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Height Map Generator
Turn a texture or photo into a greyscale height map for displacement, parallax or terrain. Smooth out noise, invert it if needed, and download a PNG.
PNG, JPG or WebP. Large images are scaled to 2048 px. Transparent sprites keep their outline.
Free maps are made on your device. Nothing is uploaded unless you ask for an AI set.
Height
AI texture set
An AI model reads the material in your photo and returns base colour, normal, roughness, metalness and height. Preview and export it like the free maps.
Sign in to get a free AI setExport for
ZIP with BaseColor, Normal (DirectX), ORM packed, Height and a setup note.
What a height map is
A height map stores depth as brightness: white is the highest point, black the lowest. 3D software uses it to push real geometry up and down (displacement) or to fake depth with parallax.
This tool builds the height map from the brightness of your image. That works well for textures where raised parts are lighter, like bricks, stone, bark and fabric. If the dark parts of your image are the raised ones, tick Invert height.
Using it in Blender
Load the height map in an Image Texture node set to Non-Color, connect it to the Height input of a Displacement node, and plug that into the material output's Displacement. Set the material's displacement method to Displacement and Bump, and subdivide the mesh so there is geometry to move.
For a lighter setup, use the normal map from the same image for the fine detail and keep displacement for the large shapes.
Need maps from a real photo?
The free maps are worked out from brightness, which suits clean textures. For photos of real surfaces, AI texture sets read the material itself.
Free maps
Free
Runs on your device
- 8 maps, including packed ORM
- Ready-made sets for Unreal, Unity, Godot and Blender
- Worked out from image brightness: best for clean textures and sprites
- Unlimited, no account
AI texture set
From $0.20 a set
1 free set when you sign up
- Base colour, normal, roughness, height and metalness
- Made by PATINA, an AI model built for PBR materials
- Tells metal from non-metal parts, which brightness alone cannot
- Packs of 15, 50 or 150 sets, valid for a year
Questions
Is a height map the same as a displacement map?
Usually yes. Both are greyscale images where brightness means height. Some tools call it a bump map when it is only used for shading.
Why is my height map noisy?
Photos have grain and small colour changes that read as tiny bumps. Raise Smoothing to blur them out before the map is made.
Can I make terrain from it?
Yes, any greyscale image can drive a terrain displacement. For real-world terrain, elevation data from a map service will be more accurate than a photo.