Orbital Stack Review: Overview, Features, Pricing & Alternatives in 2025

Design decisions shouldn’t be guesswork.

If you’re evaluating climate analysis tools, you know how tough it is to get fast, holistic insights without spending weeks wrangling slow, expensive simulations.

Every day, your deadlines and budget get tighter because traditional tools slow design cycles and cause costly rework.

Orbital Stack takes a new approach by combining AI-powered and CFD-based simulations—all in a web platform—to give you quick, detailed feedback on wind, thermal comfort, daylight, and cladding safety, exactly when you need it in your workflow.

In this review, I’ll break down how Orbital Stack makes climate-driven design decisions way easier for your next project.

You’ll see in this Orbital Stack review how its core features, pricing, and alternatives stack up—so you can cut through the confusion and focus on the solutions that move your project forward.

You’ll walk away knowing the features you need to make a smarter, faster software decision.

Let’s get started.

Orbital Stack Overview

Orbital Stack is a venture from RWDI, leveraging decades of their renowned expertise in wind engineering. Their entire mission is getting powerful, digital climate-analysis tools into your hands.

They specifically target the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry. What sets them apart is their focus on making climate analysis accessible early, not just as a final, expensive check for compliance.

The recent push into AI-powered wind simulation is a smart move, and we will explore its real-world impact through this Orbital Stack review. It really speeds up initial assessments.

Unlike generic CFD platforms that can feel overwhelming, Orbital Stack is purpose-built for designers. The platform’s analysis is validated against RWDI wind tunnel tests, giving you confidence in the results.

They work with innovative architecture firms, urban planning teams, and developers who need to design buildings that are both sustainable and comfortable for the people using them.

I see their strategy as empowering you, the designer. They are removing the typical engineering barriers to complex simulation, letting you iterate on climate-informed designs without needing a team of specialists.

Let’s dig into their features.

Orbital Stack Features

Still struggling to design climate-resilient buildings?

Orbital Stack features provide powerful climate analysis tools that integrate into your design workflow, helping you create high-performance spaces. Here are the five main Orbital Stack features that architects and urban planners will find indispensable.

1. AI Pedestrian Level Wind Simulations

Ever wonder how wind impacts your new building design?

Ignoring wind conditions can lead to uncomfortable outdoor spaces or even unsafe pedestrian areas. This oversight can drastically impact user experience.

This feature provides rapid, AI-powered insights into pedestrian wind comfort, even in early design stages. From my testing, the directional wind insights are incredibly fast, helping you identify potential issues before they become costly problems. It’s a quick way to assess climate impacts.

This means you can make informed decisions about building massing and orientation right from the start, saving time and resources.

2. Thermal Comfort Simulations

Concerned about how temperature variations affect your designs?

Poor thermal design can lead to uncomfortable indoor and outdoor environments, increasing energy consumption. This impacts both occupant well-being and operating costs.

Orbital Stack analyzes thermal comfort across two or four seasons, integrating wind and daylight data. What I love about this approach is how it helps you visualize how different building materials impact thermal comfort. This feature ensures your spaces remain pleasant year-round.

So, you can optimize your designs for energy efficiency and ensure a comfortable experience for occupants.

3. Daylight Simulations

Are your designs truly maximizing natural light?

Suboptimal daylight can lead to higher energy bills and less inviting spaces. This often compromises occupant health and productivity.

Integrated with thermal analysis, this feature helps you design for optimal natural light. Here’s the thing – it helps pinpoint areas that need more or less natural light, which is crucial for sustainable design. You can really fine-tune your window placements.

This means you can enhance occupant well-being and significantly reduce energy consumption from artificial lighting.

4. Cladding Pressure Simulations

Worried about your building’s structural integrity in extreme weather?

Inadequate cladding analysis can result in costly structural failures and safety risks during high winds. This is a critical engineering challenge.

Orbital Stack provides robust analysis for cladding pressures, essential for mitigating extreme weather risks. This is where Orbital Stack shines, as it helps you assess how different cladding choices perform under specific wind loads. It’s vital for building performance.

This means you can select the right materials and designs to ensure your building stands strong against the elements.

5. Customization and Iteration

Stuck in slow, manual design iteration processes?

Traditional simulation tools are often too slow for rapid design experimentation. This can stifle creativity and extend project timelines.

The platform excels at iterative exploration, allowing quick CAD geometry uploads and location-specific simulations. From my testing, the fast multi-factor analysis dramatically speeds up design refinement, letting you iterate on shape, massing, and land use. It flags red flags early.

This means you can refine your design concepts quickly, avoiding costly reworks and accelerating your project timeline.

