Home Design Software

Home Design Software prices

Interestingly, we noticed that a number of reviewers liked some of these home design software programs in general. However, many users posting to sites such as Amazon.com felt there was too long a learning curve for most titles, and overall, this product category has a higher percentage of low ratings than we've seen in other product categories.

Many of the poor reviews are based on an unpleasant surprise at how long it would take to cover the basics, such as learning to use the software, making a floor plan or designing a unique home. Owner comments emphasize the fact that home design software is not as easy to use as you would expect. That doesn't mean working with these products can't be fun, but it does mean a novice user with little computer-aided design (CAD) and graphics experience will need to dedicate energy and patience to master these tools.

Notwithstanding these complaints, other users and most professional reviews say these home design software programs, despite their faults, are indeed learnable by the average consumer. An article by Sara Schaefer Muñoz in The Wall Street Journal notes, however, that home design software does have its limits. Less expensive programs aren't as able to "create the house's frame, adjust wall thickness or customize rooflines," she writes. Also, programs don't take state building codes into account. (In California, codes are especially strict and detailed.) In an article in Macworld, Greg Miller adds that home design software isn't "designed to produce final technical drawings." Still, the software can improve communication with architects.

While the packages discussed here offer some provision for designing exteriors, the focus of this report is on software with strong architectural and interior-design components, as well as decorating options. These programs allow you to design a home from the ground up, specify the size of rooms, then manipulate virtual furniture, change wall coverings and add decorative items. Landscaping tools, which let you choose plants or create outdoor living spaces, are included in some of the software suites.

Best home design software

Better Homes and Gardens Home Designer Suite 8.0 (*est. $100) appears to be leading the pack in ease of use. One of the keys to Home Designer Suite's success may be the fact that it was designed for Better Homes and Gardens by Chief Architect, whose primary product is Chief Architect X1, a professional architectural software product priced at just under $1,500 (and that's for the basic version).

Better Homes and Gardens Home Designer Suite 8.0 comes with an extra DVD with over 30 video tutorials. Experts say the videos are especially helpful in getting started with the software. Home Designer Suite lets users start with a particular home style, furnished with default items in a given fashion. From there, users can change and make substitutions. In reviews, experts like this feature because it allows casual users to get started quickly. As with other software, users can also create rooms from scratch. You can preview your finished work with a virtual tour, dollhouse view, and 2D or 3D walkthroughs. Owners posting at Amazon.com rave about the Home Designer Suite's many design tools, online support and ease of use, although we didn't find any reviews at press time for the newly released version 8.0.

If you've ever wondered how your new home will look at night, Home Designer Suite 8.0 allows you to see your design during virtual daylight hours or after the sun goes down. Its landscaping toolbox comes with a library of over 1,500 plants (including a plant encyclopedia) and outdoor items, and it will automatically generate a 3D view of your landscape design. PC Magazine's reviewer Troy Dreier likes that Home Designer Suite (he reviewed an earlier edition) includes a database of 1,500 finished home plans. You can review the plans and even buy them if you like. There are also several other helpful features, such as point-and-click color for walls and floors. Reviewers add that although Better Homes and Gardens Home Designer Suite is easier to use than other software, it's not without an occasional glitch. Owners posting reviews for the previous version to Amazon.com weren't able to make roof adjustments, such as putting a full dormer on a cape house. They also found the stair tools difficult to use. But overall, owners are far happier with Home Designer Suite than with other home design software.

Better Homes and Gardens Home Designer Suite comes with tools for interior rooms (including kitchen design and bath design), along with landscaping design and deck design software. Included are tools for estimating costs and materials. Also available are some less extensive versions of the software that get mostly good reviews from users at Amazon.com. Better Homes and Gardens Home Designer 8.0 (*est. $60) is a scaled-down version of Home Designer Suite, although it does include cost estimators. Better Homes and Gardens Interior Designer (*est. $60) , focuses on interior elements, kitchens and baths, but it also includes more items in its furnishings library, along with an Inspiration Gallery, how-to advice on designing, and a cabinet designing tool with over 1,000 samples. If you don't want the interior design options, Better Homes and Gardens Landscaping and Deck Designer 8.0 (*est. $80) provides just outdoor elements, including templates for decks, landscaping, pools and terrains, and over 3,700 realistic plants.

