Best Apps for Interior Design

Embarking on an interior design project, whether it’s a complete home renovation or a simple room refresh, can feel overwhelming. Fortunately, technology has stepped in to offer a wealth of resources to simplify and enhance the process. Interior design apps are now readily available, catering to everyone from professional designers to enthusiastic DIYers. These apps provide a diverse range of features, from virtual room planning and augmented reality visualization to furniture shopping and color palette selection. This article explores some of the best apps for interior design, helping you navigate the digital landscape and find the perfect tools to bring your vision to life.

Why Use Interior Design Apps?

Before diving into specific app recommendations, it’s crucial to understand the benefits of incorporating interior design apps into your workflow. These apps offer several advantages that can save you time, money, and effort.

Efficiency and Convenience

Traditional interior design often involves manual measurements, physical mood boards, and countless trips to furniture stores. Interior design apps streamline these processes, allowing you to create virtual models, experiment with different layouts, and browse furniture options from the comfort of your own home. This increased efficiency translates to faster project completion and less time spent on tedious tasks.

Cost-Effectiveness

Hiring a professional interior designer can be a significant expense. While their expertise is invaluable for large-scale projects, interior design apps offer a more affordable alternative for smaller renovations or room updates. Many apps are free or offer a free trial period, allowing you to experiment with different designs without incurring significant costs. Even premium app subscriptions can be more cost-effective than hiring a professional for every project.

Visualization and Experimentation

One of the biggest challenges in interior design is visualizing the final result. Interior design apps address this issue by providing realistic 3D models and augmented reality features that allow you to see how furniture and décor will look in your space before making any purchases. This visualization helps you avoid costly mistakes and ensures that you’re happy with the final outcome.

Access to Inspiration and Resources

Interior design apps often include extensive libraries of furniture, décor, and design ideas. These resources can provide inspiration and help you discover new styles and trends. Many apps also offer access to online communities where you can connect with other design enthusiasts and share your projects.

Top Interior Design Apps for Professionals and DIYers

The market is saturated with interior design apps, making it challenging to choose the right ones. To simplify your search, we’ve compiled a list of some of the best apps available, categorized by their primary functions and target audience.

Room Planning and Layout Apps

These apps are designed to help you create accurate floor plans, experiment with different layouts, and visualize your space in 3D.

Planner 5D

Planner 5D is a comprehensive home design tool that allows you to create detailed 2D and 3D floor plans. It features an extensive catalog of furniture and décor items, allowing you to furnish and decorate your virtual space. The app also offers realistic rendering options to help you visualize the final result.

Key Features:

• 2D and 3D floor plan creation
• Extensive furniture and décor catalog
• Realistic rendering options
• Virtual reality mode
• Collaboration features

Pros: User-friendly interface, wide range of features, realistic visualizations.

Cons: Some features require a subscription.

RoomSketcher

RoomSketcher is another popular room planning app that offers a range of features for both professional and DIY users. It allows you to create floor plans, furnish and decorate your space, and generate 3D visualizations. The app also includes a measurement tool that allows you to accurately measure your room’s dimensions.

Key Features:

• Floor plan creation
• Furniture and décor catalog
• 3D visualization
• Measurement tool
• Project sharing

Pros: Easy to use, accurate measurement tools, good for both 2D and 3D planning.

Cons: Limited free features.

Magicplan

Magicplan takes a unique approach to room planning by using your device’s camera to create floor plans. Simply point your camera at the corners of your room, and the app will automatically generate a floor plan. You can then add furniture, décor, and annotations to your plan.

Key Features:

• Automatic floor plan creation
• Furniture and décor catalog
• 3D visualization
• Cost estimation
• Project sharing

Pros: Quick and easy floor plan creation, cost estimation feature, good for on-site measurements.

Cons: Accuracy depends on camera quality and lighting conditions, limited free features.

HomeByMe

HomeByMe is a user-friendly room planning app that allows you to create realistic 3D visualizations of your space. It features a vast catalog of furniture and décor from popular brands, allowing you to furnish your virtual space with real-world products. The app also includes a community feature where you can share your projects and get feedback from other users.