You’ll find these Orbital Stack features work together to create a holistic climate analysis platform that truly empowers climate-informed design. Here’s how it compares to other tools.

Orbital Stack Pricing

What will Orbital Stack cost your business?

Orbital Stack pricing offers a clear tiered structure alongside flexible pay-per-use options, providing transparent choices for diverse project needs and making it easy to budget.

Plan	Price & Features
Basic (per user)	$249 per month • Access to core features • AI Pedestrian Level Wind Simulations • Probing data • Custom clothing profiles
Standard (per user)	$499 per month • All Basic features • 2-Season AI Thermal Comfort (Wind & Daylight) • Daylight Simulations • Advanced project sharing
Premium (per user)	$999 per month • All Standard features • 4-Season AI Thermal Comfort (Wind & Solar) • Expanded simulation capabilities • Priority support
Pay-Per-Use AI WIND ONLY	$100 per simulation • AI Pedestrian Level Wind Simulations • Probing data • Custom clothing profiles • Share project results
Pay-Per-Use CFD WIND ONLY	$350 per simulation • 3D Wind Streamlines • CFD Pedestrian Level Wind Simulations • Lawson Wind Criteria Scale • Probing data

1. Value Assessment

Great pricing transparency here.

From my cost analysis, what truly impressed me is the flexibility you get with both subscriptions and pay-per-use options. This means you can optimize your budget based on project volume, choosing monthly plans for continuous work or per-simulation for occasional needs without overspending.

This approach helps your finance team align software expenses directly with project-specific requirements, improving cost efficiency.

2. Trial/Demo Options

Smart evaluation approach available.

Orbital Stack offers a free trial, allowing you to directly test its AI and CFD simulation capabilities before any financial commitment. What I found valuable is how this trial period lets you validate the platform’s speed and accuracy for your design workflows, ensuring it meets your specific project demands.

This lets you experience the value firsthand and confirm the fit with your budget before subscribing to a full plan.

3. Plan Comparison

Choosing the right tier matters.

The Basic monthly plan suits solo practitioners or small firms with consistent wind simulation needs, while the Standard and Premium tiers unlock deeper thermal and solar analysis. What stands out is how pay-per-use options are ideal for sporadic projects, avoiding ongoing subscription costs when demand varies.

This tiered and usage-based approach helps you match Orbital Stack pricing to your actual project volume and complexity.

My Take: Orbital Stack’s pricing strategy offers both predictable monthly subscriptions and flexible pay-per-use options, making it versatile for both consistent users and project-based firms in AEC.

The overall Orbital Stack pricing reflects flexible value without forcing a single pricing model.

Orbital Stack Reviews

What do real customers think?

This section analyzes real user feedback and experiences to give you a clear picture of what actual customers think in Orbital Stack reviews, ensuring balanced insights.

1. Overall User Satisfaction

Users seem quite satisfied.

From my review analysis, Orbital Stack generally garners positive ratings, with users frequently highlighting its intuitive nature and practical benefits. What I found in user feedback is how positive experiences often center on ease of use and speed, even for non-specialists.

This suggests you can anticipate a straightforward and efficient user experience.

2. Common Praise Points

Users love the speed and visuals.

The most common praise points consistently mention the user-friendly, web-based interface and rapid simulation speeds. From the reviews I analyzed, the actionable visualizations are particularly valued, helping users quickly identify and address design challenges effectively.

These aspects mean you can expect quick insights and an easy-to-understand output.

3. Frequent Complaints

Early-stage limitations are noted.

Common complaints often point to the software being in its early stages, leading to some limitations compared to established programs. What stands out in user feedback is how the lack of data download is a recurring concern, making external integration challenging for some.

These issues are generally viewed as minor, with confidence in future upgrades.

Overall, Orbital Stack reviews show strong user satisfaction despite minor limitations, reflecting confidence in its evolving capabilities.

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Best Orbital Stack Alternatives

Which alternative best suits your project?

The best Orbital Stack alternatives offer distinct advantages depending on your business needs, budget, and the specific type of simulation or design work you require.

1. SimScale

Need broader engineering simulation capabilities?

SimScale excels if your projects extend beyond microclimate analysis to include structural or general thermal simulations. From my competitive analysis, SimScale offers a wider range of engineering analyses beyond just wind, though Orbital Stack specializes in urban climate.

Choose SimScale if you need a versatile, broader simulation platform for diverse engineering challenges.

2. Ansys Discovery

Prioritizing integrated real-time design and simulation?

Ansys Discovery is ideal when you need to integrate simulation directly into your early design process across various physics. What I found comparing options is that Ansys Discovery provides instant simulation feedback during design iterations, offering a different approach than Orbital Stack’s climate focus.

