Yes. Nanome's browser app is free on the Starter plan, and trying Nanome takes no headset. A free account opens app.nanome.ai, the Nanome web app, on the Starter plan's Free Web Seat, and every new account also gets a 14-day Full license trial with no credit card required, which covers headsets too. Once the trial ends, headset work takes a paid Collab or Full seat (setup guide), and the browser carries on at no cost.
Nanome is a platform for collaborative molecular visualization and drug discovery, and its AI copilot, MARA, comes built in. The setup guide describes it as best experienced in VR or MR, with no headset required, so any modern browser is enough to start.
How the free seat sits beside the open-source viewers is covered in the best free molecular visualization software.
The free seat, the trial and a paid seat
The pricing page's feature comparison sets the three side by side, and the setup guide says when each one starts.
| Free Web Seat (Starter) | 14-day trial | Full seat (paid) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Where it runs | The browser, at app.nanome.ai | Browser and headsets | Browser and headsets |
| Loading structures | Direct upload of PDB, SDF and CIF, plus RCSB fetch by ID | Same | Same |
| Projects and workspaces | 1 project, 3 workspaces | Without the Starter caps | Without the Starter caps |
| Editing | 2D chemical building in the browser | Adds the XR chemical builder in a headset | Adds the XR chemical builder in a headset |
| XR | None; view-only collaboration with XR users | XR visualization, collaboration and measurement | XR visualization, collaboration and measurement |
| MARA | 50 credits for natural language, chats and tool calls | MARA in the browser, voice commands in a headset | MARA with a monthly credit allowance, voice commands and MCP server calls |
| Other people's workspaces | Join as a viewer | Join and edit | Join and edit |
| Files and chat history | 5 most recent files, last 7 days of chats | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| How long it lasts | No end date on the pricing page | 14 days from account creation | From when an admin assigns it and the user confirms the email |
Seat prices, academic ones included, are in how much does Nanome cost, and credit counts per plan are in the MARA access post.
A first 10 minutes in the browser
The session guide recommends the web app as the place to build a workspace, and everything built there opens in a headset later.
- An account. app.nanome.ai/register takes an email or a Google, Microsoft, Apple or SSO sign-in, and the setup guide notes that the 14-day trial starts with it.
- A structure. A new project and workspace take a PDB ID and fetch the entry from the RCSB, or accept a file dragged in from the computer (loading structures). Any structure with a ligand gets a pocket view on load. The full list of formats is on the supported formats page.
- A representation. The web app switches between cartoon, B-factor coloring and surface (web app basics). How to view PDB files in 3D explains which one suits which part of a structure.
- A question for MARA. MARA changes representations from plain English (web app basics), so typing "hide waters" does the job without a menu (MARA features). The heavier jobs it runs have a post of their own on drug discovery workflows.
- A saved scene. A scene saves the representations and visibility as they stand, and Set Scene POV lands everyone who opens it in the same framing (session guide).
- A share. A workspace goes out by link, by its workspace code or by email invite, and each collaborator is set as a viewer or an editor (web app basics, invite and follow). How to share a 3D molecular structure with your team goes further into permissions and codes.
Adding a headset later
Working in a headset calls for a Collab or Full seat (setup guide), and the 14-day trial is a Full license, so a headset that arrives inside the trial works straight away. Nanome v2 supports Quest 3 and 3S, Galaxy XR, Vision Pro and Windows PCs driving a Quest over Meta Link, and Nanome Classic (v1.24) covers Quest 2 and Quest Pro (choosing hardware). Which VR headsets work with Nanome compares them.
- Installing. On a Quest, Nanome comes from the Meta Horizon Store, and a fleet of headsets gets it through an MDM (setup, step 5). Galaxy XR takes the APK through an MDM or by sideloading, and Vision Pro installs through Apple TestFlight (choosing hardware).
- Signing in with a code. The headset's login screen has a Code tab that shows a short code. On a phone or laptop signed in to app.nanome.ai, Login via Device Code takes that code and signs the headset in to the same account (setup, step 7). SSO accounts sign in this way.
- Opening the same workspace. Workspaces built in the browser open in the headset (session guide), and a workspace code entered under Join Workspace brings in someone else's.
What changes once a protein is at full scale is the subject of how to visualize proteins in VR.
Timing a trial to a class or an evaluation
Every new account starts its 14-day Full license trial at sign-up (setup guide). The clock runs from account creation, whatever day the headsets arrive or the class meets, so accounts created a few days ahead keep most of the trial for the session itself.
When a date slips, support@nanome.ai is the address for questions about trial timing. The help center FAQ says the Nanome team sets up trials for groups that want to evaluate Nanome, and the setup guide sends quote requests to the same support address. A note sent before the session leaves time to arrange either.
A course that runs all term sits better on academic seats. The Academic Department plan adds syllabus and course implementation help, managed devices and shared file storage (pricing), and the numbers are in how much does Nanome cost.
When a headset account has no license
A headset needs an active trial or a Collab or Full seat on the signed-in account (setup guide). An account with neither can't work in the headset, and the setup guide's own steps suggest three checks.
- The right account. On a shared headset, the Log Out button at the foot of the Settings tab ends one student's session, so each user signs in as themselves (setup, step 7).
- A confirmed seat. An admin assigns seats at home.nanome.ai under Licenses > Assign Users, and a seat activates once its user confirms the email Nanome sends (setup guide).
- An ended trial. Headset access continues on a paid seat, and the browser keeps working on the Free Web Seat in the meantime.
After the trial
Headset access moves to a paid seat once the 14 days end (setup guide). Browser work carries on with the Starter plan's Free Web Seat, which includes these (pricing):
- 1 project with 3 workspaces in the browser
- Direct upload of PDB, SDF and CIF files, scene viewing and playback, and trajectory playback
- 2D chemical building
- View-only collaboration with XR users, and view-only access to other people's workspaces
- The 5 most recent files and 7 days of chat history
- 50 MARA credits, and 2 free high-quality image exports
XR work, MCP server calls and editing inside other people's workspaces wait for a paid seat. Every seat type can top up its credits (pricing).
Next stops
- help.nanome.ai, for the web app guide, headset sign-in and file formats.
- youtube.com/nanome, for short videos on workspaces, scenes and representations.
- nanome.ai/case-studies, for case studies from drug discovery and research teams.
- nanome.ai/publications, for papers on research and teaching with Nanome.
FAQ
Do I need a credit card to try Nanome?
No. The 14-day Full license trial asks for no card, and the Free Web Seat costs nothing.
My trial ran out before my headset arrived. What now?
The browser keeps working on the Free Web Seat. A Collab or Full seat brings the headset in, and support@nanome.ai is the place to ask about trial timing, ideally with the date the headset is due.
Is there an educational evaluation license?
Academic use has 2 plans on the pricing page: Personal, where the Free Web Seat is free and a Full seat adds XR, and Department, for institutions and labs deploying at scale. For a group evaluation, the help center FAQ says the Nanome team sets up trials on request.
Is MARA in the trial?
Yes. The trial is a Full license, and the Full seat includes MARA in the browser and MARA voice commands in a headset (pricing). The guide to getting MARA lists the credits on each plan.