Gone are the days when architects are confined to using pen and paper for their work. The advent of digital software enhance architects’ workflow, saves time, and improves efficiency. As an architect, 3D software enhances your creativity and imagination. Thus, enabling you to construct buildings prototype without any real-life creation. 3D software also allows you to present a more detailed virtual representation and dimensions of buildings to your clients.
There are many 3D software vendors available in the market, each with different unique offers and varying capabilities. Hence, you need to consider different factors before choosing the best solution. This article presents a list of the best 3D software in the market today and highlights their pros and cons.
Best 3D Architecture Softwares You Should Consider
- Revit
- AutoCAD
- Sketchup
- Cedreo
- Chief Architect
- ArchiCAD
- V-Ray
- AutoCAD Civil 3D
- Dynamo
- TAD
- Rhino 3D
- Maya
#1 Revit
Price: $320/month
Revit is powerful BIM software developed by Autodesk. It allows both 2D and 3D architecture software modeling, rendering, and construction. Revit has a great collaborative feature that enables the whole team to access the designing process and updation. It ensures the effective coordination of multiple engineers working on a scheme to create a complete project. It is ideal for architecture studio that handles complex project that requires BIM (Building Information Modelling).
Pros | Cons |
| Great collaborative feature | Difficult perspective editing |
| Ensures greater teamwork and saves time | Heavy focus on structural design |
| Singular database prevents repetition | |
| Ensures effective execution of project | |
| No paper documentation |
#2 AutoCAD
Price: $220/month
AutoCAD, a software designed by AutoDesk, is one of the oldest in the market. So, it’s popular among architects. AutoCAD has great rendering capability. Like Revit, it allows collaboration for users to work as a team. You can use it for a 2D and 3D layout. AutoCAD also enables you to create realistic fashions with its blend of solid, surface, and mesh modeling equipment. AutoCAD offers you pre-built objects for walls, doors and windows, and mechanisms for creating sections, elevations, and plans from model geometry. Further, It enables you to create drawings that represent your buildings at the more basic level. You can as well use AutoCAD to learn the basics of line weights and design layers.
Pros | Cons |
| A useful teaching tool | Has a steep learning curve |
| Allows more efficient drawing of base models Comprehensive toolkits | Cannot freely edit lines and locations |
| Offers professional designs | |
| Easy documentation |
#3 Sketchup
Price: $119/per feature/per year
Sketchup is a popular and powerful 3D architecture software that you to plan the whole workflow of a project. It is capable of rendering functions like drawing, animation, and photographs. It also boasts a robust library with over 2 million downloadable sketches. The added feature of 4D virtual reality architecture makes it more competitive. Sketchup is one of the unfastened CAD in the market and high intuitive. It allows you to create flyovers and walkthroughs. The 3D architecture software optimizes your effectiveness and creativity. Above all, Sketch-up can be downloaded for free and offers very affordable packages. This makes students and professionals operating on a slim budget. You can use SketchUp to get to perfect your 3D modeling skill before moving onto other software.
Pros | Cons |
| Fast and easy to Use | Less photorealistic options |
| Free to download and affordable plan | Can’t integrate with other design software |
| Can pull topographical image from Google map | |
| Superb 3D modeling capabilities | |
| Huge library of free 3D components | |
| Large community of users |
#4 Cedreo
Price: $79/per feature/per month
Cedreo is a top web-based 3D home design software. It can customize home doors, draw floor plans, and create 3D rendering in just a few clicks. Cedreo generates construction drawings and photorealistic rendering. It has over 7000 3D objects. With Cedreo you can manage project designs without having to go back to the CAD department. This helps your clients understand design intent better before construction commences.
Pros | Cons |
| Elegant and realistic 3D renderings | Lack some advanced functionalities |
| Remodeling tools for all project types | Lacks some US peculiar home designs |
| Manages all design projects on one platform | |
| Fully furnished home design | |
| Simple and fast home design solution |
#5 Chief Architect
Price: $199/month
Chief architect is a leading CAD software created for architecture professionals to achieve 2D and 3D rendering. It is suitable for light commercial buildings and houses. Chief Architect is quite easy to use. You don’t need much 3D modeling talent to utilize the amazing features it provides for home design. The 3D architecture software has an intuitive interface. Its program offers innovative constructing equipment required for a perfect building. It will help you create the 3D shape and robotically generate the building gadget of your mission. It is more focused on manipulation than building. Chief Architect is also fantastic for pre-visualization. Further, you could export 360° panorama renderings that can be shared with your clients.
Pros | Cons |
| Streamlines design process | Difficult to create and modify complex geometric |
| Has powerful building and design tools | Has a bit of a learning curve |
| Offers solid CAD engine | |
| Provides multiple views of project | |
| Needs no plug-in |
#6 ArchiCAD
Price: $196/per month
ArchiCAD is an open BIM software developed by Graphsoft. It is designed specially for architects and interior designers. It provides the architecture necessary tools for effective 2D and 3D drafting, visualization, or building modeling. With ArchiCAD gets high quality and photorealistic architectural rendering. It has tools for handle different engineering and design work. Also, the 3D architecture software can store large amounts of information in your 3D models. Apart from buildings, and the interior, it can also be used to design urban areas.
