Free tools for architects
Calculators, converters and estimators for everyday design work. Free, no sign-up, and they run right in your browser.
- Converters
Architectural Scale Converter
Convert drawing measurements to real size and back at 1:50, 1:100 or 1/4" = 1'-0".
Open tool → - Calculators
Floor Area Ratio (FAR) Calculator
Work out FAR, maximum buildable floor area and how many storeys fit your lot.
Open tool → - Calculators
Stair Rise and Run Calculator
Get riser count, riser height, tread depth and stair length that meet code.
Open tool → - Calculators
Square Footage Calculator
Add up room areas for rectangles, L-shapes, triangles and circles in ft² or m².
Open tool → - Calculators
ADA Ramp Slope Calculator
Find ramp length at 1:12, slope percent, number of runs and landings every 30 inches.
Open tool → - Calculators
Roof Pitch Calculator
Convert x/12 pitch to degrees and percent, then get rafter length, ridge height and roof area.
Open tool → - Estimators
Paint Calculator
Estimate litres and gallons of paint from wall area, openings, coats and coverage.
Open tool → - Estimators
Tile Calculator
Work out tiles and boxes to buy from room area, tile size and waste percentage.
Open tool → - Estimators
Concrete Calculator
Get slab, footing or column volume in m³ and yd³, plus bag counts with waste.
Open tool → - Estimators
Construction Cost Calculator
Estimate building cost from floor area, cost per ft² or m², location factor, contingency and soft costs.
Open tool → - Business
Architect Fee Calculator
Work out percentage, hourly or fixed fees and split them across design and construction stages.
Open tool → - Calculators
Occupancy Load Calculator
Get occupant load from IBC Table 1004.5 factors, plus the exits and egress width it triggers.
Open tool → - Calculators
Parking Space Calculator
Get required parking spaces from zoning ratios, ADA accessible stalls, and the lot area at 90, 60 or 45 degrees.
Open tool → - Converters
Feet and Inches Converter
Convert feet, inches and fractions to mm, cm, m and decimal feet, and metric back to ft-in.
Open tool → - Estimators
Brick and Block Calculator
Count bricks or concrete blocks for a wall, with openings, waste and mortar volume.
Open tool → - Estimators
Drywall Calculator
Count drywall or plasterboard sheets for walls and ceilings, with openings, waste, screws, tape and compound.
Open tool → - Calculators
Building Setback Calculator
Get the buildable envelope from lot size and setbacks, then check lot coverage, FAR and storey limits.
Open tool → - Calculators
Window-to-Wall Ratio Calculator
Work out WWR per facade and overall, and check it against IECC and ASHRAE 90.1 glazing limits.
Open tool → - Calculators
Daylight Factor Calculator
Get the average daylight factor from window size, glass, sky angle and room size, plus the BRE room depth check.
Open tool → - Design
Furniture Clearance Guide
Check clearances around beds, dining tables, sofas, kitchen aisles and toilets against minimum and comfortable figures.
Open tool → - Design
Room Color Palette Generator
Turn one base colour into a 60-30-10 room or facade palette with hex codes, contrast ratios and area per colour.
Open tool → - Design
Golden Ratio Calculator
Find golden lengths and sections, check room proportions against classic ratios and get Palladio ceiling heights.
Open tool → - Calculators
Sun Path Calculator
Get sun altitude, azimuth, sunrise, sunset and shadow lengths for any location, date and time.
Open tool → - Converters
Drawing Sheet Sizes
See ISO, ANSI and ARCH sheet sizes in mm and inches, and find the smallest sheet and largest scale for your drawing.
Open tool → - Converters
Slope Calculator
Convert percent grade, degrees, 1:n ratios and inches per foot, and check slopes against ADA, drainage and grading limits.
Open tool → - Estimators
Board Foot Calculator
Turn a lumber cut list into board feet, cubic metres, linear feet and cost, with a waste allowance.
Open tool → - Calculators
Joist and Rafter Span Calculator
Get maximum spans for 2x6 to 2x12 floor joists, ceiling joists and rafters by species, spacing and load.
Open tool → - Estimators
BTU Calculator
Estimate the cooling load of a room in BTU/h, tons and kW from area, ceiling height, sun, occupants and climate.
Open tool → - Calculators
Lighting Calculator
Work out lumens and the number of fittings a room needs to hit a target lux or footcandle level.
Open tool → - Design
Kitchen Work Triangle Checker
Check sink, cooktop and fridge distances against the NKBA work triangle guideline, with a scaled diagram.
