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7 best landscape design software for 2024

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Updated on:
June 21, 2024
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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Landscape designing software offers creativity and expertise to ensure you present accurate designs to clients. They also help you share your policies and requirements with the clients so there will be no misunderstanding in the future. Landscape design software helps you ensure that you and your client are on the same page before you actually start working on the project. It acts as a guideline for the project that reduces problems and issues throughout the process. If you struggle to manage your small business, you need to opt for suitable software based on your business needs.

Criteria for Selection

Here are the seven best landscape design software for businesses and solo entrepreneurs to help them improve their work. These tools are based on the client’s expectations that designers need to fulfill. Since businesses need to look professional throughout the design, these tools can help them achieve it. Read further to learn about the best software in the market.

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1. Bonsai

Overview of Bonsai

Managing your freelance clients can be such a difficult task. If you are a new business, handling your hard-earned clients can’t be easier too. How do you write your first contract? How will you get paid for your service? Bonsai can help you make this problem easier.

Bonsai is an incredible tool that offers all the important features to impress clients. Whether you work as a freelancer or have a small or large business, you can benefit from Bonsai’s work management features. From contracts to proposals, expenses, invoices, taxes, and even time tracking - Bonsai can manage it all.

Bonsai can make all the difficult tasks of the work easy and approachable. You can try Bonsai for free; if you get satisfied, you can use it for a long.

Features

When it comes to Bonsai, here are some of the best features:

  • Time tracking
  • Contracts
  • Proposals
  • Invoices
  • Task Tracking
  • Taxes and Accounting

These features allow you to fasten your payment process, minimize workload, and use the same contract for every client. This will minimize the risk of making mistakes impacting customer satisfaction or your business.

Pros and cons

Benefits

  • Web-based tool
  • Support most of the devices
  • Works best for small businesses, medium businesses, and enterprise
  • Cost-effective tool
  • Wide range of packages to choose

Drawbacks

  • Customer support is only available online and not via phone.

Best for running your small business

Bonsai is an ideal solution for small businesses struggling to meet all their responsibilities while satisfying their clients. This is because of the amount of work they need to do with fewer workforces. This amazing tool is easy to use. Businesses don’t need to invest extensively in training employees to make the best use of this software.

Pricing plans

Bonsai offers a free trial to clients who need to test its features. Also, its packages start from $50/month. You can find many packages that you can choose from based on your needs and requirements.

2. SketchUp

Overview of SketchUp

This is another amazing tool for landscape designers. It’s user-friendly 3D modeling software that designers can use without additional training. SketchUp helps designers turn their ideas into reality with some amazing features.

Whether you design miniature or massive, SketchUp will help you. Sketch it, refine concepts, share your vision, and bring your imagination into the world. This tool can create incredible renderings and work as a presentation, helping professional creative artists easily display their ideas.

Features

Here are some most popular features of SketchUp.

  • Support different languages like Korean, Spanish, Russian, Chinese, and others
  • Design options like modeling, rendering, drawing, visualize are all available with a single tool
  • Editing options like views, file import, etc
  • 3D rendering integrations

Pros and cons

Benefits

  • Web-based tool
  • Simple and easy to use
  • Allows to design a wide variety of things
  • Availability of pre-modeled content via the 3D warehouse
  • The fast designing process to add a new element in already made models

Drawbacks

  • The use of extensions is challenging

Best for freelancers or solo entrepreneurs

SketchUp is a landscape design software that helps you design a wide variety of high-quality projects with simple and easy-to-use options. All you need is to be creative and willing to try new things to surprise your clients with your work.

Pricing plans

It has different pricing plans, and the lowest one is $119 for a year. You can opt for a plan based on your business requirements and design needs.

3. VizTerra

Overview of VizTerra

It is a cloud-based 3D landscape designing tool that enables wood decks or hardscape designers to create 3D and 2D outdoor living spaces.

Designers in the industry can benefit from the built-in content browser to access the new categories and library. The best part about this tool is that it allows you to automatically identify needed changes and make recalculations. Furthermore, you can adjust image resolution to more than 8K.