Pros | Cons |
| Has user-friendly interface | Complex set up and customization of some features |
| Easily modifies geometric object | Create problems when transferring standard details to project |
| Has a large suite of photorealistic rendering tools | |
| Offers Stable and intuitive tools | |
| Has Clearer concept for a design |
#7 V-Ray
Price:
V-Ray is not a design plug-in that offers a quality design solution. It has great rendering capability, arguably the best in the market. It enables you to present your 3D models in a real-life way. If you need to add an extra spark to your design, V-Ray is the best option. The software provides you stunning texture and color palette to create a charming model. So, V-Ray allows you to use light and shade to your benefit. V-Ray is the best software to design a model that will give the client a perfect picture of what your design will look like after construction. V-Ray has a vast library that is repleted with resources to give you an elegant design.
Pros | Cons |
| Excellent architectural rendering capability | A bit complex interface |
| Best high-quality walkthrough project animation | SSS and refraction are slow to render |
| Very powerful and flexible | |
| Integration with a large 3D program |
#8 AutoCAD Civil 3D
Price: $305/per month
AutoCAD Civil 3D is another solid Autodesk product. The 3D architecture software offers architects and builders awesome tools for modeling and drawing. Civil 3D can be integrated with other Autodesk products like AutoCAD, Revit, and 3DS Max, offering a design and documentation pipeline for Building Information Modelling (BIM) workflows. Civil 3D can also integrate survey images with terrain modeling, roads, service schematics, and constructional geometry. All these elements are loaded in a single highly annotated package. This helps engineers focus on their specific area and see how their changes might interfere with others.
Pros | Cons |
| Highly dynamic | Robust features make it complex |
| Facilitates site grading and utility design | Heavy file often causes a fatal error |
| Strong and stable integration | Too Expensive |
| Ability to use all AutoCAD, SCR, and LISP tools for some processes automation | |
| Responsive customer support |
#9 Dynamo
Price: Available on Demand
Dynamo is a 3D architecture software with great capabilities. It can also be used with Revit as a plug-in. Dynamo offers many amazing features that are constantly updated. Therefore, you can easily work complex elements with it. Also, Dynamo fits perfectly into BIM workflow. This solution makes customization of design a whole lot easier and quicker. Thus, saving you time and stress. Dynamo also supports several file types. So, you can use it together with a host of other software. It can be used to export design data from Revit and other software.
Pros | Cons |
| Easy to set up and implement | Lacks support for querying database |
| Highly scalable on demand | Too pricey |
| Reliable and fast performance | |
| Can handle set of data easily | |
| Low maintenance overhead |
#10 Rhino 3D
Price: Available on request
Rhino is a popular and reliable 3D architecture software that has been in the market since 1998. It allows you to create 3D models and documentation for the model or drawing you enter into the system. The newer version of Rhino even allows you to scan actual data into the system. Further, Rhino arms you with all the tools you need to carry out thorough design editing. Aside from the basic models, it aids you in creating animations and top-notch renderings. It all offers you high flexibility to easily enter surfaces and objects into the solution and utilize point polygon meshes together with point clouds. As a result, beginners usually favor Rhino, who wishes to understand the nitty-gritty of CAD quickly. Rhinos’ other valuable features are creating its plug-ins and exporting Rhino output into usable via 3D printers.
Pros | Cons |
| Has internal renderer that enhances the quality result | Limited sheets layout tools |
| Custom fixture modeling | Lacks backward file compatibility |
| Custom fixture modeling | |
| Custom fixture modeling Excellent parametric design with Grasshopper | |
| Conversion to different 3D file types |
#11 Grasshopper
Price: $26/per account/ month
Grasshopper is an architecture software that enhances architects to use parametric design to improve the efficiency of their workflows. It provides architects several tools to automate manual architecture tasks. The software uses variables that make it easier for you to complete tasks. Grasshopper also allows you to create modules centered on these common tasks. With Grasshopper, you can create a full library of previously used ideas and elements. These modules are just a few clicks away with the click of a mouse. Grasshopper can be integrated with Rhino 3D.
Pros | Cons |
| Excellent for fabrication and performance analysis | Less powerful than code-based software |
| Allows smooth workflow and faster process | Difficult to collaborate with multiple designers |
| Large community that can help with issue | |
| Smooth integration with other software | |
| Very fast and easy to set up |
#12 Maya
Price: $205/month
Maya is design software that is very easy for designers to use. It offers more creative freedom that fosters innovative designs. Though Maya is not big with architectural features. You can use Maya to come up with a design before transferring to other architecture software. It also allows you to download additional skill sets essential for architecture. It’s a good software to masters the bases of architecture software before moving to more complex ones. And Maya has a large community of users that can help you walk through any challenge you might encounter while using the software.
Pros | Cons |
| Excellent geometric conversion | Weak sculpting function |
| Huge customization option | Lacks texture feature |
| Easy to set up and implement | |
| Highly compatible with other software | |
| Easy to collaborate with other companies |
Frequently Asked Question (FAQs)
What are the factors to be considered before choosing a 3D architecture software?
Some of the factors to be considered are the compatibility of the software with your architectural need. Also, examine the software features, cost, industry factor, personal inclinations, PC type, and learning factor.
What is the Difference Between CAD and BIM
Computer-Aided Design (CAD) allows architects to create comprehensive designs in 2D or 3D of the manufacturing process involved in constructing a building. Building Information Modeling (BIM), on the other hand, is a 3D design software that enhances architects to create 3D virtual models of buildings using “real” construction material. BIM gives clients a more digital prototype of the actual structure, like the construction material.
Conclusion
Each of the software explored in this post has powerful and distinct features. So, we hope the information provided in this post can help you determine the apt software for your needs and budget.