Getting Started

This page gets you from a fresh install to a working character rig in four steps.

Requirements

  • Blender 4.2 or newer installed
  • Rigify enabled in Blender preferences — Edit → Preferences → Add-ons → search "Rigify" → check the box
  • A character mesh in T-pose (arms out, palms down, feet flat on the ground)

Step 1 — Install the Addon

  1. Open Blender
  2. Go to Edit → Preferences → Get Extensions (or Add-ons)
  3. Click the drop-down arrow (top right) → "Install from Disk..."
  4. Select the easy_rigify-x.x.x.zip file
  5. Make sure the checkbox next to "Easy Rigify" is checked (enabled)
  6. Close Preferences. Press N in the 3D Viewport to open the side panel, then click the "AutoRig" tab

Installing the AI runtime (ONNX Runtime) — one time, Full Edition

The AI models need a small runtime (onnxruntime + Pillow) installed once into Blender. This requires an internet connection.

  1. Go to Edit → Preferences → Add-ons and expand "Easy Rigify"
  2. Under "AI Detection (ONNX Runtime)" click "Install ONNX Runtime"
  3. Wait until it reports "onnxruntime installed and ready." (the download is a few hundred MB — give it a minute)
  4. If it asks you to restart, close and reopen Blender

You only do this once per Blender installation. Afterward the button shows "Reinstall" (to repair) and "Uninstall" (to remove the runtime).

No admin rights are needed; it installs into your user folder. If it fails, open Window → Toggle System Console and try again to see the detailed message. Once installed, Preferences shows "onnxruntime + Pillow: Ready".

Step 2 — Place Markers

Markers are the landmarks Easy Rigify uses to position your rig bones.

  1. Select your character mesh in the viewport
  2. Open the Markers tab in the Easy Rigify panel
  3. Click Auto Detect Body — markers snap to joint centers across your mesh
  4. If your character has a face rig, click Detect Face Landmarks to place facial markers
  5. Check the viewport — each marker shows a color-coded icon above it:
    • Green = body joints
    • Orange = face (brows, nose, lips)
    • Blue = eye and eyelid markers
    • Yellow = teeth and tongue
    • Purple = cheeks, chin, ears
  6. Run Check All Markers to confirm nothing is missing or overlapping before continuing
If a marker lands in the wrong place, select it and move it manually in the viewport like any other object.

Step 3 — Generate and Align the Rig

  1. Switch to the Rig tab
  2. Click Add Metarig (With Face) or Add Metarig (No Face) depending on your character
  3. Click Align Rig — every bone moves to match your marker positions
  4. Click Generate Rig — Rigify builds the final control rig

Step 4 — Bind Your Mesh

  1. Switch to the Skin tab
  2. Click Detect Meshes — Easy Rigify finds your body, clothing, eyes, and teeth meshes automatically
  3. Click Smart Bind — each mesh is attached to the rig with appropriate starting weights
  4. Use the Surgical Weight Fix presets to clean up any joint bleeding
  5. Use Symmetrize Weights if one side looks different from the other

You're Done

Your character now has a fully functional Rigify rig with weights applied. From here you can:

  • Fine-tune weights in Weight Paint mode using the tools in the Skin tab
  • Add fan bones for better joint volume from the Tools tab
  • Pose and animate your character using the Rigify control rig

Need Help?

Each tab in the panel has a Help button (top right) that opens an online guide for that section.

For bug reports, go to Edit → Preferences → Add-ons → Easy Rigify and click Report Bug — it opens a pre-filled email to the developer.