For most homeowners planning a renovation, the best home design software is AI Smart Decor. Upload a photo of your current room, describe the new floors, paint or cabinets, and see the finished look on your own room before you spend anything, from $9/month for 200 images (try it with 3 free images). For measured plans, pair it with Chief Architect Home Designer, the most complete DIY software for remodels ($79/month or $495/year), or an easier tool: Planner 5D, RoomSketcher and Floorplanner all have free plans, and magicplan scans existing rooms with your phone.
What is the best home design software for a renovation?
Prices checked October 3, 2026 on each vendor's own site.
| Software | Best for | Price | Free option | Main limitation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AI Smart Decor | Best overall: seeing the finished renovation on a photo of your room | $9/mo (200 images) | Try it with 3 free images on a new web account | Shows the look; pair with a planner for measurements |
| Chief Architect Home Designer | Detailed remodel plans, kitchens and baths, cost estimates | $79/mo or $495/yr | Free trial | Desktop only (Windows, Apple silicon Mac); takes time to learn |
| Planner 5D | Easy floor plans and 3D on any device | $19.99/mo or $59.99/yr | Free plan | Free plan includes half the furniture catalog |
| RoomSketcher | Measured floor plans you can print to scale | $12/mo billed yearly, or $24/mo | Free plan (2 credits) | Free 3D snapshots are watermarked |
| Floorplanner | Simple browser floor plans | Credits from $8.15 for 5; subscriptions: see site | Up to 5 projects | Free exports are low resolution and watermarked |
| Homestyler | 3D floor plans with detailed renders | Pro+ from $6.80/mo (auto-renew) | Free Basic plan | You build the room yourself in 3D |
| magicplan | Scanning existing rooms into floor plans | See site | 2 free projects | Built for contractors; priced by projects |
| SketchUp | Custom 3D models of built-ins, additions, anything | Go $10.75/mo, Pro $33.25/mo (billed yearly) | SketchUp Free (web) | General 3D modeler; steepest learning curve |
| Sweet Home 3D | Free floor plans and 3D | Free | Fully free, open source | Manual drawing only; no photo restyling |
We list what each vendor publishes.
Do you need floor plan software or a visualizer?
They answer different questions, and a renovation usually needs both.
- Floor plan software answers "will it fit?" You draw or scan the room, set real dimensions, move walls, place cabinets and furniture, and view it in 3D. Chief Architect Home Designer, Planner 5D, RoomSketcher, Floorplanner, Homestyler, magicplan, SketchUp and Sweet Home 3D are all in this group.
- A photo visualizer answers "will I like it?" You start from a photo of the room as it is today and see it with new floors, paint, cabinets or furniture. AI Smart Decor works this way.
The 3D renders in planning tools show a model you built. A photo visualizer shows your actual room, with its windows, light and quirks, which is often what makes a homeowner confident about a finish.
Why is AI Smart Decor the top pick?
AI Smart Decor answers the question every renovation comes down to: "will I like it?" Upload a photo of the room as it is today and describe the renovation in plain language: "replace the carpet with light oak flooring, paint the walls soft white, add recessed lighting." You get your own room back with those changes, still recognisable as your room, then keep refining it one step at a time or go back to an earlier version and try another direction. Explore shows up to 6 styles of the same room at once, and there are 50 styles and 10 room types to start from. You can find similar furniture from any result with Google Lens.
Plans start at $9/month for 200 images (Lite $29, Plus $49, Ultra $99), and you can try it with 3 free images. Paid downloads are watermark-free PNGs. It runs on the web, with an iOS app.
It works from ordinary photos, so it shows the finished look rather than drawing floor plans or measurements. Use it to choose finishes and agree on a direction, then plan the build in one of the tools below. See also partial remodel previews.
See your room redesigned before you buy a thing. Upload a photo of your room and compare 50 styles on the space you actually live in. Plans start at $9/month for 200 designs. Start designing
The planning tools, one by one
Chief Architect Home Designer: the most complete DIY option
Home Designer is the consumer version of Chief Architect's professional software and is built for home design, remodeling, kitchen and bath design and cost estimation. It is now sold as Home Designer 2027, a subscription at $79/month or $495/year, so older guides that quote a one-time price are out of date. There is a free trial. It runs on Windows 10/11 and on Macs with Apple M1 or newer chips. Choose it if you are moving walls, redoing a kitchen layout or want plans detailed enough to discuss with a contractor, and you are willing to spend time learning it.
Planner 5D: the easiest start
Planner 5D works on web, phone and tablet with 2D and 3D views. The free plan allows unlimited projects with half the furniture catalog. Premium ($19.99/month or $59.99/year) unlocks the full catalog and AI recognition of an existing floor plan image. Professional ($49.99/month) adds 4K renders and CAD export.
RoomSketcher: plans with real measurements
RoomSketcher focuses on clear, measured floor plans. Pro ($12/month billed yearly or $24 monthly) adds printing to scale, measurements, an area calculator, 3D photos and 360 views. The free plan includes 2 credits and one AI floor plan conversion, with watermarks on 3D snapshots.
Floorplanner: simple browser plans
Floorplanner runs in the browser and is aimed at non-experts. You can make up to 5 projects free, with low-resolution, watermarked exports. Higher-resolution exports use credits (5 for $8.15).
Homestyler: detailed 3D renders
Homestyler is a cloud 3D floor planner with a large model library. The free Basic plan includes unlimited 1K renders. Pro+ (from $6.80/month with auto-renewal) adds 2K and 4K renders, plumbing and electrical layers, and construction drawings.
magicplan: scan the room you have
magicplan creates floor plans as you scan a room with your phone, using LiDAR on iPhone and iPad Pro models, and adds estimating and PDF reports. You get 2 free projects; paid plans are sold by monthly project credits and are aimed at contractors.
SketchUp: model anything
SketchUp is a general 3D modeler. SketchUp Free runs in the browser; Go is $10.75/month and Pro $33.25/month, both billed yearly. It can model custom built-ins or an addition in detail, but it is not home-specific and takes the longest to learn.
Sweet Home 3D: free and open source
Sweet Home 3D is free under an open-source license and runs on Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android and in the browser. You draw a 2D plan, add furniture from its included models and view it in 3D. It is a solid choice if you want no subscription at all.
Which software should you choose for your renovation?
- Refreshing finishes without changing the layout (floors, paint, cabinets, lighting): AI Smart Decor, plus a free planner if furniture placement is a question.
- Moving walls or redesigning a kitchen layout: AI Smart Decor to see the finishes on your real room, plus Chief Architect Home Designer for the plan.
- You want a free, easy floor plan: Planner 5D, RoomSketcher or Floorplanner. Sweet Home 3D if you want everything free.
- You need to measure what you have first: magicplan.
- You want to model custom built-ins or an addition: SketchUp.
- You care most about 3D renders: Homestyler.
How do you use these tools together for a renovation?
- Measure or scan the current space (tape measure, or magicplan) and draw it in your planning tool.
- Try layout changes in the plan: where the island goes, whether the wall comes out, how far the sofa sits from the TV.
- Photograph each room as it is in daylight, from a corner.
- Try finishes on the photos with AI: two or three combinations of floor, paint and cabinets per room.
- Bring both to your contractor or designer: the plan for dimensions and the images for the look. They will confirm structure, plumbing, electrical and permits, which no consumer software does.
For more on planning a remodel with AI, read home renovation AI, and for floor plan apps specifically, AI floor plan apps.
See your room redesigned before you buy a thing. Upload a photo of your room and compare 50 styles on the space you actually live in. Plans start at $9/month for 200 designs. Start designing
