In today’s real estate market, buyers increasingly expect online viewings before deciding to visit a home in person. Virtual tours, 3D walkthroughs, and high-quality video presentations have become standard tools for agents to showcase properties. This shift is driven by convenience, as buyers can screen multiple homes without leaving their couch. It also saves time, narrowing down the list of potential properties before scheduling physical visits.
Many buyers now consider an online viewing the first showing, treating the in-person visit as the final confirmation. With busy lifestyles and fast-paced schedules, digital previews align with the modern demand for efficiency. Online viewings also allow buyers to revisit the property virtually as many times as they want, something impossible with physical visits. They provide a clear sense of layout, room flow, and space utilization that static photos cannot always capture. While precise numbers are not available, virtual tours are growing rapidly growing in Indian real estate sector. As per report published in one of the leading real estate company blogs, virtual tour accessibility is generating 40% more hits on real estate listings than photos. Also, a luxury real estate developer saw a 25% increase in enquiries after implementing 3D virtual tours for the project.
What are 3D virtual tours?
In real estate, virtual tours are digital walkthroughs of a property that let buyers explore homes online through 3D images, videos, or interactive views, giving them a realistic sense of the space without physically visiting it.
What devices do you need for 3d virtual tours?
The rise of devices like smartphones, tablets, and VR headsets has increased virtual tour accessibility than ever before. However, the big question is what are best devices for real estate virtual tours. Almost anyone with a phone can now view a property online, making the technology widely accessible to buyers across income levels. However, not all tours are equally optimized for different devices. While VR headsets offer a highly immersive experience, they remain costly and less common in everyday use. On the other hand, most virtual tours are designed to run on smartphones, but these can have limitations such as smaller screens, weaker internet connections, or reduced interactivity compared to VR.
Evolution of Real Estate Virtual Tours
The evolution of real estate virtual tours has moved rapidly with technology. In the early stage, property listings featured simple desktop-based slideshows, giving only static photo views. The next phase introduced immersive VR tours, often used in luxury real estate, where buyers could “walk” through properties using headsets for a lifelike experience. Today, the trend has shifted toward mobile-friendly, browser-based 360° tours that don’t require special equipment, making them easily accessible to almost anyone with a smartphone or internet connection.
VR Headsets in Real Estate
Virtual Reality (VR) headsets have introduced a new level of innovation in real estate by allowing buyers to experience properties as if they were physically present. The benefits are significant: VR provides full immersion and a highly realistic feel, enabling potential buyers to move through rooms, view layouts, and get a sense of scale that photos or videos cannot capture. For international buyers, VR is particularly powerful, as it allows them to “walk” through homes remotely, saving both time and travel costs. However, there are limitations. VR headsets remain relatively expensive, making them less accessible to the average buyer. Adoption is also limited, as not many clients own VR devices, and using them often requires a certain level of technical knowledge. Because of these challenges, VR is most commonly applied in specific use cases such as luxury listings, where high-end buyers expect premium experiences, or with overseas investors and high-end developers who use VR presentations to market properties on a global scale.
Smartphones as the Game Changer
Among all devices used in virtual tour accessibility, smartphones have truly revolutionized accessibility in real estate. With widespread adoption, nearly every buyer today owns a smartphone, making it the most practical tool for property exploration. The advantages are clear: smartphones are easy to use, require no extra hardware, and can instantly access tours through browsers or dedicated apps. Platforms like Zillow 3D Home, Matterport, and Realtor.com have tapped into this trend, offering smooth, mobile-friendly experiences that put entire property walkthroughs in the palm of a buyer’s hand. However, smartphones also come with limitations. The experience is less immersive compared to VR, screen size can limit the sense of spatial awareness, and the quality of the tour often depends on phone performance and internet bandwidth. Despite these drawbacks, smartphones remain the game changer because they democratize virtual tours, ensuring almost anyone can explore properties from anywhere with minimal effort.
Accessibility Barriers in Real Estate Virtual Tours
While smartphone real estate virtual tours have opened new possibilities in real estate, several accessibility barriers still limit their full potential. When discussing VR real estate tours, the big question that comes to mind is –Are real estate virtual tours accessible on smartphones? Also, cost of real estate virtual tours remains a major hurdle—high-end VR setups are expensive and out of reach for most buyers, creating a gap between those who can afford immersive experiences and those who rely on more affordable smartphone-based tours.
Technical barriers also play a role, as issues like device compatibility, slow internet speeds, or long loading times can disrupt the experience, especially in areas with poor connectivity. Usability challenges arise too, since navigating a 3D or 360° tour can feel confusing or unintuitive for older users who are less comfortable with digital tools.