Key Features:

• 3D room planning
• Extensive furniture and décor catalog from real brands
• Realistic rendering options
• Community feature
• Project sharing

Pros: Realistic visualizations, access to real-world furniture products, helpful community feature.

Cons: Limited free features, can be slow on older devices.

Augmented Reality (AR) Apps

These apps use your device’s camera to overlay virtual furniture and décor onto your real-world space, allowing you to see how items will look before you buy them.

IKEA Place

IKEA Place is an AR app that allows you to virtually place IKEA furniture in your home. Simply point your camera at the desired location, and the app will overlay a 3D model of the furniture item onto your screen. This allows you to see how the furniture will fit in your space and how it will look with your existing décor.

Key Features:

• AR furniture placement
• IKEA product catalog
• Accurate scaling
• Virtual room setup

Pros: Easy to use, accurate scaling, allows you to visualize IKEA furniture in your home.

Cons: Limited to IKEA products.

Houzz

Houzz is a comprehensive home design platform that includes an AR feature called “View in My Room.” This feature allows you to virtually place furniture and décor from the Houzz marketplace into your home. The app also includes a vast library of design photos and articles, providing inspiration and ideas for your projects.

Key Features:

• AR furniture placement (“View in My Room”)
• Extensive furniture and décor marketplace
• Inspiration photos and articles
• Professional directory
• Project sharing

Pros: Wide range of furniture and décor options, access to design inspiration, allows you to connect with professionals.

Cons: AR feature can be buggy on some devices.

Overstock

Overstock’s app also utilizes AR technology to allow you to visualize their products in your home before purchasing. Similar to IKEA Place and Houzz, you can virtually place furniture and décor items to get a sense of size, scale, and style within your existing space.

Key Features:

• AR furniture placement
• Overstock product catalog
• 3D product viewing
• Customer reviews

Pros: Easy to use for Overstock products, helps visualize furniture fit, provides customer reviews for added assurance.

Cons: Limited to Overstock’s product range.

Wayfair

Wayfair’s app offers a similar AR experience to Overstock and Houzz, allowing you to visualize furniture and decor items in your home using your phone’s camera. This allows you to experiment with different styles and arrangements before making a purchase.

Key Features:

• AR furniture placement
• Wayfair product catalog
• Room Planner Tool
• Ideabook feature for saving inspiration

Pros: Broad selection of products from Wayfair, room planner for layout ideas, ideabooks for inspiration and organization.

Cons: Limited to Wayfair’s product range.

Color Palette and Matching Apps

These apps help you choose the perfect color palette for your space and match colors from existing photos or objects.

Adobe Color

Adobe Color is a powerful color palette generator that allows you to create custom color schemes based on various color harmonies, such as complementary, analogous, and triadic. You can also extract colors from images and save your palettes for future use.

Key Features:

• Color palette generator
• Color harmony options
• Image color extraction
• Save and share palettes
• Adobe Creative Cloud integration

Pros: Powerful color palette tools, accurate color extraction, integrates with Adobe Creative Cloud.

Cons: Requires an Adobe account.

ColorSnap Visualizer (Sherwin-Williams)

ColorSnap Visualizer is a color matching app from Sherwin-Williams that allows you to identify paint colors from photos and match them to Sherwin-Williams paint colors. You can also create custom color palettes and visualize how different colors will look in your room using the app’s virtual painting tool.

Key Features:

• Color matching from photos
• Sherwin-Williams paint color catalog
• Virtual painting tool
• Color palette creation
• Store locator

Pros: Accurate color matching, virtual painting tool, easy access to Sherwin-Williams paint colors.

Cons: Limited to Sherwin-Williams paint colors.

Benjamin Moore Color Portfolio

Similar to ColorSnap, the Benjamin Moore Color Portfolio app lets you explore Benjamin Moore’s extensive paint color library and find the perfect hues for your project. You can also use the app to virtually paint your room using augmented reality.

