Who hasn’t watched an episode of a house flipping or home renovation TV show and immediately wanted to find a contractor to help reimagine their indoor and outdoor living spaces?
For any landscape project, plans are a must. Pen and pencil can only get you so far — landscape design software is specifically developed to help homeowners take their ideas and turn them into reality.
Landscape design software is helpful for two reasons: It streamlines the process of drafting and collaborating on designs and facilitates the accurate representation of outdoor spaces.
Regardless of whether you are a DIY homeowner who wants to renovate their backyard, or a professional landscape architect, designer or contractor, landscape design solutions help you predict costs, digitize plans and integrate with other free CAD software and BIM software.
The majority of the well-known landscape design systems out there — for example, VizTerra, or Idea Spectrum’s entire spectrum (heh) of solutions — come with hefty price tags. For those who don’t work in a landscape agency or who are casually dabbling in landscape projects, those high prices outweigh any benefits that individual software can provide. Thankfully, some free programs do exist. And best of all, many of those free programs come either in mobile application form or are browser-based, which is convenient when it comes to printing out or electronically sharing landscape design plans.
Tip: Before purchasing software of any kind, read these 9 questions to ask a software vendor.
Additionally, free landscape design tools offer similar — though much more limited — functionality as professional landscape design software. An outstanding feature that crops up in both free and paid versions is access to a library or database of materials, hardscapes and plants. In addition, a few of the free landscape design solutions featured in the list below even provide access to materials producers and/or networks of landscapers and contractors.
Tip: Looking for more gardening and landscape guides? Learn how to make a DIY greenhouse with the best free greenhouse plans in 2019.
Most of the free landscape design tools outlined below are geared toward the homeowner or for those who will use the software in a non-commercial capacity.
These products alone have well over 270 validated user reviews on G2 as of July 25, 2018, and only represent a small portion of the 40-plus landscape design software offerings listed on our platform. Whenever possible, the products are ranked by user satisfaction score.
For each product we provide:
For products with G2 verified user reviews, we have included:
The list we’ve outlined here includes any landscape design solution with an available free offering. It should be noted that this does not include products that are only free on a temporary basis, such as limited trial versions for new users. They may only support one user or one project, but they’re truly free offerings. Scaling, however, will often require full investments.
*Product reviews and G2 star ratings were updated as of July 25, 2018
Product Name: SketchUp
G2 Star Rating: 4.4 out of 5 stars
Total Number of Reviews: 267
SketchUp provides architects, designers, builders and engineers the tools to draft, model and render their ideas into reality. SketchUp Free is the free, web-based version of SketchUp Pro. With SketchUp Free, users can draw in 3D on any web browser. Additionally, the solution enables the sharing and collaboration of SketchUp free files with CAD project management tool Trimble Connect, a project management and collaboration solution tailored for the construction industry. Landscape designers can leverage SketchUp Free to turn their initial models into a dimension- and context-full design files.
Image courtesy of SketchUp
“I like the fact that SketchUp is free and easily accessible. It makes for an easily shareable resource with a low entry-level skill requirement, and a moderately high skill ceiling that rewards hard work and experimentation with results.”
— SketchUp review by Nathan A.
“In the free 2017 version, the warehouse is gone. If you want to keep the access to the warehouse, you have to download the 2015 version. Also, you should consider having your computer geared up for best performances or rendering will lack frequently, especially when using the shadow effects on complex designs.”
— SketchUp review by Stacy B.
“Get the free version, or use a free trial and play around with it. It just takes time and practice to master the program. There are tons of videos and online resources that you can use to learn and help yourself!”
— SketchUp review by Jacqueline D.
Product Name: PRO Landscape
G2 Star Rating: 3.3 out of 5 stars
Total Number of Reviews: 4
PRO Landscape design software provides architects with the photo imaging, CAD, 3D rendering, and customer proposal drafting tools that fulfill the requirements for landscape design projects. PRO Landscape Home is the “lite,” non-commercial version of PRO Landscape, designed for homeowners. PRO Landscape Home is a mobile application that can be used on all Apple, Android and Amazon devices. While PRO Landscape Companion App is a free app, it’s only free for those who already purchased the professional landscape design software. PRO Landscape Home, on the other hand, offers almost the same features as the professional version, except the ability to edit hardscapes, create customer proposals and create 3D files.
Image courtesy of PRO Landscape
“This will speed up my design work and offer [my client and me] all the plants and accessories that are immediately available.”
— PRO Landscape review by Julie S.
“Compared to other harder-working software, it’s too simple.”
— PRO Landscape review by Muhammad S.
“If you need a cheaper option than CAD, it’s a combined program that mixes CAD, PhotoShop, and SketchUp all in one without needing to buy them all. For small projects only.”
— PRO Landscape review by a user in architecture & planning
Product Name: Solid Iris Kerkythea
G2 Star Rating: 4.2 out of 5 stars
Total Number of Reviews: 3
Kerkythea is a free, open-source rendering software that provides a full staging application for users to render architectural models and illustrations. It was developed as a powerful plug-in for SketchUp. Kerkythea can be used by both architectural professionals and educational institutes, as users do not need to spend any money on software licensing.