Open tool → - Business
Architecture Project Timeline Estimator
Estimate stage-by-stage durations and dates on the RIBA Plan of Work or AIA phases from project type, size and complexity.
Open tool → - Business
Design Brief Generator
Build a client questionnaire for a house, extension, interior or workplace project, then copy or download it.
Open tool → - Design
Material Palette Builder
Get a coherent interior or facade material palette by style, with swatches, estimated LRV and a Moodboard to Room prompt.
Open tool → - Business
Architect Invoice Template
Fill in fee stages, hours and expenses to get a clean architect invoice with tax and retainer, ready to print or save as PDF.
Open tool → - Calculators
Stairwell Opening Calculator
Find the minimum stairwell opening length for code headroom from riser, tread and floor thickness, plus the opening area.
Open tool → - Calculators
Egress Window Calculator
Check a window's net clear opening, width, height and sill height against IRC R310 egress rules, plus the window well.
Open tool → - Calculators
Plumbing Fixture Calculator
Get required water closets, urinals, lavatories, drinking fountains and service sinks by occupancy from IPC Table 2902.1.
Open tool → - Calculators
R-Value and U-Value Calculator
Add wall or roof layers to get total R-value, U-factor and RSI with framing effects, checked against IECC 2021.
Open tool → - Estimators
Rebar Calculator
Count bars, cut lengths, lap splices, steel weight and stock bars for slabs, pads and strip footings.
Open tool → - Estimators
Roofing Calculator
Turn a footprint and pitch into roof area, squares, shingle bundles, underlayment, ridge cap, drip edge and nails.
Open tool → - Estimators
Wallpaper Calculator
Work out drops and rolls of wallpaper from wall widths, height, roll size and pattern repeat, with a spare roll.
Open tool → - Estimators
Deck Calculator
Get deck boards, joists, beams, posts, footing concrete and screws from the deck size, board width and joist spacing.
Open tool → - Estimators
Gravel Calculator
Get cubic yards, cubic metres, tons and bags of gravel, crushed stone, sand, topsoil or mulch from area and depth.
Open tool → - Calculators
Gutter Size Calculator
Turn roof area and rainfall rate into flow, then pick gutter and downspout sizes from IPC Tables 1106.6 and 1106.3.
Open tool → - Estimators
Excavation Calculator
Get dig volume for pits, trenches and round holes with sloped sides, plus swell, truckloads and compacted fill.
Open tool → - Estimators
Retaining Wall Calculator
Count wall blocks, caps and buried courses, plus base gravel, drainage stone, drain pipe and trench volume for a block wall.
Open tool → - Design
Rug Size Guide
Find the right rug size for a living room, dining table or bed, with wall borders and standard US and metric sizes.
Open tool → - Estimators
Fence Calculator
Estimate fence posts, rails, pickets or panels, post length and concrete bags from length, height, corners and gates.
Open tool → - Estimators
Paver Calculator
Count pavers for a patio, path or driveway, plus crushed stone base, bedding sand, edging and dig depth.
Open tool → - Estimators
Insulation Calculator
Turn a target R-value or RSI into thickness, then batts, rolls or blown-in bags for walls, attics and lofts.
Open tool → - Estimators
Siding Calculator
Get net wall area, siding squares, lap boards from exposure, corner trim, J-channel and house wrap.
Open tool → - Estimators
Carpet Calculator
Work out the carpet roll length to buy from room size and roll width, with seams, waste, underlay and gripper.
Open tool → - Estimators
Baseboard and Trim Calculator
Get linear feet or metres of baseboard, door and window casing and crown molding, with waste and stock lengths.
Open tool → - Estimators
Countertop Calculator
Add up countertop runs, island and backsplash in ft² or m², then estimate stone slabs, finished edge and cost.
Open tool → - Calculators
Reverberation Time (RT60) Calculator
Estimate Sabine and Eyring RT60 from room size and finishes, compare with targets and size acoustic panels.
Open tool → - Calculators
Ventilation Rate Calculator
Get ASHRAE 62.2 whole-house ventilation in cfm or L/s, air changes per hour and kitchen and bath exhaust.
Open tool → - Calculators
Room Heat Loss Calculator
Add up fabric and ventilation heat loss for a room in watts and BTU/h to size radiators and heat pumps.
Open tool → - Calculators
Rainwater Harvesting Calculator
Estimate yearly rainwater yield from roof area, rainfall and roof type, and size a tank by the 5% rule or dry days.
