Blender 5.1 has been released, with the Blender Foundation describing it as a refinement-focused update for performance and stability across the production pipeline. Cycles receives faster GPU rendering on benchmark scenes, faster CPU rendering on Windows, and shading consistency fixes, while the wider release includes hundreds of bug fixes, cleanups, and refactors.
The release also improves animation, Grease Pencil, the Video Sequencer, modelling, UV tools, and Geometry Nodes. Notable updates include the new Bone Info node for rig-driven node setups, improved String to Curves workflows, UV Unwrap and Pack UV Islands node improvements, better Grease Pencil drawing and fill tools, and a major Vulkan performance boost for the sequencer.
The result is less about a single headline feature and more about smoother day-to-day work: faster rendering, cleaner playback and sequencing, stronger procedural modelling tools, and more reliable drawing and asset workflows. Read the press release and the full release notes.