Better Homes and Gardens Home Designer Professional 8.0 (*est. $495) is the most complete of all the Better Homes and Gardens programs. It simplifies many of the procedures that are possible but not easy to perform in the less expensive suite. Designer Professional 8.0 is too new to have any reviews, but users of the previous version on Amazon.com report that roofs are more manageable to design in this version. In general, Amazon.com reviewers feel that this version comes very close to being a true professional program. The learning curve is reported to be steep, however, and the price is nearly five times that of the suite.

One more program from Better Homes and Gardens is the Better Homes and Gardens Architectural Home Designer (*est. $200) , introduced in 2008. This program combines all the features of the suite with all the plants and landscaping capabilities of the Landscaping and Deck Designer version. It also adds a few (although by no means all) of the features of Home Designer Professional, such as the ability to define custom lighting with shadows. One reviewer at Amazon.com says that stairwells are still difficult to do with this program, and feels that this is a teaser product, leading you to the more expensive Home Designer Professional version.

Experts also highly recommend Punch! Professional Home Design Suite Platinum Version 12 (*est. $100) , although this product is not for the novice. Like Better Homes and Gardens Home Designer Suite, you get both home design and landscaping design software as part of this product. In reviews, experts say Punch! is not as easy to use as Better Homes and Gardens Home Designer, but they add that it offers some more sophisticated tools for more serious or experienced designers. Owners posting comments to opinion websites give Punch! home design software only average scores, complaining that its complexity is frustrating for beginners. They note that it's a good choice for those who know their way around CAD (computer aided design) software, or for those who want to add special details to their homes like wainscoting.

Punch! starts users off with a blank screen rather than using a wizard or any quick-start option. The software lets you build a home from scratch, load predesigned plans or scan in photos. There are also plenty of wizards to help you along. Reviewers are impressed with the level of detail and the realistic images. Software features are well integrated, and the program also includes a Home Estimator tool, which compiles your design information into an Excel-compatible spreadsheet. However, owners at Amazon.com complain that the new version is still a little buggy and it's slow, even on fast systems. However, Punch! Professional Home Design Suite Platinum Version 12 does include many features like LiveView, that updates your design in real time, and more comprehensive tools such as the new aerial views for designing unique homes.

Punch! Architectural Series 5000 Version 12 (*est. $500) is the company's top-of-the-line home design program. This version incorporates 3D Custom Workshop Pro, which is a modified version of Punch's ViaCAD 2D/3D application. It also adds a bird's-eye view. There are only a few user reviews of this program on Amazon.com, but none of them give this product good marks. One user says that the new workshop feature is unstable and crashes. Another reviewer finds this program too complex and recommends buying one of Punch's
lower-priced products.

If you're a Mac user, you don't have as many options. The Better Homes and Gardens software isn't available in a Mac version at all. However, Punch! offers a Mac-compatible version of its home design software, Punch! Home Design Studio for Mac (*est. $100) . The reviews we read at Amazon.com for this software were similar to the comments we found for the PC version -- there is a steep learning curve requiring significant time with the manual. It seems that most people tend to give up on Punch! software, but those who stick with it and learn its nuances are happy with its comprehensive tools. Macworld reviewer Greg Miller adds that "it takes some time and patience to master the technique of placing objects." He does like the software, though, saying it's "great software at a reasonable price." Be aware that Punch! Home Design Studio for Mac only works with Mac OS X v10.4 (Tiger) and higher.

Also available is Punch! Home Design Studio Pro for the Mac (*est. $160) , which includes 3D Custom Workshop Pro, allowing you to insert your own CAD objects to expand your library. Other new features include a fireplace assistant for creating custom fireplaces and a cost estimator. There are few reviews on Amazon.com, and several note that this is a complex package with a steep learning curve.

Reviews say Punch! Professional Home Design Suite Platinum Version 12 is a more flexible, robust tool, but it's mostly for those who have some CAD (computer-aided design) experience. On the other hand, Better Homes and Gardens Home Designer Suite 8.0 is easier to use, but with less room to grow as your skills progress. So your choice will depend on whether you prefer out-of-the-box ease of use or more flexibility with a steeper learning curve. All told, the Better Homes and Gardens software gets much better overall marks.

Free interactive tools and software

If you merely want to try out some fun tools, you don't have to pay for home design software. A number of online applications let you fool around with home design for free.

