Modeling · Beginner

N-gon

A face with five or more sides, handy on flat areas and risky elsewhere

Also called Ngon

What is an n-gon in 3D modeling?

An n-gon is a face with five or more sides; the n stands for any number. N-gons are handy for quick blocking and flat surfaces, but they can shade oddly, break edge loops and subdivide badly, so artists usually split them into quads or triangles before a model is finished.

Think of it like this

An n-gon is like one tarp stretched over an odd-shaped frame: fine on flat ground, but it wrinkles in unpredictable ways once the surface bends.

Where it fits in a 3D project

  1. Create
  2. Surface
  3. Rig
  4. Animate
  5. Render
  6. Export

Create: Building the shape: modeling, sculpting, scanning or generating it.

How an n-gon works

  1. 01A face is made from five or more connected edges.
  2. 02The app shows it as one face but splits it into triangles behind the scenes.
  3. 03On a flat area, that hidden split is invisible.
  4. 04On a curved or bending area, the split can show up as shading artifacts.

N-gon vs quad

PropertyN-gonQuad
SidesFive or moreExactly four
Edge loopsStop at the n-gonFlow straight through
SubdivisionOften pinches or ripplesSmooth and even
Best placeFlat, hidden or static areasAnywhere, especially areas that bend

Keep n-gons for flat, static surfaces you will not subdivide; turn them into quads anywhere the model curves, bends or gets smoothed.

Where an n-gon is used

  • Quick blocking of rough shapes
  • Flat panels on hard-surface models that will not bend
  • Caps on the ends of cylinders and pipes

Beginner tip

Find every n-gon at once with a select by number of sides tool. In Blender, Select > Select All by Trait > Faces by Sides does it.

Terms related to an n-gon

N-gon FAQ

Are n-gons bad?
Only in some places. On flat surfaces that will not bend or be subdivided, an n-gon renders fine and keeps the mesh simple. On curved, smoothed or animated areas, its hidden triangle split shows as pinching or odd shading.
How do I fix n-gons?
Cut new edges across them to turn them into quads, often with a knife or connect tool. Triangulating them also works for static game assets. For large messy areas, retopology is usually faster than fixing faces one by one.
Why is it called an n-gon?
In maths, n stands for any number, so an n-gon is a polygon with n sides. In 3D apps the name is used for any face with more than four.

Updated October 29, 2026 · Browse all 3D terms