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10 Best Free Kitchen Design Software in 2024

February 13, 2024

kitchen design software

The thought of redesigning your kitchen must have entered your mind a thousand times.

Whether you’re a restaurateur surveying hotels or an office coordinator looking to rent a commercial complex for its employees, kitchen efficiency is the top priority.

As hospitality grips the world economy by becoming one of the largest industries, the need for kitchen design software will surface more. 

Going to an interior designer with a specific kitchen design in mind only results in dragging your feet back home. The hardware costs, electrical costs, and decor additions like wallpaper, wainscoting, and paint would have you shelling out every penny you have.

This is why investing in free kitchen design software like architecture software or BIM software should be your next course.

Taking measurements and deciding on an appropriate color palette for your kitchen is a lot of work. Interior decorators or architects might be adept at drawing maps or sketches, but software can also ideate designs, build fast layouts, and measure current requirements so that your budget isn't overshot.

To measure wall-to-wall carpet areas and plan empty sections for washing units, floor plan software can help carve a map of kitchen floors and take measurements.

Best free kitchen design software

The main reason people avoid choosing a software provider for kitchen renovations is anticipated costs and time. But with free kitchen design alternatives, these concerns are dealt with.

Kitchen software offers a repertoire of 2D and 3D modeling integration tools, allowing for a greater ability to visualize workflows and generate complex designs. 

Turn any kitchen into your dream kitchen with these free solutions.

To qualify for inclusion in this category, software must:

  • Have design and rendering capabilities specifically for interior designers and architects. 
  • Have floor expansion and measurement capabilities for tiling and marbling.
  • Host unlimited design templates for after-renovation looks.
  • Provide a customizable platform. 
  • Offer collaboration options for multiple teams to work on a single platform.
  • 2D or 3D computer-aided design tools specifically for architectural planning and construction.

* These software reviews were pulled from G2 in Feb, 2024. Some reviews might be edited for clarity.

1. SketchUp

SketchUp offers powerful 3D modeling engines to visualize a kitchen through a different lens. With 2D and 3D customizable modeling tools, it can render fast and efficient designs for real estate and transform your place.

Sketchup is used to build intuitive presentations, real-estate kitchen showings, and digital twins that add 3D blocks to your physical surroundings. It has a powerful virtual reality (VR) powered navigation that overlays digital furniture onto real-life objects to help you inspect newer components and make a decision. 

What users like best:

"I use Sketchup for drawing out rooms to see how a concept piece may look. In the production side, it is invaluable to use for getting all measurements and cuts just right. There is a cut list plugin available (for free, no less) that makes the whole process painless. With these tools, I can make projects with extreme accuracy and minimal waste, not to mention I have clean and clear detailed pictures for documentation if needed."

- SketchUp Review, Dan P.

What users dislike:

"I don't like that plug-ins aren't automatically brought along for each iteration of the program. As well, I think the subscription platform is terrible !!!!!! I also don't like that sketch up doesn't utilize the available resources do their best. I don't want more from my subscription, what I want as I want it to do its job better."

- SketchUp Review, Wayde T.

2. Revit

Revit is a building design and information modeling software that constructs high-quality and robust building plans for construction. It uses AutoCAD technology to make agile designs for energy-efficient buildings. 

Engineers, architects, and real estate planners can collaborate over this platform to frame their design ideas and brainstorm on newer construction sites. It also provides manual documentation with model updates to align with design changes.

What users like best:

"I love the challenge of working in revit and in 3D in general . It's great because even though i have been using for a quite a few years . I feel there is always something new to learn . Seamless integration with other autodesk solutions ( Navisworks etc.)"

- Revit Review, Bhavdeep s.

What users dislike:

"The learning curve was a little steep but once you get over it, everything becomes intuitive. My biggest dislike is the high price tag that comes with it."

- Revit Review, David H.

3. Archicad

Archicad is a design delivery software that builds 2D layouts of your kitchen, home, or any commercial space. Manual documentation uploaded by involved teams keeps track of design models, updates, version modifications, and construction timelines.

Archicad provides an open collaboration platform for designers, engineers, and architects to share project progress and work in unison.

What users like best:

"ArchiCAD's rendering capabilities are top-notch. The built-in CineRender engine provides realistic visualizations, and you can integrate external rendering engines for even more advanced rendering needs.

ArchiCAD offers a wide array of design tools, from conceptual design through construction documentation. The robust library of parametric objects and the ability to create custom objects make it easy to realize complex design ideas."

- Archicad Review, Aneurys Nicanor A.

What users don't like:

It appears as though ArchiCAD has had some developer issues over the past four years or so. I feel like they missed the mark on the last few releases and haven't fixed some of the bugs that they should have prior to moving on to other updates.

- Archicad Review, Clint S.

4. D5 Render

D5 Render is sketch paper for your designs as it traces and outlines older drawings and images to build a design. Also known as a tracing renderer, it’s used with other software like SketchUp, 3ds Max, Archicad, Rhino, and C4D with free live sync plugins. 

Through rasterization and tracing, D5 quickly renders your images, videos, and panoramas to build layouts for your new decor. Preview your changes, make models, and transform your kitchen space into something magical.

What users like best:

“The best thing about D5 render is that it is a free software, I mean there is a paid version, but you can use the software to almost like 70% of its full potential on a free version...Secondly its accurate photorealistic render engine is second to none, It has the fastest render engine for photorealistic architectural viz and rendering.. It delivers the best results that can rival industry top architectural renderers like Vray, Corona,Lumion etc.”