Finally, concerns of inclusivity must be addressed: visually impaired individuals may not fully benefit from image-heavy tours, while motion-sensitive users can experience discomfort or disorientation during VR interactions. Together, these barriers highlight the importance of designing smartphone real estate virtual tours that are not only advanced but also equitable and user-friendly for all audiences.
Case Study 1: Luxury Condo Project Using VR for Overseas Investors
A premium condominium project in Mumbai targeted high-net-worth international buyers who could not travel to India for site visits. Lodha, one of the leading real estate developer in Mumbai invested in VR headset tours, allowing investors in Dubai, London, and Singapore to experience the project as if they were physically present. Buyers could virtually “walk through” model apartments, explore amenities, and even view the city skyline from balconies. This immersive approach built trust and shortened the decision-making process, resulting in faster bookings from overseas clients.
Case Study 2: Realtor Using Smartphone-Optimized Matterport Tours
A local realtor in Bengaluru leveraged Matterport’s smartphone-friendly 3D tours for mid-range residential listings. These tours required no special hardware—buyers could explore properties directly through their phones or laptops via a simple browser link. This approach proved highly effective for busy professionals and first-time buyers who preferred quick, convenient previews before scheduling in-person visits. By making real estate virtual tours accessible to anyone with a smartphone, the realtor expanded reach, attracted more serious leads, and reduced time wasted on casual viewings.
Comparison: Accessibility reach VR vs smartphone
When comparing accessibility, VR and smartphones offer very different reaches. VR provides a deeply immersive and realistic experience but is limited by the high cost of headsets, low adoption rates, and the need for technical know-how. In contrast, smartphones dominate in accessibility—almost every buyer owns one, and virtual tours can be easily accessed through browsers or apps without extra equipment. While smartphones lack the full immersion of VR, their widespread availability makes them the true driver of mass adoption in real estate virtual tours. The advancement in VR technology is going to decide who will be the winner in VR vs mobile real estate tours game.
Trends Making Virtual Tours More Accessible
Several emerging trends are helping virtual tours move beyond exclusivity and reach a much wider audience. One major advancement is the rise of web-based VR and AR experiencesthat run directly in browsers, removing the need for specialized apps or hardware. This shift allows users to enter immersive environments with just a click, whether on desktop or mobile. Another breakthrough is AI-driven auto-generated smartphone real estate virtual tours, which speed up the process of creating 3D walkthroughs while lowering costs for developers and agents.
At the same time, the rollout of 5G networks and improvements in mobile camera technology are making virtual tours smoother, with faster loading, higher-quality visuals, and fewer glitches even on smartphones. Finally, the market now offers affordable DIY tour creation tools that empower individual agents to build and share interactive tours without relying on expensive professional services. Together, these trends are breaking down barriers, making smartphone real estate virtual tours more affordable, scalable, and accessible to everyday buyers and sellers.
Tips for Real Estate Agents & Buyers
For agents, making the most of virtual tours starts with prioritizing smartphone-friendly formats, since these reach the widest audience and require no special hardware. At the same time, offering VR headset options for premium or international clientscan add value and create a more immersive experience for high-end properties. Agents should also ensure that tours load quickly and are easy to navigate, as slow or clunky interfaces risk frustrating potential buyers and reducing engagement.
For buyers, virtual tour accessibility is straightforward—most can be opened directly in web browsers or through real estate apps without the need for additional software. To get the most out of smartphone tours, buyers should use a device with a good display, stable internet connection, and, ideally, view the property in full screen while rotating the phone for a better sense of space. Taking time to explore different angles and zoom into details like finishes or layouts can make the experience closer to an in-person visit.
Future Outlook
The future of VR real estate tours is poised for exciting developments, but questions remain about the role of VR headsets. While VR offers unmatched immersion, it is unlikely to become mainstream in the near term due to high costs, limited adoption, and technical barriers. Smartphones, on the other hand, are expected to remain the most accessible and widely used device for virtual tours, thanks to their ubiquity and ease of use. Looking ahead, there is growing potential for integration with AR glasses, which could combine the convenience of mobile access with a more immersive experience, allowing buyers to overlay digital property information onto real-world surroundings. As technology continues to evolve, the balance between accessibility and immersion will shape how smartphone real estate virtual tours are adopted by both everyday buyers and premium clients.
Conclusion
VR real estate tours have come a long way, evolving from niche VR experiences to convenient, everyday tools accessible on smartphones. While VR headsets provide unmatched immersion and a lifelike walkthrough, the high cost of real estate virtual tours and limited adoption keep them from reaching most buyers. Smartphones, in contrast, dominate in accessibility, offering easy, on-the-go tours that almost anyone can use. The key for agents and developers is balance: leveraging VR for premium or overseas buyers, while prioritizing smartphone-friendly tours for the broader market. By using both strategically, virtual tours can maximize engagement, reach, and impact across all property types and audiences.