Best Apps for Interior Designers- Free & Paid
Ever wondered what apps are the best for interior designers to use? This blog post will explain the best apps that interior designers should use free and paid. This is the first in a series of blog posts. I use a lot! I also plan to explain each app in much greater detail in subsequent posts, so check back regularly.
Some of these apps work only on an iPad or iPhone but some work on both and some work only on the computer.
These are all apps that I use in my daily workflow - I don’t know what I would do without them, they save me so much time and make my life a lot easier.
Images created on Canva
Canva
I have been a user of Canva since they launched in 2014, in fact, I was a beta tester. Boy, has this app grown a lot since the early days. I can use the Adobe Suite, and certainly, if I was creating an asset for a client or even a presentation I might open up Microsoft or Google, but for the quick creation of content, Canva can’t be beaten.
One of the big advantages of Canva is its ability to store everything in the cloud. Even though social media companies will try to tell you that Canva templates are not good enough for social media, its speed outweighs its lack of originality. As long as your images are bright and striking, it will get attention. I will download assets to upload to various platforms but once I have used them, I can delete them from my computer and rest assured that I can create them again if I need to. I am still paying for my Adobe Suite, and I use Photoshop and Lightroom quite a bit, but it is pretty expensive and I am starting to think it is not really worth it. I’ll be weighing in a bit more on Adobe Suite in later blog posts.
Tailwind
This is an app that I am just starting to use. I really want to grow my Pinterest account and it can be hard-going. However, with Tailwind, its ability to really post Pinterest content is second to none. I have just started spending a bit of time on it and so far so good. The best part of Tailwind is that it allows you to create pins in advance.
Procreate
This iPad app is part useful for work and part entertainment. It’s amazing what you can create on Procreate. I use it to make notes and drawings on site. I also have been using it for hand-drawn renderings. It’s a lot easier to draw with that undo button. I love being able to create my own brushes and adjust them. I can great hand-drawn graphics for my site so easily. So fun to use.
Canvas
This is so impressive and is such a time saver. You take a scan of a 3D space using an iPhone or an iPad, upload to the Canvas site and, a few days later, a full 3D model arrives in Sketchup format. You can visit the site again virtually so that you can check if there is something you missed. I take a few check measurements on-site so I can check the model that I was sent. You can save hours on drafting and modelling. I usually have to make a few tweaks to the file (mainly changing tags) but otherwise it is good to go. If you are an interior designer this is a game-changer and something that is so great if you need to get started on a project fast.
The cost is around USD0.15 per square foot.
Harvest
Ever wondered why you aren’t making any money as an interior designer? It’s probably because you haven’t analysed how much time you are spending on tasks and thus your quoting is off. If I were you, I would start tracking my time on Harvest immediately. From Harvest, you can set the app to measure how much time you are spending per project and project task. You will be able to work out and estimate how much time you are spending on tasks. You download an app on your phone if you are out or set the timer on the computer.
You will soon have a lot of data that you can work out as either chargeable or not. This means that if you do have an idea of how much time you are spending, you won’t be caught out again.
Zoom
This app probably needs no introduction. It was one of the big winners of the Pandemic. The free version of the app is probably enough for interior designers unless you run really large interior design projects with many stakeholders. I have saved so much time moving some of my client meetings to Zoom. I am often working on projects where the client is travelling or lives overseas and it is amazing to be able to meet with them and show them how the project is progressing. I haven’t tried the whiteboard app yet but it may be useful for ideation
Notion
Like Canva this is an app that I visit a number of times a day. It can be a little hard to get your head around because it is so flexible. You can literally make it do whatever you want. I like to think about it as a type of website that you build yourself. As long as you make sure that you have put a navigation bar in place, you can always move around the site.
Once you are able to use it, your knowledge and use can just grow. I use it as a client portal, communicating with clients, and organising my content creation. The ability to create databases is second to none and makes you able to create powerful content management systems so easily.
The free version of the app is probably enough if you have a small business, though even the group plans are really cheap. The personal pro plan is around USD4 per month. On a paid plan you have unlimited file uploads which means storing a lot of information is a breeze.
I’ll be writing a lot more about how I use Notion in my design business. Be sure to sign up to the newsletter or Instagram to follow me.
Are you :
✔️ looking for more clients✔️ wanting to launch your new interior design biz effectively?
✔️ wanting to upskill your offerings?
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