Online room and furnishing planners are extremely helpful tools for planning the furnishing of living and working spaces. They allow you to test different furniture arrangements, visualize proportions and find the optimal layout for the space. Changes can be made in real time. Room planners help to avoid mistakes and promote creative furnishing ideas. They make the furnishing process more efficient, more creative and less error-prone, as they enable precise planning and visualization.
What types of spatial planners are there?
There are currently 3 types of room planners available:
- Simple 2D planners that allow you to visualize proportions in the room very easily.
For example, you can easily check whether the furniture fits into the room in the desired size and arrangement and leaves enough room for movement. - 3D room planners create a sense of space. 3D planning tools allow you to visualize your rooms realistically. 3D room planners offer an intuitive and interactive experience in online room design through the use of a 3D model.
- Virtual Reality (VR). The use of virtual reality (VR) in conjunction with interior design tools offers an immersive and realistic way to design a room plan and visualize furniture arrangements.
What can an online room planner do and what can’t it do?
Room or furnishing planners allow you to plan the design of your room without actually having to move furniture. They allow you to find the optimum layout and visualize proportions. With a room planner, you can try out a wide range of positioning options and choose the right variant.
Many room planners also allow you to try out different color schemes, as different colors and materials can be selected for walls, floors and furniture. However, the available selection is usually very limited, which is why the result of the room planner is not very realistic here.
Furnishing planners can basically be used for all rooms. They are most commonly used for living spaces such as living rooms, bedrooms, kitchens and bathrooms. They are also used in offices to design workspaces. Business owners use interior design planners for retail and commercial spaces, while in the hospitality industry they are used to design hotel rooms, restaurants and communal areas. With their versatility, interior design planners enable the creative design of a wide variety of rooms.
What is the difference between a room planner and a furnishing planner?
The terms “room planner” and “interior designer” are often used interchangeably in everyday language. However, they can actually have different focuses. Here are the typical differences between a room planner and a furnishing planner:
A room planner usually focuses on the basic structure and arrangement of rooms within a building. This can include creating floor plans, placing walls, positioning windows and doors and defining the general distribution of space. Room planners are often more versatile and can be used for different applications, including living spaces, offices, commercial spaces or even entire buildings. They enable the visualization of the spatial layout and help to plan the flow and functionality of the room.
A furnishing planner , on the other hand, focuses primarily on the furniture and interior design of a room. It makes it possible to place pieces of furniture virtually, select colors and materials and plan the aesthetic design of a room.
In many cases, however, the terms are used interchangeably and the functions may vary depending on the provider.
Are online room planners really free?
Most online room planners really are free or at least have a free version. Free room planners often do not include as many features as paid alternatives. Your choice of planning tool should depend on what specific features you need and how comprehensively you want to plan. It can also be helpful to try out different tools to find the one that best suits your needs. If it’s mainly about furnishing rooms, you should choose the planning tool of your preferred furniture provider. In their planning tool, you can plan with “real” furniture.
Floor plan and furnishing planning easier than ever
Planning floor plans and furnishings has never been easier. Thanks to advanced technology, there are numerous online room planners available that differ in terms of their functionality, user-friendliness and the additional functions they offer. Below we present a selection of the most popular room planners that will help you to design your living space in the best possible way.
Examples of apps and online planners
The right interior design and home planner software is a crucial tool for office and home renovations. The most popular 3D room planner apps at a glance:
HOMESTYLER
With Homestyler , the focus is less on individual planning and more on sharing your own designs and following other users. The 3D view in edit mode takes some getting used to. The stored catalog contains both universal furniture and designer pieces.
- Price: free + paid versions with additional options
- Functions: good
- Operation: good
- Link: iOS(for download), Android(for download)
ROOMLE
The room planning app Roomle, which is available free of charge, offers comprehensive room design functions. These include true-to-scale floor plans, a diverse selection of furniture and colors as well as an impressive 3D view for virtual house tours. An additional highlight is the room planner’s augmented reality function.
However, the app is difficult to use. The precise adjustment of walls requires a lot of effort and it is not possible to enter specific dimensions. Unfortunately, there is also no “Back” button.
- Price: free + paid Pro versions
- Functions: good
- Operation: satisfactory
- Link: iOS(for download), Android(for download – note: not available in the official Google Play Store!), as well as for Windows desktop(for registration) and also for Mac(for download)
HOUZZ
Houzz provides countless design ideas. The free basic version of the app does not focus on creating floor plans, but instead offers inspiration for designing your own rooms. It draws on an extensive image database with ideas for various interior design styles. Over 400,000 photos are available in the room planner app to help you find creative ideas for your personal living spaces. In the paid Pro version, it is also possible to take 3D tours with augmented reality through the sketches created.
- Price: free + paid Pro version
- Functions: satisfactory
- Operation: good
- Link: iOS(for download), Android(for download) as well as a desktop version for Windows(for download – note: not available in the official Windows Store!) and also for Mac(for download)
MAGIC PLAN
With the MagicPlan app, users can easily create precise floor plans. By using the smartphone camera, existing rooms can be easily mapped and combined to create an overall view of an apartment or house. In addition, room planning using augmented reality enables a virtual 3D walk-through. However, some annoying elements in this room planning application are the use of voice commands and videos that cannot be switched off.
- Price: free + paid version
- Functions: good
- Operation: satisfactory
- Link: iOS(for download), Android(for download)
ROOMSKETCHER
RoomSketcher is user-friendly and offers various room views, integration of furniture and decorations. However, the room planner is only partially intuitive to use. Youtube tutorials provide a remedy. The database for apartment planning with furniture, accessories, decorations and other furnishings is sufficient in the free version.
- Price: free + paid Pro version
- Functions: good
- Operation: satisfactory
- Link: iOS Download, Android Download
Planner 5D:
Planener5D offers simple 2D and 3D room planning with a large library of furniture and decorations and an intuitive user interface.
- Price: free of charge + chargeable supplements
- Functions: good
- Operation: good
- Link: https://planner5d.com/de
Does room planning work online even if I’m not a design professional?
Online room planning is possible even without design experience. With user-friendly tools, you can easily use templates, drag and drop furniture and use ready-made color palettes. An intuitive interface and tutorials make the process easier. At Flexcube , we offer you free and non-binding expertise for your interior design planning with the Flexcube design classic: for large or small office projects, your medical practice, your law firm or even just your home office.
