With the aid of intuitive, user-friendly landscape design software, exterior architects and designers can easily streamline the time-consuming practices that threaten to bog down projects. No matter the objective—whether it’s plotting a detailed garden layout, creating a technical drawing, dreaming up realistic renderings and animations, or even mapping terrain and hashing out strict budgets—these handy tools are critical for running a business that thrives on equal-parts imagination and organization.
Not sure which landscape design software programs and apps are right for your practice? Consider these 10 expert-approved options that are sure to take your verdant exteriors to the next level.
Find a landscape designer in your area with the AD PRO Directory, our network of AD-approved professionals. Start your search
.png){kind=logo}
Adobe Creative Cloud
Adobe Creative Cloud is a go-to for landscape architects and designers because its extensive library includes Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, and Premiere Pro all in one convenient location.
- Operating system: Windows and Mac
- Plan: Subscription model
- Suite of Adobe apps integrate well and work across multiple devices
- File sharing is a breeze
- Pricey
- Large number of features can be overwhelming to navigate and not always useful
- Begins at $69.99 per month
AutoCAD
An alternative to laborious hand drawings, AutoCAD is a fast, efficient drafting solution.
- Operating system: Windows but can be run on Macs through virtualization software
- Plan: Subscription model
- 2D drafting and 3D modeling capabilities
- Accurate designs
- Complex files tend to mean slow performance
- The need for high RAM
- Begins at $175 per month
Land F/X
Land F/X customizes and colorizes plans, making smart use of pre-filled data and placement and error check competencies. On the less glamorous administrative side, it generates schedules in seconds.
- Operating system: Windows but can be run on Macs through virtualization software
- Plan: Subscription model
- Massive database of more than 50,000 plants to choose from
- Generates instant, automated plant labels
- It’s a plug-in that requires CAD, SketchUp, Revit, or Land F/X’s exclusive F/X CAD
- Potential configuration issues
- Begins at $175 per year
Lumion
Lumion makes it easy for landscape architects and designers to visualize their projects from a vast library of models, special effects, light profiles, and utilities.
- Operating system: Windows
- Plan: Subscription model
- Clear interface
- Fast rendering speed
- Limited modeling and animation capabilities
- Renderings don’t always yield life-like results
- Begins at $199 per month
Morpholio Trace
Dedicated to sketching and drawing, Morpholio Trace allows landscape architects and designers to tackle schematic designs, architectural drawings, and markups with an assist from tools like stencils and augmented reality.
- Operating system: iOS
- Plan: Subscription model
- Full drawings and markups can be made in-app
- The clever “Super Ruler” feature leads to precise, adjustable drawings
- Limited drawing styles and landscape material options
- Raster based instead of vector based, so images can become blurry and pixelated when scaled up
- Begins at $9.99 per year
Punch!
Both the Home & Landscape Design Architectural and Professional Series from Punch! span house plans, annotation tools, and libraries full of materials, objects, and accessories to conceptualize blueprints and 3D-model templates that put decks and patios in the spotlight.
- Operating system: Windows and Mac
- Plan: Subscription model and license
- Drag-and-drop interface
- LightWorks technology, available in the architectural series, helps ensure photorealistic renderings
- Limited flexibility
- Steep learning curve
- Begins at $99.99 per year
Realtime Landscaping Pro
There are more than 6,000 plants to choose from in the Realtime Landscaping Pro library, and via the Plant Growth tool, architects and designers can predict the evolution of a garden over the years to best determine spacing and sizing.
- Operating system: Windows
- Plan: Perpetual license
- Virtual walkthroughs
- Customization of materials, plant symbols, and textures
- Limited plant selection in certain climates
- Terrain tools can be tricky to use
- $279
Rhino 3D
Rhino 3D appeals to landscape architects and designers for its versatility, SubD modeling, and compatibility.
- Operating system: Windows and Mac
- Plan: Perpetual license
- Mathematical NURBS surfaces translate to seamless modeling of complex shapes
- Ample easy-to-follow tutorials
- Outdated interface
- Built-in renderer is best for the basics
- Begins at $995
SketchUp
Professional 3D software for landscape designers and architects, SketchUp is ideal for collaboration and presentations. The free version is convenient for personal use and only requires a web browser.
- Operating system: Windows and Mac
- Plan: Subscription model
- The Extension Warehouse’s array of plug-ins addresses specific needs
- Accessible to beginners
- Challenging for complex, irregular curves
- Reliance on extensions can be a drain
- Begins at $119 a year
Vectorworks Landmark
2D drafted plans effortlessly evolve into 3D site modeling with Vectorworks Landmark. Pre-development analysis, schematic design, development, and construction documents are all part of the mix.
- Operating system: Windows and Mac
- Plan: Subscription model
- Custom curb, border, and edging tool
- Adjustable elevation modifier points
- Cluttered interface
- Plant database lacks diversity
- Begins at $153 a month
Join the AD PRO Directory, our professional network that puts you in front of the right clients. Learn more
.png)
Frequently Asked Questions
Beyond the drafting and visualization simplified by software, these programs can reduce the risk of error with their precise measurements, whittle down time spent on tedious tasks, and make it a cinch to share documents and presentations with colleagues and clients anywhere in the world thanks to cloud -based tools. Vegetation placement and environmental assessments through GIS and site analysis tools are also boons.
Yes, there are several. Planner 5D creates outdoor plans in 2D and 3D with drag-and-drop technology, as does SmartDraw, with its customizable templates and ready-made symbols for plants, furniture, and pools. Those who opt for PRO Landscape + also have access to PRO Landscape Companion, a complementary tablet app available at no additional charge.
iScape is great for homeowners, empowering them with thousands of plants, as well as fire pits, hardscapes, and fences to scroll through and work into their design schemes. Upload a photo from your camera roll and within minutes you can begin editing, beginning with tracing the outline of the ground cover.
Kristin Monji is a big fan of Adobe Creative Cloud’s Illustrator and InDesign applications for good reason. “I think Illustrator is one of the most underrated programs for landscape design. You need to import icons and materials, but the floor plans you can create are visually stunning compared to more traditional landscape design-oriented programs,” explains the principal of New York-based AD PRO Directory firm Birch and Basil Design. “For people who do comprehensive landscape design, especially in urban areas that involve plants, hardscaping/flooring, kitchens, and other custom elements and furniture, I highly recommend that they take a look at Illustrator for their needs.”
At Studio Arth in Miami, an AD PRO Directory-listed practice, founder Rituparna Simlai and her team prefer Rhino to other 3D programs because it “allows one to create forms and shapes that are fluid and more natural while being accurate. One of the best features is the ability to integrate with Grasshopper, a visual programming software that can simplify the mundane aspects of design,” she explains. Although Simlai recommends it for modeling, Studio Arth reserves Rhino for “site analysis such as hydrological flow and slopes, solar studies, and even to automate paving patterns for large sites. When it comes to design, we are old school and like to draw it on trace paper. For sacredness in design and real space making, we need hand-eye coordination.”
How to choose the right landscape design software for you
Melissa Gerstle, principal of her eponymous AD PRO Directory landscape design practice, uses a range of software programs to assist in her projects, including AutoCAD, Photoshop, SketchUp, Canva, ProCreate, and Morpholio Trace. Her advice? “Look to the industry standards to ensure that your investment in software is compatible with what other architects and interior designers are using,” she says. “It’s also important to easily find new hires who are familiar with your software and can hit the ground running. Finally, find the best fit for your workflow—ensuring that you can integrate the right software programs into your processes in ways that will enhance collaboration, creativity, and productivity.”
