COMPARE
Four ways to show lots. One of them is 3D.
We are not the right answer for every community, and this page says where. Here is what each option is genuinely good at, what it cannot do, and when you should pick it over us.
WHY 3D
A PDF, a flat overlay, or actually 3D
Every incumbent overlays hotspots on a flat rendering. Here's what that difference means for a buyer on a phone.
| CAPABILITY | Plotex 3D map | 2D hotspot overlay | PDF plat map |
|---|---|---|---|
| True 3D terrain and depth | ✓Yes | ✕No | ✕No |
| Tap any lot for details | ✓Yes | ✓Yes | ✕No |
| Live availability and status | ✓Yes | ✓Yes | ✕No |
| Built-in CRM and lead pipeline | ✓Yes | ◐Varies | ✕No |
| Built from your existing plat | ✓Yes | ◐Varies | —It is the plat |
| Phone-first, no app or plugin | ✓Yes | ✓Yes | ◐Varies |
| Leads captured on the lot | ✓Yes | ◐Varies | ✕No |
THE ALTERNATIVES
What each option is actually good at
Compared as categories rather than by vendor name — their pricing and roadmaps are not public, and we will not characterize what we cannot verify.
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The PDF plat map
- Good at
- Free, authoritative, and already in your hands. It is the legal record and nothing replaces it for that.
- Where it breaks
- It cannot show availability, it goes stale the day a lot sells, it is unreadable on a phone, and a screen reader gets nothing from it. Buyers ask sales the questions the document cannot answer.
- Pick it when
- Keep it. Publish it as the record. Just stop using it as the sales tool.
-
A 2D hotspot overlay
- Good at
- A genuine improvement on a PDF: lots become clickable, statuses become visible, and buyers can self-serve the basics.
- Where it breaks
- It is still a flat picture. It cannot show grade, walkout, view or the land behind the boundary — which is exactly what a lot premium is charged for. Updating the base image usually means going back to the vendor.
- Pick it when
- Fine for a flat, rectilinear filing where no lot carries a terrain premium.
-
An in-house build
- Good at
- Total control, and no vendor in the middle of your data.
- Where it breaks
- Someone has to model the terrain, build the viewer, make it accessible, host it, and maintain it through every browser change — then do it again for the next community. That is a product team, not a marketing task.
- Pick it when
- Sensible if you already run an in-house software team and the map is strategic to your business.
-
A full lot-inventory platform
- Good at
- Deep inventory management, ERP and CRM integrations, and reporting built for large production builders.
- Where it breaks
- Enterprise scope, enterprise onboarding and enterprise commitment — and the maps are usually still flat overlays. It is a system of record first and a buyer experience second.
- Pick it when
- The right call at real scale, especially if it already integrates with your ERP.
Where we are the wrong choice
If you need a deep ERP integration on day one, or you are a single-lot infill seller, or your filing is flat and unremarkable and a static image genuinely does the job — say so on the call and we will tell you straight.
Judge it against your own plat
Send your plat today — first draft in 3 business days, quote in one.