Google SketchUp is a free program worth checking out since it gets excellent reviews. SketchUp is a free download that lets you draw 3D images. There are plentiful tools, and you can even design a skyscraper. For help, you can pull items like appliances or windows (or entire houses) from a virtual warehouse that other users have added items to. Recent images include a ping-pong table and an antique French mirror. When you're finished, drop your creation into Google Earth to see how it fits into your neighborhood. Video tutorials and user guides help you get going. You can also get information from SketchUp user groups that contain thousands of members. There is a SketchUp version for Mac users, and a professional version is also available: Google SketchUp Pro (*est. $495).

Besides Google SketchUp, more free interactive tools have popped up on the Internet. Many of these have very specific applications, so About.com guide Coral Nafie suggests checking out several options. For example, you can try out different swatches of color in model rooms or estimate the cost of a painting project at Pittsburgh Paints' website.

The Lowe's website has several interactive design tools, including a kitchen designer, a paint visualizer and a room designer. There are also how-to videos, extensive buying guides and a library with step-by-step guides.

At HGTVKitchenDesign.com you can use 3D design tools to drag and drop products like Viking ranges into virtual rooms.

HGTVBathDesign.com also has design tools that you can use online to create a bathroom. There's also a large cache of useful how-to stories on renovating or designing your home as well as cost estimators at both HGTV sites.

SeeMyDesign.com also offers a free set of tools for designing room layouts. You can try out different floor styles, finishes and paints in a room. It's very basic, though, and only features certain name-brand paints.

As for interesting free interior-design software, one title worth checking out is DesignWorkshop Lite from Artifice software. This simple software lets you build any 3D model, and works on both Apple and Windows computers. Artifice does reserve tutorials and help features for its $20 CD-ROM, however.

The Do-It-Yourself cable network (DIY TV) has a free Room Planner tool on its website. As with the tools on the HGTV websites, you don't have to download anything -- you simply work online. You can select from a collection of objects in either rectangular or round shapes, which you can then drag around a square room. The tool can work pretty well if your room is square or rectangular. You can also add structural elements like windows and doors to your floor plan and create about 13 different rooms. However, this is strictly 2D line drawing -- there's no 3D mode.

Important Features: Home design software

Here's what the experts say to look for in a home design software package:

• Web updates. Packages that access a website for updates ensure that furniture and textile selections are stylish and current.

• Check system requirements. The most comprehensive programs need close to 4GB of free hard disk space and 512MB of RAM, as software gets more complex. Reviewers stress that the faster your computer, the less time you'll spend waiting for 3D components to process. Home design software is usually a system hog, so it's going to work better on a newer, faster computer.

• Look for a variety of 2D and 3D options. Almost all home design programs include a 3D-walkthrough feature, and the best offer at least three different viewing angles, including virtual walkthroughs. Reviewers like split screens that allow you to make a change in a 2D plan and simultaneously see the result in 3D.

• Materials lists and estimating tools. These allow you to see how much your ideas will cost, as well as what you'll need to buy. The Punch! and Better Homes and Gardens titles in ConsumerSearch Fast Answers have an estimator utility.

• A guarantee. Many packages let you get your money back if you're unhappy with the results, and with top packages going for $100 and more, that's a big plus.

• Be aware of the software's limits. Because there are so many variables, such as load-bearing beams, the finished product often needs tweaking, counsels The Wall Street Journal. Reviews say you should not expect this level of software to be able to produce a plan that's deliverable to your contractor. The best homeowner application is for experimentation and playing with ideas -- not producing an executable plan. Reviews do say that home design software is a good tool for communicating with an architect, however.

• Look at various software options. About.com guide Coral Nafie says that there isn't any one perfect software package that can handle every project. She suggests looking at various options, including free online software.

Our Consensus Report shows how many times products are top-ranked by reviewers included in our
All The Reviews Reviewed chart.

# of Picks	Model (with Retailer Links)	Details from Amazon.com
4	Better Homes and Gardens Home Designer Suite 8.0 (*est. $100)	details
4	Punch! Professional Home Design Suite Platinum Version 12 (*est. $100)	details
2	Google SketchUp (Free )	-
1 each	HGTVKitchenDesign.com, HGTVBathDesign.com, DesignWorkshop Lite, SeeMyDesign.com, 3D Home Architect, Instant Architect 12, Floor Planner, Punch! Home Design Studio 11.0 for Mac

Better Homes and Gardens Home Designer Suite is the most favorably reviewed home design software title, followed by Punch! Professional Home Design. Google SketchUp is also mentioned frequently because it's a free program with a fast-growing online member base.

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