How to Make a Normal Map

There are three practical ways to learn how to make a normal map: generate one from an image, bake one from a high-poly model, or use an AI-assisted tool. Image generation is best for a quick material texture, baking is best when you control the 3D asset, and AI can help when you need a fast starting point. The first method below is the simplest and does not require installing software.

Before choosing a workflow, read what a normal map is to understand how RGB direction data differs from height data and geometry changes.

Method 1 — Generate a Normal Map from an Image

This is the fastest method for a brick wall, stone surface, wood grain, fabric, or another texture that already contains useful light and dark detail. It is also the easiest way to make a normal map when you do not have a high-poly model.

Choose your image

Choose a tileable texture or photo with even lighting and clear surface variation. A flat scan or diffuse-looking texture usually works better than a dramatic photograph. Avoid hard cast shadows, bright highlights, and strong perspective: a generator may mistake those lighting cues for actual geometry and create unwanted waves or dents in the result.

Upload to a normal map generator

Open Normal Map Generator, upload your PNG or JPG, and wait for the browser preview. The tool processes the source image in your browser, requires no signup, and does not upload the source image. The generated normal map can be previewed beside the source texture before export.

Adjust settings

Start with a moderate Strength value. Increase it when the surface looks too flat; reduce it when the lighting looks exaggerated or noisy. Level changes how the source tones are interpreted and can help separate broad forms from fine detail. Blur/Sharp can soften compression noise or emphasize edges, but sharpening an already noisy image usually makes artifacts more visible.

Use Invert X or Invert Y only when the relief appears to lean in the wrong direction in the target renderer. These options change the corresponding normal-map direction rather than adding detail. Invert Height is useful when the source’s light and dark relationship is reversed. Make one change at a time and check the result on a simple lit material.

Download and use

Download the current PNG after the preview looks correct. In Unity, Unreal Engine, or Blender, mark the file as a normal map instead of a regular color texture when the application provides that option. Unity documents a Y+ convention and offers Flip Green Channel on import; Unreal Engine also provides a Flip Green Channel setting. The correct choice depends on the target project, so verify the result with a test material before using it across an asset library.

Method 2 — Bake a Normal Map from a High-Poly Model

Baking is the standard choice when a high-poly sculpt contains detail that must appear on a lighter low-poly asset. The high-poly mesh supplies the surface information, while the low-poly mesh supplies the final UV layout and runtime geometry.

In Blender, the basic workflow is: prepare matching high- and low-poly objects, unwrap the low-poly mesh, create an image texture as the bake target, select the high-poly object and then the low-poly object, enable Selected to Active, choose the Normal bake type, and run the bake. Adjust the ray distance or create a cage when parts of the high-poly model are missed or project onto the wrong surface. Blender’s official Render Baking manual documents UV requirements, tangent-space normals, Selected to Active, and cage controls.

Baking gives more predictable results than inferring depth from a photograph, but it requires a usable mesh, UVs, and a 3D application. It is the better method when the normal map must match a modeled asset exactly.

Method 3 — Use AI to Generate a Normal Map

AI-assisted tools can generate a normal map or a broader set of PBR textures from a single image. For example, NormalMap AI presents an AI normal-map workflow and can be useful when you need a quick starting point or want to explore several material interpretations.

The trade-off is control. AI may invent surface detail, smooth away important edges, or interpret lighting and perspective incorrectly. Use it for ideation, background materials, or a first pass, then inspect the result at the scale where the asset will be rendered. For measured or production-critical detail, a controlled image conversion or model bake is easier to reproduce.

If your target is grayscale height data rather than lighting-only detail, use the displacement map generator to create and download a height map from an image.

How to Make a Normal Map in Photoshop (Legacy Workflow)

Older Photoshop versions documented a path such as Filter → 3D → Generate Normal Map: open a grayscale image, choose the normal-map filter, adjust the preview, and export the generated image. This is the workflow many older tutorials describe.

Adobe removed Photoshop’s legacy 3D features in July 2024, so current Photoshop users should not assume that this command is available. Check Adobe’s current guidance on removed legacy 3D features. For a current no-install workflow, use the browser generator above; for an editable 3D workflow, use a supported plugin or a dedicated 3D application.

How to Make Normal Maps for Unity / Unreal Engine

Unity documents a Y+ normal convention, commonly called the OpenGL-style direction, and its importer can flip the green channel. Unreal Engine also exposes a Flip Green Channel option. Do not choose a format based only on the engine name: render backend, asset settings, and the source map’s convention matter. Import a test map, light a simple plane, and use Invert Y or the engine import setting if the relief looks reversed.

Common Mistakes When Making Normal Maps

• Using a heavily compressed JPEG when a lossless PNG is available.
• Feeding a photo with strong shadows or highlights directly into the generator.
• Forgetting to verify the green-channel direction in the target engine.
• Expecting a normal map to change the model’s outline or create deep physical relief.

Free Normal Map Generator — Try It Now

The easiest way to make a normal map from an image is with our free online generator. Upload an image, adjust Strength, Level, Blur/Sharp, and direction options, then download the PNG — all in your browser, with no signup or software installation.