Key Features:

• Benjamin Moore paint color catalog
• Virtual painting tool (augmented reality)
• Photo and video capture
• Project organization

Pros: Access to the full Benjamin Moore color range, augmented reality painting, project organization features.

Cons: Limited to Benjamin Moore paint colors.

Palettes

Palettes is a simple and straightforward color palette app that allows you to create and manage color palettes on your mobile device. You can create palettes from scratch, import colors from images, or use pre-made color schemes. The app also allows you to export your palettes in various formats for use in other design applications.

Key Features:

• Color palette creation
• Image color import
• Pre-made color schemes
• Palette export
• Color value display (RGB, HEX, HSL)

Pros: Simple and easy to use, various color input options, palette export feature.

Cons: Lacks advanced features like color harmony generation.

Design Inspiration and Community Apps

These apps provide a platform for discovering design ideas, connecting with other designers, and sharing your own projects.

Houzz

As mentioned earlier, Houzz is a comprehensive home design platform that includes a vast library of design photos and articles. It also features a directory of design professionals and a community forum where you can share your projects and get feedback from other users. The app is a great resource for finding inspiration and connecting with other design enthusiasts.

Key Features:

• Inspiration photos and articles
• Professional directory
• Community forum
• Product marketplace
• Project sharing

Pros: Extensive library of design resources, allows you to connect with professionals, helpful community feature.

Cons: Can be overwhelming due to the sheer amount of content.

Pinterest

Pinterest is a visual discovery platform where you can find and save design ideas from all over the web. Simply search for “interior design” or a specific style, and you’ll find a wealth of inspiring photos, articles, and tutorials. You can also create your own boards to organize your favorite ideas and share them with others.

Key Features:

• Visual search and discovery
• Pin saving and organization
• Board creation and sharing
• Follow other users and boards
• Access to a vast library of design content

Pros: Endless source of design inspiration, easy to save and organize ideas, allows you to discover new styles and trends.

Cons: Can be time-consuming to browse, quality of content can vary.

Instagram

Instagram is a popular social media platform that is also a great resource for finding interior design inspiration. Follow your favorite designers, brands, and design publications to stay up-to-date on the latest trends and ideas. You can also use hashtags like #interiordesign and #homedecor to discover new accounts and projects.

Key Features:

• Visual content sharing
• Hashtag discovery
• Follow other users
• Direct messaging
• Story sharing

Pros: Access to a wide range of design content, allows you to connect with designers and brands, visual and engaging platform.

Cons: Can be overwhelming due to the amount of content, heavily focused on aesthetics.

Dwell

Dwell is a magazine and website dedicated to modern architecture and design. Their app offers access to their library of articles and photos, showcasing innovative and stylish homes from around the world. It’s a great resource for finding inspiration and learning about the latest trends in modern design.

Key Features:

• Access to Dwell magazine content
• Photos and articles showcasing modern design
• Project features
• Designer profiles

Pros: High-quality content, focus on modern design, showcases innovative projects.

Cons: Content is limited to modern architecture and design.

Shopping and Product Sourcing Apps

These apps help you find and purchase furniture, décor, and other home improvement products.

Amazon

Amazon is a massive online marketplace that offers a wide range of furniture, décor, and home improvement products. The Amazon app allows you to browse and purchase products from your mobile device. You can also read customer reviews and compare prices to find the best deals.

Key Features:

• Extensive product selection
• Customer reviews
• Price comparison
• Mobile shopping
• Prime membership benefits

Pros: Wide product selection, competitive prices, convenient shopping experience.

Cons: Can be overwhelming due to the sheer amount of products, quality of products can vary.

Etsy

Etsy is an online marketplace that specializes in handmade, vintage, and unique items. It’s a great resource for finding one-of-a-kind furniture, décor, and art pieces that you won’t find anywhere else. The Etsy app allows you to browse and purchase products from independent sellers around the world.

Key Features:

• Unique and handmade products
• Vintage items
• Directly supports independent sellers
• Personalized shopping experience

Pros: Unique and high-quality products, supports independent sellers, personalized shopping experience.

Cons: Prices can be higher than mass-produced items, shipping times can vary.

