Free for owners
PlotBarn is free for owners.
Everything on this site that helps you plan and run your build is free, and will stay free for owners. There is no paywall, no card and nothing to buy.
Without an account
No sign-up, no card, no time limit.
- Land search Search and save lots, with a due-diligence checklist for each.
- Designer Presets, footprint, rooms, garage, porches and finishes on a dimensioned 2D plan.
- Live estimate Itemized low, base and high figures that update as you design, with scenario compare.
- Conceptual plan set Fifteen sheets as a vector PDF, drawn in your browser for the current design, with its issue date and a design reference code.
- Material takeoff and cost report Preliminary quantities as a CSV, and the estimate as a report.
- Financing planner A rough construction-loan picture from your estimate and a rate you type in. An illustration, not a loan offer.
- Local draft Your work is kept in your browser on this device.
Planning estimate, not a contractor quote or binding bid. Site conditions, specifications and local market prices may materially change cost.
With a free account
Everything on the left, plus the build workspace.
- Saved projects Your design, land and estimate stored in your account instead of one browser.
- Vendors and bids A scope-of-work template for each trade, your own vendors and contacts, and bids side by side.
- Budget Baseline, bids, contracts and actual costs, with variance against your estimate.
- Schedule, tasks and checklists Milestones by phase, a task board and due-diligence checklists.
- Files Private uploads for surveys, bids, contracts and photos.
- Financing The financing planner, working from the project’s estimate.
- Share and export A read-only share link for the design, and an export of the project’s data.
An account uses an email address and password. Create a free account or tour a sample workspace first.
How we plan to pay for it
A partner program — planned, not live.
A free product has to be paid for somehow, and you should know how. Our plan is for the businesses that want to work with owners to pay, in the style of a lead marketplace. It does not exist yet.
- The idea
- Contractors and trades would pay to be listed as verified vendors and to receive project requests. Lenders would pay for referrals. That is how PlotBarn intends to earn money later.
- What exists today
- None of it. No vendor or lender pays PlotBarn, nobody is verified, PlotBarn sends no leads or messages to anyone, and every vendor and lender shown in the product is a fictional, labeled demo entry.
- What it means for owners
- Owners will not be charged, now or if the program launches. We have not set a date for it and are not promising one.
Know the limits
What PlotBarn does not do.
PlotBarn gets your intent onto paper and your project organized. The work below still belongs to licensed professionals and your local authority.
- Engineering No structural, foundation, civil or MEP engineering. Concept sheets do not size anything.
- Stamped drawings Nothing is sealed or signed by an architect or engineer.
- Permit submission PlotBarn does not prepare or file permit applications.
- Contractor services PlotBarn does not build, manage construction or supply labor or materials.
- Loans or loan advice PlotBarn is not a lender or broker. The financing planner is an illustration only.
- Vetted vendors PlotBarn does not vet or recommend vendors. Bundled vendors and lenders are fictional demo entries.
See which professionals you will still need and the full disclaimer.
Is it really free?
Yes. Every owner-facing tool is free: land search, the designer, the estimate, the plan set with its takeoff and cost report, the financing planner and the build workspace. There is no trial period and no tier to upgrade to.
PlotBarn does not take payments from owners, so there is nowhere on the site to enter a card.
Will it stay free?
For owners, yes. The plan for covering costs is a partner program paid for by contractors, trades and lenders — not by the people planning a build.
Will you sell my information to contractors?
Nothing is shared with contractors, trades or lenders today. There is no partner program yet, and PlotBarn sends no leads or messages to anyone.
If a partner program launches, an introduction to a partner would be something you ask for, and the privacy policy would be updated first.
What do I need an account for?
Only to save projects and use the build workspace. Finding land, designing, the estimate, the plan set and the financing planner all work without one, and that work stays in your browser.
An account is free and uses an email address and password.
Are plan sets stored? Can I get an earlier one back?
No. A plan set is drawn in your browser each time you open the Plans page, always for the design as it is now. PlotBarn does not keep copies.
Each set carries its issue date and a short design reference code. If you want to keep a version, download the PDF before you change the design.
Are the vendors and lenders in the product real?
No. They are fictional demo entries, labeled as such, so you can see how the vendor and financing tools work. They are not available for hire or lending, and their presence is not a recommendation.
Is the financing planner a quote from a lender?
No. It is arithmetic on your planning estimate and a rate you type in. It is an illustration, not a loan offer, pre-approval, rate quote or financial advice, and PlotBarn is not a lender or broker.
Start with a lot, or start with a layout.
Find land, lay out the building, read the estimate and open the plan set. None of it needs an account.
Free for owners, with no card. A free account is only needed to save projects and use the build workspace.