Home Designer vs Sweet Home 3D

Home Designer is 3D home, interior, and remodeling software for DIY users, based on Chief Architect’s professional architectural software. Drawing walls creates a 3D model, and edits to walls, doors, or windows update framing, roofs, and foundations. Items added to a design appear in a materials list for cost estimating and budgeting. Cabinets snap and adapt to walls, while Material Painter lets users visualize different colors and styles. The 3D Library offers manufacturer-specific and generic catalogs; users can also import third-party 3D objects, materials, and colors. Designs are compatible with Chief Architect’s professional product line and can be shared through the Chief Architect 3D Viewer app. Home Designer is listed for Windows, macOS, web, iOS, and Android. The maker identifies version 2027 as available for PC and Mac, with one license that works natively on both. Monthly pricing is $79 a month, and annual pricing is $495 a year. There is no free plan, but a trial does not expire; it excludes saving, printing, exporting, and virtual tours. The one-person license can be installed on multiple computers for personal use, but only one can be active at a time.

Sweet Home 3D is an interior design application for drawing home plans and viewing them in 3D. In its 2D plan, users can draw straight, round, or sloping walls with precise dimensions and add room areas, dimension lines, text, arrows, and a compass rose. A live 3D view shows the design from above or from a virtual visitor’s perspective as the plan is built. The software can render images and videos with adjustable lights and sunlight based on time of day and geographic location. It imports blueprints, 3D models, and textures, and can print or export PDFs, images, videos, and 3D files in standard formats. The free desktop and online version costs nothing; downloadable editions have smaller furniture and texture catalogs. Sweet Home 3D Online Manager runs in a compatible browser, but free registration is required to save designs. The Microsoft Store Monthly Premium subscription costs $9.99 a month and includes a 7-day free trial. Desktop editions are available for Windows, macOS, and Linux.