Features

Some features that you may like about VizTerra are:

  • Video mode
  • GIS images
  • Import AutoCAD files
  • Available on Windows

Pros and cons

Benefits

  • Offers training of tools by documentation, webinars, and live online sessions
  • Perfect to create appealing landscape designs
  • Makes 2D and 3D landscaping designing easy and seamless
  • The library comes with pre-built models and objects to quicken the process

Drawbacks

  • No additional features like appointment scheduling, automated scheduling, and accounting that are needed for other tools

Best for small, medium, and large businesses

Since the idea of VizTerra is to fasten the 2D and 3D landscape designing, any business can benefit from it.

Pricing plans

You can avail of it for around $97 per month. But the prices change over time. Also, annual billing options are valuable too.

4. Vectorworks Landmark

Overview of Vectorworks Landmark

It offers tools designed to streamline BIM workflows and landscape-specific design. Also, the landmark’s intelligent tools, such as hardscapes, plants, automated irrigation tools, terrain models, flexible documentation features, and powerful databases, will help you create 3D and 2D models to analyze, collaborate, and present on projects.

The integrated GIS file management will help you apply geodesign processes in planning natural environments and building constructions. You can also create high-quality renderings inside the Vectorworks design file.

Features

Here are some best features of Vectorworks Landmark.

  • Multi-user
  • Drawing, designing, and editing options
  • Visualizing 3D design
  • Automated worksheets, data reports, and schedules
  • Integrated 2D/3D modeling and design
  • Calculate fill and cut earthwork quantities

Pros and cons

Benefits

  • Offers free trial
  • Amazing pricing plans based on features
  • Provides you with videos, webinars, and documentation to help you train for the tool
  • Can integrate with Artlantic and Vectorworks Spotlight

Drawbacks

  • Not an advanced BIM authoring tool

Best for 2D and 3D designers

If you are looking for a tool that can do both 2D and 3D designing, it’s an ideal option. It will help you with designing, and its scheduling option makes your workflow even more hassle-free and seamless.

Pricing plans

You can get a free trial or opt for its minimum package of $153 per month.

5. DynaSCAPE

Overview of DynaSCAPE

DynaSCAPE is a business management solution and design software for professional landscape designers. It is a suite of web-based tools- used by contractors, architects, designers, and property owners to present digitally accurate models of their projects.

DynaSCAPE allows you to make extraordinary designs with minimal effort and time. You don’t need to do endless work, but having a creative mindset and training, and knowledge of designing is enough to create a one-of-a-kind design.

With DynaSCAPE, you can easily export the design to rendering software to take your design to the next level. Color rendering will also get easier when you use DynaSCAPE tools.

Features

Some amazing features of DynaSCAPE are:

  • Billing and invoicing
  • Contract management
  • Landscape design
  • Job management
  • Quotes and estimates
  • Scheduling and appointments

Pros and cons

Benefits

  • Allows mobile access
  • Works great on Windows
  • Customer support is available
  • Provides training to experts through webinars, live online, and documentation

Drawbacks

  • Don’t offer payroll management, inventory control, and dispatch management

Best for startups and small business

Small businesses and startups can use this tool for simple designing models. Since they don’t have clients as much as large companies, they can use the tool for workflow management too.

Pricing plans

A free trial is available so professionals can check if it works for them and meets their needs before actually buying a plan. The lowest plan starts at $155.

6. Land F/X

Overview of Land F/X

This tool is tailored to the requirements and needs of irrigation designers, landscape architects, and other professionals. This landscape design software automates tedious designing tasks and offers accuracy.

Land F/X helps you share organized and updated details. The tool also provides a detail management system that makes designing, customizing, and saving your details easy. With Land F/X, you need to work less, design more, have instant schedules, and do error-checking.

Features

Here are some most popular features of Land F/X.

  • 3D connection
  • Build your design with the help of CAD
  • Job management
  • Scheduling and appointments
  • Irrigation tracking

Pros and cons

Benefits

  • Fast account opening and digital process
  • Low minimum deposit
  • Free deposits
  • ECN account and standard account with commission basis

Drawbacks

  • Fees and conditions vary based on the account type

Best for landscape designers and architects

Landscape designers who want to present their ideas to clients can use this tool. Professionals who need fast results can also opt for Land F/X.

