Plan a renovation or home addition on a floor plan

Before you talk to a builder or an architect, it helps to see your ideas on a plan. Draw the home as it is, copy the drawing for each idea, and compare the areas, the length of new wall, the windows and the rough cost of every option.

Open the planner

How to plan a renovation

1. Draw the present state. Measure the rooms (see how to draw a floor plan), or trace an existing plan from a picture.
2. Copy the plan into a variant for each idea: knock through a wall, move the kitchen, add a room or a floor.
3. Change the copy. Move walls, doors and windows and watch the area of each room and the whole home.
4. Compare the variants side by side: areas, wall length, windows and a rough cost. Fewer new walls and windows usually means a cheaper option.
5. If you are extending, add the lot and the setback line you were given to see roughly what fits. See the site plan guide.
6. Print or share the plan with your builder or architect.

What the comparison tells you

It shows what changes in numbers: extra square footage, extra wall to build, extra windows, and a rough cost from the price per square foot you type (how the estimate works). That helps you choose which two options to bring to a professional, not which one to build.

What to leave to the professionals

Floorprint does not know which walls carry the load, where pipes and wiring run, or what your local rules allow. Removing or moving a wall, adding floors and similar changes may need an engineer and a permit, and the rules vary by place. Check with your local building office, a structural engineer and your architect before you act on any drawing. Areas and costs here are simplified estimates, not a quote or a permit drawing.