Sweet Home 3D

Active

Country: France (FR)
Founded: 2006
Developer: eTeks (France)
Pricing: Free (open-source)
Open source: Yes
Platforms: Windows, macOS, Linux, Web

Indexes

Moving/Floor Planning

Overview

Sweet Home 3D is an interior design application that allows users to draw 2D house floor plans, place furniture from a catalog, and preview designs in 3D. It supports editing walls, rooms, doors, windows, and furniture layouts with simultaneous updates in 2D and 3D views. Targeted at DIY home designers and individuals planning home interiors, it stands out with its free availability, cross-platform support, and browser-based option via Sweet Home 3D Online Manager requiring no installation.¹²³

Key Features

2D Floor Plan Drawing - Draw walls, rooms, doors, and windows on a grid-based plan view with automatic hole computation for openings.
Furniture Catalog - Organized catalog of furniture and objects categorized for dragging onto the floor plan.
3D Preview - Real-time 3D view of the home from top or virtual visitor perspectives, adjustable with mouse.
Room Modification - Edit room names, floor/ceiling colors, textures, and shapes after creation.
Furniture List Management - List of placed furniture showing names, sizes, and characteristics, sortable by columns.
Custom 3D Model Import - Import custom furniture or objects in .obj or .zip formats.
Export Options - Save and export designs in various formats including images and 3D renderings.

Pricing

Plan	Price	Includes
Free Desktop Version	Free	Full 2D/3D design, furniture catalog, exports for Windows/macOS/Linux.
Online Manager	Free	Browser-based design with WebGL, import/export of .sh3d files, no installation.

Platforms & Requirements

Desktop version runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux with Java requirements. Web version uses Sweet Home 3D Online Manager in WebGL-compatible browsers without installation. Mobile version mentioned but details limited; no native iOS/Android apps specified.¹³⁵

Integrations & Ecosystem

Import .obj/.zip 3D models
Export 2D plans as images
Export 3D views as images/videos
Import/export .sh3d home files
WebGL browser compatibility
Custom furniture/textures

Alternatives

App	Difference
SketchUp Free	Web-based with more advanced 3D modeling but steeper learning curve than Sweet Home 3D's simple 2D-to-3D workflow.
Floorplanner	Online-only with collaboration features, unlike Sweet Home 3D's free downloadable app.
HomeByMe	Cloud-based with photorealistic renders and sharing, contrasting Sweet Home 3D's offline focus.
RoomSketcher	Offers professional floor plans and VR views for a fee, while Sweet Home 3D remains fully free.

Reputation

Sweet Home 3D is regarded as a reliable free tool for basic interior design and floor planning, valued by DIY users for its intuitive interface and cross-platform availability.²⁴⁵ Users appreciate the real-time 2D/3D integration and extensive documentation including user guides and forums.¹⁷⁸ Criticisms include limited advanced rendering compared to paid software and dependency on Java for desktop versions.

Sources (8)