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3DAI

UV Checker Map Generator

A UV checker map is a test texture of square, labelled cells. Put it on a 3D model and any stretching, uneven texel density, mirrored or rotated UVs and bad seams show up at once. Pick the cells, labels, colours and size below, check it on a sphere or on your own model, and download the PNG. It is free and runs in your browser.

Free, no signup, nothing is uploaded

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How to make and use a UV checker map

  1. 1

    Set up the grid

    Choose "Grid with labels" or "Checker only", 4 to 64 cells per side, a colour preset, your own two colours or a gradient, and A1 or 0,0 labels.

  2. 2

    Check it in 3D

    See the map on a sphere, cube, torus, cylinder or plane, or drop your own GLB, glTF, OBJ or FBX. Turn on "Show model UVs" to see your UV layout over the map.

  3. 3

    Download and apply

    Save the PNG at 1K, 2K, 4K or 8K and plug it into the base colour of your material in Blender, Maya, 3ds Max, Unity or Unreal.

What the checker map tells you

What you see on the modelWhat it meansWhat to do
Cells turn into long rectangles or diamondsThe UVs are stretched or squashed thereAdd a seam or relax / unwrap that area again
Cells are bigger on one part than anotherUneven texel density: one part gets fewer pixelsScale the UV islands so the cells match in size
Labels read backwardsThat UV island is mirrored (flipped)Flip the island, unless you mirror on purpose to save space
Arrows point sideways or downThe island is rotatedRotate the island so the arrows point up, which matters for wood grain, fabric and text
The pattern jumps across an edgeA UV seamMove the seam somewhere less visible, or line up the cells across it

Grid with labels or checker only?

A plain checker (alternating squares, no text) is the quickest way to see stretching and texel density, and it stays readable when the cells are small. It is the classic test texture most 3D artists start with.

A labelled grid adds a name to every cell (A1, B2 or 0,0), cell borders, optional fine lines and an arrow pointing up. The labels show you which part of the texture lands where, reveal mirrored islands because the text reads backwards, and the arrows show rotated islands. Use 8 to 16 cells for a first look and 32 or more for small details.

Which size and colours to pick

A checker map is only a test, so 1K or 2K is enough for most models; pick 4K or 8K when you want to judge texel density for a high-resolution texture. 8K needs about 256 MB of canvas memory, so the tool turns it off on phones and small-memory devices and caps them at 4K.

Colourful maps help you find which cell is which: the rainbow gradient gives every column its own hue and every row its own shade. Strong contrast (black and white, graphite) makes stretching easier to see. Pick colours that differ from your model’s lighting so shadows are not mistaken for cells.

Most 3D apps put UV 0,0 at the bottom-left of the texture. If you want A1 to sit at UV 0,0, choose "A1 at the bottom-left".

Next steps for your model

Unwrap UVs online

No UVs yet, or STL only? Make UVs in your browser, check them with a checker and export a GLB.

Got your UVs right? Texture the model with AI

Describe the look and AI paints a full texture onto your model’s UVs.

Image to 3D

Turn a photo or drawing into a textured 3D model to check and texture here.

Frequently Asked Questions

It is a test texture made of square cells, often with letters and numbers in them. When you put it on a model, the cells show how the 2D texture is laid onto the 3D surface: squares that stay square and the same size mean good UVs, while stretched, uneven, mirrored or rotated cells point to UV problems you can fix before you texture.
Download the PNG, then in the Shader Editor add an Image Texture node, open the PNG and connect its Color to the Base Color of your material. Switch the viewport to Material Preview to see it. Unity, Unreal, Maya and 3ds Max work the same way: put the PNG in the base colour or albedo slot.
Start with 8 to 16 cells per side to spot big stretching and scale differences. Go to 32, 48 or 64 cells to check small parts like fingers, bolts or text. If cells look tiny on the model, use fewer cells or set the Tiling to 1x.
Yes. Drop a GLB, glTF, OBJ, FBX, STL or PLY file on the 3D preview. Parts that have UVs show the checker; parts without UVs show grey. "Show model UVs" draws your UV layout over the 2D map. The file is opened in your browser and is not uploaded.
STL files store only triangles, with no UV coordinates, so there is nowhere to place a texture. Unwrap the model first (our free online UV unwrapper does this in the browser), export it as a GLB, and load that here.
Yes. On a mirrored UV island the letters and numbers read backwards, and on a rotated island the arrows point sideways or down. A plain checker cannot show either, which is why "Grid with labels" is the default.
PNG at 512, 1K (1024), 2K (2048), 4K (4096) or 8K (8192) pixels square. 8K needs about 256 MB of memory for the canvas, so it is turned off on phones and devices with less memory; there the tool stops at 4K.
Yes. The tool is free with no signup, and the maps you make are yours to use in personal and commercial projects. Everything is drawn in your browser.