Open tool → - Calculators
Spiral Staircase Calculator
Size a spiral stair from floor height and diameter, with risers, walkline tread depth, headroom and IRC/IBC checks.
Open tool → - Estimators
Grout Calculator
Work out grout in kg or lb and bags from tile size, joint width, joint depth and tiled area.
Open tool → - Calculators
Solar Panel Roof Calculator
See how many solar panels fit a roof plane inside the setbacks, the system size in kWp and the yearly kWh.
Open tool → - Calculators
Baluster Spacing Calculator
Get the baluster count and an equal gap under the 4 in or 100 mm sphere rule for decks and stairs.
Open tool → - Calculators
Rough Opening Calculator
Turn a window or door size into the framed rough opening, header length and rough sill height.
Open tool → - Calculators
Ceiling Fan Size Calculator
Pick a blade span and downrod length from room area and ceiling height, with tip clearance checks.
Open tool → - Calculators
TV Viewing Distance Calculator
Get recommended viewing distance, screen size and wall-mount height from diagonal, FOV and eye height.
Open tool → - Estimators
Curtain Size Calculator
Work out rod width, curtain drop, panel width from fullness and fabric yardage for a window.
Open tool → - Calculators
Water Heater Size Calculator
Estimate tank first-hour rating or tankless peak gpm from fixtures, household size and temperature rise.
Open tool → - Calculators
Duct Size Calculator
Size round and rectangular ducts from airflow in cfm or L/s using friction rate or target velocity.
Open tool → - Calculators
Electrical Load Calculator
Estimate residential service size in amps with a simplified NEC 220 standard-method load calculation.
Open tool → - Estimators
Wall Panelling Calculator
Count shiplap, tongue and groove or slat boards and board and batten strips, plus adhesive and nails for a feature wall.
Open tool → - Estimators
Plaster and Stucco Calculator
Estimate gypsum plaster, render and stucco per coat in kg or lb and bags from area, thickness and product yield.
Open tool → - Estimators
Asphalt Calculator
Turn driveway area and compacted depth into asphalt tons or tonnes, base gravel, truckloads and cost.
Open tool → - Estimators
Epoxy Floor Calculator
Work out epoxy gallons or litres per coat from floor area, dry film thickness and solids, with waste and kit count.
Open tool → - Estimators
Kitchen Cabinet Calculator
Fill kitchen runs with standard base and wall cabinet widths and see the count, fillers, end panels and toe kick.
Open tool → - Design
Bathroom Clearance Guide
Check toilet, basin, shower and tub clearances against IRC R307.1 minimums and NKBA recommendations.
Open tool → - Estimators
Concrete Steps Calculator
Get the concrete volume and 40–80 lb or metric bags for poured steps from the number of steps, rise, tread, width and landing.
Open tool → - Calculators
Pool Volume Calculator
Work out gallons, litres and m³ for rectangular, round, oval and kidney pools with sloped floors, plus fill time and pump flow.
Open tool → - Calculators
Dew Point and Condensation Calculator
Get the dew point from temperature and humidity, then check a wall or window's surface temperature, fRsi and mould risk.
Open tool → - Design
Door Size Guide
Check a door's clear opening width and height against IRC, IBC and ADA minimums, with standard US and UK door sizes and rough openings.
Open tool → - Estimators
Pergola Calculator
Get posts, beams, rafters, purlins, post-hole concrete and connectors for a freestanding pergola, plus an estimated shade percentage.
Open tool → - Estimators
Stud Wall Framing Calculator
Count studs, plates, king and jack studs, cripples and headers for a framed wall from its length, height, spacing and openings.
Open tool →
More tools are added every week: paint, tile and concrete quantities, setbacks, parking and cost estimators.
FAQ
Free tools FAQ
Are these tools really free?
Yes. Every tool on this page runs in your browser, needs no account and has no usage limit.
Who are they for?
Architects, architecture students, interior designers, builders and homeowners who need quick, reliable numbers during design and planning.
Are the results code compliant?
The tools use standard formulas and common code limits, but local regulations vary. Use them for design and feasibility, and confirm final figures with your local building authority.
How is this related to BasedFrame?
BasedFrame is an AI design studio that turns sketches and photos into photoreal renders. We built these free tools for the same people who use it: anyone designing spaces.
Turn any listing
into rooms that sell
Start with a Zillow link or a single photo. Redesign, stage, relight and walk buyers through every room, ready to list today.