Blender is a dominant open source product^[16] with a range of features comparable to mid- to high-range commercial, proprietary software.^[16][17] In 2010, CGenie classed Blender as a fledgling product with the majority of its users being "hobbyists" rather than students or professionals^[18] but with its high standards rising year on year.^[16] They also reported that users thought Blender needed more development and required more compatibility with other programs.^[16]

A 2007 article^[17] claimed that Blender's interface was not up to industry standards, but was nevertheless suited to fast workflow and was sometimes more intuitive. Poor documentation was also criticized^[17]although there is community support through an online wiki,^[19] and a range of books published both by the Blender Foundation and independently.^[20]

In 2011, Blender 2.5 was released. Featuring a completely redesigned user interface, it aims to improve work flow and ease of use.^[21] During beta-testing, Blender 2.5's animation system was considered by theSintel animators to be as good or better than some professional packages.^[22]