Alternatives
MagiCAD Alternative
The services in the same model as the building: circuits, heating and water, drainage at its falls, and ducts and MVHR, drawn on the plan and exported to IFC4 in their systems.
MagiCAD: Quote only. Home 3D Plan (home3dplan.com): Free.
What MagiCAD does, and where it is here
Ventilation
Ducts, extract fans, MVHR, grilles and air conditioning units. See the tool
Heating and plumbing
Water, heating and gas pipes with radiators, boilers and heat pumps. See the tool
Drainage
Fixtures, soil and waste pipes, chambers and rainwater, laid at their falls. See the tool
Electrical design
Sockets, switches, lights and boards on the plan, wired into circuits and checked against NEC rules. See the tool
IFC hand over
Every service exported to IFC4 as a typed element in its system, with its ports. See the tool
Home 3D Plan and MagiCAD, side by side
| Feature | Home 3D Plan | MagiCAD |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Quote only |
| Free option | Start in the browser with no account | Trial |
| Runs on | Any modern browser: Windows, Mac, Linux, ChromeOS, iPad and phone | Windows, inside Revit or AutoCAD |
| Install | None. Can be installed as a web app | Revit or AutoCAD, plus MagiCAD |
| IFC | IFC4 export of architecture, structure and services | Through the host program |
| DWG and DXF | DWG and DXF in and out | Through AutoCAD |
| Structure | Columns, beams, braces, footings and gridlines, with a reinforcement bar schedule | See vendor |
| Services (MEP) | Electrical, plumbing and heating, drainage, ventilation, gas and solar PV | Ventilation, heating, cooling, piping, sprinklers and electrical, with calculations |
| Site and terrain | Survey levels, terraces, retaining walls, roads, paving and planting | See vendor |
| Quantities | Takeoff by storey, element, function and material, as CSV or a workbook | Bills of materials |
| Drawings and sheets | Sections, elevations, 1:5 details and sheet sets to PDF, DWG, DXF and SVG | Through the host program |
| Rendering | Four render tiers, the top one a GPU path tracer on desktop | Through the host program |
| Team work | Organisation projects with discipline roles and live presence | Through the host program |
| AI and agents | MCP server with 38 tools for Claude, ChatGPT and other agents | See vendor |
MagiCAD prices as published on 10 October 2026 (https://www.g2.com/products/magicad/pricing). "See vendor" means the vendor does not publish the fact or we could not confirm it. MagiCAD is a trademark of MagiCAD Group. Home 3D Plan is not affiliated with MagiCAD Group.
What MagiCAD does that Home 3D Plan does not
- Engineering calculations: duct and pipe sizing, pressure drop and balancing.
- A large library of real manufacturer products with their data.
- Sprinkler design.
- Works inside Revit and AutoCAD, where most engineering offices already are.
Moving from MagiCAD
Open the architectural DWG here and draw the services on the plan.
Send the services out as IFC4 to coordinate with a MagiCAD model.
Which one fits your work
Pick MagiCAD when
- You are a services engineer sizing systems with calculations.
- You need manufacturer product data.
- Your office works in Revit or AutoCAD.
Pick Home 3D Plan when
- You lay out the services of a house or small building with the architecture.
- You do not want to buy a host CAD program.
- You want the services in IFC4 with the building.
How to start
Open the editor
Go to home3dplan.com and open the editor. Nothing to install and no account needed to start.
Bring your drawing
Open a DWG or DXF and turn its lines into walls, or trace over a PDF or a scan set to scale.
Build the model
Draw walls and the storeys, rooms, slabs and 3D model follow. Add roofs, structure, services and the site.
Send it out
Print sections, elevations and sheets to PDF or DWG, and send the building out as IFC4.
MagiCAD and Home 3D Plan, answered
Does Home 3D Plan size ducts and pipes?
It lays them out on the plan and in 3D, with their systems, and gives a heat loss figure as a guide. It does not run pressure drop or sizing calculations; a services engineer signs those off.
How much does MagiCAD cost compared with Home 3D Plan?
MagiCAD: Quote only, as published on 10 October 2026. Home 3D Plan is free to use in the browser today.
Does Home 3D Plan export IFC and DWG?
Yes. The building goes out as IFC4, with its architecture, structure and services, and the drawings go out as DWG, DXF, PDF and SVG. DWG and DXF also come in. The editor does not open IFC files.
Do I need to install anything?
No. Home 3D Plan runs in any modern browser on Windows, Mac, Linux, ChromeOS, iPad and phones, and can be installed as a web app if you want an icon.
Read on
- Ventilation: Ducts, extract fans, MVHR, grilles and air conditioning units.
- Electrical: Sockets, switches, lights and boards on the plan, wired into circuits.
- Stabicad alternative: Electrical and mechanical services in one browser model.
- DDS-CAD alternative: Every service of a house in one browser model.
- All alternatives: Every product we compare against, with its price.