Using Qt with 3ds Max Plug-ins

Starting with 3ds Max 2017, you can use the popular cross-platform development package Qt to create the user interface for your 3ds Max plug-in. See the maxsdk\include\Qt directory for headers exposing utilities for integrating Qt, as well as some customized Qt widgets used in the 3ds Max UI. Some of the standard plug-ins shipped with 3ds Max use Qt for their UI, and you can look at these in the SDK samples collection. Look at the maxsdk/samples/systems/sunlight project for an example of a plug-in that uses Qt for its UI. There is also a very simple sample located in maxsdk/howto/ui/qtObjectDemo.

The version of Qt required depends on the version of 3ds Max you are targeting. See the SDK Requirements topic for specific version information. Before you can create new plug-ins or build existing ones that require Qt, you need to download Qt, and install the Visual Studio Qt VS Tools add-on.

Getting and Configuring Qt for 3ds Max

Download and install the required version of Qt from www.qt.io/download/.

Note: There are different licensing options for Qt, including commercial and open-source licenses. Any of the license versions will work for 3ds Max plug-in development, and it's up to the user to determine which best meets your needs. See the Qt Licensing topic for more information.
Note: The Qt Maintenance tool makes it easy to install and update Qt. For previous versions, you may need to look in the Archive for older versions. Note: When installing Qt, the only component you need to install is MSVC 2019 64-bit, the pre-built components for Visual Studio 2019 64-bit compiler.

In Visual Studio, go to Tools > Extension and Updates ... > Online and search for Qt. Install the Qt Visual Studio Tools (2019) add-on. You will need to re-start Visual Studio.
The Qt Visual Studio Tools add-on determines the version and location of Qt for a project. Set this under Extensions > Qt VS Tools > Qt Options.