Image courtesy of Kerkythea
“I like the fact that a freeware can actually throw you back great renders and visualizations as good as the ones you can get in $1K+ softwares. I also like its compatibility. Even though it's a bit limited, you can use other free softwares like SketchUp or Blender as a ‘bridge’ to get really nice renders.”
— Kerkythea review by Roger Z.
“Can be slow at times. I have to remember to allow adequate rendering time.”
— Kerkythea review by Kristy G.
“Take a tutorial and play around a lot. Don't be afraid to export a lot of quick test views before doing a large file, high-resolution end view.”
— Kerkythea review by Faith B.
Product Name: The Visualizer
G2 Star Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Total Number of Reviews: 1
Showoff.com is a combination of a real estate MLS marketplace and blog that’s equipped with design tips and layouts. The site offers an online service called the Visualizer that helps you design your dream house and garden, and then offer that design up to the Showoff.com community for tips and consultation. The Visualizer is a free software application that can be installed on Windows operating systems.
Image courtesy of Showoff.com
“It's very easy to use, and a great tool for clients to be able to ‘visualize’ what the proposed design is.”
— The Visualizer review by Raluca F.
“Some materials don't always look very realistic and can overwhelm clients.”
— The Visualizer review by Raluca F.
G2 Star Rating: N/A
Lands Design is a free software that releases a new beta version every 90 days, taking in feedback and updating features and fixing errors. Lands Design is a landscaping design plugin for 3D modelling tool Rhino. With Lands Design, landscape designers can create realistic 3D images, virtual tours to better represent the final landscape to their clients, and draw on large libraries of plants, trees, and urban furniture.
Image courtesy of Lands End
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Product Name: Arborgold
G2 Star Rating: N/A
Arborgold is a comprehensive customer management, job scheduling and business management solution for service-based companies. Arborgold recently rolled out a free online landscape design tool that enables the creation of 2D landscape designs to present to clients. Arborgold’s free tool can be used by both professionals and homeowners to create and save designs. For professionals, those designs can be attached to itemized landscape proposals.
Be the first user to write an Arborgold review!
Product Name: Plan-a-Garden
G2 Star Rating: N/A
Plan-a-Garden is Better Homes & Garden’s online design-planning tool, tailored for homeowners and DIY home designers. Plan-a-Garden helps you visualize your remodeling plans before handing off those designs to a professional contractor.
Be the first user to write a Plan-a-Garden review!
Product Name: Garden Planner
G2 Star Rating: 4.8 out of 5 stars
Garden Planner is an easy-to-use garden and landscape design tool. It provides users with a drag-and-drop interface that helps you arrange the visual elements of your design. Garden Planner’s designing tool is flexible and supports a 3D virtual tour walkaround.
Be the first user to write a Garden Planner review!
Product Name: iScape
G2 Star Rating: N/A
iScape is a landscape design application that helps homeowners, professionals and product retailers design and collaborate on outdoor living space design. With iScape, you can accurately visualize the end product before embarking on any landscape design projects. iScape is currently only available via iOS app.
Image courtesy of iScape App
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Product Name: DreamPlan Home Design
G2 Star Rating: N/A
DreamPlan Home Design is a home and landscape design software that helps homeowners and professionals visualize completed designs prior to redesign. DreamPlan supports designs for home and floor plans, landscape and garden plans and interior room design plans. DreamPlan provides users with an easy-to-use interface that makes it simple for anyone at any skill level to draft designs.
Be the first user to write a DreamPlan review!
Product Name: Marshalls Garden Visualizer
G2 Star Rating: N/A
Marshalls supplies landscape products to the U.K., specifically paving products and accessories. The site offers an online landscape design tool: Marshalls Garden Visualizer. Garden Visualizer provides users with a free garden planner. That limits the scope of landscape design you may use it for, but it helps you create a 3D rendering that helps you customize any aspect of your garden.
Image courtesy of Marshalls
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Product Name: Terragen
G2 Star Rating: N/A
Terragen facilitates the building, rendering and animating of realistic, natural environments. Most applications of Terragen are TV and film production, as well as visual effects purposes. And while Terragen is a bit more comprehensive — as it’s a realistic, natural environment rendering solution — than other landscape design softwares, users are empowered to place photorealistic environments into whatever design you’re creating.
Be the first user to write a Terragen review!
Product Name: Designor BuddyG2 Star Rating: N/A
Designor Buddy is free, open-source landscape designing software. It is built on top of the OpenOffice Draw program and provides the ability to integrate landscape images into 2D drawings. OpenOffice Draw is one of Apache’s OpenOffice modules, which enables the production of simple diagrams and dynamic 3D illustrations.
Be the first user to write a Designor Buddy review!
For both professional landscape designers and homeowners who have a landscape design itch, completely free solutions — not just software that offers free trials or demos — are scarce. However, if you’re willing to go barebones, the aforementioned free landscape design tools are helpful for the beginning stages of your landscape design journey.
Be prepared with what exactly your requirements are, whether you want sharing capabilities and which integrations or third-party software those free tools support. Once you identify those “must-have,” “good-to-have,” and “do-not-need” elements, you’ll be in a very good position to narrow down the available offerings and select the best free landscape design software for your needs.
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* Please note: Reviews may have been edited for spelling and grammar.
