Free interiors software to help make projects a breeze
- Sophie L
- Aug 8, 2024
- 3 min read
Whether you're a do-it-yourself property investor or design enthusiast, these free interior design softwares are ones you need to check out. From floor plans to rendering to mood boarding here are our top picks rated in difficulty...
Floorplanning
Floorplanner
Floorplanner was founded in 2007 by 3 architects and a civil engineer who strongly felt that 3D CAD software could be simpler, lighter, and more accessible. Floorplanner's editor helps you quickly and easily recreate any type of space, without the need for any software or training. With their real-time 3D view, you can see how your design choices will look in the finished space and even create professional-quality 3D renders at 8K resolution. As well as basic floor plans you can drop in furniture pieces to scale to help understand better how your space will work.
Difficulty level - easy
Room Sketcher
Room Sketcher is similar to Floorplanner in its offering. Within the free subscription, you can draw room layouts in feet or meters, then furnish and decorate them with over 4000 products and materials. You can also visualise your design in low-res 3D, by taking snapshots of the interior.
Difficulty level - easy
Design / Visualisation
Canva
We think Canva is one of the best tools created in the last few years for DIY-ers. Perfect for creating moodboards and even simple elevations and visuals if you're not feeling any of the other software recommendations.
You can do pretty much everything you need to on the free version, bar the ability to remove backgrounds (a must for sleek moodboarding!).
A hack to avoid this is to remove the background with your i-phone. Simply hold your thumb on the bit of the picture you want copied and a lightening type flash will appear, removing the background on the rest of the image. Open Canva, paste your image and voila - background removed with no premium subscription needed!
Difficulty level - easy
3D / Visualisation
Homebyme
If you've played The Sims you can definitely deal with Homebyme! Start your project by drawing your floor plan or if you already have a plan, you can import it and draw over it. Then add all the necessary structural elements, furniture and decoration to your space. With 000s of real life products there's usually something that fits the bill! At the time of writing you get 2 free projects, which is perfect if you just want to have a play around. The great thing is you can zoom into eye level and essentially walk around your project before a brick has been laid.
If you're feeling fancy it also allows you to render out your rooms in 4K!
Difficulty level - medium
SketchUp
SketchUp is definitely the most complex out of them all. If you're looking to 'quickly' create a room with no prior design experience then this software is not for you. SketchUp can be used for a variety of applications, including architecture, interior design, engineering, construction, and more. You can create models of buildings, furniture, landscapes, and more, and add details such as textures, lighting, and shadows to create realistic visual representations. Plus you can generate lighting plans and elevation drawings in one program.
It will take some practicing to get used to designing on this, but once you do you'll feel like you can conquer anything! The free version is also great as a test run to see if you get on with it.
Difficulty level - advanced
Bonus software
Excel
Excel had to have a mentioned, interiors related or not! It's an essential piece of software for creating and keeping track of costs during your renovation and beyond. You don't need to be an excel wiz, just a simple understanding of formulas will be sufficient.
Difficulty level - medium
So, are you inspired to learn a new skill after reading about all these different softwares? From floor planning to 3D models to the old faithful spreadsheet - there's software out there to help you with it all.
If you've tried your hand at any of these please share your projects with us over on instagram @themodernlandlord we love to see them!
