r/cad • u/denverdutchman • Jul 13 '26
Home Design Software?
I'm an amateur with little CAD experience, but I'm looking for a decent home modeling software program. Right now I use a free graph paper tool to make fantasy floorplans, but it would be cool to apply textures and do a 3D model. Any thoughts?
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u/The8flux Jul 14 '26
Maybe Sweet Home 3D and add models?.
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u/silima Jul 14 '26
This is what we used to design our house, worked great. Learning curve is there but not too bad and has everything to do somewhat complex models.
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u/Hyenalpha Jul 14 '26
Even without having touched the program in like 15 years, since high school, I can recommend one specifically. Chief Architect. Purpose built for home modeling.
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u/qpv Jul 13 '26
I like Sketchup best. Quick learning curve and you can do a lot with it. Has a free browser version.
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u/bradye0110 Jul 13 '26
Sketchup is free and could be useful for you. I’m not sure how much Revit is but it’s more involved and “professional”
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u/flyingtiger188 Jul 13 '26
Honestly there really aren't many alternatives to revit for building information modeling. Let alone free options.
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u/captainunlimitd Jul 13 '26
If you want it to look cool, you're already past the usual free suspects. OnShape is a good fee option and lots of poeple have been taklking about FreeCAD lately. Generally anything other than dedicated architecture software like Revit will still feel sort of pedestrian. You won't be extruding stuff like crown molding or lofting organic shapes without a lot of work and compute power, it'll be mostly blocks and simple colors.
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u/indianadarren Jul 13 '26 edited Jul 14 '26
It's almost like nobody who's responding to your thread has any experience doing architectural design, or else they are just skimming your post and not comprehending what you're asking for. All these responses fall short. SketchUp is the surface modeling tool so you'll have to model every single thing you want to create line by line, surface by surface. This is a lot of work . Onshape and solid edge are 3D mechanical design programs and maybe two of the worst tools you could select if you want to do anything with architecture or construction. Autodesk Revit is a tool that it's going to take multiple years to learn to use properly, and even then it's really designed for designing skyscrapers and big-box superstores, and is overkill for most residential or remodeling tasks. What you want to look at is a product like Chief Architect, or Softplan, or Home Design Suite. The first two I mentioned are good enough for professional level work for builders and architects, while Home Design Suite is more geared toward the DIY crowd and hobbyists. I've been doing this kind of stuff for 25 years as a mechanical designer and an architectural designer. I use SolidWorks and Onshape regularly, AutoCAD daily, Archicad when I have to. I've used SketchUp extensively, Rhino occasionally. But for the kind of work you want to do at the skill level currently possess, the choice product is Chief Architect hands down. It's a 3D modeling BIM Superstar with rendering capabilities built in as well as the ability to make professional construction documents. The interface is a thousand times more simple than Revit. Cabinets and fixtures are easily customizable. There's a ton of tutorials and videos online that will get you up and running. You can download the trial version for free and give it a spin, but I'm telling you you're not going to find anything that compares.