Consider this alternative for real-time, multi-physics simulation integrated into your design workflow.

3. Autodesk CFD

Working on complex, general fluid dynamics projects?

Autodesk CFD is better suited for highly complex, general-purpose fluid flow problems across various industries, offering extensive customization. Alternative-wise, Autodesk CFD provides comprehensive general-purpose CFD with deeper customization, though it lacks Orbital Stack’s AEC-specific microclimate focus.

Choose Autodesk CFD for advanced, complex fluid dynamics beyond just building microclimate analysis.

4. OpenFOAM

Have in-house CFD expertise and prefer open-source?

OpenFOAM is perfect if you possess strong CFD expertise and require complete customization or a free solution for research. From my analysis, OpenFOAM offers unmatched flexibility and customization for advanced users, contrasting with Orbital Stack’s user-friendly, specialized platform.

Opt for OpenFOAM if you need a free, open-source solution for highly specialized or academic CFD work.

The best Orbital Stack alternatives depend on your project’s specific scope and internal expertise, not just feature counts.

Orbital Stack Setup

What does Orbital Stack implementation really involve?

This Orbital Stack review dives into what you’ll encounter during deployment, helping you set realistic expectations for its setup and adoption within your business environment.

1. Setup Complexity & Timeline

Expect a surprisingly smooth start.

Orbital Stack’s cloud-based nature means there’s no software to install or maintain, simplifying deployment significantly. You’ll quickly upload CAD geometry and specify project locations to begin simulations, allowing for rapid implementation and quick feedback.

You won’t face lengthy server setups or complex configurations, making this a much faster rollout.

2. Technical Requirements & Integration

Minimal technical headaches here.

As a web-based platform, your primary technical requirements are a stable internet connection and a modern web browser. What I found about deployment is that it avoids complex hardware provisioning, unlike traditional simulation tools that demand specialized infrastructure.

Plan for standard internet access and ensure your team has reliable browser-based workstations.

3. Training & Change Management

User adoption should be straightforward.

The intuitive, web-based interface requires no specialized training, with embedded tutorials guiding users through workflows. From my analysis, the user-friendly design significantly lowers the learning curve, making it accessible to all staff without extensive onboarding programs.

You’ll find users adapt quickly, minimizing resistance and maximizing productivity without major change management efforts.

4. Support & Success Factors

Expect responsive help throughout.

Their technical support team is highly responsive, with queries often resolved within an hour, indicating strong commitment to user success. What I found about deployment is that quick support is crucial for rapid iterations, preventing bottlenecks as your team explores design options.

Your team will benefit from readily available assistance, ensuring any implementation questions are swiftly addressed.

The overall Orbital Stack setup is remarkably straightforward, emphasizing speed and ease of use to help your design teams quickly integrate climate analysis.

Bottom Line

Is Orbital Stack the right choice for you?

This Orbital Stack review provides a decisive final assessment, combining audience fit with strengths and limitations to help you understand who benefits most from this powerful solution.

1. Who This Works Best For

AEC professionals focused on climate-informed design.

Orbital Stack is ideal for architects, building designers, urban planners, and real estate developers in the AEC industry. From my user analysis, it truly shines for early and mid-stage design analysis, enabling quick, iterative insights into climate impacts without needing specialized CFD expertise.

You’ll find success if your goal is integrating rapid, understandable climate analysis into your design workflows.

2. Overall Strengths

Exceptional speed and user-friendliness set it apart.

The software excels with its intuitive, web-based interface and rapid AI-powered simulations, providing on-demand microclimate insights for early design stages. From my comprehensive analysis, its actionable visualizations quickly convey problem areas, allowing for efficient design iterations and climate-conscious building creation.

These strengths mean faster design cycles and more resilient, high-performing projects, saving your business time and potential rework costs.

3. Key Limitations

Some advanced functionalities are still evolving.

While powerful, some users noted minor limitations compared to more mature, general-purpose simulation tools, such as the inability to download raw data. Based on this review, the current pricing structure might not suit all project-based budgets, with a preference for per-project offers over subscriptions.

I find these limitations mostly reflect its newer market position and are manageable trade-offs rather than deal-breakers given its core value.

4. Final Recommendation

Orbital Stack is highly recommended for AEC firms.

You should choose this software if your firm needs an efficient, accessible, and expert-backed solution to integrate climate considerations into your design workflows from the outset. From my analysis, its value proposition is strongest for conceptual and iterative design, helping avoid costly surprises later.

My confidence is high for AEC teams prioritizing climate-conscious design and rapid, insightful analysis early in their projects.

This Orbital Stack review provides strong value for climate-conscious AEC professionals, offering an efficient, intuitive, and expert-backed solution for early-stage design analysis.