quietly announced that one of the 3D tools it launched is being killed off.
Going the same way as Paint 3D – which vanished quite some time ago – Microsoft is now deprecating 3D Viewer. Does this matter? What does it mean for you?
It was way back in the time of the Windows 10 Creative Update – such different times! – that Microsoft started a real 3D push. But those days are most definitely over, and Windows 11 users will soon no longer be able to install 3D Viewer.
The deprecation announcement is a quiet one, coming in an update to a support document. In the list of deprecated features of Windows, Microsoft says:
3D Viewer is deprecated and will be removed from the Microsoft Store on July 1, 2026. For viewing 3D content, you can use Babylon.js Sandbox. For more information, see Resources for deprecated features.
The deprecation has only just been announced, and the fact that there is a cut-ff date already mentioned – and the fact that it is relatively near – is somewhat surprising.
Microsoft does not say as much, but while 3D Viewer is vanishing from the Microsoft Store, it will not become unusable immediately. Removal from the store means that after July 1 there will be no (easy or official) way to get hold of 3D Viewer, but if you already have it installed, it should not stop working straight away.
With no detailed timeline offered by Microsoft, it is hard to say when 3D Viewer will be rendered completely useless. However, if you are one of the handful of people who uses 3D Viewer (and it was never particularly popular), it would be a good idea to follow Microsoft’s advice and start the transition towards Babylon.js Sandbox.
In a separate post about the news, Microsoft says:
3D Viewer was deprecated in February 2026 and will be removed from the Microsoft Store on July 1, 2026. Existing installations of 3D Viewer will continue to work, but the app will no longer be available for download from the Microsoft Store. If you remove the app, you can reinstall it from the Microsoft Store until July 1, 2026. After that date, 3D Viewer will no longer be available for download. 3D Viewer was preinstalled on some Windows 10 devices, but wasn’t preinstalled on Windows 11 devices.
You can view more information here, and this is where you should keep and eye open for further announcements.