Pricing plans

There are different pricing plans for Land F/X. And the starting package is $175 annually.

7. Chief Architect

Overview of Chief Architect

It is a professional designing, drafting, and building modeling tool for commercial and residential designing and renovations. This software can help you give life to home design projects.

Chief Architect is an interior design, home design, bath & kitchen design tool that creates elevations, construction drawings, 3D models, and CAD details.

Features

Here are some interesting features.

  • Compatible with most types of systems and devices
  • User friendly
  • Remodeling options
  • Automatic backups
  • Allows importing models

Pros and cons

Benefits

  • Helps to switch between different textures and surfaces in the building models
  • Offers webinars for training
  • Works best on all Mac computers and Windows
  • Offer updates to stay relevant in the market

Drawbacks

  • Roofing construction doesn’t render correctly

Best for floorplans and 3D model designers

Its features make it easier for a 3D model to craft floorplans for commercial and residential settings. You can use its library of smart objects and robust landscaping toolkit for efficient designing.

Pricing plans

Try its free version to test results. The minimum package starts from around $3,000.

Comparison of the Top 7 Landscape Design Software

  • Bonsai

Bonsai is best to streamline your workflow, get an accurate contract, and minimize payment issues with only a $50 monthly fee.

  • SketchUp

This web-based tool offers 3D modeling to professionals for only $119 price.

  • VizTerra

It offers both 3D and 2D designing and easy rendering. It’s also affordable and offers $97 packages.

  • Vectorworks Landmark

This is an amazing tool for just $153 per month and offers 3D and 2D designs. It also offers project management options.

  • DynaSCAPE

It’s a work management software offering designing features for only a $155 monthly fee.

  • Land F/X

It offers only 3D designing and features an amazing tool to make designing easier. You can get it for $175 annually.

  • Chief Architect

This software is compatible with most devices, making it one of the best 3D designing tools. But it has a high price of $3,000 per month.

Other Landscape Design Software to Consider

1. Smart Draw

This amazing design software tool offers options for yards, decks, gardeners, pools, and other surface designs. There are thousands of items in the object library that you can drop in the design, such as irrigation elements such as sprinkler systems, curved pathways, and specific species of plants.

Pros

  • Simple drag-and-drop tool
  • Seven-day free trial

Cons

  • No 3D graphics

2. iScape

It helps you add landscaping elements directly to your design project. You can share your project directly from the phone and view it when needed.

Pros

  • Allows to upload own photos
  • Straightforward design tools

Cons

  • Features during the free trial are limited

3. PRO Landscape

This software helps you use it on two systems simultaneously. It offers professional-level blueprints and drawings and let you import your photos.

Pros

  • 3D rendering tool
  • Free lifetime tech support

Cons

  • No free trial

How to choose the right landscape design software for your needs

Wondering which landscape design software will be suitable for you? Do you need Bonsai, Chief Architect, or any other? Well, it depends on your needs and requirements. As a business or solopreneur, you need to consider the following to make the right decision.

  • Consider your budget
  • Look for features that your business needs
  • Think about your client’s requirement
  • Opt for software that helps you minimize your work
  • Go for a tool that streamlines your workflow
  • Think about usability, device compatibility, and free trial options

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

How to use landscape design software?

Look for the instructions the software gives you - download to install if needed. Begin using the tool by exploring different features.

What is the best landscape design software?

Bonsai is your best option to help manage your workflow. It can help reduce the risk of potential losses by providing you with nothing but the best services for your clients. It’ll help you take your business to new heights and stand out among competitors with its exceptional features. It’ll help run your business smoothly by helping you deliver excellent work to your client

Conclusion

We hope you have learned to choose the best landscape design software for your business. The right software can help you grow your business and attract new clients.

Landscape software is designed to help both newbies and professionals to make their work less daunting, time-consuming, and challenging. You are truly missing if you are not leveraging these. So, don’t wait and pick one for your business.

Opt for Bonsai if you are looking for workflow management software that offers contracts, invoices, and many other features. This software will help you provide the best services to clients by ensuring you get paid for your services.

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