Although VR is acclaimed as the future, there is no evidence of its benefits over interactive 360-panorama when used in geodesign. Using a survey-based method, this study finds that, although participants prefer the realism of VR, there is no benefit of VR over 360 when evaluating vibrant street environments. As a result, when selecting tools for visual evaluation of geodesign projects, geodesigners must consider the trade-off between the value of higher realism of VR versus the extra effort, cost and impracticality of using goggles for public participation, versus using 360-panorama.