Chairish

Chairish is an online marketplace for buying and selling pre-owned and vintage furniture and décor. It’s a great resource for finding unique and stylish pieces at discounted prices. The Chairish app allows you to browse and purchase products from your mobile device. They curate their selection carefully, so you know you are seeing quality goods.

Key Features:

• Pre-owned and vintage furniture and décor
• Curated product selection
• Consignment options for sellers
• Mobile shopping

Pros: Unique and stylish pieces, discounted prices, curated selection.

Cons: Inventory changes frequently, shipping can be expensive.

eBay

eBay, similar to Amazon, offers a vast selection of furniture, décor, and home improvement products. However, it also features a significant number of used, vintage, and auction-style listings. This can be a great way to find deals on unique items, but it requires careful browsing and research.

Key Features:

• Wide product selection, including new, used, and vintage
• Auction and “Buy It Now” options
• Seller ratings and reviews
• Buyer protection policies

Pros: Potential for finding deals, large inventory of unique items, buyer protection policies.

Cons: Requires careful research and vetting of sellers, potential for bidding wars.

Tips for Choosing the Right Interior Design App

With so many interior design apps available, it’s important to choose the right ones for your specific needs and preferences. Here are some tips to help you make the right decision:

Identify Your Needs

Before you start browsing apps, take some time to identify your specific needs and goals. Are you looking for an app to help you create floor plans, visualize furniture in your space, or find design inspiration? Knowing your needs will help you narrow down your options and choose apps that are best suited for your projects.

Consider Your Skill Level

Some interior design apps are designed for professionals, while others are geared towards DIY enthusiasts. Consider your skill level and choose apps that are appropriate for your experience. If you’re a beginner, look for apps with user-friendly interfaces and helpful tutorials.

Read Reviews

Before downloading an app, take some time to read reviews from other users. This will give you a better understanding of the app’s strengths and weaknesses. Pay attention to reviews that mention the app’s ease of use, accuracy, and features.

Try Free Trials

Many interior design apps offer free trials or limited free versions. Take advantage of these offers to try out different apps and see which ones you like best. This will help you avoid paying for an app that you don’t end up using.

Check Compatibility

Make sure that the app you choose is compatible with your device’s operating system. Some apps are only available for iOS or Android, while others are compatible with both. Also, check the app’s system requirements to ensure that your device has enough storage space and processing power to run the app smoothly.

The Future of Interior Design Apps

The field of interior design apps is constantly evolving, with new features and technologies being introduced all the time. Here are some trends to watch for in the future:

Increased Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI)

AI is already being used in some interior design apps to provide personalized recommendations and automate tasks. In the future, we can expect to see AI play an even bigger role in interior design, helping users create more efficient, effective, and aesthetically pleasing designs.

Greater Integration with Virtual Reality (VR)

VR technology is becoming more accessible and affordable, making it possible for users to experience their designs in a fully immersive environment. In the future, we can expect to see more interior design apps that integrate with VR headsets, allowing users to walk through their virtual spaces and make changes in real-time.

Enhanced Collaboration Features

Collaboration is an important part of the interior design process, especially for larger projects. In the future, we can expect to see more interior design apps that offer enhanced collaboration features, allowing users to easily share their designs with clients, contractors, and other stakeholders.

More Personalized and Customized Experiences

As AI and machine learning technologies continue to advance, interior design apps will be able to offer more personalized and customized experiences. This could include providing tailored recommendations based on your individual style and preferences, as well as automating tasks like furniture selection and layout planning.

Conclusion

Interior design apps have revolutionized the way we approach home design, offering a wealth of resources and tools to simplify and enhance the process. Whether you’re a professional designer or a DIY enthusiast, there’s an app out there that can help you bring your vision to life. By carefully considering your needs, skill level, and preferences, you can choose the right apps for your projects and create a space that you’ll love for years to come. From room planning and augmented reality to color palettes and design inspiration, these apps are empowering individuals to transform their living spaces with greater ease and creativity than ever before. So, embrace the digital revolution and start exploring the world of interior design apps today!