- D5 Render Review, Peter E O.

What users dislike:

“There are some things that could currently be improved. For example, the camera movement through hardware such as SpaceMouse is not supported. The available furnishings are very "oriental and there is some clutter in the names of textures and assets, so it is not super fast to find what you are looking for. Also, some textures may have a higher quality.

- D5 Render Review, Matteo M.

5. Cinema 4D

Cinema 4D is a low latent 3D modeling software that converts kitchen sketches into swift video transitions. It creates powerful 3D graphics using 3D modeling tools and graphic rendering. It can also create advanced, cutting-edge 4D transitions and product animations to group efficient design layouts under one roof.

What users like best:

Maxon has evolved Cinema 4D into the leading 3D Modeling software for a reason. Not only is it capable of creating incredible 3D scenes, but the physics it’s able to recreate as well as the dynamic and photorealistic rendering (with added plugins,) it can render our… Its incredible.

- Cinema 4D Review, Adex G.

What users dislike:

While Cinema 4D has a wide range of built-in tools, some advanced features and specialised workflows may require additional third-party plugins, which can add to the overall cost.

- Cinema 4D Review, pranathi p.

6. V-Ray

V-Ray is a video transition software that creates photo-realistic visuals for marketing, advertising, designing, architecture, and visualization teams. It builds high-quality visual effects to project your construction plans in 3D. It’s also been awarded a Sci-tech Academy Award and Engineering Emmy Award due to its tracing and rendering capabilities.

What users like best:

Incredible amount of modifcation possibilities to manipulate each light source and environment in general. The light source options are also fantastic at being able to start with a typical source form and hone in on from there.

- V-Ray Review, Mars M.

What users dislike:

"I think VRay can be a bit CPU intensive. If you don't have a lot of extra RAM, don't bother trying more intensive computations. I also wish they had cleaner VFB comping."

- V-Ray Review ,Shane O.

7. Modo

Modo is a creative visualization and real-time design modulating toolkit that enables you to create highly immersive and addictive visual experiences. Integrated with the colorway, a secondary 3D modeling tool, Modo helps with asset creation, photorealism, and customer support to navigate the design process without frustration.

It’s an open platform that leaves immense room for project collaboration opportunities. Hear your teammates out or see their changes in the design document. It also has a high rendering quality that builds sketches in no time.

What users like best:

"It's great for industrial 3D modeling - so long as your scene isn't too large. (ie: a complicated interior, or any exterior)"

- Modo Review, Talia S.

What users dislike:

There is a bit if a learning curve at times if you are from a different program like Lightwave but that is to be expected with such a strong and robust program.

- Modo Review, Daniel J.

8. Enscape

Enscape is a VR-powered design and architecture software that predicts layouts for kitchen and home designs. Integrate Enscape as a 3D modeling engine to forecast design requirements, build BIM components, and render PSD or PNG files to different software. It also creates cross-platform immersive experiences for construction and project engineering teams.

What users like best:

You do not need an expensive computer for the program to run well and achieve very good and profesional results. Specially for my students that are just starting. It works really well with sketchup considering its a real-time rendering software. I really like that you can give properties to materials by just naming them, and achieve realistic images. It saves a lot of time. Because you achieve quite realistic textures, it is not necessary to edit materials for a long time, which results in significant time savings.

- Enscape Review, carolina p.

What users dislike:

"I'd say my least favorite aspect of the application is the lack thereof planting specific tools such as randomly rotating plant models or selecting planes/densities to automatically place plants in a given area. It does get tedius adding and rotating every plant, but I can live with it for the results it can produce."

- Enscape Review, Madeliene C.

9. Chief Architect Premier

Chief Architecture Premier is a standard design and drafting software used by planners, construction site engineers, and architects. It creates 3D maps of residential and commercial complexes for professionals to check on raw materials, tasks, and associated staff. 

What users like best:

“I love the fact that Chief Architect Premier is very user-friendly. It is a great drafting tool for someone just starting. The simplicity makes it quick to learn how the software works.”

- Chief Architect Premier Review, Natasha R.

What users dislike:

“They should give new users an outline explaining how to draw things – walls, roofs, doors, windows, cabinets, etc. I had to figure it out on my own.”

- Chief Architect Premier Review, Robert H.

10. Testfit

Testfit is an easy, in-depth site planning platform for interior designers, architects, or site developers who want to maximize the construction potential and optimize ROI. 

Testfit’s built-in AI configurator is built to generate intuitive and appealing designs that win one-time approval and apply across clients. It saves time on site planning and design thinking while pulling in real-estate deals for your company. 

What users like best:

“We use TestFit as urban planners. Given varying assumptions, we run preliminary feasibility analyses to test how many units can fit on a site. The tool is the most comprehensive and accurate way to do this type of analysis that we have found yet. It was relatively easy to learn and use. We link it up with our financial pro-forma models to test financial feasibility.”

- Testfit Review, Jamin K.

What users dislike:

“There are some use cases that it hasn't (yet) gotten around to developing a workflow for.”

-Testfit Review, Michael F.

Click to chat with G2's Monty-AI

What’s been cookin’? 

Kitchen renovations are expensive. They include a lot of chipping, painting, and experimenting, even for the slightest change. Given that it’s also a dangerous location to remodel, with gas pipes, cylinders, and faucets, a planned design strategy is very important. Trusting a reliable kitchen design software with your utilities is the smart way to stun your visitors.

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