Chief Architect
Chief Architect Premier is 3D design software for residential and light commercial projects, including remodeling, kitchens, baths, and interiors.
What Chief Architect is
Chief Architect Premier is 3D design software for residential and light commercial projects, including remodeling, kitchens, baths, and interiors. Draw walls and place architectural objects to build a model, then create materials lists and construction documents such as site plans, framing plans, sections, and elevations. Materials lists can track quantities, unit and labor costs, markup, and project costs, with changes reflected as the design evolves. For presentation, Premier offers realistic and artistic rendering, 360-degree views, virtual tours, and walkthrough videos. Its 3D Library contains thousands of objects, including fixtures, appliances, millwork, furnishings, and manufacturer-specific products. It imports and exports AutoCAD DXF and DWG files and imports OBJ, SKP, STL, and DAE formats. Premier is paid at $229 a month, billed monthly, and includes upgrades, premium catalog downloads, priority technical support, and Chief As-Built plan import. A trial is available, but saving, printing, exporting, and virtual tours are disabled during it.
Good
- Creates construction documents from the 3D design.
- Materials lists update as designs change.
- Includes realistic, artistic, and 360-degree renderings.
- Imports and exports DXF and DWG files.
- LiDAR room models can support remodeling.
Watch out
- No free plan is available.
- Trial disables saving, printing, and exporting.
- Monthly plan costs $229 a month.
- Internet access is required for installation and authentication.
Who it suits
It suits residential and light commercial designers who need modeling, construction documents, and materials estimating in one workflow. Remodeling projects can also use room models captured with LiDAR on supported iPhones and iPads.
Verdict
Chief Architect Premier combines residential and light commercial design tools with estimating, documentation, and visualization. Check the trial restrictions, system requirements, and ongoing subscription cost before choosing it.
Plans and prices
From Chief Architect's own pricing page, checked 2 Oct 2026.
| Plan | Price | What it gives you |
|---|---|---|
| Chief Architect Premier | $229 a month | Includes software upgrades, premium catalog downloads, priority technical support, and Chief As-Built plan import · $229/mo. |
| Chief Architect Premier | $1,995 a year | Includes software upgrades, premium catalog downloads, priority technical support, and Chief As-Built plan import · $1,995/yr. $166.25/mo.—save 27% |
The facts
Each one read from Chief Architect's own pages, with the date it was checked.
What it does
- Building tools
- As users draw walls and place architectural objects, the software creates a 3D model, materials lists, and construction documents such as site plans, framing plans, sections, and elevations.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Design catalog
- Its 3D Library includes thousands of objects such as fixtures, appliances, millwork, furnishings, and manufacturer-specific products.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Estimating
- Materials lists can include unit costs, markup, labor costs, quantities, and project costs, and update as the design changes.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Integrations
- Chief Architect imports and exports AutoCAD DXF and DWG files and imports several 3D formats, including OBJ, SKP, STL, and DAE.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Internet requirement
- Internet access is required for installation, license authentication, deactivation, video and catalog access, with license authentication required once every 14 days.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Mobile scanning
- The As-Built app uses LiDAR on supported iPhones and iPads to create room models that can be imported into Chief Architect for remodeling.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Purpose
- Chief Architect Premier is 3D software for residential and light commercial design, remodeling, kitchens, baths, and interiors.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Security and privacy
- The company says it protects information to industry standards, does not sell personal information, does not store credit card numbers, and uses a PCI-compliant payment processor.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Sharing
- 3D Viewer models can be shared or embedded on web pages and viewed using free iOS and Android apps; the cloud account stores up to 99 models unless a larger storage plan is purchased.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Support
- Priority support is available for X17 and X18; versions X14–X16 have paid per-incident support for $125, and X13 and earlier are ineligible.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Supported desktop systems
- Premier runs natively on Windows 10 or 11 64-bit and supported Macs; the listed minimums include 16 GB RAM, and Mac support requires Apple M1 or newer.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Visualization
- The software supports realistic and artistic rendering, 360-degree renderings, virtual tours, and walkthrough videos.checked 2 Oct 2026
The company
- Company
- Chief Architect, Inc. is privately held, headquartered in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, and says its software began in 1992.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Founded
- 1992checked 23 Sep 2026
- Headquarters
- Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, United Stateschecked 23 Sep 2026
Money
- Trial limits
- The trial does not expire, but saving, printing, exporting, and virtual tours are disabled.checked 2 Oct 2026
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